4 Electric Riding Mowers That Made Me Rethink Everything - The Lawn Review (2024)

Electric riding lawn mowers are an excellent way to stay on top of yard work without having to pay for gasoline. You’ll also love not dealing with the headache-inducing maintenance that some gas-powered lawn mowers require.

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As the shift to all things electric grows, so does the supply of electric riding lawn mowers on the market. If you’re dead set on buying an electric lawn mower or even still on the fence, read on to see the best electric riding lawn mowers – I bet we can do some convincing.

We tried our best to stick with just pure electric lawn tractors, but couldn’t resist throwing in a zero-turn in our top picks.

Best Electric Riding Mowers, Ranked:

  1. Greenworks CrossoverT Riding Lawn Mower
  2. EGO Power+ Zero-Turn Lawn Mower
  3. Club Cadet XT1 LT42E Electric Riding Lawn Mower
  4. Ryobi 100 AH Electric Riding Mower

The Best Electric Riding Lawn Mowers: 2023 Ranking

Finding the best electric riding mowers wasn’t too tall of an order. A few of these we’ve used personally and frankly, the market still isn’t very large. The bold companies that have put these out there are making a big bet on the future – and I think they’ll be right.

1.) Greenworks CrossoverT Electric Riding Lawn Mower

Greenworks dubs itself the “final evolution of lawnmowers.” When you see the specs and features of the CrossoverT Riding Lawn Mower, you’ll see why. My favorite thing about this mower is that it cuts up to 2.5 acres on a single charge and only takes 90 minutes to recharge.

Holy smokes, those are some great numbers.

Not only that, but this electric riding mower comes with six 8.0 Ah batteries and three dual-port turbochargers. Again, you can use these same batteries on any of your Greenworks 60V products.

Aside from its quick recharge time, the CrossoverT is super comfortable, with padded seats, foldable armrests, and advanced back support. Moreover, you won’t waste any energy thanks to innovative microchips that monitor the grass quality in real time. The mower boasts high-torque rear-wheel drive that lets you climb 15-degree inclines – basically better than my car.

I also love that there’s built-in theft protection – the perfect way to protect your precious investment. To add the cherry on top, the CrossoverT requires absolutely no maintenance other than recharging and sharpening the blades as needed.

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Why this mower made our list:

  • Runs for up to 60 minutes with the included 8.0Ah batteries
  • 90 min charge time (!)
  • Cut like a professional with SmartCut Technology that auto-adjusts and senses grass thickness
  • Features a high-padded seat and armrests
  • Designed with an integrated cargo bed that can hold up to 200 lbs. of yard supplies, like big bags of mulch

The folks at Greenworks absolutely crushed it with this riding mower. While it isn’t a zero-turn, it’s a great, affordable electric lawn tractor that absolutely slaps. They sell these at Tractor Supply Co (we have no affiliation) for $4,500 MSRP.

2.) EGO Power+ Electric Zero-Turn Lawn Mower

Delivering all-electric power comparable to a 22 HP engine (like the one on this Toro zero-turn mower), the EGO Power + Zero-Turn Lawn Mower never fails to deliver. Compared to other electric mowers on the market, this EGO product stands out because it holds six batteries – four of which are included. It also has swanky features like premium LED lights, a USB charging port, and Bluetooth technology. Not bad.

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It still delivers some serious cutting width, up to 42 inches (about twice the average push mower). This is on the lower end of zero-turn mowers and about average for regular riding mowers.

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With an adjustable hydraulic seat (WITH ARMRESTS!), you can rest assured knowing you’ll stay comfortable as you accelerate up 7 MPH (or 8 MPH in travel mode). The EGO zero-turn mower can cover up to two acres on a single charge, and recharging only takes a few hours. Given its premium features and three driving modes (Control, Standard, and Sport), some might call this product the Bugatti of electric mowers, and rightfully so.

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Summarizing what we loved about the EGO Power+ Zero-Turn Mower:

  • Supports up to six batteries for longer run time
  • It boasts the electric equivalent of a gas-powered engine with 22 HP
  • Can cut up to two acres of lawn without a recharge
  • Comes with three different driving modes: Sport, Standard, and Control
  • Features a premium LED interface that gives you complete control over the mower
  • It has a separate charging cord that allows you to charge all the batteries at once
  • You can pop a battery off and straight into your EGO blower or EGO weed eater

These things are absolutely sick, but they come at a cost. If you’re dedicated to electric riding mowers, then you’re going to have to show it at the cash register. You can grab this one from Lowe’s (we have no affiliation) for $5,500. This is on the higher end for a zero-turn mower, especially one with limited run-time, but it’s still great for a homeowner with less than 2 acres.

