20 Best Tool Chest Under 200 (2023 Updated)

Great tool chest-handle flaw. This chest works great, i use it daily for work. After a few uses the telescopic handle sticks and now i fight with it every time. It has to be extended to roll the chest but has to be completely contracted to open the lid of the top chest.

So frustrating!!! Also beware of the bottom compartment – if you have loose tools and lay the chest on its back or side, the tools will go behind the back wall. I thought i was missing tools until i figured out they went behind the back wall, had to turn the compartment upside down to retrieve the tools.

Love the chest just wish i didnt have to fight with the handle.

it arrived broken, the box was undamaged, but the two left corners of the bottom box the plastic was clearly broke. also, in the picture this model is clearly supposed to have a small electrical connection on the base under the handle on the back but the unit i got did NOT have it.

so it’s not as advertised. if it weren’t broken i probably still would have kept it, but it’s broken.

The lower drawer came broken on one side to the point where it almost came out. I fixed mine by replacing the plastic parts with screws and nuts. Didn’t want to go through the return hassle. All the rest is perfect if you are mobile and it will not matter the profession you are in, itll provide protection to your materials or carry half of it if all of them are not needed.

Just bought the bottom box and filled it. Needed more space and went looking for a top companion. Harbor had these in stock. Like the bottom no assembly required. Paint and finishing is very good. Some issues, top center slide was not seated in the drawer and caused paint rub on the right top.

Like the bottom, drawers squeak when pushed to the park position, also very difficult to Open and close at the park point. Hope they will break in with use. The cabinet top did not open wide enough to release drawer locking.

Lubed and worked it in. All of these issues are minor but should not happen on a new box. Again the staff at the store are helpful and pleasant to work with.

Have a couple of these US General boxes. Got this 26in top chest for my son. He used it at work for a bit then got an old MAC roller (basically free) so is using this at our home shop so not getting heavily used.

The drawer slides are smooth, I prefer the “click lock” feature over the slide-bar drawer locks (personal preference). I’ve got the 26″ bottom for this (in green) which I mounted in a closet in the house I turned into my “indoor workbench” in my home office and it works great.

Looking at another for the home shop. Compared to the older US made tool boxes that cost a LOT more money, this isn’t going to take the abuse you might be used to if you’re rolling around an old snap-on or mac box.

I noticed in the store they had a return that had been dropped and was tweaked badly. Not recommending you drop your snap-on toolbox mind you, just noting this might not hold up to day in and day out use as well.

But for about 1/10th the price of a new box from the tool truck, or still about a quarter the prices of what folks are asking for used, these are great value. Compared with the other low cost stuff you find at the big stores, it seems a bit nicer.

No knocks based on expectations. Definitely will be getting more US General boxes.

This is a superb piece of work at this time. Be aware that it is 130lbs to lift, not an easy feat for one person. I stepped it up two times and shoved it the last bit on top of my existing box. It’s really a two fit person lift, it nearly broke me getting it in place and I’m far stronger than your average dude.

It’s also 4 inches deeper than my roll around. I cut some plywood and put it on top that makes the flanges not dig into the box and it sits fine up there with an overhang of 4″ in the back. Now my wrenches are all layed out in a nice pattern instead of jammed up in a drawer.

Everything else is now organized too. You can’t fit a vertical socket organizer in this unit, you were warned.

I decided to return this tool chest as I didn’t feel it was up to the job of handling a heavy load of power tools. The plastic is quite light and very flexible. It will easily break if it is dropped or is something is dropped into it.

The floor of it in particular is an obvious weak point. The wheels and extendable handle are definately handy and if you need it for light duty work it is probably worth a try but for power tools and job sites its too soft.

Somebody wrote earlier in tgese reviews that this toolbox doesn’t clip your heels whilst walking. It’s not true if you are six foot tall. This box clips me all the time. Be careful not to fill it, as the box warps and so the sliding handle becomes difficult to use.

Clip on lid is a stupid idea. Box is difficult to lift when heavy due to no side grips or handles. The small compartment in the lid regularly slides off during tranport. Not bad toolbox but far from ideal.

