How many decibels is an angle grinder?
Between 82 and 85 dB(A) where the operator stands, for the grinders here with a maker figure, mostly declared under EN 62841-2-3.
That European standard covers handheld grinders, polishers and disc sanders, and every grinder sold in Europe carries a noise declaration under it. Two numbers sit on it. LpA, sound pressure at the operator's position, is what reaches a head that is often inches from the wheel. LWA, sound power, totals everything the grinder sends into the shop or site. Beside both sits K, the maker's uncertainty, which is 3 dB for every grinder here.
| US model | EU twin | LpA at the ear | LwA | Standard |
|---|
| Makita XAG04Z | DGA504 | 82 dB(A) | 90 dB(A) | EN62841-2-3 |
| Milwaukee 2881-20 | M18 FSAG125XB | 82.6 dB(A) | 93.6 dB(A) | None named |
| Milwaukee 2888-20 | M18 FSAGV125XPDB | 82.6 dB(A) | 93.6 dB(A) | None named |
| Milwaukee 2886-20 | M18 FSAGF125XPDB | 82.67 dB(A) | 93.67 dB(A) | None named |
| Makita XAG20Z | DGA517 | 83 dB(A) | 91 dB(A) | EN62841-2-3 |
| Bosch GWX18V-10PN | GWX 18V-10 P | 84 dB(A) | 92 dB(A) | EN IEC 62841-2-3 |
| Bosch GWS18V-10PN | GWS 18V-10 | 85 dB(A) | 93 dB(A) | EN IEC 62841-2-3 |
| DEWALT DCG413B | DCG413 | 85 dB(A) | 93 dB(A) | EN62841-2-3 |
The order follows LpA, with LwA printed beside it. Makita's 82 and 90 for the DGA504 come from one test, yet one is pressure at the ear and the other the power of the whole tool, so they never share a ranking. Our sound power vs sound pressure explainer covers the difference.
Two further rules hold the ranking together. Figures under the older EN 60745 are ranked only against each other, and figures printed as "dB" without "(A)" stay apart from A-weighted ones.
Makita, Bosch and DEWALT give separate vibration figures for surface grinding and disc sanding, but one noise figure per tool. Had a maker split noise by application, we would not have ranked one application against another; every noise figure quoted here is a single declared value.
What is the quietest angle grinder?
Makita's XAG04Z, through its EU twin the DGA504, and it is about the plainest grinder in the group: brushless 18V LXT, a lock-on slide switch, no electric brake. Its 82 dB(A) at the ear and 90 dB(A) sound power are both the lowest in the main group.
Milwaukee's M18 FUEL grinders come next. The EU pages for the braking slide switch M18 FSAG125XB and the variable speed paddle switch M18 FSAGV125XPDB, twins of the US 2881-20 and 2888-20, both print 82.6 dB(A) at the ear and 93.6 sound power. The flathead M18 FSAGF125XPDB, twin of the 2886-20, prints 82.67 and 93.67. All three pages leave out any standard or test condition.
Makita's paddle switch XAG20Z, as the DGA517, declares 83 dB(A) and 91 sound power. It sits 0.4 decibels above the Milwaukee 2888-20 at the ear and 2.6 below it on sound power, the lowest of any paddle switch grinder in the main group.
Bosch's X-LOCK GWX18V-10PN declares 84 and 92; its threaded GWS18V-10PN, 85 and 93, the same pair as DEWALT's DCG413B.
Three decibels at the ear separate the whole group.
Two corded Makitas sit under an older standard
The 9557PB and GA4530 are declared only under EN 60745: 85 dB(A) at the ear and 96 sound power for each. They are ranked against each other, where they tie, and kept out of the cordless ranking.
Makita's own paperwork justifies the split. The newer European GA4530R, a different model declared under EN62841-2-3, gives 88 dB(A) at the ear with the same 96 sound power.
Fein prints dB without the (A)
Both Fein grinders, the CCG 18-125-10 AS and the dead man's switch CCG 18-125-10 PD AS, list "Sound pressure level LpA" 86 dB and "Sound power level LWA" 97 dB on their US pages, each with a K of 3, plus a "Peak sound value LpCpeak" of 99 dB.
That "dB" rather than "dB(A)", and the lack of a named standard, keep them in a list of their own.
Grinders we could not rank
Some makers print nothing for the US tool; others have a European relative we could not call a twin.
DEWALT's US manual and product page for the corded DWE402 print no noise figure, and no UK tool with that model number turned up. There was no UK DCG415 either, and DEWALT's US page for the DCG405B no longer loads. Milwaukee's EU pages for its M18 FUEL high performance grinders, the M18 FHSAG125XB2 and M18 FHSAG150XB2, list speed and disc size but no noise values. Makita's corded X-LOCK GA4570 has no EU manual under its number that we could find.
Then the near misses. Makita's EU manual declares 84 dB(A) for the 40V max GA005G at 9,000 RPM, where the US GAG01Z runs at 8,500, and 87 dB(A) for the 6 inch 9566PC at 10,000 RPM, where the US tool runs at 9,000. Hilti's US page and manual for the AG 4S-22 print no figure; the UK page and European manual for the AG 4S-22-125 give 89 dB(A) at the ear, and the manual 97 sound power under 62841-2-3:2021, but the UK tool's six speed steps run from 3,400 to 7,600 RPM and the US tool's from 3,100 to 7,700. Metabo's international page gives 96 dB(A) for the corded WEV 11-125 Quick, while its US pages returned errors or a blank landing page when we checked, leaving no US model to match.
Any of these may be quiet or loud. They cannot be ranked fairly.
Three decibels at the ear separate the eight main group grinders, and thin sheet metal can add up to 15 dB on its own. Wheel choice, the material and how you hold the work decide at least as much as the tool.
Clamp the work. Damp large panels, let the wheel do the cutting, and wear hearing protection whichever grinder you own.
Some metal cuts need no wheel at all. Our guide to portable band saws covers saws that drag a slow loop of toothed blade through the work with few sparks, and for cuts into a hollow wall, a tiled floor or a door casing, our oscillating multi-tool guide groups fourteen tools by the job each figure describes.
