What do Dewalt cordless power tool model numbers mean?
A reader asked this question today, and it seems to be a common one. There’s no official guide, but we picked up on some of Dewalt’s model number patterns over the years.
I’m not sure how well the average tool user needs to be able to decipher Dewalt tool model numbers, but we’ll take a deep look at things nonetheless.
Shown above is the Dewalt DCD798D1 cordless hammer drill kit.
In this post, we’ll talk about how the DCD means this is a cordless drill, the 798 implies it’s a hammer drill, and the D1 means it is kitted with a single 20V Max 2Ah battery.
Shortcut Links
Here are shortcut links if you want to skip around to different sections in your own order:
Dewalt Cordless Tool Categories Explained
What do the Numbers Mean?
How to Identify the Batteries in Dewalt Cordless Tool Kits
Dewalt Cordless Drills
Dewalt Cordless Impact Drivers
Other Dewalt Cordless Tools
Power Tool Combo Kits
Home Depot Dewalt Cordless Bundles
Avoid Assumptions
Reconditioned Tools
Tool Categories Explained – What do the Letters Mean?
The first part of the model number describes the product category. As you can probably guess, DC stands for Dewalt Cordless [tool type].
Following are all of the Dewalt cordless power tool model number prefixes I could remember or find, and there might be others.
DCB – Battery (12V Max or 20V Max), charger, or USB adapter
DCBP – PowerStack battery
DCD – Drill
DCE – Equipment
DCF – Fastening tool (e.g. impact driver, wrench, or ratchet)
DCG – Grinder
DCH – Rotary hammer or breaker hammer
DCM – Material removal tool (e.g. band file, polisher)
DCK – Combo kit
DCL – Lighting
DCN – Nailer
DCR – Jobsite radio or speaker
DCS – Saw or oscillating multi-tool
DCV – Vacuum
DCW – Woodworking tools (sanders, routers, and similar)
Some of the product categories are quite broad. DCS, for example includes many different types of saws, and also oscillating multi-tools. DCF includes impact drivers, impact wrenches, ratchets, and riveting tools – at the least.
The DCE category is a broad catch-all for things like trade specialty tools, jobsite blowers, fans, drywall sanders, adhesive applicators, pipe threaders, and other such tools that don’t warrant their own category.
Cordless Outdoor Power Tools
Dewalt has many very specific model number prefixes for their outdoor tools.
DCBL – Blower
DCC – Chainsaw
DCED – Edger
DCHT – Hedge trimmer
DCMW – Mower
DCPR – Pruner
DCPS – Pole saw
DCSN – Snow blower
DCST – String trimmer
As with the other prefixes, there could be more – please let me know if I missed any!
Non-Cordless Tool Prefixes
Dewalt’s other types of tools also tend to have logical prefixes.
They changed their corded (AC powered) tool numbering scheme over the years. For example, Dewalt corded table saws went from being DW## to DWE###, and miter saws went from DW### to DWS###.
Hand tools and accessories start with DWHT. Work benches, tool boxes, organizers, tool bags, and other such products start with DWST.
What do the Numbers Mean?
Next, model numbers denote placement within a product category, although the meaning is not always straightforward.
The tricky part is that the numbers can jump around a bit.
Things get confusing when comparing across different product families. As you’ll see, there’s no hard rule to go by. The numbers aren’t arbitrary, but they also aren’t consistently patterned.
In other words, you can’t guess, at least not with high confidence.
For example, without research or existing familiarity with Dewalt’s cordless line, you’re not going to be able to tell that the DCD794D1 Atomic series drill kit was preceded by the DCD708C2 Atomic series drill kit.
But as you compare the features, performance specs, and price, the model number will help inform you about how the kits come with different batteries.
How to Identify the Batteries in Dewalt Cordless Tool Kits
The letter denotes the battery size, and the following number (#) tells you how many the kit comes with.
