How do you sharpen butcher knives?

A whetstone is the right sharpening tool for most butcher knives, as an electric or pull-through sharpener won't do a great job with a narrow or curved blade. A 15- to 20-degree angle is best. You can, of course, also get your knives sharpened professionally. Either way, make sure to use a honing steel every time you pull out a knife to maintain the edge; if you do this, you should only need to give it a full sharpening once or twice a year.

Why do butcher knives often have a hole in the blade?

Large butcher knives, especially cleavers, have a round hole near the corner of the blade. This is so you can hang the knife from a hook for convenient storage. However, most of our chefs agree that hanging a knife is a bad idea, as it can spin around or fall down dangerously. But a big butcher knife won't fit in most knife blocks. Instead, look for a magnetic knife holder , which keeps butcher knives firmly in place, handy, and on visible display.

The 6 Best Butcher Knives of 2024, According to Chefs

The best butcher knives allow smooth slicing of meat, no matter whether it's a piece of grilled king salmon or a tough smoked pork butt. These blades come in different styles built for tasks from breaking down a whole side of beef to removing the skin from a fish fillet to quartering a chicken. Some are small and razor-sharp for fine precision, and some are huge and heavy for hacking into bone.

Though a butcher knife may not come to mind when you first think about essential kitchen knives, you might be surprised how versatile they are for breaking down not just meat, but fish and tough root vegetables, too. We talked to more than a dozen pros — including leading chefs and artisanal butchers — to highlight the best butcher knives to add to your collection.

Our Top Picks

Best Overall:

Victorinox Fibrox Curved Knife at Amazon ($42)

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Best Value:

Victorinox Fibrox Pro Curved Boning Knife at Amazon (See Price)

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Best Splurge:

Dalstrong Gladiator Series 14-inch Butcher & Breaking Cimiter Knife at Amazon ($97)

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Best Lightweight:

Victorinox Curved Breaking Knife at Amazon ($63)

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Best Cleaver:

Global 6.5-Inch Meat Cleaver at Amazon ($180)

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Best for Fish:

Shun Cutlery Classic Gokujo 6-Inch Boning and Fillet Knife at Amazon ($140)

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Victorinox Fibrox Pro 10-Inch Curved Cimeter Knife

Amazon

View On Amazon $42 View On Webstaurantstore.com View On Wasserstrom.com $66

Pros

One of the most versatile knives on the market, this blade offers durability, ease of use, and flexibility.

Cons

It's comparatively expensive, especially given its basic look.

This butcher knife is as versatile as the proteins you'll be slicing. The flexible blade can work between meat and bone, but it's rigid and sharp enough to slice cleanly through steaks, roasts, poultry, or anything else. "When I use a butcher's knife, the one I use is this basic Victorinox knife," says chef Judy Joo, host of the TV series Korean Food Made Simple and author of two cookbooks. "For those who want to butcher a lot of meat at home, a cimeter knife is great because it has a curved blade and almost looks like a little machete."

Cesar Zapata, chef/owner of Phuc Yea in Miami, agrees. "I love it because it maintains its sharpness, has a comfortable handle and grip, and the blade is flexible to give you better control when cutting and slicing." It might look utilitarian, but what matters is performance. This Victorinox carries a fairly high retail price, but keep an eye out for discounts as it goes on sale frequently.

Blade material: Stainless steel | Blade length: 10 inches | Handle material: Fibrox

Victorinox Fibrox Pro 6-inch Curved Boning Knife

Amazon

View On Amazon

Pros

This razor-sharp knife is versatile and affordable.

Cons

The blade is quite short, so you may need a separate knife for larger tasks.

Arguably the most important knife in a butcher's knife roll is the boning knife. The Victorinox Curved Boning Knife features a semi-flexible blade ideal for removing meat from the bone, leaving no wasted product behind. The deft tool is also a go-to for removing silver skin, sinew, and other small inedible bits.

"This is an excellent, mass-produced, economical knife," says Rusty Bowers, a whole-animal butcher and owner of Atlanta's Chop Shop and Pine Street Market. "Made by the company that makes Swiss Army Knives, it has a high quality, machine-stamped, stainless steel blade that maintains a good edge and has an easy-to-grip handle."

Philadelphia butcher Heather Marold Thomason of Primal Supply Meats swears by this knife, too. "If I had just one, this would be it," she says. "It's always in my scabbard, and it's the knife I give to any starting butchers. The handle is ergonomic and comfortable and allows you to choke up with a firm grip when needed. I recommend the Fibrox handle specifically for this reason."

