What is the reason you’re looking for the best biscuit joiner, or best plate joiner for your needs?
Are you a homeowner or professional that carries out mainly smaller tasks that requires a simple biscuit joint?
Best value for money might be your priority in this case.
Or, are you a cabinet maker or woodworker that occasionally, or regularly constructs heavier projects (like large cupboards and doors for example), and you’re looking for a quick joining tool to save you time, with the ability to create stronger, more structural joints?
A tool with more features and a different joint system from the standard biscuit joint might be what you’re looking for.
We’ve looked into and given you the summary on the best biscuit joiner brands like PORTER-CABLE, DEWALT, Festool and Makita.
If you’re running a little short on time, you can check out the top rated biscuit and plate jointer list immediately below.
Otherwise, you can read the guide in full.
(*Friendly Disclosure – links to retailers or brands on this page may include affiliate links, and we may receive a commission when you purchase through these links)
Top Rated Biscuit Joiner & Plate Joiner List
Best Value Biscuit Joiner For The Money, & Best Biscuit Joiner For Casual Users – PORTER-CABLE 557 7 Amp Plate Joiner Kit (on Amazon)
Best Joiner Tool For Heavier/Frequent Users – Festool 574432 Domino Joiner DF 500 Q Set (on Amazon)
Cordless Biscuit Joiner – Makita XJP03Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Cordless Plate Joiner (on Amazon)
Best Biscuit Joiner & Plate Joiner Reviews
PORTER-CABLE 557 7 Amp Plate Joiner Kit
The PORTER-CABLE 557 is an electric/corded biscuit joiner/plate joiner tool that comes in a kit.
Who Is This Biscuit Joiner For?
- Casual homeowner, or professional cabinet maker or woodworker
- Those looking for a versatile biscuit joiner that does all the basiscs and provides value for money
- Those looking for a biscuit joiner with a very versatile fence system
Who Is This Biscuit Joiner Not For?
- Those looking for the fastest joining tool and strongest joining system on the market for heavy projects
- Those looking for a joiner tool that comes with a 2 inch diameter blade
What’s Good About It?
- Probably the best fence system of all the biscuit joiners – very versatile
- 7.0 Amp Motor
- 10,000 Rpm
- Dust port accepts standard bag or can be connected to a vacuum
- Fence tilts from 0° to 135° with positive adjustable stop at 90° – great for mitre cuts or flat cuts
- Kit includes 4-inch blade, centering plate, spanner/allen wrench, dust bag, and chip deflector and case
- 7 biscuit settings for a range of different biscuit type and size cuts – FF, #0, #10, #20, Simplex, Duplex, and #6
- Weighs 7.5 pounds
What’s Not So Great?
- 2 inch blade has to be purchased separately
- Bag discharge port can clog sometimes (removing the bag fixes the problem if this happens)
- Have to use an insert attachment to cut thinner pieces of material (not necessarily a bad thing, but takes extra time to attach/detach nonetheless)
- Mainly for smaller-moderate woodwork tasks
What Else Do You Need To Use This Biscuit Joiner?
-
- Biscuits: PORTER-CABLE 5554 1000 Assorted Biscuits (On Amazon). NOTE: you can just buy the biscuits with the tool all inclusive
- 2 inch blade if required
Where Can I Check Out This Biscuit Joiner?
View the PORTER-CABLE 557 7 Amp Plate Joiner Kit on Amazon
DEWALT DW682K 6.5 Amp Plate Joiner
The DEWALT DW682K is an electric/corded biscuit plate joiner tool.
Who Is This Biscuit Joiner For?
- Casual homeowner, or professional cabinet maker or woodworker
- Those looking for a versatile biscuit joiner that does all the basics and provides value for money
Who Is This Biscuit Joiner Not For?
- Those looking for the fastest joining tool and strongest joining system on the market for heavy projects
- Those looking for a joiner tool that comes with a 2 inch diameter blade
What’s Good About It?
- 6.5 Amp Motor
- 10,000 Rpm
- Fence is adjustable between 0-90 degrees
- 45-degree locating notch in fence allows indexing off the outside surface of a mitred joint > have to cut from the heel side of the mitre, instead of the toe side like the Porter Cable can
- Weighs only 6.6 pounds
- Kit includes carbide blade, dust bag, vacuum adapter, Torx key, wrench, and kit box
- Tool settings will cut all standard biscuit sizes – #0, #10, and #20
What’s Not So Great?
