8 Best Backpack Leaf Blowers in 2023

Last updated on May 21st, 2023 at 11:00 am

Whether you’re a homeowner, a professional landscaper, or you operate a small yard care company looking, and you’re looking for a machine to take care of fallen leaves and debris in the yard, a backpack leave blower machine is one of the best options to go for.

That’s because, just like a real backpack, it’s very comfortable to carry around the yard; whether you’re walking along the road, amid trees, or across the lawn, it’s almost effortless to maneuver.

There are different types of leaf blowers, including handheld, backpack, and powerful wheeled walk-behind units.

Among the three types, and apart from wheeled walk-behind units, a backpack leaf blower not only provides more power and air speed to clear large areas of leaves, sand, gravel, and debris, but it’s also more ergonomic, allowing the user more comfort during use.

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The main reason it’s designed to be carried on the back like a backpack is to distribute the machine’s weight over the shoulder and back of the operator instead of just one arm like a standard handheld unit.

Backpack leaf blowers are also more mobile because the operator can walk with it anywhere across different terrains as long as it’s worn on the back and shoulders. Unlike a more powerful work-behind unit, you don’t have to push it or worry about the shape of the landscape. It’s portable and powerful at the same time.

In this article, I’ve reviewed 8 of the best backpack leaf blowers you can use, both gas and battery-powered units, so you can choose the right one whether you’re a simple homeowner or a pro who needs it for commercial reasons.

1. Echo PB-9010T Gas Backpack Leaf Blower

Of the different models of backpack leaf blowers produced by Echo, the PB—9010T from their X Series of power tools and equipment is one of the most powerful ones you’ll find today.

If you’re a professional landscaper who needs ones of these equipment on a daily basis to move heaps of both wet and dry leaves on the job, then this is one of the best options to go for.

Whether there’re sticks and other heavier debris in your leaves pile, it will sweep them all off. If you’re using it around your garden, you have to be careful around small plants, as it can even sweep them off or knock them over.

It comes equipped with a 79.9 CC 2 stroke engine with a blower fan that produces 1110 CFM of air at a speed of 220 MPH. With those numbers, if that’s not a very powerful leaf blower, I don’t know what is.

The throttle is tube-mounted which is easier to access, allowing the operator convenience during operation. It also has variable-speed control, allowing the user to vary the speed according to the size or number of leaves to be blown.

Another feature that makes it more comfortable to use the Echo PB-9010T X Series backpack leaf blower is that the pad on the backpack is vented, thus allowing air to circulate around the user, producing a cooling effect during in weather conditions.

The fuel tank it comes with is see-through, which makes it very easy to tell when the fuel is running low and so as to top it up.

Because it has a 2-stroke engine and all, the main drawback of the PB-9010T is that it is quite noisy, producing up to 80 decibels of noise.

Apart from that, it’s a very powerful you can use to tackle many yard cleaning projects throughout the year, whether you’re an avid homeowner or a professional landscaper.

2. Husqvarna 360BT Gas Backpack Leaf Blower

The Husqvarna 360BT gas backpack leaf blower is the newer model of the already successful and widely used Husqvarna 350BT.

Just like the 350BT, the Husqvarna 360BT comes equipped with a highly powerful and fuel-efficient X-Torq engine which makes it ideal for commercial applications.

The 3.81 horsepower X-Torq engine is designed to reduce fuel consumption by up to 20 percent and also reduce exhaust emissions by up to 60 percent, which makes it far better than most other engines especially for the environment.

Producing up to 631 cfm volume of air at a speed of 231 mph, the Husqvarna 360BT produces enough blowing force to clear heavy layered debris, fallen leaves and even gravel.

In terms of ergonomics, the 360BT features an offset handle which makes it easier to control the air nozzle by preventing the arm from being pulled downwards from the blow force of the air coming through the nozzle.

Although it weighs 23.2 lbs, the Husqvarna 360BT features a well-designed, comfortable and load-reducing harness with wide shoulder straps and a hip belt which makes it very easy to carry around.

