Best Benchtop Planer (2026): Two Picks for Flat, Even Boards

The best benchtop planer for most shops is the DEWALT DW735X. It sizes rough boards to a consistent thickness, leaves a finish that needs little sanding, and blows its own chips into a barrel. If you are still squaring edges before you plane, our router guide covers the tool that does that, and the rest of our woodworking tool guides cover sanders, saws, and shop setup. Once boards come off the planer, our random orbital sander guide covers the finish pass, and the drum sander guide covers wide panels.

What a benchtop planer does that a sander cannot

A planer makes a board even thickness. A sander smooths a surface, but it follows every dip and crown in the wood, so it cannot fix a board that is thicker on one end. If you buy rough lumber, or you resaw boards on a bandsaw, the planer is the tool that turns them into parts.

Does a planer flatten a warped board?

No. A planer copies the face it is handed, so a cupped or twisted board comes out cupped and thinner. Flatten the first face on a jointer, or with a planer sled and shims, then let the planer size the second face.

A planer is also what makes a project come together. When every rail is the same thickness, joints close and glue-ups stay flat. That is why a planer usually comes before a drum sander in a small shop, not after.

The spec that matters is the cutterhead. Straight knives are cheap and leave a decent surface, but they tear out figured wood and need care to reset. A spiral or helical head uses small indexed cutters that shear the wood, which leaves a cleaner face on grain that changes direction.

Top pick: DEWALT DW735X

The DEWALT DW735X is the best benchtop planer for most shops because it handles the whole job. The 15-amp motor turns the cutterhead at 10,000 RPM, and the three-knife head delivers a long knife life between changes.

What does 179 cuts per inch mean in a finished board?

It means the cutterhead takes 179 slices across every inch of travel, so the surface comes off the planer close to sanded. Use the slower feed for the final pass; the fast feed at 96 cuts per inch is for hogging rough stock down to size.

The two-speed gearbox is the feature that separates it from the cheaper machines. Run the fast setting to dimension rough stock, then switch to the slower feed for 179 cuts per inch on the finishing pass. That is how you get a face that is ready for a light sanding instead of a lot of scraping.

The fan-assisted chip ejection is the other useful feature. It blows chips out of the cutterhead and down the exhaust port, so a short hose into a barrel keeps the bench clear. The X kit also includes infeed and outfeed tables and a spare set of knives.

Know the tradeoffs. The stock knives chip and dull faster than the rest of the machine, and replacement sets are not cheap. The machine is also heavy, and the blower makes it loud. Neither matters much if it lives on a stand in the corner.

Who it is for: Furniture builders and serious hobbyists who plane rough or resawn hardwood often and want a finish-ready surface.

Skip if: You only plane a board now and then, or you cannot give up the floor space and the noise.

Shop: DEWALT DW735X on Amazon

Best spiral cutterhead: WEN PL1326

The WEN PL1326 is the best value if you want a spiral cutterhead without the DEWALT price. The 15-amp motor turns the cutterhead at 10,000 RPM with a 26-foot-per-minute feed, and it planes boards up to 13 inches wide and 6 inches thick.

How long do 26 indexed blades last before rotating?

Each of the 26 blades indexes on four edges, so a full set gives 104 fresh cutting edges before you buy replacements. Rotate a nicked blade in place instead of pulling the whole set, which is the reason the spiral head costs less to run.

The spiral head is the reason to buy it. The 26 staggered blades shear the wood instead of slicing straight across the grain, so figured maple and other reversing grain tear out less. Each blade indexes on four sides, so when one edge dulls you rotate it instead of buying a new set.

The cast-iron base keeps the machine from walking during a pass, and the infeed and outfeed tables fold for storage. The onboard material removal gauge tells you how much you are taking off per pass, which helps you avoid over-cutting.

Plan for a little tuning. The factory table setting leaves noticeable snipe until you level the tables, and the machine ships with oil and grease that transfers to the first boards. Run a scrap piece through a few times before you feed good stock.

Who it is for: Beginners and small shops that want a spiral head, a cast-iron base, and a lower price than the DEWALT.

Skip if: You plane hardwood in volume and want the quietest, smoothest finishing pass the category offers.

