1. Neiko 10181A Step Bit Set — the value pick most sheds want
For a shed that drills the odd hole in sheet metal, this is the one we’d point most people to. Three cones cover 31 sizes between them, stepped in inches from 1/8 up to 7/8 inch (about 3–22 mm). One box handles downlight cut-outs, holes for cable glands, and enlarging a bracket slot without a drawer full of twist bits. The bits are high-speed steel with a titanium-nitride coating — the gold layer that helps them shed heat and stay sharper a bit longer. The 1/4-inch hex shank drops straight into an impact driver, so you don’t need a separate drill to run them.
Where it gives ground is the steel. It’s import-grade gear, so the coating wears and the edges dull if you push them through steel all day. Joel’s take: for the money, that trade-off is easy — you get the full range of sizes for less than the price of one premium bit, and a home user will drill a lot of holes before wearing a set out. Matt would rather own fewer, tougher bits, but even he agrees the three-piece spread is the sensible way in. It runs on any 1/4-inch driver, the Milwaukee M18 FID3 included, and if you’re still deciding between a drill and a driver for the job, our drill or impact driver guide walks through the choice.
2. Milwaukee Shockwave Impact-Duty Step Bit — built for regular use
If you’re cutting holes in sheet steel most weeks — a sparky running cable, a fabricator, someone building enclosures — this single bit earns its dearer price. It’s rated to run in an impact driver as well as a drill. It also wears a titanium-aluminium-nitride coating — harder and more heat-resistant than the plain titanium nitride on a budget bit — so it holds its edge in steel long after a cheap cone goes blunt. That’s the whole pitch: it drills more holes before it stops cutting, and a bit that keeps working saves you the downtime of a swap on the job.
The catch is what you get for the outlay. It’s one bit covering 1/8 to 1/2 inch (roughly 3–13 mm), so it does the common small-hole sizes and nothing bigger, and it costs close to three times the whole Neiko set. For occasional home jobs that’s hard to justify — you’d finish the project long before you wore a budget cone out. But durability is the point when a bit is earning its keep every day. Milwaukee isn’t a hardware-chain brand in Australia, so you’ll be ordering it online rather than grabbing one off a shelf. It suits anyone already running Milwaukee’s drivers, though it drops onto any 1/4-inch driver just the same.
3. Bosch 4–20 mm HSS Step Bit — the precise single
Bosch’s single cone is the quality one-bit answer. It’s precision-ground high-speed steel for clean, accurate holes in thin plate, and it covers 4–20 mm — the range most home jobs land in — from a single tool. If you mostly need one reliable bit for tidy holes in light steel and non-ferrous sheet, and you’d rather buy a known brand than a bargain multipack, this does that job well.
It lands third on value, though the bit itself cuts well. It’s plain HSS with no coating and no impact rating, so it’s a drill bit meant for a drill: run it at a steady speed and it cuts sweetly, but it won’t take an impact driver’s hammering the way the Milwaukee will. Matt likes that it’s precise and predictable; Joel’s problem is the price — it’s one bit for nearly what the Milwaukee costs, and the Milwaukee is the tougher tool. It’s the pick for someone who wants a single dependable cone in a known name and doesn’t need the range of the set or the endurance of the Shockwave. For thicker steel plate beyond what a step bit handles, you’re back to a cobalt twist set, and our drill bits guide covers which steel suits which metal.
Buying a step bit that lasts
A step bit is a wear item — the cutting edges dull first, and the whole game is how long those edges last in metal. Three things decide that: the steel, the coating, and how hard you run it. Plain HSS cuts clean but blunts soonest; a titanium-nitride coating buys a bit more life; a harder titanium-aluminium-nitride coating lasts longer again in steel. Match the bit to the work. A couple of holes a year? The cheap set is plenty. Sheet metal most weeks? Pay for the coating.
Two practical notes for buying one here. Step bits are sold in both inch and metric sizes — the Neiko and Milwaukee list their steps in inches, the Bosch in millimetres, so check the size range covers the holes you need. And keep the speed down and the pressure light: step bits cut fast and grab easily in thin sheet, so ease off as the cone breaks through. If a bit turns up faulty or fails early, Australian Consumer Law may cover you for a repair, replacement or refund, so hang on to your receipt.
The verdict
You drill the odd hole in sheet metal: the Neiko 10181A three-piece. The full range of sizes for less than one premium bit — the pick for anyone who reaches for a step bit a few times a year, with enough range to see a home shed through for a long time.
You’re cutting holes in steel most weeks: the Milwaukee Shockwave. It’s one bit at close to three times the money, but the hardened coating and impact rating are built for the punishment of regular work, where a bit that keeps cutting is worth more than a cheap one you replace.
You want one dependable cone in a known brand: the Bosch 4–20 mm. Precise, clean-cutting and covers the everyday range — marked down only on value, because it’s a single plain-HSS bit for nearly Milwaukee money.
Whatever you pick, let the work choose it: the size range you need, and how many holes you’ll cut before the edges give out.
