The Best Hammer

I have a decade of experience in the construction industry, mostly as a carpenter working on high-end custom homes. During that time, I used hammers to pound nails, bust up brick, demolish plaster, chip concrete, break tile, and knock framing lumber into place. I’ve also been writing about and reviewing tools since 2007. I’ve worked with countless hammers, using them to drive everything from teeny-tiny brads to massive framing spikes.

To learn more about hammers, I interviewed Mark Piersma and Mike Lancelotta, two high-end carpenters who work in the Boston area. At the time of the interviews, they had a combined total of 25 years of jobsite experience. I also researched hammers in guides from This Old House and BobVila.com.

Here’s what we looked at as we researched various hammers:

A 16-ounce hammer: This size offers enough power for most jobs but isn’t overly heavy for most people. Carpenter Mark Piersma uses his 16-ounce hammer for “pretty much everything.” In our experience, anything bigger is awkward to use for picture hangers and little finish nails. And smaller hammers will struggle with larger nails and projects like building raised beds or a garage workbench, or for deck repair. We evaluated hammers in a range of sizes to offer options for a range of abilities. (Funny story: The listed weight of a hammer is only the weight of the head, not its total weight. The first dozen 16-ounce hammers we tested ranged in weight from about 1½ pounds to nearly 2 pounds. We also tested a 14-ounce hammer that was heavier than five of the 16-ounce models.)

A curved-claw hammer: This type of hammer has a pronounced arc in the claw that provides great leverage for pulling nails, so it’s a good choice for around-the-house use. A straight-claw hammer is better for prying and demolition.

An all-metal hammer: This type offers the best in maintenance-free durability. As a single piece of steel that starts at the head and ends at the base of the handle, there is no way for the head to separate from the handle or for the handle to break. The main criticism of metal handles is that they have less shock absorption than composite or wood handles, so more of the hammer’s impact is transferred back to the arm. True, but this is not a major concern unless you’re using a hammer all day every day.

A price of around $25 to $30: This is a good target for a long-lasting, quality tool. Some hammers cost as little as $5, but those have cheap handles and poor ergonomics. There are also pricier tools, typically made of titanium, that cost as much as $330. These pricey models offer benefits with weight, power, and shock absorption. The majority of them are meant for framing, but smaller models are available (like the 10-ounce Stiletto Trimbone, which we now recommend).

To test hammers, we spent hours pounding, pulling, bending, and prying nail after nail after nail. We hit everything from large, 3¼-inch 16d framing spikes to needle-thin picture hanger nails. Additionally, we put several candidates in the hands of those who do not work as professional carpenters, so we could gauge their opinions on which ones they’d prefer for occasional DIY work. Since making our first picks in 2014, we’ve continued to use our recommended hammers and test new ones as they become available. Much of this testing has been done at an old rural property where there is a constant stream of projects and renovations.

Top pick

Estwing E3-16C

The best hammer

In addition to its indestructible steel design, this hammer is perfectly balanced, offers a great grip, and has a stellar reputation. Countless carpenters have proved that it will last a lifetime.

Buying Options

$26 from Amazon

$27 from Lowe's

$34 from Walmart

After countless hours of pounding, pulling, and tapping nails, we’re confident that the Estwing E3-16C is the best hammer for around-the-house use. It’s about as perfect as a hammer gets, and it doesn’t try to do anything fancy or gimmicky.

The E3-16C is comfortable to hold and nicely balanced, whereas many competitors feel top-heavy. At 1 pound 10½ ounces, it was one of the lightest hammers we tested (weights ranged up to just under 2 pounds). When we were swinging them all side by side, the Estwing E3-16C felt noticeably lighter and well balanced. And with a nice weight distribution of the head in proportion to the handle, this hammer is easier to swing and hold than other models.

The E3-16C’s grip is another highlight. Made of nylon vinyl, it feels like a dense rubber. It’s comfortable to hold, and it has a very slight squish that adds confidence to the grip. There’s a nice little flare at the base of the handle, and the grip area has a good tack to it, so the hammer won’t easily slip out of the hands during a hefty swing. In 25 years of using an Estwing, I’ve never had one fly out of my hand. Some competitor models had individual finger grooves, which can be uncomfortable or limit the way you hold the tool. In others, the too-squishy padding can feel unstable or uncomfortable to hold.

Vibration is not a problem with the E3-16C. According to Estwing, the handle contains “the best available grip for reducing vibrations caused by impact.” During testing, I didn’t feel any real difference among most hammers with regard to vibration. In my own extended use of various Estwing hammers, I’ve found the negative effects from vibration don’t really occur— with occasional use. If vibration is a real issue for you, titanium hammers offer a (high-price) alternative by transferring much more of the striking power to the nail and less to the arm. For that, we recommend the Stiletto Trimbone.

