Harbor Freight Tools

For years our family has shopped from Harbor Freight.  Most of those experiences have been positive, but a recent purchase has us wondering if this online store is slipping (or should I say sinking).Navigating the ...

The Physical Store Harbor Freight currently has store locations in 41 U.S. States. I have been to the Vineland, NJ store 4 times now and have made multiple purchases. It’s located about 25 minutes away from me. I can’t speak for all ...

How would you like to buy a nice compact bow saw for $2.99? Or how about a finish sander for only $14.99? How about 2 HP 4 gallon twin tank air compressor for only $99.99? Or a pair of kitchen scissors for only $0.99? These - and hundreds of other ...

I ordered a 5000 watt Devilbiss generator from the online store. It was a nice generator for $400.00 list price, so i thought. The shipping at the time was free so I ordered the generator and waited on my confirmation. After that I waited for my new ...

I bought my first Harbor Freight item a few years ago with considerable trepidation. After all, tools that cost pennies on the dollar relative to name-brand items from Home Depot, Sears, Lowes, Ace Hardware couldn't be any good, could they? Lucky for me ...

Let's get something out of the way up front. With very few exceptions, Harbor Freight (hereafter referred to as H-F) does not sell "brand name" tools. This does not mean the tools are necessarily inferior. There is a perception that "brand ...

I agree with most of the reviews here...their customer service sucks. I ordered a work bench and a vise on their web site. A week later, a post card arrives in the mail (I have no idea why they didn't send me an email) saying the bench was no longer ...

I have purchased many items from Harbor Freight over the years. From tarps, electrical tape, hammers, brad nailers, bar & pipe clamps, recip saws, drills, sanders and too many more items to remember. Most of HF's tools are "no name" generic Taiwanese ...

I'm not going to go into my own personal experience with Harbor Freight, with the exception of why I would watch what you purchase as far as certain items would go. For the most part, the prices are reasonable for just about everything. However, you ...

I have yet to complain about a tool I've ordered from Harbor Freight. So far I've bought a 10" compound miter saw, several nail guns and various other air tools, two angle grinders, a cutout drill, a circular sander, a wet tile saw and table, ratcheting ...

Harbor Freight offers cut rate tool prices but your experience with them could be either good or bad depending on your expectations. Unfortunately for Harbor Freight, the way many of us do projects doesn't fit their business model or maybe it does an ...

For several years now I have been packing home toys from this outfit and no doubt about it they can be cheap. I even shrugged off the occasional 1st time use breakage of some hand tools because they were too cheap to bother returning. However, a warning ...

Stores are what they are: ugly, harshly lit and crowded with cheap tools of  relatively low quality. Still, there are times when you don't need to spend a lot of money for a piece of hardware. If I use a tool only occasionally--a torque ...

My experience with Harbor Freight has been mixed and since I am a professional Handy Man, I buy a lot of tools. First, the good: Prices - Good to Great; Selection - Fair to Good; Returns - Good; Quality of Tools - Mixed: Hand Tools - Good; Pneumatic - ...

This place has a large inventory of mostly very inexpensive tools. Not everything is inexpensive. For example, Mig wire is more expensive there than most other places. The bulk is significantly cheaper than anywhere else in my area though and when you ...

I didn't realize I was so strong as to be able to break a solid steel 6" bench vise in half! This POS Harbor Freight Bench Vise broke IN HALF after using it to clamp a cylinder rod piece for mending. I had had this thing for about 6 months ...

I am a long time customer (more than 5 years) from Harbor Freight Tools and I am surprised to read that many not so charming reviews for them.I do own my own Handy Man business and you can imagine that I need a lot of supplies and tools. I am a ...

If you need something from Harbor Freight, remember, as other users stated, delivery sucks. Always use the worst case scenario and give it about a month to get to you. I'm finally fed up with all the crap and lies they give out. I placed what will be my ...

Easy to order but the site doesn't track whether item is in stock. Ordered a heat gun from them and only after badgering them via email find out it is backordered. Need to let their customers know status of items. Not...