The box is quite strong and can survive some rough treatment.

Adequately sized for small to medium site kit yet small enough to be carried up and down stairs without killing me (unlike the larger Fat Max boxes I own). Certainly strong enough to do double duty as a tea-break stool, and even as an occasional hop-up for a 95kg joiner (Note: Stanley do NOT recommend this).

Good enough that on my current job, where I may be moving up and down over 5 or 6 liftless floors I have now bought two so that I can carry my full kit with me or a sub-set as needed I have some minor concerns about the handle coming adrift from the top when moving a fully laden box by the handle because this has nearly happened 2 or 3 times.

This needs to be addressed. This box also badly needs a waterproof seal around the top, after all we are living in Britain and we do get rain (at least in winter). The current arrangement will let water in when it is hoiking it down – which it seems to do every time I move my boxes from site to van.

Could do with the handle covering to be rubber rather than plastic and to be taken round the corners of the bar – if you are tall it isn’t possible to drag any box like this along directly behind you without either kicking it repeatedly or straining the back so it becomes normal to grab the corner of the handle which is baremetal and uncomfortable I, too, wish Stanley would do suitable boxes to fit inside as an option Better than the previous two iterations, but still could do with some detail improvements.

Its everything that they say it would be. And it did come with free shipping. liners also came with it. It only took two days shipping to be at my door and no damage. I am well satisfied with my new tool box.

Thank You. Robert T. Elmore ,OH.

Excellent tool cabinet with plenty of space and you can get a hutch that later to expand.

Amazing Product! Superb Quality!

This was a great finishing touch to my rolling tool chest. Heavy duty, solid and lots of space for my stuff!!

Do these ever go on Milwaukee Tool Chests ever go on sale

This box is $698.00 at home depot. Not sure why it is so much here.

Just finished setting up my new US General 26″ roller and top chest and was eager to write this review. Both this top chest and the roller cabinet are definitely a cut above in quality. I mean everything about this purchase has been 100% satisfaction for me.

To start I got this top chest (and the roller cabinet for 15% off with my Inside Track Club membership. Definitely worth the ITC membership cost for a near $90 savings on both. Then the friendly HF folks loaded the boxes in the back of my pickup within 10 minutes of my purchase.

Great service! When I opened the boxes at home I was really happy to see the very heavy duty cardboard and foam packing materials. The boxes are very well secured from the factory and my two units showed zero damage.

In fact the quality of these boxes is amazing for the price. I looked both this chest and the roller over and they are PERFECT. Not a scratch, not a mark. The powder coat finish is flawless. All welds are clean with no spatter anywhere.

All the seams, corners, drawer slides, and frame are square, aligned and plumb. This is first class kit. I’ve been buying tool storage since 1972. I am not a mechanic by trade but I have a lot of tools that need quality and safe storage.

The US General punches far above its weight class in my humble opinion. Like I said in the beginning. I was eager to write this review. Thanks to both US General and the friendly folks at HF for a truly impressive product at a great price!.

Great tool chest and upper cabinet. Quality is noticeable. Be aware that this is heavy. Two store employees loaded it. I unloaded it alone from the back of a SUV. 55 years old and would not try again.

Good luck trying to move it without a dolly. Both fit in the back of a Jeep Grand Cherokee with the box intact but only the upper or lower one at a time. Will require a second trip for both or a trailer/ bigger SUV/ pickup.

Tool cabinets rarely go on sale/coupon available. However, there was a coupon around Black Friday for 20% and 30% off for Inside Track Club no excluded items. If you can wait for the coupon this is a bargain.

I’m not a professional mechanic so I’m not going to give this thing the abuse of daily opening and closing of drawers and dropping tools into them. With that being said, I find the tool box perfect for my needs.

I ran out of room in my MAC Tools tool box and so thought this would work out well by being stacked on top of the MAC Tool box. That’s when I found the MAC box was 26″x21″ and this box is 26″x23″. This box hangs out in the back.

