The best garden spade is an essential part of any gardener's tool kit and works brilliantly alongside your favourite garden fork. Garden spades are necessary for all kinds of cultivation, whether that's digging over flower beds, preparing and maintaining vegetable patches, or moving materials around your outside space.
Garden spades all follow the same basic design; a blade attached to a handle, but different spade designs are better suited to different garden jobs. You can get digging spades, spades to create and maintain borders, pointed or arrowhead spades for a sharper cut, and even spades with serrated edges for multitasking magic.
Best garden spades at a glance:
• Best all-rounder: Spear & Jackson 1180NB Neverbend Carbon Treaded Digging Spade - View on Amazon UK
• Best budget garden spade: Bargains-Galore Garden Digging Shovel - View on Amazon UK
• Best shovel: Draper 88633 Solid Forged Square Mouth Shovel - View on Amazon UK
While for the average gardener a standard digging spade will suffice for most everyday jobs, you may want to consider investing in a more specialist spade solution to make more complex jobs easier to complete. Here's our pick of the best…
Best garden spades
Best all-rounder
AmazonThis classic spade from tool Wunderbrand Spear & Jackson is a great everyday option. It boasts a solid forged carbon steel blade that's attached to the handle with an extra long socket to make it stronger. The blade has a powder-coated finish which means it's rust-resistant, while the shaft has also been weatherproofed. The D-shaped handle offers "Suregrip" security. The top of this spade's blade has handy footplate treads to give you a better purchase.
Customer review: "Excellent. Well made, sturdy, and did the job without bending or damaging."
Pros
- Treaded blade
- Weatherproofed handle
Cons
- Not as lightweight as some
Best budget garden spade
AmazonYou might not want to splash out on a high-end spade if you only use one on occasion. If that's the case, this pocket-friendly option from Bargains-Galore should suit. The square blade is made of rust-resistant, lightweight carbon steel and the shaft is made of PVC. This combination of materials means this spade is lightweight and easily manoeuvred. This spade's D-shaped grip has a non-slip, solid grip finish which also aids its usability.
Customer review: "Just what we needed to dig the garden. Excellent choice for cost and quick easy delivery."
Pros
- Carbon steel blade
- Lightweight
Cons
- Only suited to lighter tasks
Best pointed garden spade
AmazonPopular with metal detectorists for unearthing finds, this compact spade measures in at 85cm long. This means it's great if you're working in tight or restricted spaces. Despite its dimensions, it boasts a full-size, soft grip handle. This spade's shaft is made from tubular fibreglass while the heat-treated, pointed blade can help you make short work of difficult digging - through clay or rocky soil, for example.
Customer review: "Great little spade for digging holes. I can't handle a large or heavy one and this is ideal if you have any problems with full size spades. Love the shape if it too. Definitely recommend it."
Pros
- Fibreglass handle
- Heat-treated carbon steel blade
Cons
- Shorter than a standard spade
Best garden spade for borders
AmazonA border spade is generally smaller and lighter than a standard spade, designed for working in confined spaces, such as in your borders between plants. This traditional option from Spear & Jackson is a handsome choice with a classic, weatherproofed hardwood handle and a shiny blade. The blade gets its shine from its mirror-polished finish which also has the bonus of being rust-resistant and, with minimal soil adhesion to the smooth surface, easy to wipe clean.
Customer review: "It's too early to say how long it will last, but so far it looks well-constructed, both in terms of the varnished handle and the stainless blade. In use it's a perfect weight for gardening in borders or the vegetable patch."
Pros
- Traditional design
- Mirror-polished blade
Cons
- Wooden handle will require treating
Best arrowhead garden spade
AmazonThis rugged little tool is a tenacious choice for tough digging jobs. Its arrowhead blade can easily break hard ground. When it comes to moving earth, the dual grip handle, so if you're holding the spade by the grip and the textured area halfway down the shaft, means you can shift some soil. This also boasts treads, or footplates, at the top of the blade to really get stuck in. Roots and other debris can be cleared with the serrated root-cutting edge.
Customer review: "This is a very clever design which has become my favourite tool for jobs that need a spade/shovel. Overall, the tool is strongly made, well-balanced and comfortable to use. Highly recommended."
Pros
- Serrated edge
- Dual grip handle
Cons
- Narrow blade
Best garden spade for planting
AmazonThis specialist spade is a worthwhile investment if you have a lot of planting to do. In fact, one happy reviewer states they dug 260 holes for trees in three days with this tool, saying, "The ground was basically stone, and this spade just ate it up." Durable Draper-quality, this is crafted from solid forged steel for strength. The grip is made of ash wood, manufactured from sustainable timber sources as approved by the FSC.
Customer review: "I love this spade. It's relatively light, easy to use, and shaped to slice through thick grass and roots. Planting is easier and quicker, and the rolled top edge is easy on boots and feet!"
Pros
- Full-length handle
- Precision blade
Cons
- Not for everyday use
Best shovel
AmazonWhereas standard spades are great for digging, a shovel is a useful tool for moving loose material, often featuring a gently curved blade so you can handle more in every shovel load. This Draper shovel can help you move even the heaviest of materials thanks to its solid forged construction. This means the spade is crafted from solid steel with no sections or joins to be exposed to strain. This shovel's metallic build is complimented with a smooth wooden grip.
Customer review: "Bought for my hubby to dig a flowerbed. He said it was fantastic and really strong making short work of the job at hand. He said he would definitely recommend this garden tool."
Pros
- Wide blade
- Solid forged metal
Cons
- Not a soft grip handle
How to look after your garden spade
As with all garden tools, you should take good care of your garden spade. A solid maintenance routine will see your spade last longer, meaning you won't need to replace it too often.
Cleanliness is the key to spade care. After each use, brush off debris with a stiff brush as this can cause even carbon steel to rust. If there is still residue after a good brush, you can give your spade a quick blast under the garden hose or a brief wash with soapy water.
Spades with wooden handles will benefit from occasional treatment - a swift coat of varnish, for example, after you've rubbed it down with some fine sandpaper. You can also oil the metal blade to keep it pristine.
If you use your spade as an edging tool or for border work, you may want to sharpen the blade's edge with a sharpening stone, although do be aware of the safety implications of having a recently sharpened spade around the place.
The final point to note is where to store your spade. A dry tool shed, garage, or greenhouse is ideal. If you can suspend your spade from a hook, keeping it off cold and damp ground, it's advised.
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Amy-Mae Turner is a Commerce Content Writer for Modern Gardens, Yours, Take A Break Pets, and A Modern Kitchen. When she's not pottering in the garden or mucking around in the kitchen, she can be found having doggy cuddles with her two beloved cockapoochis.