In total limbo. Ordered paint sprayer online. Got immediate e-mail confirm. Then 10 days later still no order, check order status by phone automated service says order canceled? Needed sprayer yesterday, and now I have to wait and call during work hours...

Company advertises bargain items, but does not have them. They will take your order on the internet and not tell you that certain items of your order have been sold out, cancelled, or discontinued. If you order a similar item to replace the one you did...

I purchased a 12" sliding compound miter saw with laser guide a while ago, and I must say that for the price I bought it for ($149 with coupon) I am very satisfied. I also bought the 2yr complete service plan for an additional $25 (again, discounted from ...

I ordered a trailer kit. Ordered via telephone and had a VERY rude woman taking my order. I almost ...

I ordered some metric and heavier duty (1/2 in drive) sockets, torque wrench, box and open end wrenches, rotary tool, and even a cheapo electric shaver from these guys. The first shipment contained about 75% of my order, the following two shipments, ...

Horrible customer service. Don't waste your time. I needed to buy a few things for my guitar repair business. Placed the order on line and like so many others here my card was charged and the items were on back order. Finally revceived them 30 days after ...

Harbor Freight is, if nothing else, consistently lousy on their customer service.  Yes, they have a great selection of "teasers" but when it comes to actually having that stuff in inventory, it's another story.  They must be practioners of ...

I've a very mixed feeling about Harbor Freight Tools (HF). I've purchased many tools from them, and for the MOST part, have been satisfied. Most of the time, the hand tools (wrenches, ratchets, sockets, etc) have been fine, and for the price have ...

Products arrived undamaged and all were exactly as I had ordered...my only complaint was that it too ...

I have not yet got a complete order without having to reorder or send in cards for late items on an order. The prices are good but delivery is bad....

ONLINE & PHONE ORDERING = GOOD. RETAIL STORES: Customer Service is poor due to untrained, underpaid ...

Their tools definitely have their place. I needed a 1/2 inch D handle drill for a remodeling project (my Milwaukee was TU). They had one for $29.99 that worked, not great, but good enough. I needed a saws-all for the same project, they had one, ...

Cheap tools in price as well as quality, but sometimes that is all you need. Shipping takes 2 weeks ...

I recently started wood working as a hobby and came across this retailer online.  The products seemed a bit less expensive than most other retailers, some items even being dirt cheap.   On their website there was something about their ...

This is the wrong place to shop if you need something at, well, any certain time. I ordered a trailer a month before I needed it. It took 3 weeks to deliver. Then they don't mention that no Certificate of Origin is included and that it will take another "2 weeks" (we'll see how long, really) before I can actually register and use my trailer.

I recently bought a 55-pound anvil from Harbor Freight, and I was extremely unhappy with it right out of the box, which by the way said "top quality".

The top striking surface was rough with saw blade teeth marks instead of being polished smooth. The point was irregularly shaped as was the area around the main flat striking surface. But the kicker was when I tried to temper a needle-nosed plier, and the pier left dent marks on the surface of the anvil! This means that these anvils are not tempered, which makes them worthless as anvils unless you finish polishing and tempering them yourself. This is a lot of work!

I paid $30, and that is the sale price! Scrap iron is about 4-cents a pound, so I paid about $28 too much. I compared the anvil I returned to the others on display, and none of them had a finished top striking surface. So I would say, save your money until Harbor Freight lowers the price closer to the scrap iron price or raises the quality to genuine top quality.

In the past 35 years I have purchased many tools from Harbor Freight. They sell brand name tools as well as their own brand.

I purchase a central pneumatic impact wrench and an air ratchet. Both were of poor quality. Later I purchased an Ingersoll Rand air ratchet. The quality was great as is usually the case with Ingersoll Rand tools.

The quality of their hand tools such as ratchets, sockets and wrenches is poor.

Some of the items that I purchased that work great are a router, grinder, band saw, electric drill, drill press and a large tool roller cabinet and chest.