3.) Cub Cadet XT1 LT42E Electric Riding Lawn Mower

You may have seen the LT42E posted up outside of Home Depot next to its gas counterpart, the Cub Cadet XT1 LT42. The Cub Cadet XT1 LT42E might not seem like the most innovative electric mower, but it provides great bang for your buck. This all-electric mower can mow two acres (roughly 1 ½ hours) on a single charge. It also doesn’t fade as the battery power starts to decline, meaning you won’t have to re-mow areas of grass – most lithium Ion batteries operate this way.

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Recharging the battery takes around four hours, so it’s not as fast as the Greenworks CrossoverT, but still reasonable. When it comes time to recharging the battery, you can use a standard 110-volt outlet.

There are two brushless motors that fuel the mower’s steel direct drive and twin-blade cutting deck. And since the mower is completely electric, you’ll never need to shift between gears – just push a button and get ready to rumble. You’ll also enjoy a comfortable ride with a premium adjustable cut-and-sew seat. Since this mower isn’t the cheapest product on the market, you’ll be glad to know you get a three-year limited residential and four-year limited battery warranty.

The highlights:

  • Mow up to two acres without recharging the 3000Wh lithium-ion battery
  • Comes with a (somewhat) fast charger that only takes four hours to recharge the battery
  • Features four-gauge wheels for anti-scalping and a 1” – 4” cutting range
  • Forward speed of 5.5 MPH and reverse speed of 3 MPH
  • Comes with a three-year limited residential warranty and a four-year warranty on the battery

This mower is great for a mid-size homeowner’s lawn. I wouldn’t let it do anything super heavy duty, but it is definitely well constructed.

One downside of this mower is that Cub Cadet doesn’t have a ton of battery-powered items, so you won’t gain any economies of scale with this battery.

You can check out the price of this one exclusively at Home Depot – where they seem to be selling a lot of them.

4.) Ryobi 100 AH Electric Riding Mower

Ryobi turns it up a notch with its 100 AH Electric Riding Mower. This low-maintenance mower has no filters, spark plugs, or belts. It can run up to 2 ½ hours per charge (approximately 2 ½ acres). It has a sleek black and yellow design paired with a comfortable, well-adjusted seat.

This one made our list of the crazy Ryobi mowers, coming in at #7 and being the only riding mower.

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If you want to mow at seven in the morning without waking up your kids, this Ryobi mower will do the trick with its quiet cutting and cruise control. The mower features three cutting options – bagging, side discharge, and mulching. It comes with a three-year warranty, and if you ever run into issues, you can take the mower to one of 300+ service centers nationwide.

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This is definitely the lightest-duty mower on this list, only able to boast a 38 inch cutting deck, but still with an impressive run time. It also is the lowest price, so is actually one of pound-for-pound strongest electric riding mowers on the market.

Summary of why we liked this mower:

  • Get up to 2 ½ hours (2 ½ acres) per charge despite having a smaller cutting deck
  • Quiet cutting keeps you from waking up your neighbors (this is a negative if you don’t like them)
  • 12-position manual deck adjustment – wish this was electric but still nice
  • Get the job done quickly with a maximum speed of 7 MPH
  • Comes with a three-year limited warranty for extra protection

All-in-all, this one is a really good value if you are more price sensitive. It isn’t quite as comfortable as the others, but will definitely get the job done.

This one is available for just over $3,000 at Home Depot , which is a crazy good value.

The Bottom Line on electric riding mowers

If you’re considering investing in an electric riding lawn mower in 2023, you can’t go wrong with the EGO, Greenworks, Cub Cadet, and Ryobi brands. These companies offer some of the most inventive electric riding lawn mowers that make mowing fun – not a chore.

And that’s what it’s all about, right?

Why we review lawn tools

The reason we started this website in the first place was because we had so much trouble trying to find reasonable, understandable, honest reviews for lawn equipment. And it’s not cheap! After hours and hours of research, trying products and returning them, and messing up our yards – we started this site.