It is not a deal breaker. I merely placed some 3’8″ plywood down on top of the MAC box and set this on top. The plywood supports the entire bottom. The drawers work smoothly and are spacious. The box itself is heavy gauge steel and should accept some abuse.

All in all I think for the money this is well worth the investment.

Just ok. Quality control is lacking. Gaps on lid are off. Lid doesn’t close evenly either. One of the hydraulic lift pistons sticks upon opening. No liners in drawers. Drawers feel kind of cheap and flimsy, worried about how they’ll hold up over time.

Should have gone with Harbor Freight US General top box. Quality is much better on those.

I bought both the top and bottom. I left a review for the bottom and part of it stands for this review also. I am a third generation Craftsman tool user and as a mechanic, welder and machinist I think I know a little about tools and tool storage.

This box is well made for the home mechanic and/or student. I like the electrical outlet with USB connections. I would recommend that you purchase either vapor capsules or vapor liners (Zerust is one example) to help prevent rust on your tools.

It is not a Snap-On, Mac, Waterloo, Matco or Craftsman Professional box, but it is well made and definitely worth the money. The drawers hold a decent amount of tools. If you use the electric outlets – do not forget to ground your box.

Happy Wrenching All.

I am an artist and work in many different 3-dimensional mediums, all requiring a lot of space due to materials and tools needed, depending on what medium I’m working with. Before purchasing this, everything was scattered in several smaller toolboxes.

This occupied a lot of space, and often made it difficult to find specific items when I needed them. Now everything is well organized and takes up much less room in my condo. It makes working a lot easier and I’m a much more productive artist.

Packaged well and arrived in good shape. Very sturdy, drawers were lined in protective rubberish material. Good size for home-use tools

As a senior citizen widow who wanted to keep an array of hand tools, this fit the bill. I appreciate the pull-out drawers that are similar to the huge, heavy Craftsman rolling cabinet, and it was light enough when empty to set up on a bench.

I’m not certain it would be sturdy enough for a professional, everyday contractor, but for typical home use it truly fit the bill.

Great quality. Plenty of storage, everything fits. Only issue is the top must open fully to release the drawers 1

Very solid and well made. And it can fit even more than I imagined it would.

My husband loves it! He can keep his tools all in one place.

Got this for my husband. He was very happy to get it!

I bought this tool chest to conserve space where needed in lieu of a full size tool chest. My only regret is that I didn’t buy a second one when they were on sale, as they are versatile, as well & fully capable of serving as a tool chest at any location where they have a level clear place to set it down.

My only concern is that they can become really heavy if one isn’t somewhat careful about load & balance when you do need to take it with you. I also suspect that if it is carried by its handle over long(er) distances &/or frequently, with it loaded up with heavy tools such as air ratchets, impact wrenches, socket sets and wrenches for those >1 heavy-duty bolts, etc.

to work on tractors, farm or road ones, &/or other heavy equipment, that handle would fail sooner rather than later. Next time they go on sale I will be buying two (2) more of them, one for the RV, and one to go on my farm truck so that I can either fill it up with a basic load of tools for the types of repairs that occur most frequently in the most difficult of locations.

As I said on the Headline section, this tool chest reminded me of what the Craftsman trademark used to mean.

This box is well made; but heavy, even when empty. I like the locking suspension drawers because they are sturdy and easy to remove and replace. Nice size and plenty of space for most hand tools in the 4 drawers or the top bin.

This box is great to mount stationary inside a car or truck to carry a nice compliment of tools, or to sit on a work bench to keep tools handy; organized, but, it’s not something you will want to try to move around much.

The weak point in the design is the carry handle, which is barely robust to carry the heavy box when empty, nevertheless with tools in it.

I bought this unit many years ago and I travel with it out of the country will all my tools on a monthly basis. It has survived countless airports and customs checkpoints and the unit continued to hold up just fine.

I finally had to replace it because of the pull handle coming loose. I am extremely satisfied with the unit and I am purchasing another one this week. I figure if this unit lasts me about 10 years with daily use, I have easily got my money worth out of the unit.

