No single person is credited with inventing the screwdriver ; it emerged in late medieval Europe, probably in Germany or France in the late 15th century, alongside early metal screws.

Quick Scoop: Short Answer

  • The very first screwdrivers appeared in the late 1400s , used for slotted screws in armor and early machinery.
  • Historians say they were “probably invented” in either Germany or France , but no specific inventor’s name survives.
  • Later, named inventors improved special types:
    • P.L. Robertson (square/Robertson screwdriver, 1908)
* Henry Phillips (Phillips cross-head system, 1930s)

In other words: the original screwdriver is anonymous, but later variants have famous inventors.

How the First Screwdriver Appeared

The screwdriver shows up in records between 1475 and 1490 , in a German “Housebook” manuscript that illustrates tools of the time.

These early tools had pear‑shaped wooden handles and simple flat blades made for slotted screws, used especially in armor and early metalwork.

  • Origin region: Germany or France (uncertain).
  • Original names:
    • German: Schraubendreher (“screw-turner”)
* French: _tournevis_ (“turnscrew”)

Why No Single “Inventor”?

For centuries, screws were hard and expensive to make , so both screws and screwdrivers spread slowly and quietly through workshops.

Because they evolved as practical shop tools rather than patented inventions, records credit regions and trades , not one heroic inventor.

  • Evidence of the screwdriver’s existence for about 300 years mostly comes from finding screws and their uses, not from naming creators.
  • Only with industrial screw-cutting machines in the 1700s (like Jesse Ramsden’s screw-cutting lathe in the 1770s) did screws and screwdrivers become common mass‑produced items.

Famous Named Screwdriver Inventors

Once the basic flat screwdriver existed, later innovators created new screw–driver systems that do have clear inventors.

  • P.L. Robertson (Canada)
    • Year: 1908.
* Invention: **Robertson (square-drive) screw and screwdriver**.
* Benefit: Reduced slipping of the driver and improved reliability, heavily adopted in early Ford cars.
  • Henry Phillips (USA)
    • Era: 1930s.
* Invention: **Phillips cross-shaped screw and screwdriver**.
* Benefit: Designed to handle higher torque from power tools and to “cam-out” safely when over‑tightened.

These later designs turned the screwdriver from a simple flat blade into a whole family of specialized drivers used in industry and at home.

Today’s View and “Latest” Angle

Modern tool histories and brand blogs still describe the screwdriver as a 15th‑century European invention with unknown originator , followed by 20th‑century named designs like Robertson and Phillips.

Recent quick guides and timelines from tool makers continue to repeat the same core story: anonymous medieval birth, then modern branded innovations.

TL;DR:
No one knows exactly who invented the screwdriver , only that it likely appeared in 15th‑century Germany or France for slotted screws, later refined by named inventors like P.L. Robertson and Henry Phillips for specific screw types.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.