Featured also is an air purge system that removes air from the carburetor and fuel system so the engine can start up easily even in cold conditions.

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4. Ego Power+ LB6000 Battery-Powered Backpack Leaf Blower

Gas engine powered blowers weigh up to 20 lbs. and above, but the Ego Power+ LB6000 weighs just 12.5 lbs. That’s because it’s battery-powered. It doesn’t have a heavy gas-powered engine for you to contend with.

You get to wear this thing on you and work with it without even feeling the weight, because it’s lightweight, it’s got a good harness, and most importantly, it gets the job done.

Apart from being lightweight, it’s also very quiet. There’s no gas engine here, it’s all battery operated. So, it can be used in residential areas without being noisy and annoying people.

Producing up to 600 CFM of air at a speed of 145 MPH, the Ego Power+ LB6000 is built with enough capacity to blow off both wet and dry leaves of the ground. It’s very good for residential areas with trees. You can also use it for gathering the grass into a pile after mowing your lawn.

Although the air volume maxes out at 600 CFM, it can be adjusted from 260 to 600 CFM, allowing you to vary the speed and volume of the air to match the application.

The Ego Power+ comes equipped with a highly-efficient brushless motor that not only gets the job done, but is also more efficient than brushed motors.

It also features an adjustable air tube/nozzle so it can be handled easily no matter the height of the user. The harness is also very comfortable and easy to wear.

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2. Craftsman CMXGAAMR51BP Gas-Powered Backpack Leaf Blower

The most important thing any backpack leaf blower should be able to do very well is for it to move grasses and other debris efficiently, and that is what this Craftsman CMXGAAMR51BP does very well.

I will assure you that it’s very powerful and will get those leafs flying in no time. The 51cc 2-cycle gas engine produces enough power to get any pile of leaves you have lying around in the yard.

Unfortunately, just like many other 2-cycle engines, this one is also very loud, so you need to make sure to wear ear protection any time you’re operating it. Apart from being loud every other thing is as cool as you can get.

One more impressive thing I noticed is that the backpack is very ergonomic. It’s very comfortable and heat up your back even after using it for a long time. There’s an anti-vibration system that reduces the vibration from the engine, ensuring you can use it without getting all your body jiggly.

The handle is also very easy to control and you can control and vary the air flow and speed right from the throttle.

One more important thing. Startup is very easy. Just make sure to use the appropriate fuel-oil mixture, and follow the instructions from the manual, and it will start up every time.

Related: 8 Lawn Mowing Tips Every Homeowner Should Know

5. Makita EB5300TH Gas-Powered Backpack Leaf Blower

The problem with most 2 stroke engines found in most backpack leaf blower is that they use mixed fuel for operation. And improper mixture of this fuel usually results in failure of these engines.

That is why you usually hear complains like, “after using it twice, I tried the third time and it could not startup anymore”. Well, the truth is the engine has failed, and the most likely reason is improper fuel and oil mixture.

To resolve that problem, Makita introduced their MM4 4 stroke engine which uses gas only, not a mixture of fuel and oil.

The Makita EB5300TH is a commercial grade backpack blower which uses the MM4 4-stroke engine not only to eliminate engine failure due to bad fuel mixture but to produce a more powerful gas backpack blower for your needs.

Whether you’re a landscaper or you own acres of land with trees all over that shed leaves, the Makita EB5300TH backpack blower is a very good choice that will provide all the power you need on a daily basis.

The 75.6cc MM4 4-stroke engine produces airflow up to 516 cfm at wind speed of 184 miles per hour. With this, you can get all the leaves and debris cleared off your property in no time.

It’s equipped with heavy duty anti-vibration mounts which is located between the blower frame and the engine to minimize vibration produced during operation and increase the comfort of using the unit.

A padded back pad/harness with shoulder straps that are easily adjusted, provides maximum comfort when you carry it on your back.

Related: 5 Best Robotic Lawn Mowers for Busy Homeowners

6. Poulan Pro PR48BT Backpack Blower

The Poulan Pro PR48BT is a budget friendly backpack blower with just enough power to cater for all leaf clearing needs in your yard.

