7 Best Brick Trowels For Raised Beds Old Masons Swear By

You’ve laid out the blocks for your new raised bed, the mortar is mixed, and you grab that flimsy garden trowel you got in a three-pack. Ten minutes in, the handle is digging into your palm, the blade is bending, and you’re slathering mortar everywhere but the brick. A good project turns into a frustrating mess because you brought the wrong tool to the job. Investing in a proper brick trowel isn’t just for professional masons; it’s for anyone who wants a permanent, well-built structure in their garden without the headache.

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, this site earns from qualifying purchases. Thank you!

The Essential Masonry Trowel for Garden Projects

Let’s be clear: a garden trowel is for digging in dirt, and a masonry trowel is for building with stone and mortar. The difference is in the steel and the design. A brick trowel uses high-carbon, heat-treated steel that is stiff enough to carry a load of heavy mortar but has just enough flex to spread it smoothly. The blade, or blade, is welded or forged to a tang that runs into the handle, creating a strong, balanced tool meant for leverage and precision tapping.

When you’re building a raised bed, you’re not just scooping mortar. You’re "buttering" the ends of bricks, laying a consistent bed for the next course, and cutting off the excess with a sharp flick of the wrist. The pointed tip of a London-style trowel lets you get into tight corners, while the flat edge is perfect for tapping blocks level. A cheap, stamped-metal tool will bend under the weight and offer no real control, turning a straightforward task into a sloppy chore.

Choosing the right trowel comes down to a few key things. Forged steel is always better than stamped; it’s a single piece of metal hammered into shape, making it incredibly durable. The two main patterns are London (more pointed, for brick) and Philadelphia (a squarer heel, holds more mortar, good for block). Finally, the handle—wood, leather, or a modern composite—is all about what feels right in your hand for an afternoon of work.

Marshalltown 11-Inch London: The Classic Choice

If there’s one name that’s synonymous with masonry tools, it’s Marshalltown. This is the benchmark against which all other trowels are measured. The 11-inch London pattern is the quintessential bricklayer’s tool, and for good reason. It has the perfect balance, with the weight distributed to feel like an extension of your arm, not a club at the end of it.

The blade is forged from a single piece of high-carbon steel, ground and polished to a precise taper that gives it both stiffness and flexibility. This is what allows you to load it with mortar, spread a clean bed, and then use the edge to cut off the excess with a satisfying zip. For building raised beds, the pointed London shape is ideal for neatly buttering the ends of bricks and finishing the joints between them.

Many old-timers swear by the traditional hardwood handle, but Marshalltown’s DuraSoft handle is a game-changer for anyone not using a trowel every single day. It absorbs vibration, provides a secure grip even with wet hands, and dramatically reduces fatigue over the course of a weekend project. It’s a professional-grade tool that makes professional-level work accessible.

W. Rose Brick Trowel: A Heritage of Forged Steel

Picking up a W. Rose trowel feels like holding a piece of history. These tools have been the standard for serious masons for over a century, and they are built with an uncompromising commitment to quality. The most notable feature is that they are forged from a single piece of specially formulated steel, meaning there is no weld between the blade and the tang—it’s one solid unit.

This single-piece construction makes them incredibly strong and gives them a unique feel and balance. Masons will often tap the blade and listen for the clear, high-pitched ring that signifies a well-made, properly tempered W. Rose trowel. It’s a tool built to be used hard and passed down. For a hobby farmer building permanent structures meant to last for decades, using a tool with the same philosophy just feels right.

The traditional leather-wrapped handle is another hallmark. It’s not soft and squishy out of the box; it’s meant to be broken in. Over time, it conforms to your grip, absorbing sweat and oils to become a custom fit. It’s a testament to a time when tools were expected to adapt to the user, not the other way around.

Bon Tool Pro Plus Philadelphia Trowel for Mortar

While the London pattern is a great all-arounder, the Philadelphia pattern has a distinct advantage for certain jobs. The Bon Tool Pro Plus Philadelphia Trowel features a blade with a more squared-off heel, which allows it to hold significantly more mortar than its pointed cousin. If your raised bed design involves long, straight runs of concrete block, this is the trowel you want.

Think of it as the difference between a detail brush and a roller. The Philadelphia pattern is your roller, designed for efficiently laying down a lot of material quickly and evenly. You can scoop up a big load of mortar and lay a long, consistent bed in one smooth motion, speeding up your workflow considerably.

