The power planer has three rotating blades on its base. A knob on top of the planer adjusts the depth of the cut by moving the front plate of the planer up and down in relation to the blades. The tool comes with a detachable edge guide to act as a fence for smoothing.

A power planer's primary function is to smooth the surface of wood, but it can also be used to smooth wood's rough end grain. It's also used for tapering wood. If a door is too wide, for instance, make passes with a power planer over the side of the door, adjusting the depth gauge to give a cut of the desired depth.