4 min read
As a relatively new dad with a toddler demanding much of my attention, I find that I have less time for things like mowing the lawn. Sure, I could hire a lawn service to take care of the task, but mowing is therapeutic for me. It gets me outside and gets me moving (more if I’m using a walk-behind mower, less if I’m sitting on a zero-turn), and the results are satisfying. But if I can cut down on the time it takes to complete the chore, that’s a win. So Ego’s new 1,300 Series lawn mower, capable of cutting wide, 30-inch swaths of grass, piqued my interest.
This size is a new addition to Ego’s line of cordless self-propelled electric lawn mowers. To me, that’s the definitive type of mower. Self-propelled is what I grew up with and what I had when I moved onto my half-acre property eight years ago. The Ego 30-inch is expensive at $1,800. But I can say this from my two testing sessions with it so far this spring: For anyone with a moderate parcel of land, it strikes a good balance between going through the motion/ritual of mowing and decreasing the amount of time spent on the task.
Key Specs
Cutting Deck30 in.Cutting SpeedUp to 3,800 rpmMotor Power56 VWeight116.5 lb (including the two batteries)How It Cuts
My first experience using this Ego also happened to be my first mow of 2026, so I wasn’t removing much grass. Consider it more of a trim. The mower offers the typical mulching, bagging, and side discharge options. Sitting beneath the wide plastic-composite deck are two 15.2-inch mower blades, similar to what you’d find under a riding lawn mower, just smaller. Like most new lawn mowers with fresh blades, this 30-inch Ego delivered a clean cut.
Mulching mode made the most sense in my early-season scenario because the grass wasn’t that tall. If I hadn’t mowed the lawn myself, I would’ve looked at it and sworn the grass had been bagged—there wasn’t a clump to be found. It’s also simple to set up; the mulch plug was easy to remove and replace.
For my second mow with the Ego, I tested out the bagging function. The bag that comes with this mower is spacious and took longer to fill than I expected. Though, since this was early in the season, I wasn’t able to test how fast it would fill up with something like leaves.
Trevor Raab
To achieve the extra cutting width, the Ego mower employs two independent blades, similar to a riding mower.
How a 30-Inch Mower Saves Time
With the Ego’s cutting path being nearly 30 percent larger, the short answer is yes. I conducted an experiment where I made 10 passes with a standard 21-inch walk-behind mower and then re-mowed that same area with the Ego. I covered that stretch of grass in seven passes with the wider machine.
What this means for your own property is a reduction in time spent mowing. But how much time you save depends on a multitude of factors relating to your own property, including how much hilly terrain you have or obstacles you might have to navigate around. My experiment showed I’d saved about 30 percent of mowing time/effort. That’s nothing to sneeze at.
How the Batteries Deliver on Runtime
Runtime is always a factor when considering cordless electric mowers. I ran the Ego 30-inch mower with two 56-volt, 6.0-amp-hour batteries (which is how it’s available at most retailers). This can get you up to 75 minutes of runtime, but that will decrease if you’re dealing with taller or denser grass that takes more power to cut through. I was able to complete my mowing well before running out of power. Ego ships the battery bundle with a dual charger, too, so you can refill both batteries at once.
The blade speed you choose—standard, turbo, or eco—may also determine how much juice you get from your batteries. Turbo is good for cutting through dense patches of grass more quickly, but it will reduce runtime. Don’t view it as an overall time-saver; you’d gain very little using it on grass that is frequently maintained. Meanwhile, the eco mode optimizes battery life but is meant for lighter cutting, so you’ll need to judge for yourself if it works well enough for your lawn.
How Comfortable It Is to Use
Besides cutting the lawn, the top priority of any self-propelled lawn mower is to make the work easier on you. And the 30-inch Ego delivers on that fairly well. I liked that I could adjust the self-propel speed (between approximately 1 and 3 mph), though I found the dial can be difficult to adjust on the fly. It’s small, located at the center of the handle, and fairly sensitive. Plus, not only is this a wider mower, it’s heavier than most walk-behind mowers, too, at over 100 pounds even without the batteries. That made it a bit harder to turn.
The one-piece handle offers three heights to accommodate taller or shorter operators. The handle also folds forward and down and locks in place so that you can store the mower vertically, minimizing the space it takes up in your garage or shed. There are also individual levers at each wheel to adjust the cutting height between 1 and 5 inches. Another nice touch is the built-in headlight, which will be helpful in the fall when it gets dark early.
Colin Aylesworth
The main handle has three height adjustments, plus folds forward to help you more easily store the mower.
Who Will Want This Mower
A 30-inch walk-behind mower is aimed squarely at the homeowner who has a lot of ground to cover (probably between half an acre and one acre) but doesn’t have the money to drop on a riding or zero-turn mower or the space to store and maintain one. And this Ego is expensive, to be sure. But the time you save may well be worth the extra cost, helping you complete the job of cutting the lawn faster so you can spend more time enjoying the fruits of your labor.
Buy the Ego Power+ 30-Inch Self-Propelled Electric Lawn Mower
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Colin Aylesworth attended Binghamton University and is a Deputy Editor with the Gear team at Popular Mechanics and Runner’s World, where he has been since 2022. Prior to joining Hearst Magazines, he worked for 11 years at U.S. News and World Report on the autos team.
His personal pursuits fit in well with the work he does for PM and RW. Aylesworth was on his college’s club rowing team and has maintained a routine running habit through most of his adult life as a means of getting exercise and spending time outdoors. Running creates a hearty appetite, which brings us to Popular Mechanics. That publication’s expertise in the area of grilling is relatable to Aylesworth, who is an adherent to charcoal grilling. In fact, he’s been primarily using the same Weber charcoal kettle he bought on Craigslist in 2012.
Aylesworth also has experience in the lawn mower industry. Not only has he been mowing his and neighbor’s lawns during adolescence, one of his more recent endeavors is a side gig of repairing and restoring gas lawn mowers given up by their previous owners. Since joining PM, he has gotten more involved with the publication’s mower testing efforts and especially enjoys testing out new electric and zero turn mowers.
David is a Reviews Editor for Hearst’s Enthusiast Group, contributing to Popular Mechanics, Runner’s World, Bicycling, Best Products, and Biography. He has over 25 years of experience writing about and reviewing consumer electronics, kitchen appliances, DIY products, outdoor gear, and more. He also spent years covering the ever-changing world of online retail. To relax, he loves experimenting with new recipes, tweaking his smart home setup, and spending time outdoors on his bike or camping.
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