It comes equipped with a powerful 48cc 2-stroke engine which generates up to 475 cfm of airflow at speeds of 200 mph. This is surely not the most powerful of backpack blowers, but it has enough power to meet any home owner’s leaf or yard clearing needs.

The Poulan Pro comes slapped with a lot of useful features that makes using it very intuitive. For instance, it has the variable speed feature which helps you to adjust the speed of the air depending on the material you’re blowing.

You can reduce the speed for light materials such as dry leaf, and increase it to blow off denser or heavier materials such as sticky wet leaves and debris.

The cruise control feature is also very useful. It allows you to use the blower at a constant speed without engaging the throttle, allowing you to focus on directing the barrel of the blower and focusing on the leaves, dust or debris you’re blowing off.

The harness that comes with the Poulan Pro is also well made for user comfort with large padded adjustable shoulder straps which makes it easy for the user to work with it for long periods without getting weighed down by the weight of the blower.

If what you’re looking for is a powerful but budget friendly backpack blower for taking care of the leafs and debris on your yard, then you should seriously consider giving the Poulan Pro PR48BT a shot.

Note that, to get the best out of the Poulan Pro or any other 2 cycle engines for that matter, you have to use fuels that don’t contain ethanol in them.

And the best way to ensure you don’t use those type of fuel is to get the premixed fuel online or from your local hardware store.

Ethanol attracts water and can actually damage the engine of your blower. If you want to mix your own fuel, try to adhere to a 50 to 1 mix ratio, or refer to your user manual.

Using incorrect ratios of fuel mixtures or using ethanol based fuels can actually damage your engine and may cause the engine not to start.

So, if a manufacturer encourages you to buy premixed fuel for their blower, it’s most likely in your best interest.

7. Greenworks Pro – Best Electric Model

With up to 580 cfm in volume of air and 145 miles per hour of air speed, the Greenworks pro offers another battery powered backpack leaf blower which you can use to make quick work of blowing away leaves both wet and dry from your property without the drawbacks that goes with a gas blower.

The blower uses a brushless motor in combination with the popular Greenworks 80 volts battery system which works together to maximize the runtime of the tool.

With the battery fully charged you can get 20 to 30 minutes of run time from the blower, which is just enough for any home owner to cover a lot of ground with the tool in action.

The Greenworks Pro backpack blower is equipped with nice features to make it easy and comfortable for the end user to control and use the tool.

It comes equipped with a variable speed control which you can use to vary the speed according to the size or type of leaves or debris you’re blowing with it. Wet leaves may require more mph, while dry leaves require less speed, and the variable speed control just comes very handy in such situations.

Also included is the cruise control feature which you can engage to keep the blower running at a particular speed while you work with it.

Finally, an included turbo button comes in handy when you need more power to clear off stubborn leaves and debris off your property.

With the Greenworks Pro, you have a blower which you can start up any time you want just with the press of a button. No pull starts and smelly gas mixtures that comes with gas engines.

8. Troy-Bilt TB51BP Gas-Powered Backpack Leaf Blower

The Troy-Bilt TB51BP gas-powered backpack leaf blower and the Craftsman reviewed above are very similar. Something tells me, they’re the same. It’s just the brand name that’s different.

Just like the Craftsman this Troy-Bilt features a 51CC 2-Cycle gas-powered engine that produces 600 CFM of air at a speed of 220 miles per hour. From reading that, you can tell it’s quite powerful.

I notice the same issue from both backpack leaf blowers from Troy-Bilt and Craftsman. They’re are both very noisy due to the 2-Cycle engine.

However, every other feature looks great and the Troy-Bilt TB51BP met my expectation. The backpack looks and feels comfortable when it’s worn because the weight is evenly distributed. You don’t feel the heat from the engine in your back because it’s well-insulated.

You’re not going to find this one difficult to start. It starts up easy due to it’s spring-assist pull cord. It also features a variable speed throttle which really helps, because you can increase or reduce the speed directly from the throttle to move light leaves or heavier debris.

