If you’ve ever found yourself assembling something from IKEA, chances are you’ve used an Allen wrench. Also known as a hex wrench or hex key, this little L-shaped piece of metal is used in a wide variety of jobs, including bicycle repair, motorcycle engines repair, and furniture assembly.
At first glance, finding the best Allen wrench seems simple. Any veteran tool user knows, however, that an uncomfortable or poorly designed wrench is miserable to work with.
The best Allen wrenches specifically address:
- Comfort and usability (they won’t make you want to chuck your project against the garage wall)
- Organization (how easy will this tiny tool be to lose?)
- Diversity of sizes
Top Picks For Best Allen Wrenches
Klein Tools ½ Inch Hex Key with Journeyman T-Handle
BEST ALLEN WRENCHES
Klein Tools ½ Inch Hex Key with Journeyman T-Handle
Price range: $20 - $25
*at the time of publishing
ABOUT THIS PRODUCT
This Allen wrench from Klein is the cream of the crop when it comes to hex keys. The standard L-shape allows for maximum versatility with a short side, and a long side (both are useable and coated with a very thin non-slip paint) and the uniquely designed handle also manages to provide that T-shape we love for extra torque and comfort.
The handle is a dream. It has molded-in finger grooves for comfort, soft touch grips, easily identifiable part number and hex size, and a hole for easing pegboard hanging. Klein’s blue handles are metric and black handles are inches, which is a nice touch.
Reviewers rave about how great this tool is for regular jobs, where a regular hex key is too easy to leave in a pocket or be misplaced. Our only complaint? There’s only one of these.
WHAT WE LIKED
- Insane comfort level of the handle
- Brilliant two-tip design means this tool is large and works great in tight spaces
- Standard SAE ½ inch size usable for most common projects
- Klein, the maker, has a strong reputation for quality, so we feel comfortable this hex key will last
WHAT WE DON'T LIKE
- Will take up a possibly disproportionate amount of room if you don’t have much storage space for your tools
- One size won’t work for everything, so you’ll have to make another purchase at some point
- Large handle might not be comfortable for smaller hands
Eklind Standard 8pc T-Handle Hex Key Set
BEST ALLEN WRENCHES
Eklind Standard 8pc T-Handle Hex Key Set
Price range: $20 - $25
*at the time of publishing
ABOUT THIS PRODUCT
This eight-piece Allen key set solves the comfort problem handily with a T-shaped handle design, instead of an L-shape. The T is coated in bright red plastic making it both highly visible in a messy toolbox and comfortable, as the plastic is a comfort grip handle.
Industrial alloy steel creates an extremely durable tool, which means two things: you won’t need to replace these any time soon and you can crank them as hard as you need to. Standard SAE sizing and eight common measures mean you’ll be able to handle all but the least common jobs.
Reviewers rave about this set to the extent that it’s difficult to even find a less than five-star review. They seem to especially love that the keys are made from one continuous piece of metal, allowing reviewers to be able to torque the tool without worrying about breakage.
WHAT WE LIKED
- Comfort T-grip makes them super comfortable
- Manufactured in the USA
- Eight pieces are just right; not too many and not too few!
WHAT WE DON'T LIKE
- No organization at all; wrenches are all loose
- Poor storage (there’s a plastic pouch, but it won’t last long)
- 6” arm might be a little too short for maximum comfort
Moore's Ideal Metric Hex Wrench Set
BEST ALLEN WRENCHES
Moore's Ideal Metric Hex Wrench Set
Price range: $30 - $35
*at the time of publishing
ABOUT THIS PRODUCT
When you’re looking for the best Allen wrenches, you can’t leave this hex key set from Moores Ideal Products (MIP). Unlike other sets, this comes with only three hex keys, though those are reputed to be the most popular sizes for Standard SAE sized hex-head screws. This is a great set for hobbyists and racers since it won’t take up a huge amount of room in your toolbox.
What’s also great about this particular set from MIP is that each hex key has a plastic screwdriver handle that’s molded to the shaft. This makes using it a breeze, and since you’re not attaching and reattaching a hex shaft into an all-purpose handle, you’re less likely to strip the hex wrench when using it. It’s manufactured from US tool steel and actually ground in-house, indicating a certain level of company pride.
One caveat: you do have to apply the labels yourself. This isn’t a huge issue, but it is inconvenient to have to track down a hair dryer to heat the heat shrink wrapping that goes around the label (included). If you skip the label, you’ll have a hard time discerning which tool is which, because all three handles are the same size.
WHAT WE LIKED
- The comfortable screwdriver-type handle
- The fact that the handle and shaft are one piece
- Manufactured in the USA
WHAT WE DON'T LIKE
- Only three sizes
- Extra assembly to install the label
- No storage or organization whatsoever
Tekton Long Arm Ball End Hex Key Wrench Set
BEST ALLEN WRENCHES
Tekton Long Arm Ball End Hex Key Wrench Set
Price range: $15 - $20
*at the time of publishing
ABOUT THIS PRODUCT
If “be prepared” is your motto, and you want to make sure you’ve got the best Allen wrenches for every conceivable job, you’ll love this thirteen-piece set! You’ll also love how awesome it looks: the heat treated chrome vanadium steel has a black-oxide finish that is awfully eye-catching.