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As people who had to learn the hard way, we want you to know exactly what you are signing up for before you purchase a piece of equipment. That’s why we are committed to providing honest, easy-to-understand reviews that mean something.

What We Look for in Electric Riding Lawn Mowers

There are various things we consider when looking at electric lawn mowers that make or break their performance. Before pulling the trigger on one of these, make sure you’ve done your research (or just keep reading our recommendations).

Battery life on electric riding mowers

The ideal electric lawn mower should have a good runtime (ideally two hours or more). It shouldn’t take more than four hours to recharge the battery. If an electric mower has a low runtime and high recharge time, cutting your lawn will become a much more difficult feat.

Further, you should be able to pop off one of the batteries and use it with a blower, trimmer, or other lawn tool. This is how you can save some serious money – buying the tool-only version of other tools in the same battery line.

Comfort

Additionally, an electric riding lawn mower should have a comfortable and adjustable seat. After all, you’ll ride it for at least an hour a week – you don’t want dreaded back pain. It sounds ridiculous to make this a sticking point, but it HAS to be comfortable if you are sitting on this bad boy for a while.

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Easy to use and control

Moreover, we look at the different cutting options the lawn mower offers. The electric riding lawn mowers we hand-selected have multiple cutting options – bagging, side discharge, and mulching. Lastly, the riding mower should be easy-to-use and relatively maintenance-free.

It’s also really cool that riding mowers can double as little ATVs that pull trailers around your yard.

4 Electric Riding Mowers That Made Me Rethink Everything - The Lawn Review (2024)

FAQs

Do electric riding lawn mowers work? ›

The takeaway: There are plenty of electric mowers that match the best gas models when it comes to even cutting; though there were some underperforming electrics, all but two models scored very good or excellent. That said, no gas mower we tested scored below 4.

How long do electric lawn mowers last? ›

With proper care and attention, the lifetime should be around 3-5 years. mean charging it fully and letting it run right down.

What is the number one lawn mower? ›

The Ego Power+ LM2135SP (available at Amazon for $599.00) came out on top as the best lawn mower we've tested. For the best gas-powered mower, the Toro SmartStow Personal Pace Auto-Drive 21465 (available at The Home Depot) is our pick because it has a large cutting area with a self-propelling feature.

What is a major disadvantage of the battery operated lawn mower? ›

Cordless mowers also don't pack a lot of power, making mowing on steep inclines virtually impossible. If your lawn has thicker grass, using a cordless mower won't do the job. Battery-powered models are not powerful enough to handle certain grass types.

How big of a yard can an electric mower handle? ›

This enables these mowers to tackle yards up to a half-acre in size. If you need to maintain a large lawn of up to 2 acres, a riding mower is the way to go.

Are electric mowers powerful enough? ›

Maintenance and ease of use for electric mowers

Electric mowers are cheaper than gas mowers and are usually powerful enough to tackle most lawns. If you have long, thick grass, or try to cut grass when it's wet, this can overtax a low power electric mower, so choose your mower wisely to meet your needs.

How long does an electric riding mower battery last? ›

The average lifespan of a lawn mower battery is approximately three years. The typical estimated life of a Lithium-Ion battery is about two to three years or 300 to 500 charge cycles, whichever occurs first. Some high-quality lithium-ion batteries can last up to five years with proper care and maintenance.

Should I get a gas or electric riding lawn mower? ›

Electric lawn mowers are much quieter than gas mowers. They also do not produce the engine emissions that gas mowers do. Electric mowers don't require the routine maintenance that fueled models do, making them a popular choice for those not mechanically inclined to do repairs.

Do electric mowers cut as good as gas? ›

The power story has long favored gas-powered lawn mowers, but a battery-powered evolution has taken over in recent years. Electric motors can match the same blade speed and cut quality as gas mowers – without the harmful emissions, high maintenance costs or lost efficiency associated with gas mowers.

Do electric mowers cut as well as gas? ›

Yard size: Generally, electric mowers are best for small yards and gas for large yards. However, there are exceptions for both. If you need a mower that does well in tight spaces, check out the best lawn mowers for small yards.

Do electric lawn mowers need maintenance? ›

Although battery-powered mowers require little service (no gas, oil or spark plug changes), you should take them to a specialist once or twice a year to have the blades sharpened. “It's a real surprise to people that dead leaves, not sticks or thick grass, dull mower blades,” Chiesa says.

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