The price for this Troy-Bilt TB51BP is low compared to similar backpack leave blowers. So, I think you should consider this, if you’re looking for a budget-friendly gas-powered unit.

What To Consider When Choosing A Backpack Leaf Blower

If you’ve not had one before, choosing the right backpack leaf blower can be quite a delima. However, with the right information, you can make the right choice.

First, you need to know certain term used for describing the specifications of these leaf blowers, so that you can differentiate between what one manufacturer offers, and what another one does.

These terms include CFM, MPH, CC, 2-stroke engine and 4 stroke engine.

So, here are the terms or specs and what they mean.

What is CFM?

CFM is an acronym for cubic feet per minute. The CFM of a leaf blower means the air volume of that leaf blower, or the volume of air that comes out of the nozzle of that blower in one minute.

That is what the Cubic Feet Per Minute means. So, if a blower has a cfm of 250. It means that blower produces 250 cubic feet of air in one minute when running.

So, the CFM is the volume of air that a blower produces in a minute. Leaf blowers with higher CFM usually come with wider nozzles for blowing out the large volume of air they produce.

If you’re looking to get a really powerful blower that will make short work of the leaves in your yard, you need to pay more attention to the CFM of the backpack leaf blower you’re trying to get.

The more CFM it has, the more power it has to push those leafs off your yard for good.

What is MPH?

Another acronym or spec you’ll come across when shopping for blowers is MPH. MPH is an acronym which stands for miles per hour. This means the speed at which the air comes out of the nozzle.

MPH is not the volume of the air that comes out, but rather, the speed at which this air comes out.

So far, the MPH though important, is not the most important specs you should be looking at when shopping a backpack leaf blower or a leaf blower of any kind. Like I mentioned earlier, you should pay more attention to the cfm.

So, if you’re trying to choose between blower A and B. If B has more CFM than A, but A has more MPH than B. Then B will move more leaves than blower A, hence doing a better job than A.

What is CC

CC is usually associated with gas leaf blowers and it stands for Cubic Centimeter. The CC of an engine stands for the volume inside the engine block that the piston sweeps through.

Put simply, it can also stand for the size of the engine. A higher cc will definitely result in a larger engine, heavier, but more powerful engine. Also producing less noise.

Now, with those terms out of the way, let’s talk about the features you should look for when choosing a backpack leaf blower.

Features To Consider

Here are important features you should look for when shopping for a backpack leaf blower you’re going to use either for your own residential application or for commercial applications.

Power

Power is definitely not something you want to ignore when shopping for a backpack leaf blower, especially when you’re trying to blow wet leaves from your yard or garden.

Again, this is where you have to take into account the engine capacity and the amount of CFM it produces. Like I mentioned earlier, more CFM means more power to move leaves.

Noise

Leaf blowers are very noisy when they’re running, with some even producing as much noise as chainsaws. So, if care is not taken you might end up annoying your neighbors or even worse breaking your local environmental laws.

The noise rating of a leaf blower is usually specified in decibels. Higher decibels means more noise. So, try to check out the decibels rating of the blower you’re trying to acquire.

Also, the lower CC engines tend to produce more noise than the higher CC engines. So, that is something you need to take not of when choosing a backpack leaf blower.

Weight

Backpack weed blowers are usually easier to carry and handle due to the fact that it comes with a harness which allows you to carry the blower on your back, with the weight distributed across your back and shoulders.

That however, does not mean you shouldn’t care about the weight. Even though your back and shoulder bears it, you’ll going to get tired easily if the weight is too much for your back and shoulders.

So, while paying attention to power and noise, also try consider and compare the weights of different blowers to make sure you get the one that’ll be easier for you to work with, especially if you’re working for several hours.

Engine Emissions

This is where you have to choose between a gas powered backpack leaf blower and a battery powered backpack blower.

With a battery powered type like the Dewalt DCBL590X2, you don’t have to deal with fumes or emissions from a gas engine. Though you have to then deal with less power.

