Equipment Review: Best Carbon-Steel Chef's Knives & Our Testing Winner

Carbon-steel enthusiasts have long considered these knives sharper and more durable than stainless. But do they really perform better—and are they worth the upkeep?

We tested 8 carbon-steel knives to find the best one:
Bob Kramer 8" Carbon Steel Chef’s Knife by Zwilling J.A. Henckels
Tsukiji Masamoto Gyuto, 8 1/4"
Togiharu Virgin Carbon Steel Gyutou, 8.2"
Misono Swedish Carbon Steel Gyutou, 8.2"
Masamoto Sohonten Virgin Carbon Steel Gyutou, 8.2"
Messermeister Park Plaza Carbon 8 Inch Chef’s Knife
R. Murphy Chef’s Select 8 Inch Carbon Steel Chef’s Knife
Sabatier Mexeur et Cie 8" Chef

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[michaelhorstmann]

This is possibly, one of the best review videos I've ever. This video just does everything right. You wasted none of my time getting right into relevant facts without a big dramatic climax. The whole video felt evenly paced and informative throughout. You didn't focus on any unnecessary facts, you didn't peak interest or lose it, you just stayed perfectly watchable from start to finish. I can't even begin to thank you for such video excellence! Bravo! Bravo!

[HooperWest]

Lady has a great delivery, clear, concise summaries with no BS. She's Great!

[budmiller]

Thank you for respecting my time and intelligence. This was well worth watching.

[mjremy]

What an excellent video!
1. Thank you for no background music - what joy!
2. Thank you for the succinct, concise delivery of content with no fluff and waste of time. Precise, and short.

3. The content is very rich. So many knives tested with such thoroughness, contributed to the sum total of human knowledge, bravo!!! You took a scientific approach all the way and delivered facts.
4. I really appreciate the no nonsense, practical approach in selecting the Victorinox knife for the kitchen. In the end, value matters too. It is a no fuss blade and saves a lot of time in maintenance. For specialty work like sushi, a knife can be higher maintenance but not everyday high volume cooking.
5. Most of all, thank you for the adherence to a rigorous, high quality review and testing. It's nice to renew my faith in proper testing and reviews. Bravo!

[Marssz]

This episode demonstrated why I love this channel. It was informative, easily understood and the lady showed exactly what she talked about. I'm forwarding this to a knifemaker friend (who can learn a thing or two.). I have two old carbon-steel knives with no maker marks (I got them from my neighbor, an elderly German woman.) They are excellent tools for cutting.

[J]

I like how she at the end compared the victorinox with the $300 knife. Not getting a carbon steel it is.

[ro]

And now I'm gonna buy that Victorianox.

[MrSaeedAta]

(Junior) Material/Process Engineer here: They probably use a combination of fast cooling rates plus forging to get fine grain size. Genrally, finer grian sizes yield smaller carbides since carbides form at the grains. Same abount of carbon is spread across a greater area of boundaries. Other tricks are used too. E.g. using Nb to react with the carbonn instead of chromium.

[learnerlearns]

This is certainly one of the best description of tool-steel metallurgy I have ever seen.
You covered all the important topics: grain structure, sharpening angles, carbon-content vs durability and quality vs price.

And you did this all without slathering jargon on unfamiliar ears. I have been working with hand tools over 50 years and it took me decades to learn what you (mostly) covered in this concise clear video. EXCELLENT!

[danielguadian]

This lady is quite the presenter. She just puts out the information one needs to make a decision when one wants to buy a product, plus she has such a wonderful voice. I like her.

[monotremata]

I recently bought a brand new 55 year old 10 inch carbon steel Sabatier.A number of them were found in the storeroom of a Sydney business, Johnson overalls . Best cooks knife i have ever owned,

[Artbane]

This is the best review channel I've ever seen. Objective, informative. I hope that more people can match at least part of your standards.

[johnborges]

The advantage of carbon steel knives has always been that the blade can be regularly sharpened more easily. The appropriate comparison would be after extensive use with regular re-sharpening. Obviously more difficult to test.

[watchingyou]

I love these reviews. They are always well thought out, presented well, and straight forward. Well done. Thank you!!

[castironchaos]

This comparison between newer (stainless) and older (carbon steel) styles of knives does omit one crucial part of maintaining your knives: re-sharpening them as the blade dulls.  You show the knife blade being dulled from use on a glass cutting board...but what happens after the knife is re-sharpened?  Are the re-sharpened knives as good as the original blade?  Does the harder metal of the stainless allow for returning the blade to its original strength and sharpness? Which metals are more likely to crack and chip, rather than simply bend and fold? What about frequency of sharpening - what happens after the blades are dulled and re-sharpened over time?  Vintage carbon steel knives are legendary for achieving a razor's edge after decades of use and many re-sharpenings.  Does the stainless steel blade work as well in this manner, over time?

[briangc]

Two major flaws in your tests. 1st, you NEVER use a new knife before properly sharpening it. Only handmade custom knives come properly sharpened. All others are made on an assembly line and are machine sharpened (90%). Second, a discussion of Rockwell hardness and cutting edge would be much more helpful when comparing different knives. As your final comparison bore out, the stainless steel knife held it's edge longer when abused. BUT that comes at a price of not ever being capable of achieving the quality of the edge of the carbon steel knife. No two carbon knives are the same because each maker uses what they think is the best compromise material, that was shown in your Rockwell numbers. This piece would have been far more educational had you discussed how to properly sharpen your new knife before using it and how to properly maintain the edge. Then you could have performed a more informative comparison with the final results being: The winner of this test and every test is the knife that fits you best with the ultimate performance of the knife depending upon the owner first sharpening it and then taking proper care of it. Bottom line is that how it fits your hand and makes you feel will have far more effect on how it performs than who made the knife.

[brettomomyces]

I have a 14" chef and a 10" chinese cleaver, both carbon steel from Dexter Russell. one of them was lifted from a job...the other cost $10. they are the best knives I own

[outthere]

Thank you. Well done. I bogged myself down in this journey of perfection in researching my next knife puchase. Nowhere did I find "any" reference to modern day stainless cutlery. I was convinced that a $300-600 Japanese carbon knife was the holy grail of cutlery. Well, I'm convinced, Victorinox wins hands down. 21st century technology wins the day!

[hkninja]

Love your series of test kitchen videos. My only confusion of this one is at 5:03. When you said the best buy option of carbon steel knife is Togiharu, the video actually show Masamoto. I know because I own a Masamoto. Either what in the video was wrong or the script was wrong as Masamoto aren't cheap. Just want to point that out. Great video and can't believe Bob Kiamer would beat Masamoto in sharpness. Maybe my next collectable knife. :)

[ChimeraActual]

The factor you didn't mention was ease of sharpening. Usually, but not always, a plain carbon steel is easier to sharpen, and holds its edge longer, than most, but not all, stainless steel knives. BTW, how did you sharpen the edges before you had them tested at MIT?