The E3-16C excels at actual hammering, too, with a standard-size 1-inch-diameter striking face. This allows for a nice line of sight when hitting a small picture hanger nail or brad, while still packing enough heft to bury a framing spike in a manageable number of swings. This was a difficult task for the tools with oversized striking faces.

The E3-16C pulled nails without a problem, as did the rest of the hammers we tested. This was the one area where the tools were all in the same ballpark. Only a Stanley hammer distinguished itself here, due to the extremely steep curve of its claw, but that hammer has been discontinued.

Estwing hammers are durable, reliable, long-lasting tools. Throughout a 10-year construction career and in the ensuing years (including a nearly four-year gut and remodel of my own home), I’ve used a metal-handled Estwing as my primary hammer (our also-great pick, the E3-20S straight-claw hammer). After years and years of aggressive daily use, it still shows no signs of major wear. The milled edges aren’t as crisp as they used to be, and the hammer has taken on a weathered patina (the mark of a well-used tool), but it displays no signs of functional failure. In fact, all the use and small dings has given it something of a personality.

Carpenters generally share this high opinion of Estwing hammers. Both pros we interviewed use them as their primary hammers on a daily basis.

Mark Piersma, with over 12 years of construction experience, has a 16-ounce Estwing that “is pretty much my go-to hammer for everything.” Piersma said he likes it “because it is just plain solid.” He went on with specifics: “I think one of the best features is that it is well balanced. I really get the feel that it is one unit and not just a heavy head on a handle that I’m swinging around like a sledgehammer. Plus, I’m not going to get splinters from the end. The grip is great, and I like that the striking face isn’t obscenely huge.”

Mike Lancelotta, with over 13 years of construction experience, told us, “When I first started doing construction, I noticed that all the older carpenters all had Estwing hammers. And I noticed that some of them must have had them for over 30 years or so, because the blue rubber handles were so worn. They obviously liked them if they kept them around that long.… It’s just a good all-around hammer.”

For nearly 25 years, I’ve been using a variety of Estwing hammers, both as a working carpenter and as I’ve been doing big and small projects at my home. I’ve used them to replace floorboards, break up unused pallets, hang pictures, build basement shelves, bang partition walls into place and so much more. Through all of this, they’ve held up just fine, even the one I use the most often. Short of cutting into one with an angle grinder, there is really no way an Estwing hammer could be damaged.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

It’s hard to find flaws in an Estwing hammer. During the first few years of use, the hammer goes through a “molting process,” which may bother some people. The light factory finish starts to come off, exposing the steel directly to the air. During this breaking-in process, the hammer starts to look a little ugly, and you may think there’s something bad going on, but there is really nothing to worry about. Eventually all of the finish will wear off, and the hammer will take on the nice, broken-in look that’s the mark of a well-loved Estwing hammer.

Runner-up

Ox Tools Pro 16-Ounce Claw Hammer

Great, but not perfect

This hammer does the job as well as our top pick. But the handle isn’t as nice, and the logo carved into the neck is little more than a grime collector.

Buying Options

$25 from Amazon

Buy from Home Depot

The Ox Tools Pro 16-Ounce Claw Hammer is similar to the Estwing E3-16C in that it’s a solid metal hammer with a simple look and feel to it. One difference: The raised logo on the Ox Tools hammer’s handle makes it a little less comfortable to hold. Also, the neck of the tool has “OXGRIP” carved into it, and it adds nothing except a place for dirt and grime to build up. As for pounding nails, the Ox Tools hammer worked just fine. It’s usually possible to find an Estwing hammer at most hardware stores and at a wide variety of online retailers. But we’re adding this recommendation in the rare event that you need a hammer in a hurry and you simply can’t locate an Estwing.

Also great

Estwing E3-12C

A smaller hammer for light-duty work

This smaller version of our top pick is great if you need something that’s easier to swing or that has a more delicate touch for hanging photos or assembling furniture.

Buying Options

$32 from Amazon

If you need a hammer only for light-duty use (like installing picture hangers and tapping together knockdown furniture), you can take a step down in weight to a 12-ounce hammer. Estwing’s E3-12C is the same in many ways as our top pick, the E3-16C, just smaller and lighter. It will get the job done for small stuff, but it will struggle with larger nails and more-ambitious garage-style projects, like banging together the kid’s new swingset. As one tester said,

“The bigger one wasn’t as heavy as I thought, but I like the little one because I feel like I have more control over it. I wouldn’t be doing anything crazy with it, just small stuff around the house, so I like that one.”