Bait and switch, that's what I would call it.
I ordered three items from Harbor Freight and only received one of them. That means I paid close to 50% of my total cost in shipping and handling. And I ordered the products the same day I received the magazine with the offers.

I've attempted 2 order on the HF website and both of them got screwed up and for the same reason. After waiting patiently for my order to arrive I instead get an letter snail mail from them saying " they had trouble processing my order " Seems the individual I spoke with via telephone put my credit card expiration date in incorrectly. Now both orders have failed to arrive and all I get is a snail mail letter saying my credit card was rejected.(again due to their error)

On Monday I suggested they send my the items but waive the shipping charges to make up for their continued mistakes.

This order (totaling over $100.00) and BTW I've spend nearly $2,000.00 with them this year at the local store.

They have refused and continue to point the finger at me. Heck, I don't think the CS reps even read the damn emails or letters.

The local store has great people and excellent customer service. Too bad the local charm is lost on the mail order department.

Anyone else had a similar experience?

Larry in NC

The Web site is easy to use. (I've never had reason to call them) Takes a long time to ship

Buyer Beware! Don't buy from this company. I placed an order with them on Nov 30, 2006 and as of Dec 23, 2006 I still don't have it. Of course they immediately charged my credit card.The tracking information they sent me is supposed to be from Fedex but shows no movement since Dec 4th. More than 5 phone calls to customer service resulted in a different story every time. They refused to contact the shipper to find out where the package is. I contacted my credit card company to investigate and so far they can't get answers either. Looks like a scam to me.

Ordered Items from them. Easy to order from the site. Be ready to call them in a couple weeks because they do not tell you that the orders DO NOT ship within 48 hours like they say on the site. Customer service refused to give out tracking number even after they said it shipped 2 weeks later. Their prices might be great but the overall service from them is complete CRAP!!! 3 Weeks and still nothing but an email from them. If you need it within a month DO NOT order from them!

Harbor Freight illegally placed an order for me and charged me without shipping anything.

I called them to order 3 things:

Drill Press
Digital Calipers
Air Rivet Gun

None of these items were in stock, but they offered other items as replacements. I was not satisfied with their chosen items as replacements. The replacement items had a total value of $70-$80 more than the parts I wanted.

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This company practices sleazy bait and switch.
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After telling my salesperson AND manager that I don't want to order anything, and I won't buy anything, THEY PLACED THE ORDER FOR ME! w/$72 shipping! I never received goods, but was charged. So they took my money without delivering goods. Authorizing my CC w/o permission, charging it, and shipping an order w/o my permission is...

FRAUD.

I called them and they "Never saw where we charged you for that order."

Update: They credited me for 1/2 of the order amount, refusing to give me a full refund for the parts I didn't order and didn't receive, or the $72 shipping that they choose.

Fortunately the issuing bank with my credit card has already heard of this happening from Harbor Freight.

Harbor Freight has decent tools at the lowest prices anyone dare offer. However, don't get things online from them anymore. I have a drill press that didn't simply arrive in a damaged box, but was literally missing one of the four corners of the rectangular box it came in. I could pull parts out without touching the packeging material. The electric motor casing was dented and the base plate was banging against the press's post (_very_ critical to have a straight post on your press). Plus, this was after I changed my order to avoid being on a backorder list for 20 days.

Fortunately I set up the press and it seems to be working alright. I could not find any missing pieces. It is possible that the truck freight people were the ones who messed up, but the whole experience has souered me. (Plus, the trucking people weren't the ones who unexpectedly placed me on a 20 day backorder)

I have many Harbor Freight items in my shop. If I need more, it'll have to be at their store location, because I'm not buying anything from them online again

The stores are a great place to shop (if you have one nearby). It sounds like the online version isn't quite as good.
I bought my first items from the store (which, if you ask me, is like a handyman's candy store). The items were so much cheaper than other stores. I bought a earphone-style noise reducer for $1.99, a quick-connect drill bit set for $5.00, and a 3/8" to 2" 18 gauge brad nailer for $19.99.
I winced the first time I squeezed the trigger on the nail gun. Worked perfectly. I was amazed. This Central Pneumatic brad nailer worked exactly as I hoped, and I only had to pay 20 bucks.
Whew. Knock on wood. They have cheapo 18 Volt rechargeable drills and other tools really cheap. Great for at home work. As others have said, probably not for contractor work, but good nonetheless.