This unit also fits on most airlines as a regular size piece of luggage (under 62″ circumference) without being charged as an over-sized piece of luggage (thank you Southwest Airlines).

I purchased this chest not to haul tools, but my ETX 125 telescope. Meade no longer makes a carry case for this telescope. So I needed something store it and and carry it outside for star gazing. The dimensions were perfect.

The chest is light weight, but sturdy. The pull out handle makes it easy to pull it and it balances nicely. It locks tight and there is a handle on the lid that lets you carry it. It includes a removable tray that’s convenient for small items.

As I said, I didn’t buy it to haul tools, but it’s a great versatile chest for storing and hauling just about anything.

Professional is largely perception so you can look super organised using these handy mobile cubes! This product is well researched with enormous capacity for consolidating storage or for loose tool storage.

Using ribbed moulded panels the unit is strong but more importantly lightweight. The retractable handle disappears into the box so you may not immediately notice that it has perfect mobility to you next job or from your garage to your next project.

I plan to buy another and will stack them, thus disposing of smaller boxes.

I needed a big enough box to get all my cutting tools into, along with chargers, batteries and spare blades etc, this does the job and then some. Heaps of room, the internal try is the right size for spare multitool accessories, and other cutting items.

The top two compartments are tidy size for the same things. I’m just over 6 foot tall, and the handle to roll the chest is a good length, I don’t feel like I’m stooping down to wheel the thing. Another tidy product from Stanley and for a decent price.

This is the second Stanley toolbox that I own and use at work. Tough plastic and durable wheels. The included tool tote is quite small in this toolbox so don’t buy this Stanley box if you need a large one for multiple tools.

There is space for a padlock in between the metal locks. I can fit a surprising amount of stuff in here. I prefer these ones over the trojan branded boxes.

This cabinet is HEAVY and very well-built. The drawers slide easily and click into place when shut. I have been able to organize my tools by task, and things seem much more efficient. Got Blue because my wife said “Blue!” when I was thinking “Orange.

” She was right – it’s a great color, and looks superb in my shop. Regarding customer service – the people at Harbor Freight (Downingtown, PA) couldn’t have been nicer!! A nice fellow named Matt helped me get this (and the bottom cabinet that goes with it).

Very courteous and helpful. The people at the store helped carry both cabinets to the car, and loaded them in (did I mention that they’re HEAVY?). Unfortunately, the first one of these I bought had suffered some damage in the warehouse, and it was bent out of shape.

I called, and Harbor Freight said to bring it right back. There was one blue one left. They put my name on it so I could pick it up. When I arrived, they quickly took the damaged one out of the car and loaded the new one in.

No muss, no fuss. This was a great shopping experience. I recommend this store highly to anyone – and the cabinet, too!.

These U. S. General tool chests have deep drawers, smooth ball bearing slides and are very heavily constructed. Durable, strong and well constructed. The fact is that they absolutely have no equal available for even remotely the same cost.

The very best deal available anywhere. Well packaged and protected. The only possible gripe you might have is that it is heavy, but that goes back to well constructed and durable. The chest includes drawer labels with clear protective strips and rubberized end caps for the drawer handles if you want them and pre-cut mats for every drawer and 4 keys.

Can’t beat it! The only moment that I wasn’t thrilled with this chest was when I had to unload it and put it on the roll-around cabinet, did I mention that it is heavy? In use it is terrific.

I like the ball-bearing drawer guides and the way the drawers can be opened all the way to access tools way in the back. The entire box is made of heavy guage steel that should last as long as I do. The color options are also nice.

I would have liked a few more deeper drawers even if it added height to the unit. I don’t much care for the stiff catch that holds the drawers closed all the way in because you need to give them a little tug to get them to open which could possibly move some of your lighter tools around.

My former tool boxes had two features that I will miss – a central (third) box that the top box sits on, and a small ledge to set tools on while cleaning them and putting them away. I should have bought this toolbox a long time ago rather than fighting with the old style drawer slides for so long.

