The Top 5 Coolest Woodworking Gadgets for 2024

Five woodworking tools changed how I work. Not incrementally — fundamentally. Here is an honest look at what they are and why they earned a permanent spot in my shop.

1. Cordless Drills: Freedom of movement changes how you approach a project. With a quality cordless drill — DeWalt and Makita lead the field for battery longevity and torque — you drill where the work is rather than where the outlet is. I have been using the same DeWalt 20V MAX platform since 2019. Still on the original batteries. That says something.

2. Laser Measure Tools: A tape measure is still essential. But a laser measure handles the measurements a tape cannot — long spans, high ceilings, diagonal room measurements for sheet goods planning. The Bosch GLM 20 fits in a shirt pocket and reads distances in a fraction of a second. I am apparently a slow tape measurer and the laser works for me while trying to hold a tape across a 24-foot room alone never did.

3. CNC Routers: This is the tool that expanded what I thought was possible. A CNC router — the BobCNC E4 is a well-regarded entry point — executes complex profiles, repeating patterns, and detailed inlay work with a consistency that hand routing cannot match. The design lives in software. The machine executes it exactly, every time. Learning curve is real. Results are worth it.

4. Digital Angle Finders: Compound angles have caused me more grief than any other aspect of woodworking. The Wixey WR300 Type 2 eliminated most of that frustration. Set it on the bevel, read the angle, transfer it to the saw. No trigonometry, no trial and error cuts. Probably should have mentioned this one earlier — it belongs earlier in any workshop build-out than most people think.

5. Oscillating Multi-Tools: The tool for the work that does not fit any other category. Flush-cutting nails without disassembly. Undercutting door casing for flooring. Removing grout. Scraping adhesive. Rockwell and Dremel both make solid models with quick-change accessory systems — no wrenches, no tool-free adapter fussing. It is not glamorous, but it earns its space on the bench every single week.

Five tools. Each one changed something specific about how I work. None of them replaced skill or judgment — but all of them let me apply skill and judgment more accurately. That is what good tooling actually does. It does not make woodworking easier so much as it makes the results more consistent and the work more satisfying.