What’s The Difference Between Green And Yellow Stihl Chainsaw Chains?

There are a number of telltale signs that your chainsaw’s chain needs to be replaced, such as seeing visible wear and tear on the saw’s chain or having to add too much of your own force in order for there to be any kind of effective cutting. When it comes time to get that a chain, there are several factors you need to consider when selecting that chain. Obviously, you need to know the pitch and the gauge for it to be able to snugly fit onto your blade. Beyond that though, there are other decisions that need to be made that can dramatically alter your sawing experience. The Stihl chainsaw brand makes that easier by splitting its available chains into two different categories: green and yellow.

One might think that these color distinctions indicate something like amateur and professional, but that isn’t the case. The green and yellow color markers are there to distinguish between low and high kickback chain models. One labeled as green is a low kickback model, while yellow indicates high kickback. On the various listings for the multitude of Stihl chains available, the company almost always recommends using green chains — along with green-labeled blades — with any of its chainsaw power heads, even on listings for yellow chains. Chainsaw kickback can be incredibly dangerous, and if you don’t have an extensive history with chainsaws, it can lead to serious injury if you can’t physically handle the kickback. For those with a lot of experience, they should be able to handle yellow chains. For most though, safety is of the utmost importance, and sticking with a low kickback green chain is the way to go.

While SlashGear considers Stihl to be the best chainsaw brand on the market, that doesn’t mean the company does everything perfectly. Yes, it smartly delineates its low kickback chains from its high kickback ones, but it makes actually figuring out which chain is which a lot trickier than it needs to be.

Purchasing in the store is a bit easier. Stihl chains each come in a box with a small colored square on the left side of the front of the packaging. There will also be additional rectangle on the left side of the box too. These shapes will either be colored green or yellow, depending on the which chain it is. The squares on the front of the box are quite small, so they can be a little easy to miss if you’re quickly scanning over your options in the hardware store. However, that’s a lot easier than the online process.

Annoyingly, the Stihl website doesn’t separate green chains from yellow ones. Every chain is grouped together, leaving you to go through them individually. Making things more complicated, it doesn’t label them as green or yellow in the product name. There are two ways to figure out. The first is by the picture. You’ll see a tiny green or yellow marker between chisels to indicate the difference, though not every picture has these colors featured. Your next hope is to read the full product description for kickback information, but unfortunately that’s not a guarantee either. If you aren’t sure what you’re getting, buying a chain in a hardware store is certainly the safer and easier option.