For the person looking for a reasonably priced tool chest, this box cannot be beat for the price! $78 Bucks and FREE delivery to the closest store!! Are you kidding me! I defy anyone to make a better deal anywhere! I am always checking out the tool boxes no matter where I am shopping and most of what I find is extremely cheap and flimsy or very expensive.

This box does NOT fall into either category. The picture shows that the top lid is reinforced for rigidity. They don’t even tout this as a plus in the write up but that is one of the main reasons I bought this box sight unseen.

It is very strong and will not flex upon raising or lowering the lid. The drawers have ball bearing slides. When the lid is lowered all of the drawers get locked for security. The drawers snap solidly into the closed position.

The whole box is secured with the lid lock and they include 2 keys. There are nice recessed handles on each side but I would not try to move it once it is loaded with tools. Yes, I like this box and am extremely happy with my purchase.

You cannot beat this deal for $78 bucks! Buy it while the price is this low!!.

Wow, this chest is extremely thin and flimsy. I’m a retired cabinet maker and only use my tools very little now. I currently have a old larger craftsman chest for the majority of my hand tools. I wanted a smaller one to put on top my workbench for smaller tools.

This Stanley chest is at best suited for a child as a toy. There is no way the drawers will support upto 25 pounds as the details specify, the thin sheet metal drawers started dropping with the weight of just a few tools in them, no more than 5 pounds tops! They bent down so bad they were rubbing on the drawer below, so that one now could not have been opened! I returned this Stanley chest to Walmart and ordered the kodiak pro intermediate chest, wow what a difference, even nicer than my old craftsman.

You get what you pay for is true in this case. Save yourself the time and headache, unless you indeed want a toy, and spend more on something else for quality & longevity. My two cents.

This chest looks better than it functions. The “ball bearing” drawer slides do not work as well as my 40 plus year old Craftsman unit with non-roller slides. It’s my fault, but the arrangement of the six small drawers and two large gives you no place to separate long items – screwdrivers/pliers/wrenches.

Again, my fault, for $45. 00, it’s okay, I needed a mobile unit for some of my hand tools and it does that.

I had wanted one of these for years. What a disappointment! Its very cheaply made, comparable in quality with Stack-on and similar low-cost alternatives. On arrival, the door that is supposed to cover the drawers was bent way out of shape, probably damage sustained in transit as a result of the cheap, inadequate packaging.

On the same door there is supposed to be a ball detent to hold it in place against the frame; it was there, but in the wrong whole (there are three, one for the detent in the center, two on the sides for rods that locck it from above).

As to the layout, its pretty useless. I was hoping to keep my measuring and layout tools in it, my indicators, and perhaps the bulk of my machining tools. The size of the drawers makes this impossible.

The top center drawer is meant to hold the Machinerys Handbook, but would need about an extra inch to do so. If you are willing to dump your valuable tools in the drawers without any cases this might be for you.

If you keep your tools in their cases nothing will fit in this very disappointing chest. This thing was designed at the beginning of the 20th century and has remained unchanged, except for the unacceptable manufacturing quality.

Compartment Dimensions: (Width x Depth x Height, inch, accounting for pre-installed felt padding) (1) 19 x 8 x 2. 75 (4. 5 total clearance including lid) (4) 8. 5 x 7. 25 x 1 (1) 8. 5 x 7. 25 x 2 (1) 18 x 7.

25 x 1. 375 1 – 18 x 7. 25 x 2. 25 Arrived without any dents, coating is consistent all around save for a small chip on a corner. Fit and finish on the drawers is spot on. The felt drawer linings are more than sufficient.

One of the small drawer slides has a bit of slop to it at the end of travel and can get a bit sideways while closing. The lid’s wobbly on the non-hinged side, with the steel on the sides of the lid coming in at 1mm thick.

It’s not a load bearing surface, but still would have been nice to see it a little thicker or at least the bottom edge rolled over to stiffen it up. If it was a cheapie, I wouldn’t complain about the small details, but it’s enough to keep it from a perfect rating.

Still great, though.