The best garden forks in 2026 - tested by our experts

Forks are one of the simplest but most effective tools in the garden. Not only are they great if you need to cultivate and prepare areas of soil for planting and sowing, they’re also designed to easily lift and transplant plants. There are several different types of forks, and most people's go-to is a digging fork. However, these forks can be unwieldy and ill-suited to smaller areas of the garden like borders. They can also be a little too clumsy for more delicate tasks like transplanting plants and harvesting from raised beds.

Border forks offer an easy alternative. A little smaller and narrower than digging forks, they're great for getting into tight spots without compromising on strength or efficiency. They offer a finesse that makes them great for weeding or lifting clumps of perennials from cramped borders. Their lightness also helps if you have mobility issues or if you lack strength and stamina. A good border fork turns all of the above from a backbreaker into a breeze. For more help when preparing soil, take a look at our guide to the best garden spades or hand trowels.

Best Buy garden forks at a glance

• Best border fork for general use: Greenman stainless steel border fork
• Best value border fork: Spear and Jackson Select Stainless Steel Border Fork
• Best border fork for strength: Burgon and Ball RHS Border Fork
• Best border fork for everyday use: Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Border Fork
• Best garden fork for raised beds and borders: Sophie Conran for Burgon and Ball Fork
• Best garden fork for cultivating: Roamwild Multi-Digger

Jump to:

• Best forks
• Best of the rest
• How to choose a garden fork
• How we tested forks

In every review, we award outstanding products our coveted Best Buy award. To see these and the others we recommend, browse our pick of the best garden forks, below.

The best garden forks

Greenman Stainless Steel Border Fork

Price: £41.95

Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

Available from The Range

Pros

• Well-balanced and comfortable to use
• Pointed tines cut through the ground well
• Quality construction
• Generous 20-year warranty

Cons

• The wooden handle is slightly rough to the touch

With its long overall length and slightly heavier weight, this is a good buy for the keen gardener. The 1.6kg weight means the fork does some of the hard work for you, sliding cleanly into the soil with mirror-polished stainless steel tines that have a high carbon content, so they’re strong and the soil doesn’t stick to them. The tines are also more pointed than other forks on test, which makes for a comparatively effortless digging experience as they penetrate the soil easily, even on stonier ground.

The sustainable ash handle is also longer than the others on test, making it comfortable for the taller person to use, but also suitable for those of average height. The handle, which is fastened with three rivets, fits firmly into the head and has a lipped socket, so it’s both tough and long-lasting, spreading the stress over a potentially weak joint. This fork feels sturdy and thoughtfully made and, with a 20-year warranty, offers the buyer a quality long-term investment. We’ve awarded it a BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Best Buy for general use.

Buy the Greenman Stainless Steel Border Fork from Amazon and The Range

Spear and Jackson Select Stainless Steel Border Fork

Price: £35

Our rating: 4.5 out of 5

Available from Tooled Up

Pros

• Angled ergonomic design
• Comfortable handle with grips
• Strong tines
• Robust and long-lasting

Cons

• Polypropylene shaft is bad for the environment

This is robust but comfortable to use, with effective ergonomic grips on its shaft and handle. The handle is a YD shape and angled so that you’re always pushing into soil directly above the points of the tines. At 18cm, it’s also wide, which makes it easy to use with two hands to generate extra force on tough soils.

The polypropylene shaft is strong, and the socket is double-riveted for extra strength. It transplants well - the tines hold clumps of soil together for a rootball, but soil doesn’t stick. It has a 10-year warranty, and for its strength, ease of use, and price, we awarded it a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for value.

Best Buy review video - the Spear and Jackson Select Stainless Steel Border Fork

Alex David explains why the Spear and Jackson Select Stainless Steel Border Fork was awarded BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy status.

Buy the Spear and Jackson Select Stainless Steel Border Fork from Amazon, B&Q and Tooled Up

RHS Burgon and Ball Stainless Steel Border Fork

Price: £42.99

Our rating: 4.3 out of 5

Available from Crocus

Pros

• Very strong
• Lightweight
• Sustainable ash shaft
• Well-spaced, effective tines
• Lifetime warranty

Cons

• Finishing a little poor

Awarded a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for performance, this sturdy border fork is endorsed by the RHS, and it’s not hard to see why. It’s rated for strains up to 90kg, but despite its strength, it’s very light, at just 1.64kg. The tines are strong and well spaced. It easily goes through both compacted and wet soil.

