Kitchen & Dining » Small Appliances » The 12 Best Paring Knife for Your Budget – Complete Guide & Reviews

The 12 Best Paring Knife for Your Budget – Complete Guide & Reviews

We tested more than 100 paring knives in our lab to find the best paring knives for you.

First, we check the sharpness of the knife because a sharper blade is the key point for a paring knife.

Then, we looked into the comforts and no-slip grip of a knife handle.

After a long 48 hours of testing and retesting, we have listed the 12 best paring knives for you in the following list.

Let’s dive right into the list.

Our Top Picks
Best Overall: Rada Cutlery Regular Paring Knife ([amazon fields=”B001GUTWAC” value=”price”])
“These 3.25 inch knives are very sharp and they look awesome! The handles are easy to hold.”
Best Budget Paring Knife: Victorinox Swiss Army Paring Knife (Check Price on Amazon)
“Victorinox straight 3.25-inch paring knife. Works very well at paring knife tasks. Good comfort and holds an edge fine. Easy to sharpen when necessary.”
Best Pick: Wüsthof Classic Paring Knife ([amazon fields=”B085V5Q2JR” value=”price”])
“This is what a pairing knife should be. Amazing quality, sharp, feels perfect in the hand. I dare to say inexpensive considering the years of daily use I will get from it.”
Editor’s Pick: J.A. Henckels Twin Four Star Paring Knife (Check Price on Amazon)
“This knife is light, comfortable, and easy to hold. For a low price point, you’ll be happy with this to add to your collection of Wüsthof, Shun, and Global kitchen knives.”
Best Rated Paring Knife: Wusthof CLASSIC Paring Knife ([amazon fields=”B00005MEGH” value=”price”])
“This paring knife is great. Full tang. Wicked sharp. Great shape in the hand.”
Best Japanese Paring Knife: Zelite Infinity Paring Knife ([amazon fields=”B018H9OQ64″ value=”price”])
“These are beautiful Japanese knives. Very sharp. Highly recommend if you love cooking and appreciate fine tools.”
Best Professional Paring Knife: DALSTRONG Paring Knife (Check Price on Amazon)
“This is a great professional knife, balanced nicely for a small knife. It’s weighty and that feels secure in hand. Very sharp indeed.”
Best Carbon Steel Paring Knife: Mercer Culinary Genesis Paring Knife ([amazon fields=”B000IBVD0W” value=”price”])
“This is a terrific 3.5-Inch paring knife. It’s blade material is high carbon steel. It is very sharp and fits in hand comfortably.”
Best Kitchen Paring Knife: Kuhn Rikon Straight Paring Knife ([amazon fields=”B00168EAPQ” value=”price”])
“The perfect little pairing knife. Used in a professional kitchen and it stands up well. Strong blade, very sharp and precise, sheath is great.”
Best Paring Knife Set: WÜSTHOF Gourmet 3-Piece Knife Set ([amazon fields=”B0000631ZI” value=”price”])
“Sharp, lightweight, excellent knives set. Easy to clean. Good quality feel. The various styles provide the right tool for the right job to achieve the best cutting, slicing or chopping experience.”
Best Chef Paring Knife: Zyliss Utility Chef Knife (Check Price on Amazon)
“Essentially a short chef’s 5.25-inch stainless steel knife for smaller, more tedious jobs. This is a utility and odd-job workhorse.”
Best Serrated Paring Knife: Victorinox Swiss Classic Paring Knife ([amazon fields=”B0067VLY24″ value=”price”])
“The serrated blade cuts with great precision and for the price it’s hard to beat.”

Disclaimer:Amazon.com has full rights to change the product price at any time.

Cook can’t think about their life without a knife. A good paring knife gives you more flexibility in your cooking. Cook is a great entertainer to me. They entertain us through his food.

The most checkable thing about a knife Is cutting-edge technology. This is the most thinkable matter in a knife. Your knife should be stain resistant, cause it always conducts with water and oxygen.

Having a stain-free knife is good for our health. So, it’s a health issue. Now you must check this matter before you buy.

Your knife should come with a good grip on the handle, cause it gives you more stability and safety. The best handle design is ergonomic handle designing. Most of the knife provides us a lifetime warranty, it’s common on this part of the category.

One more safety tool which comes with a knife is a knife cover. If you have a pet in your home then you had to buy a knife which comes with a good cover.

These all are must-have a thing of a knife. If it came along with all the features I listed above, I am sure your knife is standing on top.

We feature an elaborate discussion about the knife below.

The Best Paring Knives of 2021

1. Best Overall: Rada Cutlery Regular Paring Knife

Rada Cutlery Regular Paring Knife
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This Rada Cutlery paring knife has a razor-sharp edge of surgical quality and made from T420 high-carbon stainless steel blade that ensures durability.

Made in the USA, this knife comes with comfortable solid cast brushed aluminum handles sporting a 3.25-inch blade that is the ideal size for a wide array of slicing and paring fruits and vegetables with ease.

