Are Ryobi's Jigsaw Blades Universal (And How Much Do They Cost)?

Ryobi lands smack in the middle of popular power tool brands rankings, earning kudos for versatility but getting dinged for its (perhaps undeserved) reputation as a less than professional quality brand. Ryobi is owned by Techtronic Industries (TTI), which also controls Milwaukee Tools, Ridgid, and a handful of home appliance brands like Dirt Devil and Hoover.

Ryobi's OnePlus 18-volt jigsaw is one of its more useful low-priced tools. Ryobi also makes its own brand of jigsaw blades, which it sells in various sized multi-packs on its website and through many nationwide and online retailers. If you own another brand of jigsaw, you might be wondering if Ryobi's blades are universal, meaning can they be used on a Milwaukee, Bosch, Makita, or other brand saw? Also, how much do Ryobi's blades cost in comparison to other jigsaw blades?

Ryobi advertises its blades as having a universal shank, meaning they should fit snugly in most other brands of saw. Before you do any actual cutting with Ryobi blades in another manufacturer's saw, you should do a dry run in the air (facing away from people and other damageable items) at full speed to make sure they fit securely without wobbling.

You can buy Ryobi jigsaw blades from the manufacturer's website in packs of 10, 20, and 30. Each set includes at least one smooth, fast, fine, and scroll cut blade with between 6 and 24 teeth per inch. The 10-piece set costs $9.97, or just under $1 per blade. The 20-piece set sells for $14.97, which works out to just under 75 cents per blade, and the 30-piece set is $20.97, which equals 69 cents per blade.

The list prices for Ryobi jigsaw blade sets at Home Depot match those on the Ryobi website, but they're actually quite a bit more expensive on Amazon. The 10-piece set usually sells there for $24.50, but as of this writing it is on sale for $19.70, a 20% "discount". Amazon usually carries the 20-piece set for $29.90, but right now you can get it for $24.83, a 17% price break. We couldn't find the 30-piece set on Amazon's website, which is fine with us considering the prices for the other two kits. Amazon carries a set of 30 assorted Bosch jigsaw blades with a plastic case for $14.39, about 48 cents per blade.