Home
Reviews
Lawn care
The best lawn aerators in 2026, as tested by our expert team

❚ All products chosen independently by our writers. We may receive commission via affiliate links. See affiliates FAQs.

BBC Gardeners' World Magazine aerators review

The best lawn aerators in 2026, as tested by our expert team

Kay Maguire

Published: Thursday, 12 March 2026 at 10:07 am

A perfect lawn needs a bit of TLC. Read our comprehensive guide to lawn care and browse our pick of the very best aerators, from manual to electric.

Save

Jump to our 3 top-rated aerators

A lush, green lawn is a source of pride and joy for many gardeners, but as the focal point for gatherings with friends and family, it can suffer from overuse and too much wear and tear. Terrific turf needs a good lawn care regimen to achieve it, and while regular mowing and watering will take you so far, there are a couple of additional tasks for you to do on your to-do list, which will help keep your lawn in tip-top condition.

Regardless of how often you cut your lawn, over time, the soil underneath the turf becomes compacted, while above ground, a thick, impenetrable layer of thatch and organic debris develops around the roots. This undesirable combination prevents air, water, and nutrients from reaching the root system, ultimately weakening its growth and leaving the plant susceptible to pests and diseases.

Scarifying your lawn will help remove thatch and debris, but if you need to relieve compacted soil underneath the turf, it's best to aerate it. Aeration is the process of making air holes in the lawn to create ventilation. In small lawns, a simple garden fork can be used to push holes into the ground, but you can also buy manual aerators, either solid or hollow-tined, which require the same effort as a fork. However, if you have a lot of lawn and not much time, other types of aerators are probably the best option. Whether you’re pushing a roller covered in spikes or using a powered machine, these aerators are a labour-saving version of the trusty garden fork, mechanically making a series of holes in the lawn.

Our 3 best aerators to buy at a glance

4.5 stars: Our best combination aerator for safety – Stihl RLA 240 Cordless Lawn Scarifier RRP £229 (bare tool)
4.5 stars: Our best aerator for manual aerating – Greenkey Lawn Aerator RRP £49.99
4.3 stars: Our best aerator for manual hollow-tined aerating – Kent & Stowe 4 Prong Lawn Aerator RRP £39.99

Want to see this content?

This page contains content provided by Squirrel. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as Squirrel may use cookies and other technologies. To view this content, choose 'Accept and continue' to allow Squirrel and its required purposes.

Accept and continue

Comparison table: best lawn aerators

ModelRatingRRPTypeHead WidthWeightWarrantyStihl RLA 2404.5/5£229 (bare tool)Cordless Electric Scarifier/Aerator34cm15kg2 yearsGreenkey4.5/5£49.99Manual Roller30cm2.8kg2 yearsKent and Stowe 4 Prong4.3/5£39.99Manual Hollow-tine30cm1.34kg15 years

Our expertise

We reviewed the most popular aerators on the market, putting them through their paces to bring you a list of the best aerators, both manual and powered. Each model has a detailed list of pros and cons for clarity and has been rated according to ease of use, handling, performance, and value for money. From 2026, you’ll only see newly awarded Best Buy badges on lawn aerators that score 4.5 out of 5 or higher. Anything rated 3.5 or above will still feature in our ‘Best of the rest’ list.

Jump to the best aerators:

Our 3 top-rated lawn aerators

Jump to aerator advice:

What is a lawn aerator, and what does it do?
Types of lawn aerator
How to choose the best lawn aerator
Meet our testing panel

Our 3 top-rated lawn aerators

1: Stihl RLA 240 cordless lawn scarifier and aerator

Our best combination aerator for safety

RRP: £229 (bare tool)

Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

A star rating of 4.5 out of 5.

Available from: Just Lawnmowers (£209 bare tool)

Our best combination aerator for safety: Stihl RLA 240 Cordless Lawn Scarifier and Aerator

Reasons to buy:

Excellent safety features
Easy to use
Comfortable

Reasons to avoid:

Struggles with inclines

Awarded a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for safety, this combination machine is powered by a 36V, 4.8Ah battery. It takes 205 minutes to charge, but is easy to plug in and has a helpful charge indicator, although this is faint in daylight. The battery also has great safety features – it won’t work without a safety key, and there’s a lock on the powerbar for an effective dead-man switch. It lasts long enough to cover a 250sq. metre lawn, about the size of a tennis court. Thanks to smooth, high-quality wheels, it feels lightweight and easy to manoeuvre, which is surprising given that it weighs 15kg.