For the Dewalt 20V Max line:
C# – 1.3Ah or 1.5Ah battery
D# – 2Ah battery
E# – compact PowerStack battery
H# – 5Ah PowerStack battery
L# – 3Ah battery (compact or older style)
M# – 4Ah battery
P# – 5Ah battery
Q# – 4Ah compact battery
R# – 6Ah battery
T# – 6Ah FlexVolt battery
U# – 10Ah battery
W# – 8Ah battery
X# – 9Ah Flexvolt battery
Y# – 12Ah FlexVolt battery
Z# – 15Ah FlexVolt battery
For Dewalt 12V Max:
F# – 2Ah battery
G# – 3Ah battery
Thus, the DCD800D2 cordless drill kit comes with 2x 2Ah batteries, the DCD800P1 drill kit comes with 1x 5Ah battery, and the DCD800D1E1 comes with 1x 2Ah battery and 1x compact PowerStack battery.
What About Bare Tools?
That’s easy – the tool-only version adds a “B” after the model number.
For example, the DCS574B is the bare-tool of the DCS574 circular saw. And, to reinforce what the kit suffix means, the DCS574W1 is the kit with 1x 8Ah battery.
As far as I have seen, Dewalt cordless power tools are sold in bare-tool format, kit format, or as part of larger bundles or combo kits.
Dewalt Cordless Drill Model Numbers Explained
Dewalt has numerous cordless drills in their 20V Max lineup, and navigating all of the different models can be a chore.
DCD7XX – compact drills
DCD8XX – newest generation of compact cordless drills
DCD9XX – premium heavy-duty 3-speed cordless drills
Dewalt’s DCD800 is the latest 20V Max XR-series compact brushless drill, and the DCD999 is their top-tier 3-speed hammer drill.
XR stands for extreme or extended runtime. Dewalt 20V Max XR tools are typically more premium and better featured than their tools without this designation.
Usually, the higher the number that follows the category prefix, the later the generation tool.
With some exceptions, DCDXX0 to DCDXX4 model numbers are for cordless drill/drivers, and DCDXX5 to DCDXX9 are for cordless hammer drills.
Thus, DCD800 is the XR drill/driver, and DCD805 is the similar hammer drill.
For Dewalt’s current compact drills:
DCD793 – latest brushless drill
DCD794 – latest Atomic drill
DCD798 – latest brushless hammer drill
DCD799 – latest Atomic hammer drill
The DCD794 and DCD799 are exclusive to Home Depot, while the DCD793 and DCD798 are exclusive to Lowe’s. Both are also available at other retailers.
DCD792 and DCD797 are the Tool Connect Bluetooth and app-connectable versions of the DCD791 and DCD796 drill and hammer drill.
DCD800 – latest XR brushless drill
DCD805 – latest XR brushless hammer drill
The DCD800 was preceded by the DCD791, which was preceded by the DCD790. The DCD805 was preceded by the DCD796 and DCD795.
The DCD794 Atomic series drill was preceded by the DCD708.
The DCD794 drill came after the DCD795 and DCD796 hammer drills.
With the previous XR (more premium) cordless drill being the DCD791, and the new Atomic being the DCD794, one cannot assume that higher model numbers are “better”.
The DCD794 is not the successor to the DCD793, and neither are successors to the DCD791. It also isn’t the predecessor to the DCD795.
If we look at the DCF99X series heavy duty drills, we need to dig deeper, as they’re all current models.
DCD991 – Drill/Driver
DCD996 – Hammer Drill
DCD997 – Hammer Drill with Tool Connect
DCD998 – Hammer Drill with Power Detect
DCD999 – Hammer Drill with FlexVolt Advantage
All of the hammer drills are similar. The DCD997 has wireless app connectivity, the DCD998 delivers a performance boost when powered with higher capacity batteries, and the DCF999 delivers a performance boost when powered with a FlexVolt battery.
