8 Best Drill Guides of 2024 – Top Picks & Reviews

The first electric drill was patented in 1889, and since then, there have been many developments in terms of drill capabilities, types, and tools. Today, one of the most helpful drill tools is the drill guide. Just as there are many drills, there are just as many, if not more, drill guides.

For this reason, it can be difficult to choose the best drill guide based on your needs and preferences. To help you out, we have cclreated this comprehensive guide on the best drill guides. In this article, we offer critical reviews of the eight best drill guides and offer a convenient buyer’s guide at the end.

Let’s get started.

A Quick Comparison of Our Favorites in 2024

Rating	Image	Product	Details
Best Overall		Milescraft 1318 Drillmate Drill Guide	Highly durable design Versatile design useful in several drilling scenarios Adjustable design	CHECK PRICE
Best Value		Milescraft 1312 DrillBlock	Versatile design Portable construction Features design additives that make alignment easier	CHECK PRICE
Premium Choice		Kreg K4MS Jig Master System	Highly durable construction and materials Design includes premium features Patented design for a more efficient drill guide	CHECK PRICE
		Wolfcraft 4525404 Multi-Angle Drill Guide	Versatile design Suitable for all drilling positions Fits most drill heads	CHECK PRICE
		General Tools 36/37 Precision Drill Guide	Adjustable design Works with dowels Includes useful and efficient features	CHECK PRICE

The 8 Best Drill Guides

1. Milescraft 1318 Drillmate Drill Guide – Best Overall

One of the most impressive drill guides is the Milescraft 1318 Drillmate Drill Guide. It is perfect for a variety of drilling needs, and it comes with several convenient and helpful construction changes.

Notably, the Milescraft 1318 can be used in a variety of drilling purposes. For example, it is suitable for straight or angled drilling, as well as drilling towards the edge of a board or on around stock. As a result, it is one of the most versatile drill guides on the market.

Additionally, this drill guide comes with a very intuitive design. It has angle cuts ranging from 45° to 90°, which allows it to be suitable in most drilling conditions. More so, it has a built-in angle readout and centering channels built into the bottom of the base. These features are what makes it suitable for a variety of drilling purposes.

It has a completely metal base, and most of the other parts of this guide are metal as well. This material allows it to be extremely durable even in some of the toughest of situations. At the same time, it has an adjustable depth stop, allowing you to control the head better. The only drawback is that it wobbles a bit during drilling. Despite this, we have rated this the overall best drill guide available this year.

2. Milescraft 1312 DrillBlock – Best Value

If you are interested in the best drill guides for the money, you should check out the Milescraft 1312 DrillBlock. We have chosen this drill guide as our best value pick because it is incredibly affordable while also offering several features to make it useful and efficient for guiding your drill.

Notably, the Milescraft 1312 comes with additives to make sure that you have accurate alignment when drilling. For example, it comes with centerlines and non-slip foot holds. Together, these features allow you to better align your drill without it slipping from its original place.

The Milescraft 1312 can also be used in a variety of situations, it comes with two product v-grooves that allow the model to be used on both corners and cylindrical surfaces. Because of the versatility of this product, you’re sure to get your money’s worth.

The only reason that this product is ranked number two on our list is that it does not feature a drill press for more extensive drilling purposes. Nonetheless, it is a highly versatile drill guide that is both affordable and useful in most drilling scenarios.

3. Kreg K4MS Jig Master System – Premium Choice

Another great drill guide to check out is the Kreg K4MS Jig Master System. This drill guide is incredibly durable with a patented design that makes it much more efficient and useful for guiding your drill. It also comes with several additional features, making it a shoo-in for our premium choice.

Importantly, the Kreg K4MS is highly durable because of its construction materials. It is glass-filled nylon that resists many breaks, scratches, or any other damage that may be inflicted on drill guides.