The blade is easy to sharpen to maintain the edge. It's also affordable, making it less painful to replace when the time comes. "When your knife dulls from cutting through pork skin or scraping on bones, and you have to sharpen it so many times that you grind the blade down to a shiv, this knife is inexpensive enough to replace!" Thomason says.

Blade material: Stainless steel | Blade length: 6 inches | Handle material: Fibrox | Total length: 11.25 inches

Amazon

View On Amazon $97 View On Dalstrong.com

Pros

This large, durable knife can turn a home cook into a home butcher.

Cons

The expensive 14-inch blade is probably more than most home cooks need.

The cimiter (also spelled cimitar or scimitar) is somewhere between knife and sword. It's a large, curving blade that's sharp for fine work, but with the heft to hack through bones and joints. If you're looking to chop up whole chickens, slice a rack of ribs into chops, or even break down a whole lamb, it could be for you.

"This samurai sword-like butcher's knife is forged from German steel with layers of folded steel, making it very durable and stain-resistant," Zapata says. "I love it because it maintains its sharpness, slices through meat effortlessly, and removes fat in one long slice without tearing. It has a comfortable grip, and the blade is wide and curved enough to cut closely against bone."

This is a serious knife that can do serious work, and it's priced to match. It's a luxury choice for the amateur butcher but the massive 14-inch blade could be more than many home cooks need.

Blade material: Carbon steel | Blade length: 14 inches | Handle material: ABS polymer

Victorinox 8-Inch Curved Breaking Knife with Rosewood Handle

Amazon

View On Amazon $63 View On Webstaurantstore.com $65

Pros

This stylish knife has an ergonomic handle and near-perfect balance.

Cons

The short blade means large cuts can take a lot of work.

Balanced weight between blade and handle is crucial for a butcher knife, as it lets you easily "work" back and forth to separate skin from meat or meat from bone. That's the secret to to this model, which Isaac Toups of Toups' Meatery in New Orleans calls a "hidden gem." He's a fan of Victorinox knives in general but praises the Curved Breaking Knife for being "lightweight with a wooden handle and very affordable. I use it for almost all my butchery."

The comparatively short, curved blade offers a lot of control, and the handle is quite comfortable to hold. You could use it to fillet fish as well as to cut up red meat or poultry. The downside of that versatility is that large items will take more work than with a longer blade.

Blade material: Carbon steel | Blade length: 8 inches | Handle material: Rosewood | Total length: 14 inches

Amazon

View On Amazon $180 View On Williams-Sonoma $180

Pros

This hefty knife had no problem hacking through bone or mincing meat.

Cons

It's fairly expensive, and the all-metal handle can be slippery when wet or greasy.

The large rectangular blade of a cleaver is made to be heavy, giving you the force you need to break through cartilage and bone and cleave a whole animal or primal cut into smaller pieces. The problem with many cleavers is that they're not particularly sharp, so you have to switch to a different blade, like a paring knife or a thinner carving knife, for finer work.

That's not the case with Global's cleaver. We were impressed in our lab testing with its ability to slice through slippery chicken skin and make a clean cut in the meat before chopping the breastbone right in half with minimal effort. It was also able to mince pork into an even texture after removing it from the bone, and we were even able to use it to slice up firm butternut squash.

The all-metal handle on the Global makes it easy to wash, with no rivets or joints where food can get stuck. But it's a little harder to get a good grip than with a wood or plastic handle, especially if your hands are wet or greasy. It's also quite expensive for a cleaver, though that reflects its quality.

Blade material: Stainless steel | Blade length: 6.5 inches | Handle material: Stainless steel | Total length: 11.75 inches

shun-premier-6-inch-boning-and-fillet-knife

Amazon

View On Amazon $140 View On Williams-Sonoma $140 View On Walmart $202

Pros

This ultra-sharp, super-thin knife can glide through delicate fish with perfect control.

Cons

It's pricy, and it's not intended for meats other than fish.

When you think of a butcher knife, you probably envision a blade made for beef, lamb, pork, or poultry. But fish needs butchering as much as any of those, and its delicate texture and tiny bones call for a special knife design. One of our favorite fish knives, this Shun features a curved blade that is so sharp it seems to glide through both skin and flesh. It's also very narrow in profile, which gives you precision control to work between the pin bones that can be so hard to remove from a fish fillet.

On the other hand, high-end Shun knives are quite expensive, and this one is pretty specialized. The shape isn't great for general slicing and chopping, or really for other kinds of meats. But if you're a serious pescatarian, love fishing, or want to get into homemade sushi, it's a magnificent option.