Powerful aerating blades cut through the top layer of soil well, to help improve lawn health, rather than relieve compacted soil or open the structure of heavy clay and, in doing so, also tackle most of the thatch and moss in the lawn. The scarifying drum attachment was effective on moss, too, though not as efficiently with thatch. Although this machine struggles with inclines, catching on the surface and shutting itself off if your lawn isn't level, this isn’t too much of a problem, because you can easily adjust the heights from +7.5mm to -9.5mm to avoid this problem. The automatic shutdown is also a great safety feature.

Buy Stihl RLA 240 Cordless Lawn Scarifier and Aerator from Just Lawnmowers (£209 bare tool)

Want to see this content?

Accept and continue

2: Greenkey Rolling lawn aerator

Our best lawn aerator for manual aerating

RRP: £49.99

Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

A star rating of 4.5 out of 5.

Available from: Amazon (£36.95), B&Q (£39.99) and Crocus (£57.99)

Our best lawn aerator for manual aerating: Greenkey Manual Lawn Aerator

Reasons to buy:

Adjustable height
Easy to use
Lightweight
Good for storage
Plastic caps to cover the spikes when not in use

Reasons to avoid:

Needs assembling – though it’s straightforward
Hard work, so best suited to small gardens

Awarded a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for manual aerating, the Greenkey Rolling lawn aerator is basic but does the job well. Lightweight with sturdy spikes, it’s just the tool if your small lawn needs aeration. Made from aluminium and plastic, it’s lightweight but feels substantial and features a T-bar grip as well as an adjustable shaft to suit different height users. The drum is 30cm wide, which covers a lawn quickly and easily, and there are 30 x 4.5cm spikes to ensure deep, even aeration. It comes with a two-year warranty.

Read the full Greenkey Rolling Lawn Aerator review

Buy Greenkey Manual Lawn Aerator from Amazon (£36.95), B&Q (£39.99) and Crocus (£57.99)

Want to see this content?

Accept and continue

3: Kent & Stowe stainless steel 4 prong lawn aerator

Our best aerator for manual hollow-tined aerating

RRP: £39.99

Our rating: 4.3 out of 5

A star rating of 4.3 out of 5.

Available from: Marshalls Garden (£36.99)

Our best aerator for manual hollow-tined aerating: Kent & Stowe Lawn Aerator 4 Prong

Reasons to buy:

Lightweight
Comfortable
Removes good whole soil plugs

Reasons to avoid:

Needs strong treading to work

Awarded a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for manual hollow tined aerating, this simple aerator from Kent & Stowe works well. The smooth, FSC-grade ash handle is comfortable, lightweight and doesn’t rub, even after using it for a while. The handle runs into a single-riveted steel socket above wide steel treads, and these treads are great for striking and pushing into soil. However, the 9cm stainless steel tines don't go in smoothly every time, despite being pointed. Its best feature is that it produces good, solid plugs of soil that are great for breaking down and reusing as topsoil.

Buy Kent & Stowe Lawn Aerator 4 Prong from Marshalls Garden (£36.99)

Want to see this content?

Accept and continue

Best of the rest

Although this model didn’t quite achieve a BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Best Buy award, it still had features that made it worth recommending.

Cobra S3840V Cordless scarifier and aerator

RRP: £360.99

Our rating: 4 out of 5

A star rating of 4 out of 5.

Available from: Just Lawnmowers (£329.99 kit) and Sims Garden Machinery (£329 kit)

Cobra S3840V Cordless scarifier and aerator

Reasons to buy:

Comfortable to use
Very effective
Quick to charge

Reasons to avoid:

Scalps the lawn
Very poor instructions

The Cobra S3840V Cordless scarifier and aerator handles well. It’s big and the wheels are prone to being a little stiff, but it’s lightweight and has a soft-grip handle, which makes it comfortable to use. At 92dB, it’s relatively quiet, too. The 40V 5Ah battery charges quickly in just 90 minutes and lasts for 40 minutes. The machine itself is easy to use, and we loved being able to see the charge indicator through the transparent window.

The aeration blades and spring tine scarifying drum can be set at five heights, which range from -10mm to +5mm. Unfortunately, the instructions are poor, so it takes a while to get this machine up and running. On the plus side, at 38cm wide, it covers a large area of lawn, reducing how long you spend on the job, but its size makes this combination machine very bulky and difficult to store.

