When doing crafts, not all glue guns are the same. You have to balance weight, cost, power, warranty, and several other factors to find the best hot glue gun for crafts that fit your needs. What follows is a selection of glue guns that fit a variety of situations. If you want just a quick and dirty recommendation, pick the first gun if all you do is standard crafting, or the last gun if you want a glue gun that can do anything and everything including high-volume and industrial applications.
1 Cobiz Gun Kit full size 1 With a ceramic heating element this gun heats up fast and uses .43″ glue sticks. I love the dual heat settings allowing me to pick what I need for each job. This is one of the best hot glue gun for crafts all around, sporting a good feel. The components seem high quality and should last a long time.
I have also been impressed with the glue that comes with it. Sure, well all have to buy more glue eventually but usually, the glue that comes with the gun is so-so at best. I used the included sticks on wood, plastic, and ceramic with excellent results.
This model comes with a three-year warranty.
If you are looking for a good gun without spending much money, the CCbetter Mini Hot Melt Gun is probably the best hot glue gun for crafts for you. They save some money by using a slower heating element, making the whole thing a little smaller, and using thinner plastic (which is fine at these temperatures). I should also point out that it uses smaller glue at .27″ sticks.
While I certainly don’t want to use this for doing projects I am reselling or any kind of heavy-duty or high-volume use, it is a great little gun for crafting. I am however a little bummed by the 1-year warranty, the worst in this list.
The PROkleber Full-Size Hot Glue Gun 3is a fantastic little gun that comes in a case making it really nice to store when you are done. Packing a full 100watts allows it to heat any kind of glue and keep it melting for even fast-paced crafting. The gun is easy to use, reasonably lightweight and is pretty stable when sitting on its stand.
What I do not like about this gun is that it can run a little hotter than I think it should, I am not sure they have a thermal sensor in this unit which means it could be running too hot. That may just be that it is a 100watt gun in a lightweight shell making it feel hotter than it really is.
My other concern is that you really have to make sure the glue is firmly inserted in the gun because even if it is not, it will still start to melt at the high temperatures this gun runs at.
Other than those little quibbles, this is still an excellent glue gun that carries a lifetime warranty and comes with 12 glue sticks.
For those who want the cheapest gun in the bunch, I offer the Adhesive Technologies Two-Temp Cordless Hot Glue Gun. 4This gun looks and feels cheap, but believe it or not, actually works pretty well. If you need a glue gun and only plan on using it once or twice on some small work, this is your gun.
You should also note that this unit does not come with any glue sticks so you will need to purchase some Ad-Tech 14ZIP50 Multi Temp Glue Sticks or .44″ compatible sticks.
I see a lot of people using this gun on the low setting with sealing wax and they say it works quite well for that. It comes with a 2-year warranty, the second-worst in our roundup, but for the price, I would find it hard to complain.
This little Stanley Tools GR20AX is a good, solid, no-frills glue gun. It is small, light, and heats up relatively quickly for what it is. It includes a lifetime warranty and 12 quality glue sticks. Nothing really great, nothing really bad, but it works well, is small enough to fit in my crafting desk drawer when done, and I love the warranty.
This unit also does not come with any glue sticks, and although it will work with any standard .45″ sticks, I really like the Stanley GS500 6-Pack 4-Inch Formula II-Super Strength Glue Sticks. I happened to pick some up as they were displayed right next to the gun and found that I really liked them. They do seem to stick things together a little better than the standard off-brand sticks I use for most things. I would pass on the standard Stanley sticks as I do not see them as any better than the typical ones I use although they are more expensive.
My personal favorite is the DeWALT DWHTGR50 Rapid Heat Ceramic Glue Gun which is probably overkill for most craft projects. I like it because it heats very fast, can lay down a lot of glue in a big hurry, feels great in the hand, and is very stable when I put it down. I have had one of these for a long time and it has never let me down.
Works best with .45″ glue sticks. I use 8″ sticks and this thing is rated at 50 sticks an hour, which is almost one full stick a minute. Honestly, I have no idea if that is 50 4″ sticks, 50 8″ sticks, or 50 10″ sticks, but it has never left me waiting so I really don’t care.
The ceramic heating element means it heats very quickly, probably the fastest in the bunch here, my guess is 30-40 seconds before I can use it. It is also hard to argue with the lifetime warranty.
If you are doing some high-volume or heavy-duty work such as crafts for sale, industrial or construction work, this will do it. This is absolutely the best hot glue gun for crafts and so much more.
I hope you enjoyed my article on the best hot glue gun for crafts!