Shop: WEN PL1326 on Amazon

How the two planers compare

The choice comes down to finish and money. The DEWALT gives you two feed speeds and a blower that clears chips, and it holds up to regular use. The WEN gives you a spiral head for less, but you level the tables and manage chips yourself.

What specs decide a benchtop planer?

Motor, cutterhead, feed speed, and capacity are the numbers that decide what a 13-inch benchtop planer can do. Both picks share the same capacity, so the cutterhead and the feed speed are what separate them.

At 26 feet per minute, a 13-inch board gives you about 28 square feet of planed face every minute. The DW735X at its finish setting moves slower and takes more cuts per inch, which is why its surface needs less sanding.

What does each planer cost per inch of capacity?

Divide the price by the 13-inch capacity and the WEN costs less per inch of cut. The spiral-head WEN works out to $32.15 per inch against $50.69 per inch for the DEWALT, a gap that pays for a dust hose and a spare blade set.

How many board-feet can a 13-inch planer surface per minute?

At a 26 feet per minute feed, a 13-inch-wide board gives about 28 board-feet of face per minute at a one-inch cut. Wider passes and deeper cuts both slow the real number, so treat 28 as the ceiling on softwood.

Same capacity and the same top feed rate put the two planers on the same throughput, so the extra money buys the cutterhead, the blower, and the second feed speed rather than more boards per hour. Take the DEWALT's slow setting and the surface comes off closer to sanded; stay on the WEN's single speed and you sand a little more.

Snipe, knives, and feed speed

Snipe is the dip at the ends of a board that happens when only one roller holds the stock. Both of these planers can produce it. Level the infeed and outfeed tables with the bed, take lighter passes, and run a longer board so you can trim the ends. Roller stands help on long stock.

How do you stop snipe on a benchtop planer?

Level the infeed and outfeed tables with the bed, take lighter passes, and run a longer board so you can trim the ends. Snipe happens when only one roller holds the stock, so the nose and tail dip into the cutterhead.

Knives decide your long-term cost. The DEWALT uses three straight knives that chip and dull, and a replacement set runs about $80. The WEN uses indexed spiral blades you rotate, which spreads the cost out, though it is a spiral head rather than a true helical head, so the finish is not identical.

Feed speed decides the surface. A slow feed gives more cuts per inch and a smoother face. The DEWALT lets you choose, and the WEN runs one speed. On figured wood, take lighter passes on either machine instead of forcing a deep cut.

How much can you take off in one planer pass?

A 13-inch benchtop planer is not built for deep cuts. Take about 1/16 inch per pass on a board up to 6 inches wide, and about 1/32 inch per pass on a board up to 12 inches wide, then let the machine pull the stock. Deeper passes trip the overload or leave a rippled face.

How do you feed a board through a planer correctly?

Support the board on both sides, feed it against the cutterhead rotation, and keep steady pressure so one roller always holds it. Let the machine pull the stock once it bites; pushing hard loads the motor and makes the snipe worse. Run a board longer than you need and trim the snipe off the ends.

What happens if you take too deep a pass?

A too-deep pass stalls the cutterhead, trips the thermal overload, and leaves a rippled, wavy face that sanding will not fully fix. If the motor slows or the machine kicks out, cut the depth in half and run the board again instead of forcing it through.

Who should skip a benchtop planer

Skip both if your real need is flattening one face. A planer copies the face it is handed, so a cupped or twisted board comes out cupped and thinner. Flatten the first face on a jointer, or with a planer sled and shims, then use the planer to size the second face.

Skip both if you run wide slabs or production volume. A 13-inch benchtop planer tops out at 13 inches wide, and the motors are not built for all-day use. A floor-standing planer with a bigger motor and a wider bed is the tool for that work.

Skip the WEN if noise and chips bother you. It needs a hose to a collector or a shop vac, and it is not quiet. The DEWALT's blower and heavier base make it the more comfortable machine if you plane often.

Bottom line: The best benchtop planer is the DEWALT DW735X for its three-knife finish and chip blower, or the WEN PL1326 if you want a spiral cutterhead for less. More shop guides live on the Workshoppicks blog and the woodworking tool guides page. If edges and profiles are next on the list, read our router guide.