Buy the Cobra S3840V Cordless Scarifier from Just Lawnmowers (£329.99 kit) and Sims Garden Machinery (£329 kit)

Want to see this content?

Accept and continue

Time to show your lawn some TLC? Check out our round-up of the best lawn scarifiers and expert tips on how to improve your lawn in 12 weeks. You can also keep edges looking neat with our pick of the best lawn edging.

In addition to aerators and scarifiers, we've tested a range of lawn mowers, including the best cordless lawn mowers, the best robotic lawn mowers, the best electric lawn mowers and the best grass trimmers. For those with small lawns, our guide to the best hand push mowers will be helpful.

What is a lawn aerator, and what does it do?

Aerating your lawn is part of a spring and autumn lawn care regime, and there are two different methods of aerating your lawn:

Spiking – this involves using solid spikes to create holes in the lawn, which are a couple of millimetres in width and several centimetres deep, to help relieve compacted soil
Hollow tining – as it sounds, hollow tines are pushed into the ground to remove cylindrical plugs of turf, around a centimetre wide and a few centimetres deep. Depending on the soil type, you may wish to fill these holes with a sandy mix or leave them to let the soil expand and close the holes, which helps with waterlogged clay soil

Types of lawn aerators: the different ways to aerate your lawn

There are four types of aerators, each with its own pros and cons:

Spike shoes - these are cheap and easy to use and most effective on soft – but not soggy - ground in small gardens
Manual aerators - although these are useful tools, which can do specific jobs (see above), using them requires a lot of effort, as it gets tiring, even on a small lawn. But they’re cheap, and a great idea if you’re after a workout
Manual Rolling Drum Aerators – these are time and labour saving, as you simply walk across the lawn pushing the roller
Powered Aerators – the obvious advantage of using these is that they’re labour-saving. They're also almost always available as part of a 2-in-1 combination machine that scarifies as well, so you get two jobs done for the price of one. However, it’s important to note these mechanical aerators don’t aerate in the same way that a manual aerator does - they use metal blades rather than spikes or tines. These blades create shallow slits rather than deep holes, and although they will help maintain a healthy lawn by allowing air and water to move through this top layer of soil, they won’t improve your lawn if it’s compacted or you have heavy clay. Mechanical aerators are quite an investment too, as you’re using them twice a year at the most – even if they’re a 2-in-1 combination of aerator and scarifier – and they require more space to store than the other alternatives

Which type of powered machine is best? When it comes to choosing whether you go for an electric, cordless or petrol aerator, consider the pros and cons that are associated with each type:

Electric corded aerators: Lightweight, quiet and often at the budget-end, these are best suited to small and medium-sized gardens with a power supply. Most come with a collection box, which is a useful, time-saving feature, but the cord length can be restrictive as well as potentially hazardous
Cordless aerators: Lightweight, quiet and an environmentally-friendly alternative to petrol types, the downside to buying cordless tools is that they can cost more, and the batteries and chargers are sometimes an additional cost. While they don’t have a restrictive cable and are therefore ideal for accessing all areas of the garden, it’s important to be aware of their charge and run times, as this could limit their effectiveness if you have a larger garden
Petrol aerators: Often the most powerful models, this comes with the inconvenience of using messy, expensive petrol. Like cordless, they do mean you’re free to roam wherever needed, but they’re noisier than the battery-powered alternative, not as good for the environment and will need more in the way of general maintenance, with regular servicing to keep them in tip-top working order

How to choose the best lawn aerator

Depending on the type of aerator you’re going to choose, there are several key features to look for:

Manual hollow tine – look out for strong, solid tines that will cope with compacted turf, a decent tread to prevent your foot from slipping, and a soft-grip handle for comfort
Manual rolling drum – ideally, you want a good number of metal spikes on the drum to create plenty of holes – as a guide, 27 spikes will give you about 180 spikes per square metre. The spikes should also be at least 5cm long to ensure they penetrate the ground deeply
Mechanical aerator – go for strong, good-sized blades and a collection box. If storage space is an issue, look for handles that fold down and a collapsible collection box rather than a solid one

How to get the perfect lawn

It’s not just aerating that will improve the quality of your lawn; look at our other tips below:

Always rake up clippings when mowing at the start of the year, so they don’t smother younger, emerging shoots
Neaten edges with a lawn edger
Dig up small weeds like plantain and dandelions with a hand trowel
Use a spring-tined lawn rake to rake out dead grass and moss in areas where there is poor growth
Once the lawn is established, and later in the year, leave the clippings in place to act as a nutrient-rich mulch that will feed the grass
If you notice bare patches, break up the soil, scatter grass seeds then sprinkle with potting compost. Cover newly sown seeded areas with netting
When mowing on hot, dry days, raise the mower’s cutting height and make sure newly sown areas are watered

How we tested lawn aerators

To see how well lawn aerators perform, the GW reviews team tested a range of models across a range of garden situations – creating holes and slits in different turf and ground conditions. Before we started, we checked for any wildlife in the grass and organic debris on the lawn surface. The lawn aerators were compared, and the following criteria used to calculate the scores, with equal weight given to each:

Set-up & storage: We looked at the assembly needed, ease and clarity of instructions, any storage features and, where relevant, the cable length
Handling: We assessed ease of use, weight, noise levels, comfort and safety features
Performance: Considered the strength of the tines or blades, as well as how well they created holes and slits in the lawn. For the 2-in-1 machines, we also evaluated how well the spring tines removed moss and thatch in the scarifying mode
Value for money: We reviewed all of the above, plus quality and design, the RRP and the length of warranty

For more information on our testing process, see How we review

Meet our testing panel

Oliver Parsons, Strategic Projects Editor
Oliver is a gardener and magazine journalist of 20 years’ experience. He trained as a professional horticulturalist at RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Chelmsford and has also worked for Gardening Which?, as a freelance gardener and with the gardening team at Down House in Kent. He is now Strategic Projects Editor at BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine and GardenersWorld.com, heading up our reviews desk, Apple News output and weekly newsletter.

Kay Maguire, Magazines Editor
Kay trained at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and has been writing and making films about gardening ever since. She has written for websites and magazines, including The Garden and Amateur Gardening, was Horticultural Editor on BBC Gardeners' World Magazine for five years, and has also written several books on a range of gardening topics from growing house plants to making the most of a small space. After several years as Reviews Editor, building up our reviews section into a leading resource for UK gardeners, she has now become Magazines Editor for BBC Gardeners' World Magazine, responsible for all print output.

Harry Duncton, Freelance Powered Tools Tester
Harry has a wealth of experience, from being a language teacher to a tree surgeon, and has built this into a career writing about all things DIY and gardening. A passionate believer in self-reliance, his aim is to inspire others to give it a go themselves and not worry about making a few mistakes along the way. A regular contributor to popular DIY blogs and a recent addition to the BBC Gardeners' World Magazine team, he loves tracking down the best new tools and writing about them.

Sue Fisher, Freelance Garden Writer
Sue’s extensive horticultural career spans over 40 years, starting with a decade in the garden centre and nursery industry before developing into an accomplished gardening writer, designer and speaker. Sue writes regularly for BBC Gardeners' World Magazine, GardenersWorld.com and Garden Answers magazine. She has written 10 books on subjects including container gardening, plants for small gardens and designing with colour, and she has co-authored other books with some of the biggest names in gardening.

Emma Crawforth, Horticulture Editor
Emma holds the Kew Diploma in Horticulture and has been working in horticulture for 18 years, including roles in public gardens, a plant nursery supplying plants for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and a training college for young horticulturists. She looks after an ornamental, fruit and veg garden at home and regularly undertakes trips to see plants growing in their natural habitats. She is the author of the Kew Publications book, Things to Do with Plants.

Jane Moore, Freelance Garden Writer
In a horticultural career spanning 30 years, Jane has been a head gardener at a Benedictine Abbey, a writer for national gardening magazines and newspapers, a researcher on BBC gardening programmes and a TV presenter on BBC Gardeners’ World. Among her many accolades are a Chelsea Flower Show medal, several awards from the Garden Media Guild and her books are published worldwide. She has spent 30 years working as a hands-on head gardener, using tools on a daily basis.

This review was last updated in March 2026.

Don't miss out this Winter

Enjoy expert advice on what to plant and grow this winter, and how to prepare your plot for the year ahead. Enjoy, 6 months for just £31.99

Subscribe now

Great gardening savings - straight to your inbox

Sign up to the BBC Gardeners’ World offers newsletter for exclusive deals, seasonal savings, and early access to special promotions.