These Are The Best Axes For Every Outdoor Situation

Though not as useful in everyday carry situations, axes are still remarkably handy-bladed tools when outdoor adventure is on the docket. And while the item type might seem pretty straightforward — a sharp-edged metal head attached to a long handle perfect for swinging — there are actually several sub-categories with designs modified for purpose-specific utility and each sub-category boasts a bevy of available options.

If you’re on the hunt for your next axe, you’ve come to the right place. Not only have we narrowed down the selection to the best options around, but we’ve separated those options by their types. That way, you can be absolutely certain that you’re getting the best axe for the job at hand — be that chopping down foliage, cutting up firewood, assisting you around the campground, or even if you’ve got something a bit more tactical in mind. These are the best axes for every occasion.

What to look for in an ax

Use: Before choosing the best ax for you, make sure you know what you need it for. We’ve outlined the four main types of axes below and what they’re used for.

Materials: In terms of materials, the ax’s head will almost always be some type of steel. However, the handle material will vary greatly. These can range from wood to fiberglass to steel (as an extension of the head, often wrapped in another material), with each having its own advantages. Wood looks classic and provides some power while fiberglass is much lighter and more shock-absorbant.

Length: Again, this will vary depending on the type of ax you’re using. Longer axes will provide you with more power, which can come in handy for tough logs, but can also sacrifice some control in your swing. Longer axes also don’t travel nearly as well. If you’re unsure, perhaps look for some balance between short and long.

Weight: The weight of an ax, like its length, will not only change its purpose but also how much power goes into your swing. Heavier axes give you a more powerful hit but you’ll get tired much faster. Also, note that everyone’s strength is different.

Ergonomics: Affecting your leverage and force, an ax’s handle ergonomics – meaning, how it is shaped, is textured, and fits into your hand – will greatly determine how comfortable it is to hold it.

Probably the most instantly-recognizable shape of axe, this category is designed specifically for cutting down trees — hence the name. This style is marked by extended 2-handed handles mated to large, usually steel axe heads with wide blades perfect for sideways chopping movements. Like all axes, they’re fairly multipurpose, but they shine when it comes to hard, horizontal arcing swings. Timber!

Husqvarna Wooden Multi-Purpose Axe

Best Overall Felling Ax: A much more traditionally-styled felling axe than some other examplse, the Husqvarna Wooden Multi-Purpose Axe boasts a sturdy forged steel head mated to a long, curved, solid hickory wood handle. It’s a simple classic, but it was made for repetitive swinging and should serve you for years if you properly care for it. It also comes with a simple leather blade cover for when you want to stash it away between seasons. Made in Sweden, this felling axe isn’t fancy, but it will definitely help you get the job done.

Gränsfors American Felling Axe

Runner-Up: Believe it or not, there are actually still professional lumberjacks. And while most professional woodcutters have moved on to chainsaws, there are still some artisans and workmen who prefer traditional tools — especially if they like to compete in professional woodcutting competitions. The Gränsfors American Felling Axe was designed for these folks. A hefty chopping tool marked by a wide 11.5cm cutting edge, a hand-forged steel head, and a long American hickory wood handle. Almost twice as heavy as a traditional Scandinavian forest axe, this heavy hitter is as hefty as it is effective at felling even the largest trees in the woods.

As their name suggests, pack axes are designed specifically to fit in, on, or alongside an outdoor pack. That could mean a hiking backpack, car camping kit, or even a horse’s saddle bags. The greater point is that these chopping tools tend to be on the smaller side and can often be used with one hand. Typically (though this is not a hard and fast rule), camp axes are also crafted from traditional materials like steel and wood.

Estwing Camper’s Axe

Best Overall Pack Ax: One of the few brands still building their hand tools in the USA, Estwing manages to brilliantly mesh quality and styling with budget-friendliness. Their Camper’s Axe you see here is no exception, clocking in at less than $80, but still featuring a construction of forged steel and a patented claw hammer-style shock-reducing grip — which can protect your hands from up to 70% of vibrations caused by impact. On top of that, it comes with its own sheath, it’s only 16″ in length (making it perfect for pack attachment), and it’s almost perfectly balanced for easy and effective swings.

