When it comes to the most common tools found in an average kitchen, knife sharpeners aren't typically at the top of the list. But if you're a home chef, your knives will seriously benefit from being sharpened -- even just once a month. A dull knife is inefficient, slows down your meal prep and can easily lead to mishaps. A super sharp knife, on the other hand, feels great to use and can up your cooking game. You can cut tomatoes without wrinkling the skin, or chiffonade leafy herbs without bruising the leaves.
I've used a number of chef's knives over the years and come to appreciate each of them for their unique feel -- the heavy-duty Wusthof my first chef's knife is great for cubing squash, whereas I love my Global knife for more delicate knife work. The best knife sharpener will help you extend the longevity of your investments and keep a blade edge sharp for years.
The good news is a kitchen knife sharpener doesn't have to be a huge investment. As with any kitchen tool, what you put in is often what you get out: A little over 10 bucks can get you measurable improvements to your blade, while spending a lot more will get you a knife sharpening system that keeps your chef's knife's edge as sharp as new in perpetuity. There are lots of tools out there for knife maintenance -- I'm sure you're all familiar with the honing rod and knife sharpening stone or whetstone -- but I wanted the knife sharpening process to be a little easier.
So CNET tested the heck out of some sharpeners to figure out which ones will always result in a sharp knife. With these recommendations, you won't have to worry about the angle or anything else, and you'll still get a razor-sharp edge from a formerly blunt knife. Here are CNET's picks for the best knife sharpener for your chef's knife. We're going to update it as we test more products. A note, though: This list is just for chef's knives.
Other types of knives, like a hunting knife or a serrated knife, will need a different kind of sharpening kit or sharpening tool to combat a dull blade. Check the manufacturer website to find the recommended angle of its blade. Zwilling, for example, offers details for its knives. Pull-through sharpeners have a D-shaped handle on one side and one to three sharpening grooves or channels also referred to as stages on the other.
You hold the sharpener steady on a counter while you pull your knife through each stage several times. Who it's for: Occasional cooks who want fast and easy sharpening, or anyone looking to maintain medium-priced knives between professional sharpening sessions, says Bob Kramer, master bladesmith and founder of Kramer Knives in Bellingham, Wash.
Pros: They're the least expensive option and are usually quick to use, lightweight, and compact to store. Grooves or channels guide the knife, so you don't have to worry about maintaining a particular sharpening angle. Cons: Manual sharpeners may not sharpen as well as electric models or whetstones. And they're not very effective for serrated knives. Avoid: Inexpensive, single-stage sharpeners, which essentially just hone the knife. Most models have slots fitted with motorized abrasive wheels or discs that sharpen and refine both sides of a blade as you move the knife through the machine.
Flexible-belt sharpeners—a newer addition to the market—use rotating abrasive belts to sharpen one side of the blade at a time; a guide helps keep your knife at the correct angle. Both types typically have at least two stages—one more abrasive stage that removes metal to shape the blade, creating the edge, and then one or two additional stages to sharpen and hone that edge.
Who it's for: Frequent cooks who prefer to sharpen their own knives without a lot of time or effort, or the cleanup involved in stone-sharpening. Pros: Electric models can sharpen even very dull knives. The slots or guides make it easy to maintain the correct angle. Belt models are customizable, Carmona says: You can choose the level of abrasion and replace the belts yourself as they wear out.
Sharpening only takes a few minutes per knife. Cons: They're more expensive than manual models, and can be bulky to store. They're noisy. They don't sharpen serrated knives very well.
Avoid: Models that do not offer multiple stages. Sharpening too often or for too long could shorten the lifespan of the knife. Shop : Amazon , Lowe's , Walmart , and Wayfair. With a whetstone, "you have control over everything—over how much material gets removed, and over the shape, angle, and level of finish," Kramer says.
There are many types of sharpening stones, and you typically need two or three in varying abrasion levels—or a two- or three-sided stone. And then you'll have to learn how to use them correctly. The basic idea is to stroke the knife back and forth across the stone's surface while holding it steady at a prescribed angle.
But the motion isn't intuitive, and it isn't easy to keep that angle consistent. Taking a sharpening class at a knife store or watching instructional videos try YouTube or your knife manufacturer's website can help. We also took note of efficiency: how long did it take to sharpen a knife sufficiently? Although, convenience and quality are generally non-correlative. Specifically, when pull-through sharpeners were quick to sharpen, they usually left edges fairly rough and jagged.
Safety: Sharpening knives can be dangerous, so a stable device is paramount to ensuring safety. Some options we tried didn't necessarily inspire confidence in that department, so they were set aside. Each of the sharpeners we ended up recommending is on the sturdier and safer side. Materials: We found that kits with whetstones offered the most precision, but a combination of diamond and ceramic pull-through options offered a lot for the relatively quick pass most home cooks are willing to give their knives.
Versatility: Some sharpeners — including most pull-through options — only offer a single setting. These work in a pinch, but we found that at least three options one for coarse sharpening, one for fine sharpening, and one for polishing serviced a knife best, while a fourth, for scissors and serrated blades, offered the most versatility. Size: We considered sharpeners based on size depending on where one might keep them. Some fit in drawers, some required a devoted shelf within a cabinet, and others fit in your pocket.