You can easily sharpen your Rada’s non-serrated blades using Rada’s quick edge knife sharpener. Just a few pulls through the especially edged wheels and after that you will get a new blade.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Carbon
  • Blade edge: Hollow
  • Blade length: 3.25 inch
  • Weight: 3.2 ounces
Pros
  • Easy to hold.
  • Very sharp and lightweight.
  • The handles are easy to hold.
Cons
  • A little bit small and flimsy.

Promising review: ” Wish I could rate this higher! So much value for the money❤️ Love this knife!!! Will slice potatoes, carrots, onions, like they were butter. I ordered more of these from Rada because I definitely want to keep these available snd around for years to use!. My FAVORITE KNIFE!! Thanks for making a terrific and affordable knife!!” – JD

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2. Best Budget Paring Knife: Victorinox Swiss Army Paring Knife

Victorinox Swiss Army Cutlery Straight Paring Knife
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This multipurpose stainless European steel blade paring knife is perfect for peeling or seeding fruits and mincing onions.

To hold razor sharpness longer the knife’s tapered blade is grounded in two directions. This blade is smaller in size but is good for precise cuts and control.

Victorinox Swiss Army cutlery straight paring knife comes with an ergonomic and textured handle with a non-slip grip. It will give you perfect grip even when it is wet.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Carbon
  • Blade edge: Paring Knife
  • Blade length: 3.25 inch
  • Weight: 1.6 ounces
Pros
  • Very lightweight and easy to handle.
  • Sharp enough for a paring knife.
  • Dishwasher safe.
Cons
  • A much thinner blade.

Promising review:This Victorinox knife is simply fantastic. It is sharp as a scalpel (be careful!) and holds its edge for a long time. Perfect for paring and slicing fruit and vegetables, etc. I purchased a whole set of Victorinox knives after doing careful research…” – kolekatkrush

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3. Best Pick: Wüsthof Classic Paring Knife

Wüsthof Classic Paring Knife
best-paring-knife-7

Wüsthof Classic paring knife is precision-forged from a single piece of exclusive high-carbon stainless steel.

Precision Edge Technology (PEtec) is used on this knife that makes the knife is 20% sharper with twice the edge retention.

The knife is tempered to 58-degrees Rockwell.

Made in Solingen, Germany, the knife is a full tang that is triple riveted to the handle for precise control. The handle of this knife is robust, comfortable, and made with a highly durable polyoxymethylene (POM).

The full bolster of this knife protects the finger with balance.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Stainless Steel
  • Blade edge: Paring Knife
  • Blade length: 3.5 inch
  • Weight: 1.6 ounces
Pros
  • Full bolster and finger guard.
  • Very robust and comfortable handles.
  • Awesomely sharp blade.
Cons
  • The grip is too thin.

Promising review:Excellent addition to my Wüsthof knife collection. I don’t have a lot of them, because they are expensive but this one is getting a lot of use, replacing the cheap ones that need to be sharpened at least once per use.” – E. Burdick

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4. Editor’s Pick: J.A. Henckels Twin Four Star Paring Knife

J.A. Henckels Twin Four Star Paring Knife
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SIGMAFORGE knife is precision forged construction from a single piece of high carbon no-stain solid steel that provides perfect geometry and stability of the blade, thus improve cutting edge retention for long-lasting sharpness.

The laser-controlled edge is sharper and stays sharper for a long time. 57 Rockwell hardness ensures excellent edge retention. The edge angle is 15 degrees on each side.

Made in Germany, this knife has a super bolster that provides weight, ensures finger safety, and adds balance. The full rat-tail tang also enhances the proper balance and strength.

Ergonomic polypropylene handles permanently bonded for comfort, seamless accuracy, and gaps.

Key Features

  • Blade material: High Carbon Stainless Steel
  • Blade edge: Paring Knife
  • Blade length: 3 inch
  • Weight: 2.24 ounces
Pros
  • Super sharp, easy to use and dishwasher safe.
  • It holds an edge well.
  • Easy to balance and handle.
Cons
  • No protective sheaths.

Promising review:I love this knife! It’s very sharp, it feels great in my hand and the size is very comfortable for cutting small things like mushrooms and for peeling the skin off of apples, etc. It also doubles as a chef’s knife for my 3 year old daughter who loves to cook with mommy and daddy in the kitchen (closely supervised, mind you!)  ” – ut158

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5. Best Rated Paring Knife: Wusthof CLASSIC Paring Knife

Wusthof CLASSIC Paring Knife
best-paring-knife-1

Made in Solingen Germany, the knife is built for mincing shallots onions, and herbs as well as cutting vegetables.

Wusthof CLASSIC paring knife is made from high carbon stainless steel that is tempered to 58⁰ Rockwell.

Precision Edge Technology (PEtec) is used to make this black color knife that yields the blade of this knife to be 20% sharper with twice the edge retention.