However, this stainless steel fork felt a little unfinished - there are some scratch marks around the rivets in the handle, and the handle itself is a little rough. It comes with a plastic cover to help keep the fork clean and rust-free in storage and has a lifetime warranty.

Buy the Burgon and Ball RHS Stainless Steel Border Fork from Crocus and Waitrose Garden

Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Border Fork

Price: £34.99

Our rating: 4.3 out of 5

Available from Tooled Up

Pros

• Great results
• Good finish
• Strong
• Fantastic value

Cons

• A little basic
• Struggles with finer soils

For an unfussy stainless steel border fork, look no further. This traditional garden border fork has no ergonomics, but is still comfortable to hold, with a smooth ash handle. Its performance is good - some dirt sticks, but it pushes into the soil with little resistance, and picks up a fair amount.

It’s good at breaking lumps, too, but struggles a little with finer soil and compost. More important is its price - this is a good fork at a very reasonable price, and we awarded it a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for everyday use.

Buy the Wilkinson Sword Stainless Steel Border Fork from Amazon and Tooled Up

Sophie Conran Digging Fork

Price: £43.99

Our rating: 4 out of 5

Available from Amazon

Pros

• Very small - great for tight spots
• T -shaped handle is easy to use with two hands
• Breaks up soil easily

Cons

• Poor finishing
• Short tines mean it's tricky to get leverage

We liked this fork from Burgon and Ball’s Sophie Conran range - it’s a true garden border fork with small tines, and it's great for manoeuvring in small spaces. Its FSC-certified ash shaft and T-shaped handle are comfortable and easy to use with two hands ,and the mirrored steel tines stop soil from sticking.

It strikes in very well with little resistance, even in clay, but the tines are short - just 19cm - which makes it a little difficult to get leverage when turning over and transplanting. We awarded it a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for raised beds and borders.

Buy the Sophie Conran Digging Fork from Amazon

Roamwild Multi-Digger

Price: £44.99

Our rating: 4 out of 5

Available from Roamwild

Pros

• Amazing at breaking up soil
• Comfortable handle that can be used in a variety of ways
• Angled handle
• Incredibly strong

Cons

• Poor at turning soil and transplanting
• Heavy

This futuristic border fork is a real innovation. Rather than the traditional four tines, this model combines the middle two into an arrow shape reinforced by two soil chopping blades. It has a multi-grip handle, with a second handle through the middle for using a variety of different grips. This strength - and the fine point of the arrow-shaped tines - means this border fork simply cannot be beaten for lump breaking and digging into soil. It went through compacted clay like it wasn’t even there.

However, the arrow-shaped tines that make it so strong leave a big gap on either side through which all soils on test fell through. This is poor for turning over soil and transplanting, but if you need to break up soil or cultivate a new garden or veg plot, it is great, and we awarded it a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy for cultivation.

Buy the Roamwild Multi-Digger from Roamwild

The best of the rest

Although some models didn't quite achieve a BBC Gardeners' World Magazine Best Buy award, they still have various features that make them worth recommending. Browse our pick of the best of the rest.

Pedigree Border Fork

Price: £37.90

Our rating: 3.8 out of 5

Available from Bulldog

Pros

• Great results in all tests

Cons

• Poor finishing
• Badly balanced

We were very impressed with this fork’s performance. The stainless steel tines are good - they slide into soil effortlessly, but aren’t slippery, holding large forkfuls of soil for easy turning over and transplanting. On some tests, there was a little clodding at the top where the tines meet, but not badly.

It’s fairly strong, with a double-riveted socket and single-riveted head with metal guards. However, it lost marks for its finish. Parts of the fork aren’t properly sanded and splinter a little, and it’s balanced too much towards the tines.

Buy the Pedigree Border Fork from Bulldog

How to choose a garden fork

Types of garden forks and their uses

There are two main types of garden forks that are commonly used:

• Digging forks

Larger than border forks, what this tool lacks in finesse, it makes up for in brute strength. It's ideal for breaking fresh ground and turning over a lot of soil.

• Border forks

These are smaller, lighter versions of digging forks, designed to be used in tighter spaces, like borders – hence the name. Good for cultivating small patches of soil and transplanting small plants, or harvesting root vegetables from raised beds, but they’re also great for gardeners who would struggle using a larger digging fork for a prolonged length of time. Taller gardeners may find them a little short to use but border forks with ergonomic handles may help with this.

What are they made from?