Using the smaller hammer for more aggressive work, you’re basically swapping the heaviness of the tool for time spent swinging a hammer. With the 16-ounce hammer, it took us, on average, four swings to bury a 16d framing nail (3½ inches long). But with the 12-ounce model, it took at least five swings, and we were working much harder. With a longer framing hammer, it can take two swings. Also, with the smaller hammer, your knuckles are much closer to what you’re hitting, so an overstrike or any kind of miss is more likely to put your hand at risk.

Also great

Estwing E3-20S

For bolder DIY jobs

Heavier, longer, and more powerful per swing than our top pick, this 20-ounce hammer shares the great features common to all Estwing hammers. Plus, it has a straight claw suited to demolition and prying.

Buying Options

$30 from Amazon

$40 from Walmart

$30 from Lowe's

If you’re looking to get a little more serious about your DIY projects (or you need something more suited for demolition), we recommend the Estwing E3-20S. This hammer is about three-quarters of an inch longer and about 2 ounces heavier than the E3-16C. So the E3-20S requires a bigger swing, but it delivers more power per strike. It also has a straight claw and not a curved one, so it’s ideal for more-aggressive tasks, like pulling up a floor, removing trim, or prying a couple of 2-by-4s apart. Because of this claw design, the tool can be used like a hatchet or a mini pickaxe. A well-placed swing can bury the claw between two boards, and a twist of the handle pulls them apart.

Like the other Estwing hammers, this hammer is simple, with a nice grip and a balanced feel in the hand. Because it’s a single piece of steel, there should be no concerns over long-term durability. I bought an Estwing E3-20S in 2000, and 24 years later—10 of those spent in the trades—the hammer works great and is the one I use most.

Upgrade pick

Stiletto 10oz Trimbone Smooth/Curve Titanium Hammer

Spectacular (if you swing it enough)

This general purpose 10-ounce titanium tool truly feels different in use and offers unique benefits no competitors have. It also sports a price that none others have.

Buying Options

$249 from Home Depot

If you spend a lot of time swinging a hammer and are looking for a tool that combines a light weight, an oddly powerful strike, excellent ergonomics, and a sprinkling of other useful features not seen on similarly-sized hammers (like a customizable grip and well-designed side nail pullers), we recommend the Stiletto 10oz Trimbone Smooth/Curve Titanium Hammer. Its hefty price of roughly $290 puts it out of range for most people, but for those who dial into the finer points of hammer use and want the ergonomic benefits of titanium, this tool offers a unique experience.

Other than the steel striking face and the grip, the entire tool is made of titanium, which adds a lot of practical benefits. Titanium is lighter than steel, so the 14-inch Stiletto Trimbone is the same length as a 20-ounce Estwing, but it only weighs as much as a 12-ounce Estwing, which it’s 3 inches longer than. Additionally, a titanium hammer transfers much more of your swinging power to the nail, so less of it vibrates back up your arm. Paraphrasing an employee of Stiletto tools, an article at Fine Homebuilding states, “A titanium hammer transfers 97% of your energy from swinging the hammer to the nail, while a steel hammer transfers only 70% of your energy to the nail.” Basically, it takes less power to do the same amount of work and your arm and elbow won’t feel nearly as much strain.

We couldn’t find any other sources to back up the 97% claim, but even if those numbers aren’t exact, a clear difference can be felt using a titanium hammer. You can actually feel an additional press on the nail as the hammer hits it—the tool doesn’t bounce off the nail, like steel hammers often do. If you’re used to steel hammers, a titanium hammer will likely be a noticeable difference. This added effectiveness and reduced wear and tear on the body is the reason so many house framers carry titanium hammers. There is also no shortage of reviews saying how titanium hammers have helped people through arm and elbow issues.

The side nail puller is the best we’ve used. A V-notch in the side of the head is actually another nail puller—one that provides a tremendous amount of leverage. Usually reserved for framing hammers, side pullers are effective, but often leave dents in the wood because of the pressure from the hammer head as it’s rolled over the wood. To solve this issue, the head of the Trimbone, directly above the side puller, is rounded over so even under high pressure, the head barely leaves a mark. It’s a simple design tweak, but one with a huge impact on how the tool can be used. It’s also so simple, it left us wondering why no one has thought of it before.

The handle is grippy and easy to hold. The handle has a hatchet shape, so it flares out at the bottom and has a slight arc throughout. The rubbery grip area is durable with a light give that is comparable to our Estwing picks. We really like the thumb indent for the times we choked up on the handle for more delicate work. It’s a very comfortable handle that we always felt at ease with.

The striking face has a flat top and a magnetic nail starter. The striking face of the Trimbone is just a whisker wider than that of the 16-ounce Estwing, but the top is flattened off. This gives just a little more ability to get the hammer up into a tight spot, like the underside of a cabinet interior. It’s a feature that may never be used, but it doesn’t otherwise affect the hammer, so we don’t mind having it there. The same can be said of the magnetic nail starter, which is discreetly integrated into the design (other hammers have a large notch out of the striking face to make room for the nail starter). Also, if anything happens to the steel striking face, it can be swapped out for a new one.

