Masport: New Zealand’s Best Lawn Mowers

The sound of your neighbour’s lawn mower spluttering into action at 8am on a Sunday is a sure sign that summer has arrived. And much like the way one dog sets off all the dogs in the neighbourhood, the same can be said for lawn mowers, as one man out to mow a berm quickly turns into dozens.

In fact, as far as iconic summer sounds go, the lawn mower is perhaps only second to cicadas.

But whether you’ve a berm or a quarter acre, you need a mower that’ll get the job done right. That’s why at Canstar, each year we set out to find which brand of mower is No.1 in the eyes of Kiwis.

Masport: New Zealand’s favourite lawn mowers

To find out which lawn mowers are the nation’s favourite, we surveyed 478 Kiwis who had purchased a lawn mower in the past three years, to find out how they felt about their purchases. We measured their satisfaction across the following categories:

And Kiwis tell us loud and clear, Masport is their favourite. Those in our survey awarded Masport an impressive 5 Stars across nearly every category measured, scoring it just one 4-Star rating, for Value for Money.

Importantly, Masport, for the second year running in our awards ratings, is the only brand to score an all-important 5-Star rating for Overall Satisfaction.

Masport: A Kiwi success story

Masport was founded in 1910, right here in New Zealand. Starting out as a small engineering firm in Auckland, it went on to make New Zealand’s first commercial push mower, in 1929, followed by motor mowers in the 1930s.

It also made New Zealand’s first home refrigerator, as well as a prototype of the country’s first washing machine. So it’s fair to say innovation has always been part of the company’s DNA.

Today, the Masport brand is known for its high-quality, reliable outdoor equipment, both here and abroad.

What’s on offer from Masport?

Masport offers mowers for all needs, whether you’ve a quarter acre or just a berm, a lifestyle block or a new build. Masport’s range of mowers includes:

Petrol lawn mowers

Petrol lawn mowers have long been the standard, and Masport makes many great models.

For a regular lawn, Masport’s 8/0 Series is a great place to start. These mowers were first introduced in the ’70s and have withstood the test of time. The 8/0 series features long-life, rust-free aluminium chassis used in conjunction with renowned engine brands, such as Briggs & Stratton & Kohler.

For larger lawns, Masport’s Contractor series delivers tough, reliable and highly durable mowers.

Battery lawn mowers

Whether you’re switching for environmental reasons, or the clean practicality of battery power, Masport’s range of electric mowers delivers all the power and none of the noise of petrol models.

The Power Flex range of electric mowers uses the same handles, disc systems, wheels, catchers and cutting decks used to equip Masport’s petrol models, so you don’t have to worry about compromising on quality.

For added versatility, Masport’s Energy Flex series features interchangeable batteries, so you can run your Masport mower, leaf-blower, chainsaw and more, all from the same power supply.

Cylinder mowers

Masport offers high-specification cylinder mowers that deliver precision cutting performance at an affordable price.

Ride on mowers

Whatever the size of your small holding or lifestyle block, Masport has a ride-on mower to suit your needs.

Models offer the option of a rear catcher or a side discharge, while Masport’s specialty models can tackle everything from high grass, brush, blackberry, gorse, thistles, and overgrown and out-of-control vegetation.

There’s even a 4WD option!

New Zealand’s favourite lawn mowers

Here are New Zealand’s favourite lawn mower brands, based on our survey results.

1. Masport
2. Ryobi
3. Lawnmaster
4. Morrison
5. Bosch

While Masport is the winner of our Most Satisfied Customers | Lawn Mowers award, Ryobi, Lawnmaster and Morrison all earn fantastic 4-Star scores for Overall Satisfaction. Ryobi even picks up two 5-Star results, for Value for Money and Ease of Use.

What else is available?

Below is a quick overview of the other providers rated in this year’s award.

Ryobi

Ryobi is a Japanese brand that produces a wide range of power and garden tools. Here in New Zealand, you can find them exclusively at Bunnings retailers.

Ryobi earns 5 Stars for Value for Money and Ease of Use, and 4 Stars in all other categories measured.

Lawnmaster

LawnMaster is a proud, New Zealand-owned brand, meaning its mowers are purpose-built for Kiwis. Founded in the 1940s, LawnMaster has decades of experience manufacturing mowers to tackle even the most challenging backyards.

In our survey, LawnMaster earns 4 Stars in all categories bar one, a 3-Star rating for Ease of Maintenance.

Morrison

Morrison is another New Zealand company. Established during the 1930s in Hastings, originally, Morrison offered the unlikely pairing of lawn mowers and bicycles. Morrisons is now owned by Masport.

In this year’s awards, Morrisons earns 4 Stars for Overall Satisfaction, Value for Money, Quality of Grass Cut, and Ease of Use. It earns 3 Stars for Reliability and Performance and Ease of Maintenance.

Bosch

Founded way back in the late 1800s, Bosch is a household name that has earned a reputation for the quality and design synonymous with German-made goods. 

In our customer survey, respondents awarded Bosch a 4-Star rating for Ease of Use and 3 Stars in all other categories measured.

Learn more about our Lawn Mower award here

About the author of this page

This report was written by Canstar Content Producer, Andrew Broadley. Andrew is an experienced writer with a wide range of industry experience. Starting out, he cut his teeth working as a writer for print and online magazines, and he has worked in both journalism and editorial roles. His content has covered lifestyle and culture, marketing and, more recently, finance for Canstar.