Best Bit Holders and Tool Carry Carabiners: Four Small Upgrades That Organize Your Fasteners

Introduction

Anyone who works with fasteners knows the routine: you need a new bit, you dump the whole pouch out on the bench, hunt for the right one, shove everything back in, and then it will not quite close. Last Best Tool is a company that focuses on bits, bit holders, and nut drivers, and its bit holders take this everyday annoyance surprisingly seriously. Alongside the holders themselves, the way you clip them to a bag, belt, or pocket matters just as much, so we also look at two carabiner options that change how you carry them.

Last Best Tool Bit Holder with Magnetizer/Demagnetizer

This is the flagship of the lineup. It stores a full set of traditionally sized bits, and longer bits slide in without any trouble. The standout feature is a built-in magnetizer and demagnetizer, which is a genuinely slick addition to a bit holder. The tension of the holder is excellent: bits are easy to get in and out without fighting it or reaching for pliers, yet they will not go anywhere on their own, even when dropped. Some variation with temperature is possible, but compared with many other bit holders, this is among the best we have handled.

One practical detail worth noting: this version is closed off at the bottom. That makes it easier to push a bit out from the rear rather than trying to pinch it from the front, especially with anything on your fingers. You can also press it against another surface to start freeing the bit. The connection point at the top is reasonably generous, though very small carabiners can leave you fighting for real estate when clipping it on.

Last Best Tool Key Ring Bit Holder

The second holder takes a different approach: it is designed to hold general bits on a key ring, letting you choose which bits you carry. Under lower stress, it works as a mini driver or spinner, and the collar spins freely. You can also grip the split ring on the end to drive with more force.

It ships with a basic convenience-style carabiner, which works but is not the most convenient pairing. Because of the limited size and the split rings, releasing the bits from a tool bag can get cumbersome. The holder itself is affordable and available in different sets, with or without bits, and the overall quality feels solid.

Petzl Caritool

If you are upgrading how you carry bits, the Petzl Caritool is one of the smarter options. These aluminum clips are shaped so nothing impedes the sliding surface: when you hook one onto a bag, belt, or pocket, items slide in and out easily instead of snagging. That is the main weakness of typical hook-style carabiners, where the pointed tip catches on everything.

The Caritool also lets you flip items around, giving you the larger open gate at the top for clipping onto gear, while bits can slide all the way down to the bottom where they are easy to grab. Petzl rates this size to about 10 pounds, though it likely holds far more in practice. One caveat: because it is a bit larger, a Caritool may fit through a bit holder’s connection point but cannot always roll around freely inside it.

Nite Ize Carabiner

For pure convenience, a Nite Ize style carabiner is an easy upgrade over the stock split-ring-and-carabiner setup. The gate opens wide, so you can release the bit holder from your tool bag without fighting the split rings, which is exactly where the smaller stock carabiner gets cumbersome. It frees up the whole top of the bit holder for clipping onto whatever you like.

How to Choose the Right Carry Setup

There are a few principles worth keeping in mind. First, if you plan to upgrade to any carabiner for genuine load bearing, choose a UIAA-approved climbing-rated carabiner and double-check that the gate can slide over the holder’s connection point; gates with locks can create problems as you spin things around trying to free a bit.

Second, think about size. Smaller carabiners often mean fighting for space at the connection point, while a Caritool of the right size accepts several bit holders at once, letting them hang down at the bottom where each one is easy to flip out. Bits, holders, and other bit attachments inevitably end up mixed in with other tools at the bottom of a bag, so how you carry them determines whether grabbing the right bit takes two seconds or two minutes.

Conclusion

Last Best Tool has focused on something that looks simple but is genuinely integral to daily work with fasteners, and both holders handle it well: excellent bit retention, easy one-handed access, and thoughtful details like the closed rear and built-in magnetizer. Pair either holder with a Caritool or a wide-gate carabiner and you get a carry system that keeps your bits exactly where you need them, without the pocket-dump ritual.