Fork handles come in a variety of styles to suit different users’ preferences. The most common is a Y or YD shape, which is great for applying effort and digging with strength, but can be uncomfortable if you prefer to use both hands. Also common is the T-shape, which is good for using with two hands, but can feel odd if you’re not used to this style. Shafts, the part between the handle and the socket, are traditionally made of ash, a strong, durable, but lightweight wood. Most forks on the market are still made this way but other materials with similar properties to ash, such as polypropylene or fibreglass, are also used.

Perhaps the most crucial part is the head and the tines - the prongs that will dig into the soil. These are almost always steel; either carbon steel, which is durable and strong but prone to rust, and stainless steel, which is less prone to rust but is a little weaker. Some of the best forks have a mirrored finish on their tines, which ensures soil doesn’t stick.

Improving your soil

A fork is a crucial tool for improving your soil, digging and forking through the soil loosens compaction, removes weeds and debris, and is the perfect opportunity to add organic matter. Plants require the best possible soil conditions, so add plenty of organic matter which will help drainage and aeration on heavy soils or conserve moisture on light ones.

Here are some more tips on how to improve your soil:

• On your veg patch or areas of bare soil, consider growing a green manure
• Break up large clumps or lumps to relieve compaction - if the soil has been previously dug you can fork through the soil to the depth of the tines
• Add a minimum of a 5cm layer of garden compost, bagged compost or well-rotted manure before digging or forking it in
• Once you've removed any large lumps and added the organic matter, rake the soil to remove any last weeds or stones, and create an even surface for planting.

How we tested garden forks

We tested a range of border forks with different features, including telescopic handles and ratchet mechanisms. Our experts put the loppers through their paces on various woody branches and stems to test their overall performance. Each pair was assessed according to the following criteria with equal marks attributed to each:

• Handling: Looked at comfort and weight, how it feels in the hand and any ergonomics, how well it transplants and cultivate,s etc, and ease of use
• Tines: Focused on their material, rust resistance, whether there were treads and whether mud stuck or clogged
• Strength: assessed the length of the shaft and socket, materials, was the handle continuous or riveted, the quality of the welds and whether it felt durable and long-lasting
• Value: Considered the price versus the quality and design, alongside performance and length of warranty

For more information on our testing process, take a look at How we review

Meet our testing panel

Oliver Parsons, Strategic Projects Editor
Oliver is a gardener and magazine journalist of 20 years’ experience. He trained as a professional horticulturalist at RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Chelmsford and has also worked for Gardening Which?, as a freelance gardener and with the gardening team at Down House in Kent. He is now Strategic Projects Editor at BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine and GardenersWorld.com, heading up our reviews desk, Apple News output and weekly newsletter.

Kay Maguire, Magazines Editor
Kay trained at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and has been writing and making films about gardening ever since. She has written for websites and magazines, including The Garden and Amateur Gardening, was Horticultural Editor on BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine for five years, and has also written several books on a range of gardening topics from growing house plants to making the most of a small space. After several years as Reviews Editor, building up our reviews section into a leading resource for UK gardeners, she has now become Magazines Editor for BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine , responsible for all print output.

Harry Duncton, freelance powered tools tester
Harry has a wealth of experience, from being a language teacher to a tree surgeon, and has built this into a career writing about all things DIY and gardening. A passionate believer in self-reliance, his aim is to inspire others to give it a go themselves and not worry about making a few mistakes along the way. A regular contributor to popular DIY blogs and a recent addition to the BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine team, he loves tracking down the best new tools and writing about them.

Sue Fisher, freelance garden writer
Sue’s extensive horticultural career spans over 40 years, starting with a decade in the garden centre and nursery industry before developing into an accomplished gardening writer, designer and speaker. Sue writes regularly for BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine, GardenersWorld.com, and Garden Answers magazine. She has written 10 books on subjects including container gardening, plants for small gardens and designing with colour, and she has co-authored other books with some of the biggest names in gardening.

Emma Crawforth, Horticulture Editor
Emma holds the Kew Diploma in Horticulture and has been working in horticulture for 18 years, including roles in public gardens, a plant nursery supplying plants for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and a training college for young horticulturists. She looks after an ornamental, fruit and veg garden at home and regularly undertakes trips to see plants growing in their natural habitats. She is the author of the Kew Publications book, Things to Do with Plants.

This review was last updated in January 2026. We apologise if anything has changed in price or availability.