Bon Tool is a workhorse brand known for making durable, no-frills equipment for the trades. Their Pro Plus line hits the sweet spot of professional quality without an excessive price tag. The blade is well-tempered, the balance is solid, and the handle is comfortable enough for a long day’s work. It’s a practical, efficient tool for getting the foundation of your raised bed laid down fast.

Kraft Tool Co. ProForm Handle for All-Day Comfort

Building a four-foot-high raised bed isn’t a one-hour job. It’s a weekend project, and by Sunday morning, your hands, wrists, and forearms will feel it. This is where the Kraft Tool Co. trowel, specifically with its ProForm handle, really shines. Kraft focuses heavily on ergonomics, and it makes a huge difference.

The ProForm handle is a soft-grip, contoured handle that fits naturally in your hand and drastically reduces fatigue. The material provides a non-slip surface and dampens the vibrations from tapping bricks into place. For the hobby farmer who might be tackling a big masonry project once or twice a year, comfort can be the deciding factor between finishing strong and giving up early.

Don’t mistake the focus on comfort for a lack of quality. Kraft trowels are well-made, with properly ground and balanced blades that can stand up to serious work. But the handle is the star of the show. It acknowledges the reality that sore hands are a major roadblock for non-professionals, and it provides a direct, effective solution.

Goldblatt G02431 Pro-Grip London Trowel Value

Sometimes you need a serious tool for a specific project, but you can’t justify the top-shelf price for something you might only use every few years. This is the niche where Goldblatt excels. Their Pro-Grip London Trowel offers fantastic performance and durability for a fraction of the cost of a premium brand.

Goldblatt delivers where it counts: the blade is made from decent hardened and tempered steel, it holds an edge well enough for cutting and cleaning joints, and the balance is surprisingly good. It feels like a real tool, not a cheap imitation. You get 90% of the performance of a top-tier trowel at about 50% of the price.

The trade-off is in the fine details and ultimate longevity. A professional mason might wear one out faster than a W. Rose, but for building a series of raised beds, a retaining wall, or a stone fire pit, it’s more than tough enough. The Pro-Grip handle is comfortable and secure, making it a smart, practical choice for the resourceful hobby farmer.

Ox Tools Pro Brick Trowel with Duragrip Handle

Ox Tools brings a modern design sensibility to traditional tools, and their Pro Brick Trowel is a perfect example. They start with the essentials: a high-quality, forged steel blade for strength and a solid shank for good balance. But the real innovation is in the handle design.

The Duragrip handle is not only ergonomically shaped but also features an integrated finger guard. This small detail prevents you from scraping your knuckles on the edge of a brick or block as you spread mortar—something every beginner (and plenty of pros) has done. It’s a thoughtful feature that shows a deep understanding of how the tool is actually used in the field.

Ox trowels are known for their robust construction and bright, easy-to-spot colors. The balance is excellent, leaning slightly forward to help with the workload. It’s a tool that feels both modern and incredibly solid, appealing to those who appreciate smart design updates that improve safety and comfort without sacrificing performance.

Estwing’s Forged Steel Trowel for Peak Strength

If you’ve ever swung an Estwing hammer, you know their reputation for indestructible, single-piece forged steel construction. They apply that same philosophy to their masonry trowels, creating a tool that is, for all practical purposes, unbreakable. The blade, tang, and handle end cap are all forged from a single piece of American steel.

This design creates a tool of incredible strength and rigidity. There are no welds to fail or wooden handles to crack. You can use it to pry stubborn blocks, chip away at old mortar, and mix stiff batches without a second thought. It’s the trowel you buy if your primary concern is absolute, unquestionable durability.

The signature blue nylon vinyl grip is bonded directly to the steel, providing a secure hold and some vibration dampening. However, the all-steel construction can transmit more of a shock than a tool with a wood or composite handle. It’s a trade-off: you sacrifice a bit of comfort for ultimate strength. For the hobby farmer who is notoriously hard on tools, an Estwing is a lifetime investment.

Ultimately, the best brick trowel is the one that feels right in your hand and matches the scale of your project. A cheap, flimsy tool will only lead to frustration, while a quality masonry trowel turns a difficult chore into a satisfying skill. Before you buy, go to a real hardware or builder’s supply store, pick a few up, and feel the balance for yourself—it’s the one tool that will make or break your next garden construction project.