Was not delivered as promised...Can't get in contact with customer service...Main thing to remember when buying from Harbor Freight Tools..."You get what you pay for" One item I ordered manufactured by CHICAGO ELECTRIC/POWER TOOLS, Pressure washer Model #2433...
First time I used it, the trigger on the gun malfuctioned allowing high pressure water leak...(Repeat) first time it was turned on. Plastic gun is made of paper thin inferior plastic...Poor quality product..Now I have to buy a replacement Gun which will probably be made of the same inferior material...Best advise, pay the extra few bucks and buy a name brand of quality....I won't take a chance with HARBOR FREIGHT TOOLS again, the frustration isn't worth it...Now I understand why they only give a "Limited 90 day Warranty"

I ordered a paint gun kit from their website on January 18th 2005. They immediately charged my Visa card and emailed me a copy of the order and a copy of the invoice along with a UPS tracking number. I checked on the package every day because UPS kept saying that they had received the shippers billing information, but no package. I emailed Harbor Freight's customer service department twice and have yet to hear from them. I called their customer service department and was told that my order was in their system, and I would just have to wait, it was being processed as fast as possible. It was not until February 1st that UPS actually received the package for shipping. Thirteen days after I paid for the item. Once UPS got the package, it was delivered the very next day, after being shipped from a Harbor Freight store less than a three hour drive from my home. If I had known that, I could have driven to the store and back for less money than the shipping charges, and I would have had the paint gun two weeks earlier.

2 of the 3 items I ordered do not work lucky the 3rd is just a cutoff switch. Cant get a hold of customer service and their retail store does not accept returns from online purchases (too easy for the consumer). I for one weary enough at online shopping bitten again twice shy, hope others with bad experience can warn others

I ordered few canopies from them and it was delayed for a business day which passed the day I needed the products. It was clear that UPS was at fault and I called UPS for a refund and they agreed to refund to shipper (Harborfreight) so the money can be refunded back to me.

However, Harborfreight said their policy is 5-7 days and they can't refund the money and I kept on telling them the money is there and all they have to do is contact UPS! But the customer service lady just said no and finally I told her I want these products to be returned and they can cancel that "inside track" membership I've ordered and she hung up the phone.

Right now I want to get the credit card company to dispute the charges.

Horrible experience. I ordered and was given a tracking number for FEDEX. There days later called fedex and was told that they had recieved a shipping label but the item itself was not delivered. The customor service for Harbor Freight was unhelpful.

Go buy from their physical store if you can. Do not order from web site.

Absolutely LOUSY service and shipping. Don't expect to actually get what you order in a timely manner!! They don't bother to send it out!! Nothing but problems and they could care less if you are dissatisfied!

You get what you pay for. Wait - I PAID for shipping!! I'll never buy from them again.

Their philosophy must be cheap products = cheap customers = lousy customer service.

I have made numerous purchases of tools both from the web site and the local store. Their regular prices are selection beat out any other vendor that I have tried. Much of their inventory goes on sale if you wait long enough. The store will honor both catalog or web sale prices if you take in the paperwork.

The majority of harbor freight tools are well above the quality required for heavy duty home repair or hobby work. Many appear to have come from the same vendors used by stores like Sears - except the Sears versions have extra plastic bling.

Harbor freight appears to have 2 customer service groups: one is probably offshore, the other is definitely in California. I have never had an issue for which the group in CA could not find an acceptable solution.

My only issue has been that after ordering items, shortages in their warehouse have caused them to later remove those items from my order.