Dewalt Cordless Impact Driver Model Numbers Explained
Here’s a list of Dewalt’s current 20V Max impact drivers:
DCF787 – single speed
DCF809 – Atomic single speed
DCF840 – single speed
DCF845 – XR
DCF850 – Atomic
DCF860 – XR (coming soon)
DCF887 – XR
The DCF787, DCF809, and DCF840 are often sold as part of promo-priced kits for $99. The DCF787 and DCF840 are available at Lowe’s and other retailers, and the DCF809 is sold at Home Depot and other retailers.
The numbers don’t tell you much.
The DCF809 came after the DCF887. The former is a single speed impact, and the latter a multi-speed impact.
The DCF887 has been Dewalt’s flagship XR impact driver, although now there are 3 different premium multi-speed impacts.
The DCF850 is a compact multi-speed Atomic series impact. The DCF845 is a multi-speed impact, while the DCF840 is single-speed. The DCF860 is coming out soon.
The DCF860 is seemingly replacing the DCF887.
All this is to show that the numbers don’t always follow a logical progression, and that users shouldn’t make assumptions based on the numbers. For example, the DCF860 is expected to be an improvement over the DCF887.
Dewalt’s first flagship impact driver was the DCF885. Then came the DCF895 with a brushless motor, the DCF886 which bested the DCF885, and then the DCF887. (The DCF886 and DCF887 also have brushless motors.)
The DCF885, DCF886, and DCF887 were subsequent generations in the same family.
The DCF888 was a Tool Connect impact driver, the DCF889 was an older model impact wrench, and the DCF890 is a brushless impact wrench. This is why the numbers jump around a bit – Dewalt ran out of runway.
I believe that we’ll see logical progression moving forward; I expect that the DCF840 might eventually be replaced with the DCF841, the DCF845 by the DCF846, the DCF850 by the DCF851, and so forth, unless they jump around again.
Is the DCF860 better than the DCF850? Are both better than the DCF840 and DCF845? Answering questions like these require context; you can’t simply look at the model number.
There’s no easy way to simply know how any two models relate just by looking at the model numbers. Hopefully the cheat sheet provided above helps.
What About Other Types of Tools?
There are similar considerations across Dewalt’s cordless power tool lines.
When talking about Dewalt’s oscillating multi-tools, DCS353 is the 12V Max version, the DCS354 is the single speed (with variable speed trigger) 20V Max Atomic model, and the DCS356 is the 20V Max XR model. The DCS354 and DCS356 both replaced the DCS355 XR tool.
Can you tell the differences between Dewalt DCS570, DCS571, DCS573, and DCS574 cordless circular saws, just by the model numbers? No. As with the cordless drills and impact drivers, the context is what’s important.
Dewalt Cordless Power Tool Combo Kit Model Numbers Explained
The first 3 letters are for the tool category, and in the case of a kit, the last 2 tell you the battery size and count.
Thus, DCK489D2 is a combo kit with 2x 2Ah batteries. DCK694P2 is a combo kit with 2x 5Ah batteries. DCK254E2 is a combo kit with 2x compact PowerStack batteries.
For combo kits, the first in the number sequence tells you how many tools are included.
DCK489D2 – 4-tool combo
DCK694P2 – 6-tool combo
DCK254E2 – 2-tool combo
What about DCK1020D2? That’s a 10-tool combo kit with 2x 2Ah batteries.
DCKTS681D1P1?
DCK tells us it’s a combo kit. TS tells us it comes with a ToughSystem tool box. The first digit tells us it’s a 6-tool combo kit. The letter-number suffix tells us it comes with 1x 2Ah battery, and 1x 5Ah battery.
What about DCK2050M2? Is that a 20-tool combo kit? No, it’s a 2-tool combo kit, with XR hammer drill and the DCF850 impact driver. It’s another non-linear exception in Dewalt’s ordering scheme.
Home Depot Dewalt Cordless Power Tool Bundle Model Numbers Explained
Home Depot tends to combine Dewalt model numbers together when offering bundles.
You might see, for example, a model number of DCS335BWCB205-2 for the jig saw and 2x battery bundle shown here.
This seems to cause a lot of confusion, but luckily it’s easy to decipher.
DCS335BWCB205-2 can be split into 2 parts: DCS335B and WCB205-2.
