Ok so you’re on the hunt out for the best tool box and it has to meet your needs. Tool boxes can be all kinds of sizes, but for this write up we will try to address what we believe to be the best in each of 3 categories we have chosen. We’ve chosen categories that make the most sense for most people.
Our category choices are:
- * Regular sized tool boxes you would typically carry with you
- * Affordable tool chests that can be moved on wheels and finally
- * Premium quality “best you can buy” for the money under £1000
| Image | Link | Product | Brand | Lowest New Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Buy on Amazon | Stanley FatMax 1-93-935 Waterproof Toolbox 28inch | Stanley | £28.99 |
 | Buy on Amazon | Makita 821551-8 MakPac Type 3 Connector Case | Makita | £27.95 |
 | Buy on Amazon | Stanley STA194858 Metal Latch Toolbox, 20 inch - Black | Stanley | £13.62 |
 | Buy on Amazon | Dirty Pro Tools™ X LARGE TOOL CHEST TOP CABINET TOP BOX AND ROLLCAB BOX WITH DRAWER DIVIDER mechanics tool chest | Dirty Pro Tools | £154.99 |
 | Buy on Amazon | Hardcastle 9 Drawer Red Lockable Topchest Tool Box | Hardcastle | £59.99 |
 | Buy on Amazon | Popamazing Metal Tool Chest Cabinet with Lockable Drawers and Handle on Castors Wheels Red | Popamazing | £159.99 |
 | Buy on Amazon | DJM Direct Pro Heavy Duty Tool Box Storage Stack System - 9D Top Chest + 7D Rollcab + 3D Middle Add-On | DJM Direct | £329.85 |
 | Buy on Amazon | Motamec PRO94 Large Roller Cabinet + Top Tool Chest- RollCab Box Stack Red | Motamec | £845.00 |
 | Buy on Amazon | US PRO TOOLS HEAVY DUTY TOOL CHEST, PROFESSIONAL TOOL BOXES | us pro tools |
Category 1: “best small tool box”
What makes a good small sized tool box then?
It needs to be one you can carry most of your tools in for a start but also:
- * Strong
- * Portable
- * Easy to use
How we chose
We reviewed the current overall market and picked out 3 contenders for this category.
We have already discounted many that weren’t at the top of their games, so any of these 3 would be great
It’s a personal taste decision ultimately.
Price wise, most of these kinds of portable tool boxes are typically under the £50 mark.
Our top 3 small sized portable tool boxes are as follows:
 
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Our winner for best small tool box is a joint effort, and not surprisingly it’s both of the Stanley toolboxes.
The two Stanley tool boxes get top recommendations in this category because:
- * One offers a larger size and tough rugged waterproof features
- * The second is ideal yet tough for most normal tools.
- * The Stanley brand is synonymous with quality (almost 700,000 “likes” on their facebook page!)
- * You get a 1 year warranty as standard, and if you register within 4 weeks you can extend it free up to 3 years!
The Stanley Fatmax is perfect for all your larger tools. Pop the bigger tools and and you’re good to go.
- * The half sized tote tray inside is good for a few small bits.
- * This tool box is not ideal for storing lots of smaller tools as it will get messy.
The Stanley STA194858 then fills the gap for the perfect tool box for your smaller items.
- * It’s a more compact size, yet tough, with metal latches and has waterproof capabilities.
Category 2: “best tool chest on wheels”
Our thoughts we had when choosing which ones stood out
We wanted to look at and identify possible leaders in this area. Obviously on wheels, and must be easy to pull, move and offer good solid drawer action as well when fully loaded. Lockable drawers is also a must have feature.
Price wise, we found that most of these kinds of tool chest are typically under £300, some even under £100. For this money you get what you expect. A tool chest on wheels that does what it’s supposed to and does it fine. (If you really need the best you’ll have to look at the next category for the premium tool chests under £1000 as they are the “no holds barred” models).
How we chose:
- * We were on the look out for as many features as possible, but all while retaining solid build quaility.
- * We then identified these 3 and made our purchase.
- * We filled each drawer and performed a series of opening and closing tests.
- * We then looked at their overall appearance and the wheels.
 
NOTES: It has two castor wheels that freely spin and two that are fixed. In an ideal world all 4 castors would freely spin but this isn’t a deal breaker to be honest. Good for a domestic use for most of your tools, but if you are hoping to use this professionally don’t expect to get a full set of pneumatic tools in it. |
 
NOTES: The overall dimensions do NOT include the handles. Handles and castors will need asembling when you receive your tool chest. You coould leave the handles off if you were putting these drawers under a worktop for example. |
 
NOTES: In terms of a rolling tool chest this pretty much is the one to go for. It’s taller than the 5 drawer one above and has 2 locking wheels. It’s also the accepted “Red” colour. |
Our winner for best tool chest on wheels is the Popamazing 7 drawer tool chest.
The Popamazing tool chest gets our top rated recommendation for this category because.
The Popamazing brand have consistently good real life consumer reviews across all their Amazon departments.
The build quality is very good.
The Popamazing 7 drawer tool chest is perfect for your workshop storage needs.
- Good sized drawers
- Easy to move and lock
- BRILLIANT value for money
Category 3: “best tool chest under 1000”
Here we have looked carefully at professional tool chests under £1000
(if money is no object you can review higher priced tool chests here).
In this category the tool chests have to be far superior.
So, we found the ones with high end components and top notch build quality and below are our findings:
How we chose:
- * They had to be heavy duty
- * We then identified the ones with quality components
- * We filled each drawer and performed a series of opening and closing tests.
- * We then made an overall decision to find the best 3.
 
NOTES: There are no drawer liners with these tool boxes however you can buy your own liners and cut them to size. This is also not 100% “professional” as it is made using thin metal, but we included it because it is very low cost and offers great value for money for a lightweight unit. |
 
Rollcab Model No: MT6911RC-RD Top Chest Model No: MT6908TC-RD NOTES: The heavy nature of this product means it will be delivered on a pallet. You will need to be able to move it yourself into position and will need to be available to accept delivery. |
 
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Our winner for best tool chest under £1000 is the Motamec Pro94 heavy duty tool chest.
The Motamec tool chest gets our top rated recommendation for this category because.
The build quality is exceptionallly good. You can see this will last a very long time.
The Motamec Pro94 tool chest is our highest rated tool chest under £1000.
- Rock solid construction
- Easy to move and lock
- Designed to last many long years
Tool box buyers guide
First up, ask yourself “will it fit”?
Look at your biggest tool you want to put in the tool box or chest and look at the tool box size. See if it will fit.
Do you need to move it around?
If so then be sure to get wheels. Locking wheels are a useful addition.
Are locks a MUST HAVE ?
For many businesses the ability to lock tools is a requirement of an insurance policy
Heavy duty or lightweight?
For spanners and sockets a lightweight model will be easier to move around. For anything heavier then a heavy duty chest will be needed.
Prioritise your “most used” tools.
There’s little point putting a tool in the box that only gets used once a year.
The best tool box for you might not be the same for others.
You need to look at your own personal needs and what tools will be used the most.
Summary
The majority of boxes and chests on this write up are actually inexpensive. Even the high end premium units can be classed as affordable (especially when you look further afield at units that cost £4000 and upwards).
Each unit on this page was very carefully selected for it’s strengths over competing products.
Questions? Please comment below.