Additionally, the Kreg K4MS has a very unique and efficient design. It is a patented three-hole drill that can make pocket holes into most materials and in a variety of widths and thicknesses. The reason for this is that it has a ⅛-inch incremental setting for materials from a half-inch to 1 ½ inches thick.

More so, the Kreg K4MS comes with several additional and luxurious features. For example, it has a dust collection shroud that prevents wood chips. It also has a large clamping recess, which can host different style clamps to secure your jig to your workbench.

To make this model even more of a premium choice, it also comes with several other additions. Altogether, this kit contains Kreg Jig the K4, a stepped drill bit and stop, a square-drive bit, starter screw set, plug set, portable base, material support stop, a face clamp, and a dust collection attachment.

This model doesn’t come cheap though, in fact, it’s one of the pricier options on our list. And for all that investment, they have sub-par customer service, which was a bit of a disappointment.

4. Wolfcraft 4525404 Multi-Angle Drill Guide

The Wolfcraft 4525404 Multi-Angle Drill Guide is great as well. It can be used in a variety of positions, comes with a variety of features, and it ensures that it will direct your drills properly and efficiently.

One important feature of the Wolfcraft 4525404 is that it can be used in horizontal, vertical, or angled positions. This allows you to use this drill guide in most scenarios and needs. It even allows angled positions up to 45°      and fits all ¼-inch or ⅜-inch drills.

Additionally, the Wolfcraft 4525404 has guide bars that spring for a quick return. This makes this drill suitable for repetitive drilling. The drill adapter even slides up and down on the guide bars, making it efficient and easy to use.

The biggest drawback we found in this product was the cheap material it was made of.

5. General Tools 36/37 Precision Drill Guide

Another good drill guide is the General Tools 36/37 Precision Drill Guide. This drill guide comes with a number of additional features, is adjustable, and works very well with dowels. Overall, this drill guide is a great option for general or easy jobs.

The General Tools 36/37 comes with a built-in protractor, and it includes v-grooves for positioning stock, pipe, or tubing. It also has a slide lock that allows sanding and buffing. Together, these features make this drill guide very versatile.

Another great feature is that it is highly adjustable. It can adjust from 0 to 45° in five-degree increments. More so, it can be used either direction of vertical drill position. These features allow it to be aligned with your needs.

Finally, the General Tools 36/37 Precision Drill Guide is highly stable because of anchoring pins that hold the guide securely in place. However, it’s difficult to align properly and it’s not ideal for heavy-duty jobs.

6. BIG GATOR TOOLS Portable Drill Guides

If you are looking for a very standard drill guide, you’ll be interested in the BIG GATOR TOOLS Portable Drill Guides. This guide is made from a particular nickel alloyed steel that has been heat-treated for durability. It includes multiple guide holes of varying sizes that allow you to use a number of drill sizes.

One great feature of this product is that it is portable in size. In fact, you can fit this in your pocket, making it perfect for those who might need a drill guide on the go. Despite being made of metal, its size makes this model lightweight.

Additionally, the BIG GATOR TOOLS drill guide comes with round alignment marks on one side, which will allow you to accurately align your drills. More so, it centers the holes on pipes and dowels on outside corners, further ensuring that your guides are aligned on any surface.

Unfortunately,  since it is portable in size, it is not ideal for many heavy-duty purposes. It’s also a bit pricey considering how tiny it is.

7. JIG IT Drill Guide

The JIG IT Drill Guide is another drill guide worth checking out. It has an interior diameter of 3 ½ inches, which is very large and suitable for even the biggest of drilling needs. The drill guide itself measures 2 ½ inches in height, which makes it a convenient height to grab onto and handle.

Unfortunately, the JIG IT Drill Guide is made of plastic with four tiny rubber feet. As a result, it is extremely lightweight, flimsy, and not suitable for heavy-duty jobs. Its small rubber feet will not keep the drill in place either.

More so, this drill guide is extremely awkward to use. It is difficult to fit and adjust, making it not only inefficient for heavy jobs but also potentially inefficient for simple jobs as well.