Council Tool Velvicut Premium Saddle Axe

Runner-Up: There’s one big obvious benefit to the USA-made Council Tool Velvicut Premium Saddle Axe you see here: it features a head with dual cutting edges. That means, while you’re out on the trails, if your cutting edge gets a bit dull from cutting up kindling or clearing brush, you can just flip it around and you’ve got double the chopping power. The two edges are even ground at different angles — 32° and 25° — so you can choose the one more suited to whatever job you’re facing down. That does mean that you don’t get the added benefit of having a flat side for hammering stakes into the ground, but you could always just turn the hatchet sideways in a pinch and get mostly the same result.

The counterpart to their felling brethren, splitting axes are similar in their size and basic format — long handles with fairly hefty metal heads. However, the heads of these axes tend to have more bulk and a narrower blade. As you might imagine, this makes them ideal for splitting firewood via vertical, two-handed swings with a lot of power behind them — both due to the user’s swing as well as the power of gravity. As is the case with felling axes, you can use them for other purposes, but their primary purpose is where they really shine.

Fiskars X27 Super Splitting Axe

Best Overall Splitting Ax: As Fiskars is responsible for making one of the best budget-friendly felling axes around, it should come as no surprise that they’re equally well-versed when it comes to splitting axes. In fact, their Super Splitting Axe features some of the same features that make their felling axe so superb — pared, of course, into a splitting-friendly format. That includes hardened forged steel for the head, a synthetic FiberComp handle, and the brand’s unmistakable minimalist styling. At 36″ and 5.85 pounds, it’s a hefty axe, but that’s kind of what you want out of something made for big, vertical swings capable of splitting those big logs into more manageable firewood.

Hults Bruk Agdor 20 Splitting Axe

Runner-Up: Hults Bruk, the Swedish axe-making brand, has a history that dates back to 1697. In fact, the foundry they’re headquartered in is the same one that’s been in constant operation since their founding. As such, they certainly know a thing or two about building exceptional chopping tools. If you need further confirmation, just check out their Agdor 20 Splitting Axe, a slightly shorter, yet traditional-styled splitting axe built from a durable, timeless combination of Swedish hardened forged steel and American hickory wood. It’s beautiful in a simplistic, minimalist way, which actually speaks quite a bit to its functionality. This is an axe that was made to be used and used again — right up until you can’t swing it anymore.

The modern cousin of pack axes, tactical hatchets and tomahawks are one of the harder genres of chopping tools to define. Typically, they operate on a “you know it when you see it” criteria. However, there are some things that are a clear giveaway, including purpose (if they were designed for military use, for instance), materials (look for cutting-edge handle materials, like Micarta or G10), and packability (tactical axes usually come with MOLLE-compatible modular sheaths). The lack of any one of these criteria does not mean an axe doesn’t qualify as tactical, but the inclusion of all four almost guarantees that you’re looking at a tactical axe.

RMJ Tactical Shrike Tomahawk

Best Overall Tactical Ax: If you have even a passing interest in tactical tomahawks, you should know the name RMJ Tactical. More than any other brand, they flourish in the tactical tomahawk space. And the Shrike you see here is one of the brand’s absolute best offerings they presently manufacture. It features a full-tang 1075 steel head with a fireman’s axe-style spike mated to a grippy and comfortable rubber handle cover. The steel also boasts a tungsten Cerakote finish for extra durability and, while it’s light enough for one-handed usage, the extended grip allows for two-handed use in a pinch.

Spyderco Warrior Hawk

Runner-Up: A versatile tomahawk that works well for both tactical and utilitarian applications, this Spyderco design is unmistakable. And while the appearance of the Warrior Hawk certainly helps it stand out, the D2 steel and G10 handle scales also speak to its quality and durability. Complete with a tanto-style edge — offering more puncture power than traditional curved edges — as well as a reverse end spike and a pommel that does double duty as a pry bar and lanyard attachment point. It’s unusual, to be sure, but it’s also effective and brilliantly-built.

The Best Axes for Splitting Wood

Want to delve deeper into wood-splitting tools? Check out our dedicated guide to the best splitting axes to buy.