A drive motor for a suction device (400) or a machine tool in the form of a hand-held power tool (200, 300) or a semi-stationary machine tool. The drive motor (20, 120) has a stator (80) with an excitation coil assembly (86) and a rotor (40, 140) with a motor shaft (30, 130) which is rotatably mounted about a rotational axis (D) on the stator or relative to the stator (80) by means of a bearing assembly (24A) and which passes through a shaft through-opening (42, 142) of a laminated core (41, 141) held on the motor shaft (30, 130). The rotor (40, 140) has a magnet assembly (50) with at least one permanent magnet such that the rotor (40, 140) can be rotated about the rotational axis (D) by energizing the excitation coil assembly (86). The laminated core (41, 141) has at least one balancing section (55) produced by removing material from or notching the laminated core (41, 141), and/or the at least one permanent magnet is formed by a magnet body (52) which is magnetized when arranged on the laminated core (41, 141).