We love the long arm on these wrenches, but what makes them stand out is their ball hex ends. This unique design allows up to a 25-degree entry angle to reach around obstructions. The ends are chamfered which allows them to smoothly insert into your fastener head and reduces overall wear on your hex keys.
We’re absolutely in love with the storage case, which has a unique hinge so that not only does each hex key have its own spot, but the case opens flat so grabbing the wrench you need is a breeze. No more losing wrenches with this set.
Reviewers get behind the ball ends; as we all know, there are an awful lot of hex screws in very hard to reach places.
WHAT WE LIKED
- The long arm
- The ball end
- Fantastic storage container
- Black-oxide finish
WHAT WE DON'T LIKE
- Probably too many wrenches; most sizes will never be utilized
- Lacks a true dual-tip
- No handle to make gripping or torqueing easier
Bondhus Stubby Ball End Hex Key Double Pack
BEST ALLEN WRENCHES
Bondhus Stubby Ball End Hex Key Double Pack
Price range: $25 - $30
*at the time of publishing
ABOUT THIS PRODUCT
This Allen wrench set from Bondhus comes with a whopping twenty-two keys! The double pack includes a set of thirteen-inch wrenches and nine metric wrenches, making this probably the most versatile set of wrenches we’ve reviewed today.
Each wrench is made in the USA from Bondhus’ proprietary steel formula, which produces extremely strong tools, and is coated with a special finish to prevent rust. To top it all, Bondhus backs its tools with a lifetime warranty, which means you can feel confident that your wrenches will go the distance.
Storage and organization are available, but not great. Each set comes with a plastic holder that the wrenches slip into; twist the wrench, and it locks into place. It does not, however, make the wrenches particularly easy to access, nor are the wrenches themselves particularly large or comfortable to use.
Reviewers speak extremely high of these set, with most appreciating how functional and strong the wrenches are.
WHAT WE LIKED
- Metric and inch measures makes the set convenient
- Ball ends
- Wide variety of sizes for the most obscure hex screws
- Lifetime warranty
- Special rest-preventing finish
WHAT WE DON'T LIKE
- The tools themselves aren’t labeled so things might get confusing
- Extremely abridged short end means using torquing will be difficult
- Storage is included but not great
How to Choose Hex Keys That Make Life Easier
Allen wrenches are very simply tools and while you can certainly choose a simple hex key, where’s the fun in that? The best Allen wrench set accommodates for the tool’s tendency to get lost (hex keys are worse than socks, in our opinion) and make the tool more comfortable to use.
Comfort
The simplest hex wrenches are slender L-shaped slivers of metal. Since you operate the tool by inserting the hexagon-shaped end into the hex screw and applying pressure to the short end, unless you have tons of room to work and the screw is fairly loose already, unscrewing a hex screw is uncomfortable. If the screw is stuck or you’re in a tight space, the job can be downright painful.
Whether you’re DIY’ing an IKEA job (or worse) and want to upgrade from the included almost-useless wrenches, or just feel like you’re too much of an adult to use a tool that makes life more difficult, there are lots of ways creative tool manufacturers add a layer of comfort and usability to their tools. Here are a few to watch out for:
- Coated handles that are thicker and softer (or two-sided) so that your wrist doesn’t have to contort unnecessarily
- Design that skips the L-shape and acts more like a screwdriver (think: pocketknife-style, where the hex screws fold out and you use them more like you would a screwdriver)
Organization
You can absolutely use loose Allen wrenches, but if you’d prefer to not lose your tools, an organized set is a must. The simplest organization methods involve trays that the wrenches snap into, but there are also hex keys on rings and foldout sets, like we mentioned above.
A few other items to keep in mind when you’re shopping for the best Allen wrenches:
- Wrench sizes (are they SAE sizes?)
- Number of wrenches in the set
- Length (generally, longer is better, unless you know you’ll be working in a super tight spot)
Overall Best Allen Wrench
All of the wrenches and sets we’ve discussed here are winners, but since you’re only interested in buying one set of Allen wrenches today, our pick is the Klein Tools ½ Inch Hex Key with Journeyman T-Handle. This hex key is the ultimate in comfort and usability.
While we loved the storage options and the wide range of sets in the Bondhus Dual Pack and the Tekton thirteen-piece set, we didn’t like how uncomfortable those tools are to use, and how difficult each will be to torque, as there’s only the stubby short end to help you find leverage.
You won’t have that problem at all with the Klein hex key, and while it comes in a single size, we feel like that size will be appropriate for most of your jobs.