Blade material: Alloy steel | Blade length: 6 inches | Handle material: Pakkawood | Total length: 11 inches

Our Favorite Butcher Knife

Finding the right butcher knife is one of the most personal choices you can make for your kitchen. No matter which knife you choose, they can all get the job done of cutting, slicing, and chopping through various meats and fish. The versatile and durable Victorinox Curved Cimeter 10-Inch Blade is our best overall choice because it's an all-purpose model recommended by two chef experts independently.

Factors to Consider

Shape

All butcher knives are intended for cutting meat, but there are several different styles out there, each made for a different purpose.

The chef's knife is every kitchen's multi-tool — it can slice, dice, and portion most anything, meat included. The pointy tip of a chef's knife is good for working between meat and skin, but its wide blade can be difficult to control. A longer blade — 10 to 12 inches — is best for large roasts (or splitting lobsters), while an 8-inch version makes a great all-purpose knife.

A boning knife is shorter than a chef's knife, with a thin, curved blade and an extremely sharp edge. As the name suggests, it's made for separating meat and bone, with a shape made for precise control. Boning knives come in different levels of flexibility; a bendy blade (AKA a fillet knife) is better for fish, while a stiffer one can get through tough poultry and red meat.

A breaker knife has a similar shape to a boning knife, but it's larger and longer, at 8 to 12 inches. It's made to break down a large cut into individual steaks or chops while removing excess fat and connective tissue. It's a fairly specialized shape that's a part of lots of pro butchers' arsenals.

Looking a bit like a sword, a cimiter has a long, curved blade that's wider than a boning or breaker knife. It can make precise, even cuts through thick steaks, or hack through joints to portion out whole birds.

The meat cleaver is a large rectangular knife that you'll often see butchers (or serial killers) wielding in the movies or on TV. The blade is heavy, giving you the force to cut right through the bone. To get through thick marrow bones or split a whole pig, you can even add force by hitting the back of a blade with a mallet. Cleavers tend to be duller than other knives, made for force more than precise slicing, but the similar-looking Chinese cleaver has a sharp blade to cut veggies or meat.

Balance

“Balance is definitely the key to a good knife,” says Pawan Pinisetti, a winner of Food Network's Chopped and executive chef at Sérêvène in Miami. “A well-balanced knife will be critical to how well you can perform with it.”

A knife's balance refers how evenly the weight is distributed between the handle and blade. Ideally, a knife will be able to hold level if you place it on your finger right where the blade meets the handle, in the spot where your hand will grip the knife. This helps avoid wrist fatigue, feels comfortable and natural to hold, and gives you more accurate control of the blade.

Blade Material

Nearly all knives are made of steel, but there are different "recipes" for steel that have different characteristics. Carbon steel has a high carbon content and is very hard, which means it can hold a sharp edge longer but is more expensive to make and more difficult to sharpen. Stainless steel incorporates chromium, which makes it a shiny, rust-resistant material that's softer than carbon steel. It can't be made quite as sharp as carbon steel, but it's easy to re-sharpen at home when it gets dull.

Handle Material

A grip that's comfortable and won't slip out of your hand is crucial with any blade, but especially for a butcher knife that you might be using with a lot of force. Rubber and plastic are fairly common materials, as they're economical and easy to clean, though they might not look very fancy. Finished wood handles can be gorgeous, but they add cost and can catch food bits in their seams and rivets, while cheap unfinished wood feels rough and can start to deteriorate when it gets wet.

One handle material many high-end knife brands use is Pakkawood, which is not actually a type of wood but a composite of wood and resin. This maintains the look of wood grain but has a completely smooth and fully washable surface.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you sharpen butcher knives?

A whetstone is the right sharpening tool for most butcher knives, as an electric or pull-through sharpener won't do a great job with a narrow or curved blade. A 15- to 20-degree angle is best. You can, of course, also get your knives sharpened professionally. Either way, make sure to use a honing steel every time you pull out a knife to maintain the edge; if you do this, you should only need to give it a full sharpening once or twice a year.
Why do butcher knives often have a hole in the blade?

Large butcher knives, especially cleavers, have a round hole near the corner of the blade. This is so you can hang the knife from a hook for convenient storage. However, most of our chefs agree that hanging a knife is a bad idea, as it can spin around or fall down dangerously. But a big butcher knife won't fit in most knife blocks. Instead, look for a magnetic knife holder, which keeps butcher knives firmly in place, handy, and on visible display.

Our Expertise

Clarissa Buch Zilberman is an acclaimed food writer with nearly a decade of experience. She covers lifestyle, business, and travel for a variety of publications and spoke with more than a dozen chefs and butchers around the country for this story.