Table Saw vs Miter Saw vs Circular Saw vs Band Saw – Comparative Guide

Time is money and an automatic electric saw saves a lot of time.

So, Saws are awesome! You can cut through anything when you have a saw for that particular cut.

But people often fail to pick the perfect one for their cutting works and end up blaming the product.

In this comparative guide, we will show the key differences between a table saw and other types of saws like the miter saw, circular saw,  and band saw.

Reading this guide will enlighten you about the saw industry and you will know the exact tasks you can do with these cool machines.

So, Let's dive into the action...

[ I have explained all the mentioned saw types and have a summary of key points with each sub-heads. ]

Table Saw (Bench Saw)

Table saw is used for woodworking. The most conventional table saw has as the name suggests, a table, a saw machine, and the blade inside of it with some other attachments for convenient use.

These saws are used for plain and straight cuts. Though it is possible to make an angled cut, You can't make a rounded or corner cut with the woodworking bench saws.

There are several types and sizes of table saws available out in the market like Benchtop, Compact, Jobsite, Cabinet, Contractor, Hybrid, and Sliding saws. If you plan to buy one, make sure you pick the correct one amongst these.

Table saws are a bit hard to manage for the beginners as the wood can kickback when the cut is finished. Therefore, professionals use the gripper to hold the wood in position.

Table saw, also known as the bench saw in some part of the world, carries some rumors on its back and almost each of us falls into those rumors. Rumor of cutting fingers with the saw blade!

Though in most of the cases, the rumors are fake but it can happen if someone does not take proper precaution when using it. We have a detailed sawing safety guide where we have guided the visitors on how to work without risk of being cut. You can see that for proper safety guide.

Key Points

Miter Saw

Miter saw is a type just opposite to the table saw. Where the actual saw and the blade is under the table in a table saw, the saw and the blade are on the table in the miter saw.

Miter saw is convenient for different types of crosscuts, bevel cuts, miter cuts, and the compound cuts. Miter saws have a wide variety of angle adjustments both vertically and horizontally making it a really flexible one.

The key difference with the table saw is that the table saw is used for larger wood or melamine slaps to be cut into large pieces and the miter saw is used for cutting the corners and angles to make a design or attach two ends of the wood in a photo-frame shape.

Like bench saws, there are different types and sizes of miter saws like Standard miter saw, compound, Dual compound, Sliding compound, and LED miter saw.

Key Points

Circular Saw

Different from the other two, the circular saw is an automatic version of the analog wood-cutting hand saws. Different companies make different types of circular saws with many types of attachments as well as flexibility towards angular and soft cuts.

You can replace the saw blade for cutting a specific type of things conveniently. Generally, it comes with 40 teeth circular blade which is enough to cut a melamine board.

Key Points

Band Saw

In my opinion, The Band saw comes first among all other saws in terms of workload it can take.

These saws are for professional use and you can run a band saw for days. A band saw has a cutting band which has teeth like the other saws. The band rotates around the saw motor to cut things you place into it.

You can cut a tree into pieces with this saw. This can also be used for corner cuts, crosscuts, and straight cuts But you can't get a bevel or angle cut from this saw.

There are different types of band saws and you will see some band saws which are used in the super shops to cut the meat or fish. These super convenient and high-end saws are made for professionals and you will be astonished knowing the price of this tool. Generally, the cheapest of the band saws will cost you a half a thousand dollar.

Key Points

Chop Saw vs Miter Saw

Chop saw is a modified version of the miter saw. Where the miter saw is flexible and can cut angled, bevel and straight cut, the chop saw can only cut straight in 90 degrees angle.

These saws are convenient for construction works where you have to cut different hard materials. Compared to the miter saw, the chop saw is capable of cutting harder materials and have the power to speed up the process.

There are two types of chop saws are available in the market.

1.  Abrasive Chop saw, and
2. Cold Cut Chop Saw.

The abrasive chop saw generates a lot of heat when cutting through the material and takes a longer period than the cold cut saw. The cold cut saw gives you a smooth and speedy cut which makes you a fast worker.

See this video of Abrasive chop saw vs Cold Cut Chop Saw (Dry Cut Saw) for better understanding.

Key Points

Final Words

Use of saw is inevitable in the modern era. You can't get that cool finish in your cabinet without the help of a saw.

When this tool can make really cool staffs for our home and office, it can damage a lot to our body if not handled properly.

So, before we sum things up for this article, I recommend you to take no risk and get prepared before working with a saw.

If you have any question regarding these saws or related staffs, feel free to leave a comment below.