Larger sharpeners performed better almost across the board, but we also considered the needs of those looking for a portable sharpener. We are still looking at more pull-through options, but we will also be recommending both honing steels we haven't found much difference from one brand to the next, but we're happy with this one from Victorinox and e-commerce-based sharpening services. Chef's Choice Pronto Pro : This is a pull-through option we've recommended in the past, but after testing and researching so many more, we're not sure you need to spend so much on a pull-through sharpener, as you can find quality electric sharpeners for about the same price.
We'll be putting it through more testing and reporting back soon. For convenience's sake, we're going to consider KnifeAid and other sharpening services. The one thing you'll need to keep in mind is that your knives will be out for a while, so you'll need a backup or three in the meantime. Angle: Each blade edge has an angle set in the factory. Electric sharpeners: Electric sharpeners are similar to pull-through, but with exponential precision.
These are the best for most people where convenience, efficiency, and precision are concerned. They do tend to be larger and harder to store, though. Jig systems, or kits: You can think of a jig system or kit as a whetstone with training wheels. You're still using and wetting ceramic stones, you just have a stationary axis that allows you to position the jig to which the stone attaches and measure out precise angles.
These are more involved than other options, but behind a whetstone, they offer most of us the optimal end result. Pull-through sharpeners: The most basic option, but also the most cursory, a pull-through sharpener is made using opposing steel often diamond-coated and sometimes ceramic edges, which remove steel from the edge of your blade as you draw it through the wedge.
These will do the job for quick touch-ups but don't usually perform well when trying to bring back a seriously dull or damaged blade. Stropping: The polishing of a blade, often with leather, after it has been sharpened.
Whetstone: While whetstones indisputably offer the greatest sharpening potential, they really only do so in the hands of a pro. If you're looking to make a hobby of knife sharpening, be our guest, but know that you'll have a learning curve with which to contend. While maybe not the most thrilling purchase, a knife sharpener is every bit as important as, well, a knife.
Read more about how the Insider Reviews team evaluates deals and why you should trust us. Sign up for Insider Reviews' weekly newsletter for more buying advice and great deals. You can purchase syndication rights to this story here. Disclosure: Written and researched by the Insider Reviews team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our partners. We may receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test.
This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at reviews businessinsider. For you. World globe An icon of the world globe, indicating different international options. Get the Insider App. We were even able to easily peel an apple with a paring knife sharpened by the E2—something only a very sharp knife with a smooth edge can do.
The E2 suffers from one irritating shortcoming. And so you wind up repeatedly turning the machine back on, cycle after cycle, until your knife is sharp. For a blade that was dulled by normal kitchen use, we found 10 to 14 pulls, or a total of 3 to 5 minutes, to be sufficient. After testing nine honing rods, both steel and ceramic, we think the Idahone Fine Ceramic Sharpening Rod 12 inches is the best for most kitchens.
It rapidly restored the edges of all the knives we tested, yet it was gentler on blades than the other rods we tested. We gravitated toward the ceramic rods. By contrast, the steel hones felt slick—the blade wanted to slip over instead of slide against the hone—and tended to chip hard, modern blades.
But the Idahone was noticeably finer than the other ceramic rods, and it achieved the same or better honing with less abrasion. It further distinguished itself with a couple of fine details: Its ergonomic maple handle is more comfortable than the synthetic handles on the rest of the competitors, and its hanging ring is amply sized and made of sturdy steel. The other ceramic rods we tested had smaller hanging rings, plastic rings, or no hanging ring at all.
We recommend hanging any ceramic rod, because the material is somewhat brittle and can chip or break if it gets jostled around in a drawer or utensil holder. Note that ceramic hones need occasional cleaning to remove knife metal particles that build up on their surface they form a gray layer. Melamine foam sponges like the Mr. There are many different ways to sharpen with water stones, and you can find them all on YouTube. It gets bewildering. Placing the stone sideways lets you see the blade edge as you go, which helps you maintain a consistent angle.
And using your hips rather than your arms to sweep the blade over the stone makes for a stable, consistent stroke. Finally, be ready for a learning curve. Practice, patience, and consistency are the keys. We tested the Work Sharp Culinary E5 , which is an upgraded version of the now-discontinued Work Sharp Culinary E3 , a popular and extremely well-reviewed sharpener.
The E5 is capable of making an edge as sharp as the Trizor XV they employ different sharpening mechanisms, though—the E5 uses flexible abrasive belts, and the Trizor XV uses diamond-impregnated ceramic discs. But we also discovered a few shortcomings that kept the E5 from becoming a pick. These troubles are a shame, because when you do get the E5 to perform as intended, it can produce an exceptional edge.
The E2 makes a finer edge that cuts more smoothly and with less effort. This sharpener is eminently affordable, but the Work Sharp E2 produces a better edge. We looked at but did not test the Kai Electric Sharpener , a sharpener purpose-built for Shun knives, after a representative told us that the company strongly recommends that Shun owners send their knives back to the company for free resharpening instead.
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