- Only comes with 4 inch diameter blade
- Fence only tilts to 90 degrees, unlike the Porter Cable 135 degrees tilt capability
- Not as many biscuit settings as the PORTER-CABLE
- Like the PORTER-CABLE, the dust bag can get clogged, so may need to remove when operating
- Mainly for smaller-moderate woodwork tasks
What Else Do You Need To Use This Biscuit Joiner?
- Biscuits:
DEWALT DW6800 No. 0 Size Joining Biscuits (75 Pieces) (On Amazon)
DEWALT DW6810 No. 10 Size Joining Biscuits (75 Pieces) (On Amazon)
DEWALT DW6820 No. 20 Size Joining Biscuits (75 Pieces) (On Amazon)
Where Can I Check Out This Biscuit Joiner?
View the DEWALT DW682K 6.5 Amp Plate Joiner on Amazon
Festool 574432 Domino Joiner DF 500 Q Set
Replaces the Festool 574332 Domino DF 500 Joining System.
The Festool 574332 is a proprietary/licensed electric domino joint system, that features a very quick to use joining tool, and domino joints, which are much stronger than the standard football/oval shaped biscuits.
Who Is This DOMINO Joiner For?
- Professionals that want a joiner tool designed to be quicker setting up, adjusting and working with than the standard PORTER-CABLE and Dewalt biscuit joiner tools. Saves time on setup, positioning time, centerline finding, changing cut width and more.
- Professionals looking for a stronger, more structural joint – domino beech wood tenons and mortise are strongest joints available for a joining tool
- Those who work on heavy joinery and woodwork projects
Who Is This Biscuit Joiner Not For?
- Inexperienced users and joiners
- Those wanting to use biscuit joints
- Those not wanting to pay a higher price for a different and high quality joining tool/system
What’s Good About It?
- Uses the mortise/domino tenon joints – can be used to create a more structural joint on door stiles and rails for example
- Pivoting Fence allows you to create angled mortises from 0-90° with positive stops at 22.5°, 45°, 67.5°.
- Dust extraction system is better than the bag systems on standard joiner tools
- There are three sized cuts/mortises you can cut just by adjusting the settings
- Offers 5 different mortise depths by adjusting the settings
- Works for both small woodwork and large woodwork projects
- Made in Germany – superior manufacturing
What’s Not So Great?
- Higher priced
- The PORTER-CABLE and DEWALT can do most things this tool can – except just not as quickly, and use a different joint (biscuits)
What Else Do You Need To Use This Biscuit Joiner?
Domino Joints, Tenon Joints, and Sorting Chest:
Festool Clamp (optional):
Where Can I Check Out This Biscuit Joiner?
View the Festool 574432 Domino Joiner DF 500 Q Set on Amazon
Makita XJP03Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Cordless Plate Joiner
The Makita XJP03Z is a cordless biscuit/plate joiner.
To be honest, unless you have a real need for a cordless or portable joiner tool, the electric models are much better value for money in our opinion.
But, for those looking for a cordless tool, this option still delivers you the necessary joining functions you need out of a biscuit joiner tool.
Who Is This Biscuit Joiner For?
- Those looking for a cordless biscuit joiner tool
- Those willing to pay a higher price for the benefit of having a portable tool
Who Is This Biscuit Joiner Not For?
- Those looking for value for money from the overall performance and features of their joiner tool – you sacrifice overall blade speed and fence settings for the benefit of a portable tool
- Those looking for an electric biscuit joiner
What’s Good About It?
- Ultra portable because it is cordless – good for those looking for something to carry around the workshop or worksite without the setup and pack down
- Fence with three positive stops at 0 Degrees, 45 Degrees and 90 Degrees
- Six biscuit/depth settings with one-touch stops for common #0, #10, and #20 biscuit cuts
- 4 inch diameter blade
- 6,500 RPM
- 6.7 pounds weight (with battery)
- 320 cuts or 160 joints on a single charge of the battery
What’s Not So Great?
- Higher price for a portable tool – have to buy battery and charger separately, which makes it quite expensive
- Fence isn’t as adjustable as the electric biscuit and plate joiner tools
- Less blade speed than the electric tools
- Dust bag system is weak – may aswell detach the bag
What Else Do You Need To Use This Biscuit Joiner?