For gas blowers, some produce lesser emissions than their other gas counterparts. For instance Husqvarna employs their X-torq technology to not only reduce fuel consumption in their gas backpack leaf blowers, but also to reduce emissions produced as well.

The Hussqvarna 350BT and the Husqvarna 580BTS uses the X-torq tech to reduce emissions from the engine.

Run Time / Tank Type and Capacity

Let’s face it, each time fuel finishes from the tank, you have to put down the backpack leaf blower from your back, refill it with fuel and put it on your back again.

This will not only tire you out, especially if the blower is heavy, but it increases downtime. So, trying to get a backpack leaf blower which has a tank with enough room for fuel is definitely not out of place.

Also, try to get one with a see-through fuel tank which is good for you to know the level of fuel in the fuel tank.

Most of the ones reviewed in this article all come with see-through fuel tanks.

Start-up

Before you put the leaf blower on your back to start blowing away leaves, you have to start it up, and trust me, nothing is more annoying than an engine that takes forever to start.

If your gas backpack leaf blower don’t start running after 1 or 2 pulls of the start cord, then there’s something wrong. So, check out reviews and make sure it starts up quickly.

You don’t want to expend all your energy starting up the blower, when you haven’t even blown away a single leaf.

Variable Speed

If you’re blowing off dry leaves in your garden where there are other delicate plants, you don’t want to go full throttle on the leaf blower, because you might end up doing some serious damage to your plants.

So, a leaf blower with a variable speed trigger can come in handy here. With it, you can try to vary the speed per your needs or circumstance.

Ease of Maintenance

It’s no news that gas blowers are not easy to maintain. Most of them require you to mix up fuel in certain proportions to make sure the work well.

Improper mixture of fuel might result in difficulty in starting the blower, more emissions from the engine and even result in damage.

Thus, gas blowers are kind of difficult to maintain. Unlike their battery powered counterparts which requires little to no maintenance.

If you’re going for gas powered leaf blowers however, you should try to get premixed fuel specified by the manufacturer which will ensure that your engine keeps running at tip-top condition and also satisfy some warranty conditions for manufacturers that insist you need to use their premixed fuel for the warranty to stand.

Premixed fuel don’t usually come cheap, but it’ll certainly make it easier for you to run your backpack blower without any hiccups.

Type of Application

Depending on the size of your yard or what you want to use it for, you might have to choose between a consumer grade backpack leaf blower and a commercial grade backpack blower.

Talking about consumer grade and commercial grade. I would say any backpack leaf blower producing less than 600 cfm of air can be called consumer grade.

While those that produce above 600 cfm of air can be used fairly comfortably for commercial jobs without any problems.

Some of the best commercial grade backpack leaf blowers you’ll find include the Maruyama BL85-t, the Husqvarna 580BTS, the Makita EB7650TH and the Redmax EBZ7500RH, just to name a few.

While some consumer duty backpack blowers that will work well for you include the Husqvarna 350BT, and the Echo PB-580T just to name a few.

Ergonomics – Strap Design / Balance

For a leaf blower to be called a backpack leaf blower, it has to come with a harness for you to be able to carry it on your back.

The thing is, some backpack blowers come with better harness than some. The type or condition of the harness that comes with your backpack blower will determine how comfortable you are wearing it on your back and working with it. Ultimately determining how long you can work with it.

A good harness should have wide shoulder straps which helps to distribute the blower weight across your shoulders.

A thin shoulder strap concentrates the weight of the blower in a particular part of your shoulder which can cause pain in that area and discomfort after some time.

Some shoulder straps are designed to receive air or ventilation which helps to prevent moisture and sweat from building up in your and shoulders under the shoulder strap.

Vibration Control

Backpack leaf blowers are worn on the back. That means the engine is attached to the user and close to the back of the operator.

Engines vibrate, and that vibration can be easily transmitted from the engine to the operator if not controlled properly.

That is why some units like the Makita EB7660TH is fitted with good anti-vibration mounts to reduce the vibration produced by the engine.

I think this is something you also have to look into when making your choice.

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