Once you know what Dewalt cordless model numbers look like, you’ll know where to split the longer model numbers Home Depot gives to many bundles.
The first part is DCS335B, the cordless barrel-grip jig saw, in tool-only format.
For the second part, we have WCB205-2. I take that to be W for with, and then I add a D to get [D]CB205-2. DCB205-2 is the 2-pack of 5Ah battery (DCB205).
As an aside, DCB205-2CK will be a battery 2-pack starter kit. CK seems to stand for “Charger Kit.” Or maybe charger with kit bag.
So, as seen in the image, that kit comes with the DCS335B jig saw and DCB205-2 battery 2-pack.
Sometimes the W is not there, and sometimes there’s a D.
DCS334BDCB246CK is the DCS334B jig saw plus the DCB246CK starter kit with a 4Ah battery, 6Ah battery, charger, and kit bag.
DCS565BWDCB240 is the DCS565B cordless circular saw with a DCB240 compact 4Ah battery.
As far as I have seen, the mashing together of multiple model numbers is for Home Depot kit bundles where you get individually-packaged items. There could be exceptions to this.
Often, “free with purchase” promos will be available in two formats, one where everything is purchased under one model number, and another where the “free” gift is a separate line item.
When that happens, the only difference is in how the purchase – and returns – are processed.
Avoid Assumptions
Shown here are Dewalt Dewalt DCK225D2 (top), DCK2051D2 (bottom left), and DCK2050M2 (bottom right) cordless power tool combo kits.
All you can decipher from the model numbers is that they’re 2-tool kits with 2x 2Ah or 2x 4Ah batteries.
The DCK225D2 kit has Dewalt’s entry-priced Atomic series drill and impact driver, a charger, and 2x 2Ah batteries.
The DCK2051D2 kit gives you a different charger, the same batteries, the XR (premium) compact drill/driver, and a more premium Atomic series multi-speed impact driver.
The DCK2050M2 kit is similar, but gives you the XR (premium) compact hammer drill/driver, the same premium Atomic series multi-speed impact driver, and 2x 4Ah batteries.
You can’t tell any of this from just the model numbers.
If you missed that the DCK2051D2 kit has a drill, and the DCK2050M2 a hammer drill, the model numbers should at least suggest that there’s a difference other than the battery inclusion.
There’s where knowing Dewalt’s numbering scheme – at least as well as possible – comes in handy. Except when it doesn’t.
With familiarity or after some research, you might recognize that the kits on the bottom come with a more premium XR series drill, and you might also recognize the DCF850 impact driver.
Question: What’s the difference between Dewalt’s DCS356D1 and DCS356C1 oscillating multi-tool kits?
If you said that the D1 kit comes with 1x 2Ah battery, and the C1 kit comes with 1x 1.5Ah battery, that’s right!
But that’s not the only difference.
Here are the two kits, with the DCS356C1 on the left, and DCS356D1 on the right.
The difference isn’t just about the bundled battery – the D1 kit comes with more accessories, including a cutting depth guide that can be pricey to piece together with replacement parts.
Here’s the DCS354D1, a promo kit featuring the Dewalt 20V Max Atomic series oscillating multi-tool.
The difference between Atomic DCS354D1 and XR DCS356D1 kits also goes beyond one having a variable speed trigger with single speed range, and the other having a variable speed trigger with 3 speed ranges.
Sometimes the nuances are obvious, but that won’t always be the case.
Dewalt’s model numbers can provide details and fill in blanks, but they rarely tell the whole story.
This post won’t make everyone an expert at understanding Dewalt model numbers, but that wasn’t its goal. The goal was to reduce the number of unknowns. Hopefully this post helped demystify things for you.
Reconditioned Dewalt Tools
An R at the end means a Dewalt tool has been reconditioned or refurbished.
For example, DWS779R would be a reconditioned DWS779 miter saw, and DCD777C2R would be a reconditioned DCD777 cordless drill kitted with a charger and 2x 1.3Ah or 1.5Ah batteries.