Adding a jigsaw to your tool kit is a great weapon to make cutting easier. They’re easy to use, safe, and can cut through multiple materials. Plus you can achieve impressive accuracy for intricate designs. If you’re using your power tools often or want to run away from the utility grid, you’ll be keen to find out the power consumption.
Below we will discuss and test jigsaw wattage, explain how to work it out for yourself, and calculate the total electricity required.
How Many Watts is a Jigsaw?
The average jigsaw uses between 500 and 800 watts.
The exact number depends on the size and model of your jigsaw. For example, a lowered powered jigsaw drawing 500W will only be able to cut 6mm of steel and 65mm in wood. In contrast, an 800W machine delivers more power to cut through materials of double the thickness.
There is not a huge variation beyond these ranges when it comes to power consumption. In simple terms, the bigger the jigsaw motor the higher the wattage becomes. But with size comes performance and the ability to tackle thicker sheets of wood and metal.
How to Find Out Your Jigsaw Wattage
There are 3 ways you can work out the wattage of a jigsaw.
- Check Product Specification
The quickest way is to look at the jigsaw’s specification. The watts (W) is usually written on a sticker on the base of the appliance. If not, you can check the user manual or the manufacturer’s website for technical details.
- Use a Wattmeter
A wattmeter is brilliant for getting a live wattage reading and tracking total energy usage of any appliance. You can simply plug it into your jigsaw to get instant information.
I used one to test my jigsaw which gave a live reading of 431W on high speed.
- Wattage Formula or Calculator
If you know the amperage and voltage of your jigsaw you can use this to find the maximum watt rating. Simply use the formula Amps x Volts = Watts. Or you can head over to the ‘Watt Calculator’ to work this out.
Jigsaw Wattage Examples
Let’s take a look at specific examples of how many watts a jigsaw draws. Below is a collection of modern jigsaws with their listed power ratings.
| Jigsaw Model | Power Rating (Watts) |
| ERBAUER EJS750 | 750 |
| MAC ALLISTER MSJS600 | 600 |
| DEWALT DW331K | 701 |
| MAKITA 4329 / 2 | 450 |
| BOSCH GST 150 | 780 |
| MAKITA 4350CT/2 | 720 |
| MAKITA M4301 | 450 |
| MAKITA 4351FCT/2 | 720 |
| BOSCH GST 160 BCE | 800 |
| BOSCH GST 150 CE | 780 |
| BOSCH GST 90 BE | 650 |
As you can see, the power ratings vary between different jigsaws. So you should take the time to check your own appliance.
How Much Electricity Does a Jigsaw Use?
You can use jigsaw wattage to work out how much electricity it uses. Plus this can be useful in understanding how much it costs to run your jigsaw.
A watt (W) is a measurement of power at a single point in time. A watt-hour (Wh) is the total amount of electricity used in an hour. For example, a jigsaw drawing 800W would use 800Wh when running for an hour.
Happily, electricity bills are recorded in kilowatt-hours (kWh). A kilowatt is simply 1000 watts. So a 800W jigsaw running for 1 hour uses 0.8kWh.
Let’s say you actively run your jigsaw for 1 hour a month. This means a jigsaw uses upto 800Wh or 0.8kWh electricity a month. That’s 9.6kWh a year.
That’s a rough electricity cost of $1.44 a year to use your jigsaw for a total of 1 hour each month.
The exact numbers will vary from person to person. A DIY user will work far less than this, while a professional might run for longer.
Using a Jigsaw Off-Grid
If you’re planning to use your jigsaw in an off-grid situation like a power outage, remote location, car, RV, boat, truck, or similar, the information above is important. Knowing the wattage enables you to install the correct power equipment and work out how long you can run.
You can either use a power inverter, portable power station, or generator to generate AC electricity.
To make sure everything runs smoothly you should check two things on this equipment – wattage capacity and total energy capacity.
Your power source, like an inverter, should have a wattage capacity of at least 20% more than your jigsaw. This ensures it will be able to deliver enough power as they are never 100% efficient. To cut wood or metal, it is best to have 1000W power capacity. This will run most of these tools without overloading your system.
Secondly, you need to ensure your energy source, like a battery, has enough energy to run the jigsaw for the required amount of time. As we already know, it will use upto 800Wh electricity for each hour of cutting. This is the equivalent to 66.6Ah on a 12V battery.
You could also run your jigsaw via an inverter connected to a car or truck battery. This will give you the power to work as long as you have the engine running to keep the battery charged.
How Many Watts Does a Jigsaw Use Summary
I hope you now have a clear understanding of how many watts a jigsaw uses.
As power tools go, these are relatively low-powered at 800W or below. But you might find that you run your jigsaw longer than other tools, especially with intricate designs. Happily, it won’t use too much electricity for most casual DIY users. Plus you can easily run it from an inverter or power station when away from the main grid.
