For most people, this is not a decision you make every year, or every couple of years. But after 7-10 years, most mowers reach their age limit, and it becomes time to make the important decision that will last for much of the next decade: Should you buy a gas or an electric mower?

For a long time, the decision was simple. Gas mowers offered power and portability that couldn’t be matched by electric mowers. You didn’t have to be tied to a cord, or even have access to a house or electricity to complete the work. Or you didn’t have to push a massive battery up that hill in the side yard.

However, battery technology has improved. Also, the need to burn fewer fossil fuels where possible has gotten more evident over time.

So now, every homeowner should strongly consider whether it is time to go electric.

But electricity comes from fossil fuels too!

One argument used in defense of gas mowers (and cars and trucks too) is that electricity is created using the same fossil fuels that you burn. If it is the same process, the argument goes, then it doesn’t really matter which you use in your lawn.

However, there is an important difference between HOW the fossil fuels are spent at an electric generating plant and how they are spent in your individual engine.

Electricity is created under carefully controlled and monitored guidelines, using the latest technology to reduce pollution. It is strictly monitored and enforced. Companies pay fines for failing to meet these federal expectations.

As for your gas mower, when the parts are not working perfectly, most owners don’t know. And many don’t have the expertise needed to keep their mower in tip-top shape. That means that pretty quickly, your mower falls out of compliance and is polluting far more than it was the first day you pulled the cord.

What if my business is mowing laws?

Some businesses are turning their electric-only fleet into a distinct marketing advantage.

Screenshot of a company marketing their silent, eco-friendly lawn service

One company in South Carolina markets their quiet, fuel efficient tools to entice a clientele that values silence and wants to be seen doing something positive for the environment.

They promise it isn’t their lawn service waking people up early on those quiet summer mornings!

A lot has changed over time. Electric, battery-powered mowers are not just the future, but they are the present of responsible lawn care.