Biscuits:
Battery and Charger
- You have to buy the battery and charger separately to the tool. The battery you will need is the 18V LXT® Lithium-Ion battery
Where Can I Check Out This Biscuit Joiner?
View the Makita XJP03Z 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Cordless Plate Joiner on Amazon
Best Biscuit Joiner & Plate Joiner: Buyer’s Guide & FAQ
If you want to read an FAQ style guide on Biscuit/Plate Joiners, you can read more in How To Use A Biscuit Joiner: FAQ, Tips & Different Uses.
Other Names For A Biscuit Joiner
Plate Joiner
Biscuit Plate Joiner
Biscuit Cutter
Wood Biscuit Cutter
Biscuit Saw
Biscuit Tool
What Is A Biscuit Joiner?
A biscuit joiner is an electric powered saw tool used to cut slots/mouths/biscuit joints in material such as wood.
The slots create mainly concealed joints when joining the material together
What Is A Biscuit Joiner Used For, and What Does A Biscuit Joiner Do?
A biscuit joiner is used to create concealed joints when joining two pieces of material – plywood, particle board, medium-density fibreboard or solid wood.
The biscuit joiner cuts slots into the pieces of wood to be joined. Glue is then placed on wooden inserts called biscuits, or in the slots themselves.
The biscuits are then placed inside the slots and they expand with the glue, creating a strong concealed joint when the wood pieces are put together.
Biscuit joiners are useful for trades such as cabinet makers and other woodworkers.
Types of Biscuit Joiners
Standard biscuit/plate joiner (electric biscuit joiners)
Festool licensed domino/tenon joint system (electric domino joiner)
Cordless biscuit joiner
Biscuit Joiner Bits & Accessories
Sub Fences
Other inserts
Biscuit Joiner Biscuit Sizes
#H9, #0, #10, #20, #D, #S, #S6 are the range of biscuits available.
The most common sizes are the #0, #10 and #20 biscuits/plates – for which a 4 inch/100mm diameter blade is used.
The Festool doesn’t use oval biscuits – it uses mortise cuts with floating ‘domino joints’ or tenons that are thicker and stronger than the standard biscuits.
See the Festool tenon joint kit for sizing and dimensions.
How To Choose A Biscuit Joiner
- Best Biscuit or Plate Joiner for homeowners and light-moderate woodworking tasks…
For most people, homeowners and professionals, the PORTER-CABLE or DEWALT will be fine – using a standard 4 inch diameter blade.
- Best Biscuit or Plate Joiner for professionals doing heavy woodworking tasks requiring a stronger joint…
If you are a professional, or you do a lot of heavy woodwork projects where you want to save time and have a stronger joint, the Festool is worth having a look at.
- Best Cordless Biscuit Joiner or Plate Joiner…
Of course, if you are interested in a cordless joining tool, consider the Makita.
Features To Look For In A Biscuit Joiner, and What To Look Out For
- Fence Settings:
What features do you have with the fence? Can you cut flat wood of different thicknesses, as well as mitred angle which require 135 degrees fence angle? If the fence can’t rotate to 135 degrees, you can set the fence to 45 degrees and cut from the heel side (the face of the wood) rather than the toe side (the end of the wood).
- Sub Fences and Inserts:
If the main fence can’t perform the cuts you want, does the tool come with inserts or sub fences to a) hold the wood in place b) give reference (for measuring) for different sized pieces of wood c) enable you to cut different thickness and different angle wood pieces
- Motor Size and RPM:
How many Amps and what RPM performance does the motor have
- Dust extraction:
Is the dust extraction a bag, a vacuum, or a dedicated hose dust extraction system
- What Joints Are Used:
Standard biscuit joints, or domino/tenon joints?
- How many Joint size settings does the tool have
The standard biscuits are sizes #0, #10 and #20 – you’ll at least want these sizes available on the tool.
Domino/tenon joints have their own sizing
- What size slots or cuts does the blade make
What diameter is the blade – usually 4 inch.
Some tools like the Festool has adjustable width cutting
How To Use A Biscuit Joiner
You can read more in our article How To Use A Biscuit Joiner: FAQ & Tips.
Best Biscuit Joiner & Plate Joiner Resources
1. http://www.porter-cable.com/
2. http://www.dewalt.com/
3. http://www.festoolproducts.com/
4. https://www.makitatools.com/
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