Harbor Freight sells mostly cheap tools. Loss leaders are not always in stock. They gave my credit card number to another "Partner" without my permission. Be careful when they offer you "free" things from what they later call "Partners". They gave my credit card number to a magazine processing center and they charged me for my "free" magazine. I won't do business with Harbor Freight again.

We just got a store here last month. So far, I like it. from looking at the products, I think you have to choose wisely because some look good and others look cheap. I bought an engine hoist, sand blaster and a few various other small things. Everything I've purchase so far is great. I did buy a set of flare nut wrenches that seem pretty cheap compared to my Snap On wrenches.

Saturday I received my Solar Kits that I ordered last friday. After reading all the other bad reviews I thought for sure it would take weeks to get them in; after all HF themselves told me it would be 12-14 days. The shipment was two large boxes each around 50 pounds. (They are about 1x1x4 feet each.)

I was shocked to see they were delivered via FedEx on the weekend. I'm starting to wonder if the customers who are having delivery issues are mostly 'large' items that are being shipped Freight and not the usual FedEx/UPS methods.

When I have the money for more cells, I will be using HF again.

I bought a Pressure Washer from them two years ago. Easy to order and delivered promptly.

Initially it worked great, but soon it began having intermittent problems maintaining pressure, even though it was rarely used. This spring I called technical support and they quickly told me the problem was the micro switch. I guess this is a big problem for them because in the same breath he told me the part was on back order. They said it would be about 2 to 3 weeks. Well it is now over 2 months and they are still saying 2 to 3 more weeks, and all that back orders are only estimates and not commitments. So it may be another 2 months before I can use my pressure washer again.

Easy to place an order and the selection and price are pretty darn good. If shipping times and customer service are of any importance to you GO SOMEPLACE ELSE!

I have waited weeks to find orders have not been shipped yet. Gotten rotten attitudes from customer service and no desire what so ever to right any wrongs done by the company.

So i only order when time is not an issue and still pray something doesn't go terribly wrong.

Ordered a wheel balancer. Two weeks later called to find out if it had shipped. Month and a half back order and they do on line policy is to not let the customer know this in anyway (c/o, email, call, pigeon) per borderline english customer rep. Can't recommend on line ordering due to the lack of coutesy in letting customers know when the order will have an extended wait time. Ordered mid January and will be in the end of March (they hope). Cancelled order. Will not order on line with them again.

On Jan 31st, 2007 I ordered, online NI-CAD battery's, when a week went by no order had arrived so I emailed them.. They told Me, "the bank did not approve my credit card". If I would fix the problem and reorder! On 2/12/07 I reordered and the card work just fine this time. Don't know what they did right this time, but it worked. A week later, NO order. I emailed them and they informed me it takes 14 days. Well, on the 14th day it arrived, guess what the order was wrong, now they are sending me a prepaid label and I can return the shipment and they will send the right things. I am 66 years old and don't have 20 years to wait for them. I have ordered INK CARTRIDGES AND PET SUPPLIES over the internet. 3 to 4 days and it is in My mailbox.

Bought their 4Ft x 6Ft Greenhouse. Was very easy to assemble (detailed instructions) and produces the most amazing veggies and flowers. 
Contacted their customer support before ordering to get suggestions on size, where to put it etc. They were very friendly and helpful.
In the meantime I discovered they have a lot of helpful tools for me an my gardening. Will definitely buy from them again.

the price was good,but the item i wanted was not available and the local worcester store in which i called were very rude seemed to be bothered by answering the phone.my original order item was discontinued and i got no notification and was waiting for my delivery until i had to call to find out what was taking so long.i had to settle for a differant item and wait over a week for shippment(delived a day late).just remenber in this economy the customer is the impotant person not the employee.

On May 6, 2005 I ordered a fire pit to be my sister's Christmas gift. Instead they send a two ton hydraulic jack. Then they gave me a hard time when I asked them to send UPS to pick up the product they mistakenly sent and send me my fire pit. They agreed to pick it up on November 29, 2005 and to send the fire pit to arrive before Christmas. On January 9, 2006, the fire pit arrived far too late to be a Christmas gift. I will never order from this company again.