8. Taytools Drill Guide Dowel Kit

The last drill guide on our list is the Taytools Drill Guide Dowel Kit. This kit will drill perpendicular holes on flat edges, spheres, cylinders, and corners. This allows this kit to be used on most surfaces.

Additionally, the Taytools drill guide includes additional features that make it easier to use. Most notably, it includes a 3-inch see-through square base that allows you to see exactly where you’re drilling. It also includes centering pins that make aligning the drill more efficient.

Unfortunately, we cannot say anything else positive about this drill kit, and there are many more cons to this kit than pros. Notably, the guide marks are positioned awkwardly so that way they are nearly impossible to use when drilling near an edge. More so, the v-grooves make it difficult to see your marks when drilling into edges or dowels, which makes it nearly impossible to properly align your drill.

More so, this drill moves and wiggles a lot. This makes it very difficult to align your drills properly and get the hole and guide that you need.

This drill guide also results in a lot of buildup when making deeper holes. This will cause you to need to brush or force out the buildup in the middle of your jobs, which can be very aggravating when trying to accomplish a task.

Buyer’s Guide – Finding the Best Drill Guide

How To Pick Out The Best Drill Guide

As we noted earlier, there are many drill guides to choose from, which makes choosing the best model for you very difficult. Whether or not you choose to get a drill guide from the list provided, there are some factors to consider in order to pick out the best model for your needs. Let’s take a look at them.

Portability: One of the most important factors to consider when buying a drill guide is its portability. The reason that you want to buy a portable drill guide is that you need a guide that you can throw in your pack and take with you wherever you are working. Since it is assumed that you already have a lot of other tools to work with, you do not want to add to your already heavy bag another heavy tool.

The most portable drill guide designs are those with holes for multiple drill sizes and do not attach to your drill. These types of drill guides will be easy to carry around and throw in your car. The downside of these sorts of drill guides is that they are less accurate and are more difficult to secure in place.

Accuracy: Another factor to consider when buying a drill guide is accuracy. The accuracy is how correctly the guide will align the drill to your needs and preferences. Overall, accuracy will vary between different drill guides as well as drill designs.

For example, portable drill guides are less accurate than less portable drill guides. Full-featured models, in contrast, will be much more accurate when it comes to drilling, but they are not portable by any standards.

It is important to weigh how much portability versus accuracy you need between your drill guides. If you are looking for a more accurate drill guide. You will probably need to sacrifice portability a bit. It is important to consider which of the two is more important to you.

Durability: Finally, the third factor to consider when buying a drill guide is the durability of your model. Some models are made with plastic while other models are made with metal. It is important to find a model that is durable enough for most of your needs and preferences. If not, you will easily break your drill guide and have to buy another one.

When deciding on the durability of a drill guide, make a point to see if any reviews mention reports of melting plastic. Drilling holes can sometimes be really hot. The last thing you want is for your drill guide to melt under the pressure. If you see any reports of melting plastic, avoid that model at all costs.

Portability: Overall, portable models tend to have fewer moving parts, which means that there are fewer parts to break. Often, portable or simple models are made from metal. In contrast, more extensive drill guides may include plastics and metal, which result in more parts to break.

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In Conclusion

As we have seen, there are many different types of drill guides, and it is important to find the best one for you. Based on our reviews, we found the Milescraft 1318 Drillmate Drill Guide to be the most useful, efficient, and best all-around pick. It is sure to satisfy most, if not all, of your drilling needs.

If the Milescraft 1318 Drillmate Drill Guide is out of your price range, we recommend the Milescraft 1312 DrillBlock. This model is very durable, portable, and affordable.

If you are still looking for the best drill guide for you, simply remember to consider the portability, accuracy, and durability of all models you consider. Considering these three factors will ensure that you get the best drill guide for you. We hope that this guide makes your selection process simpler and more stress-free.