To be perfectly honest I haven't run a stop watch on it, I can't tell you in exact terms otherwise I would be misleading you, I can tell you that the four guys working for me basically stopped using the 346 after we got the first 261, they all told me they would much rather have another 261, the 346 is an excellent saw, if I were just limbing, cutting stuff 10" and down, doing overhead work I might give it the edge, but for what we're doing, cutting up oak tops and cull logs, the 261's wider power band fits OUR specific needs better. To just throw a random number out based on feel I think the stock 261 vs the stock 346 in 20" hardwoods would be 10%, maybe more as you can lean on the 261 much harder. My crew hated the outboard clutch, hated the micro screw chain adjustment on the 346. I do one thing for sure, after trading,buying and selling saws, if you keep a Stihl in nice shape you'll always get 80-85% back out of a saw after a years use, it sure wasn't that way with the 346xp. Demographics in our area prolly played a big part of that and prolly isn't a good yard stick to go buy. The 346xpne was the best 50cc saw I'd ever ran until the 261 came out. The 346xp clearly outclassed the 026/260 pro's, but that changed, some will say the 261 is too heavy, 9 oz heavier, sit them side by side, take the covers off, weight the chain cover, look at the build quality, not hard to see why they weigh 9 oz more. They are built just as solid and rugged as the rest of Stihl''s pro saw line up, they didn't comprise anything for a few ounces.