The grip color is customizable. The tool comes with a black grip, but you can add a bit of personality with other available colors including green, orange, hi-vis yellow and hi-vis pink. It’s a nice bit of customization and, depending on the color, adds the practical benefit of making your hammer easier to spot. Putting a new grip on is a simple process involving a hex bolt at the base of the grip. The additional colors are available for about $35 each. Stiletto actually sells combos with the hammer and one additional grip (which cost less than just getting the hammer, at the time of publication).

Mallet caps are also available. Adding to the usefulness of the Trimbone, Stiletto also sells a set of compatible mallet caps, which soften the blow of the hammer and are useful for delicate situations like cabinet-making and furniture building. They fit securely and come in a two-pack with a hard one and a soft one.

The price is … extreme. The Trimbone costs roughly $290 (that’s not a typo). Titanium hammers are simply expensive; just getting a titanium head on a wood handle costs about $100, and one of Stiletto’s larger titanium framing hammer costs about $330. While the steel Estwing hammer we recommend is an excellent tool and costs at most $30, there are clear benefits to titanium hammers: light weight, more striking power and, in the case of the Trimbone, the excellent side-pullers and a level of customization unavailable on a less expensive hammer. Do these features and improvements equal something that is 10 times better than the Estwing hammers, as the price indicates? Probably not for most people. But for some, the weight alone might make the purchase worth it, or the added power, or the reduced stress on the shoulder, arm, and elbow. Or maybe it’s just the entire concept of such a superb hammer. The Trimbone is clearly not a tool for everyone, but it’s a unique and excellent experience for those willing to invest.

Estwing sells a series of metal-handled hammers with a wound leather grip instead of the blue nylon-vinyl one. In all other regards, they’re the same tools as our picks, but they are slightly more expensive. The leather handles have a neat look but offer less padding, and the leather grip has a coating, so there’s no natural tack to the handle. I have an Estwing hatchet with this style of grip, and after years of use, the coating has become cracked and is starting to chip off.

In 2024, we tested the Milwaukee 16oz Smooth/Curve Titanium Hammer. It’s nice and gets the job done, but the handle is less comfortable than that of the Estwings, and we think it lacks the aesthetic polish of our picks.

The 13½-inch Fiskars Pro IsoCore 16 oz. Curved Claw Finishing Hammer is only about an ounce and a half heavier than our pick, but it feels out of balance in comparison. The handle is also extremely squishy, and there’s a seam along the middle of the grip area where it transitions from the squishy part to hard plastic. During use, we kept feeling the seam with our fingers, which was distracting. The same drawbacks are found in its 13½-inch, 20-ounce model and its 15½-inch, 20-ounce model.

The Estwing 15-oz. Ultra Series Hammer is comparable to the E3-20S; this one adds a few flourishes, but none of them are necessary or successful. The side nail pullers don’t work that great, and the magnetic nail starter is only going to be useful for a pro framer. The handle also has an odd bulge in it, which felt off when we held the handle either higher or lower along the grip. The traditional Estwing handle is consistent no matter how you hold it.

The DeWalt DWHT51054 20 oz. Rip Claw Hammer and the Milwaukee 20 oz. Curved Claw Smooth Face Hammer both have a very narrow handle, and neither was as comfortable to hold as the handle on the Estwing E3-20S. They also have an oversized striking face, which makes doing precision work harder. The same enlarged head is found on the Stanley FatMax 51-162 AntiVibe.

The Stanley STHT51246 20-oz. Steel Hammer makes a strong ringing noise when it strikes a nail. It sounds like someone’s continually hitting a tuning fork. It’s beyond annoying and a total dealbreaker.

We tested a framing hammer, the Milwaukee 17-oz. Smooth Face Framing Hammer, due to its relatively light weight rating of well under 20 ounces. Even with its fairly light weight, the hammer— about 2½ inches longer than the 20-ounce Estwing—is still too long for any kind of finesse work.

Stiletto makes larger titanium hammers, such as the TB3MC 15oz Ti-Bone and the TBM14RMC Tibone Mini-14 oz., as well as wooden-handled hammer with titanium heads like the Ti16MC Ti 16oz. These are all larger than the Trimbone and intended more for framing tasks. Martinez Hammers also makes titanium models, but again most are for framers. They do have the M4 12oz Finish Hammer, which is comparable to our pick, but it is more expensive and doesn’t have the rounded head above the side puller. Martinez Hammers offers a great deal of customization, but it adds to the price, so by the time we were done building a hammer it cost $335.

This article was edited by Harry Sawyers.