I went to the HF store in Billing, Mt. Bought a vibratory Tumbler, when I got home (Wyoming) I ran the tumbler for around 4 hours before the motor burnt up. I have been busy trying to get a replacement (under warrenty ) ever since. This is a crazy way to run a business. IF I ever get the tumbler, I will feel very lucky. HF did send me a card wanting to know if I wanted to cancel my order. Guess they don't keep track of their returns. I'm think that if I cancelled it, I would NEVER get my card credited for the amount. I sure wish that I had read reviews on HF first, I WILL NEVER BUY FROM THEM AGAIN AND SUGGEST YOU DON'T EITHER.. 3 months and still no tumbler...
Dale

I ordered a machine from harbor freight, which promptly broke. I was informed that the piece was ordered, 4 months later I finally received the WRONG part. Because the part is available they will not allow me to return the machine for refund, I was then told it would be another 6-8 weeks to order the new part, well, over 8 weeks later, no part. I am now informed to "allow some more time", with their apologies.I have now been waiting for over 7 months for the part. This is not a rare and unique machine, they have carried it for years in their catalog.

well i'll say the same as the other review, hit or miss, i've probaly spent 300 bucks or more at harbor freight and somethings can't be beat but others are pure junk! I bought a set of wrenches out there, 22 of them for like 12 bucks or so, can't be beat, great set of wrenches. My dad bought a DA air sander there, junk! the bearings wore out in no time, exchanged it for another same thing. Screwdrivers = Great. Bolt assortments = the threads break when tightening. I just bought a jig saw out there for 23 bucks, seems to be great but i expect it to quit working. Pocket knives are excellant. I bought a pack of hose clamps, there great if you dont mind your hoses coming off because you can't tighten them up without breaking! bottom line i'd say would be that hand tools are a still there, you can't beat the quality/price of hand tools. but stay away from air tools and most powertools. Their paint guns are pretty good though. air compressors are junk. hit or miss sums it up pretty good!!!!

Absolutely horrible company. Charged me as much shipping as the item cost that I ordered. When I hadn't received my order within a week, I called to check on the status. They told me I have up to THREE WEEKS before I may receive the item!!! I explained that I felt that was too long to wait when they are charging such high fees to ship in the first place. The customer service rep was super rude with a "too bad, deal with it" attitude and I got absolutely no where. I suggest to anyone thinking of ordering from this company, even if they are a couple bucks cheaper, do yourself a favor and order from another company, it's not worth the price difference for such a headache.

I received two gifts from a relative for Christmas 2005. The value was about $110.000 total. The thought was wonderful, but the gifts were not perfect for me, so just like many others, I sought to return the items. I was willing to accept a store credit and buy something else from Harbor Freight. They told me that they could not give me a merchandise credit; rather they wanted the person who bought the items to call and arrange for the return and then they MIGHT send HIM the refund. Well, I did not do this because I would never insult my relative by telling him I wanted to exchange his gift. I could never change the smile on his face when he gave me the gift to a frown. I explained to Harbor Freight Customer Service that most retailers and on line sellers would allow such exchanges. They did not care. So that's it for Harbor Freight. I will never shop there and I am telling all my friends and relatives not to shop there either.

very helpfull! I ordered a 18 volt cordless drill and it arrived in 12 business days. They don't give you the tracking number but its not like you NEED it. Anyway the drill arrived in perfect condition. It isn't the BEST cordless drill out there but for $18.00 you can't beat that

The worst on the internet. As all others have said, slow delivery and customer service is overseas type answering service, i'll betcha. No way can these reps be in this country.

I sent my wife in to buy three items, each of which I researched on the web.  93566, which is an impact wrench ($19.99); 2551, which is a set of impact sockets ($15.99); and 46319, which is an ass holder ($28.99).
She comes home with an $82 receipt!
The worst part is that the impact wrench is useless.  Of course, what do you expect for twenty bucksov?