10 Must-Have Tools for a Small Workshop

Ask ten tradespeople for their essential-tools list and you will get ten different answers — but the overlap is remarkably consistent. This is that overlap.

The list

• 18V cordless drill/driver with a second battery
• Combination wrench set, metric and SAE
• Socket set with a 3/8" ratchet — quality over piece count
• Adjustable pliers (groove-joint) and locking pliers
• 25 ft tape measure and a torpedo level
• Utility knife with spare blades
• Claw hammer, 16 oz
• Screwdriver set with hardened tips
• Digital multimeter — even for non-electricians
• Bench vise bolted to something that does not move

Buy once, cry once — selectively

Spend on the tools that see daily abuse: the drill, the ratchet, the tape. Economize on the ones that live in a drawer. A mid-range multimeter serves a workshop for a decade; a premium one mostly serves an electrician.