The comfortable and highly-durable polyoxymethylene (POM) handle of this knife allows you easy hold and precise cutting.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Stainless Steel
  • Blade edge: Plain
  • Blade length: 3.5 inch
  • Weight: 1.6 ounces
Pros
  • Great for peeling.
  • Comfortable handle allows for precise cutting.
  • Durable and stays sharp.
Cons
  • Doesn’t come with a sheath cover.

Promising review: ” I was using Wusthof steak knives to cut my stone fruit and lemons and such with good results, until my husband bought this paring knife. I have been missing out! This thing is SO sharp. It’s shorter than my Wusthof steak knifes so there is a lot less chance of stabbing my other hand that’s holding the fruit. ” – Claire T.

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6. Best Japanese Paring Knife: Zelite Infinity Paring Knife

Zelite Infinity Paring Knife
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This multi-purpose premium Japanese materials-made paring knife contains minimal slicing resistance and satisfying heft.

Zelite Infinity paring knife comes with 12-15 degrees Razor-sharpness made from strong Japanese AUS 10 super steel with 67-layer high carbon stainless steel.

It is designed for small kitchen tasks like peeling, shaping. garnishing, mincing, chopping, coring, skinning, trimming fruits and vegetables.

It has an exquisite tsunami Rose Damascus pattern and it ensures liquid nitrogen tempering. Its cutting performance is versatile.

The thing that I actually like better about the Zelites is their heft between the solid full-tang and weighted handle made from top military-grade G10 material, plus the fuller size and shape of the handle, these knives actually feel better in hand and give you extra-strength with durability.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Stainless Steel
  • Blade edge: Plain
  • Blade length: 4 inch
  • Weight: 2 ounces
Pros
  • Very sharp, and resharpen easily.
  • Surprisingly ergonomic and comfortable handle.
  • Elegant, high quality and worth the money.
Cons
  • No protective sheaths.

Promising review: ” Chef Approved !! I am a working chef and want to say I love the Zelite brand of knives! ( see my review of the 8″ chef knife . After receiving my 8″ chef knife for work , I decided to purchase this Santoku for my wife as she prefers this style of blade. But now I find myself using this as much as my chefs blade. Fantastic ergonomics and beautifully made. ” – Jimmy Yates

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7. Best Professional Paring Knife: DALSTRONG Paring Knife

DALSTRONG Paring Knife
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The Dalstrong Gladiator Series paring knife is precision-forged from a single piece of imported premium quality, high-carbon ThyssenKrupp German steel at 56+ Rockwell, ensuring an ultra-sharp edge with excellent wear and stain resistance. For stain resistance, chromium is added.

The edge of this knife is painstakingly hand sharpened to 16-18 degrees per side, maintaining the perfect balance between blade sharpness and maximum resilience.

The handle of this knife features a beautiful, ergonomic, and ambidextrous that is meticulously constructed of G-10 Garolite, an incredibly strong military-grade inert and non-porous fiberglass-like material.

It is made as a full-tang for getting incredible robustness, life-long durability, and quality. It is triple riveted for even more durability.

The knife is easy and pleasing to hold. It is perfectly weighted to handle thicker, heavy-duty cuts and more delicate detail work. The hand-polished bolster adds counterweight and gives finger protection.

Key Features

  • Blade material: High Carbon Steel
  • Blade edge: Plain
  • Blade length: 3.5 inch
  • Weight: 3.7 ounces
Pros
  • High carbon German steel.
  • Razor sharp and easy to hold.
  • Sheath included.
Cons
  • Sometimes the edges of the metal tang and pins in handle are felt.

Promising review: ” Beyond great, this knife is a perfect paring knife. I finally have apples from my tree, although sweet and delicious, very hard. Difficult to peel with my RA. This knife changed everything. As another poster said, it cuts like butter. Thank you. I have spent hundreds on knives, but this one is the best. ” – Candace Campbell

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8. Best Carbon Steel Paring Knife: Mercer Culinary Genesis Paring Knife

Mercer Culinary Genesis 3.5-Inch Paring Knife
best-paring-knife-5

This Mercer Culinary Genesis paring knife made from high carbon forged steel that comes from Soligen, Germany.

It has mainly X50CrMoV15 German High/mid-range martensitic stainless steel. X50CrMoV15 high in chromium that makes the knife is great for corrosion resistance.

This paring knife is a full tang knife that runs the entire length of the handle for superior balance.

The handle of this knife is made from Santoprene TPV (Thermoplastic Vulcanizates) rubber that ensures comfort and a safe grip.

The taper-ground edge of this knife will give you stability, easy honing, long-lasting sharpness, and efficiency.

Key Features

  • Blade material: High Carbon Steel
  • Blade edge: Plain
  • Blade length: 3.5 inch
  • Weight: 3.03 ounces
Pros
  • The blade is very sharp.
  • The santoprene rubber grip is very grippy.
  • Easy to use and hold.
Cons
  • Not safe for dishwasher.

Promising review:This knife is a great value, but lets be honest, its not a 200 dollar quality knife. I prefer the santoku over the traditional chefs knife for my typical prep with meat, fruit and veggies. ” – David

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9. Best Kitchen Paring Knife: Kuhn Rikon Straight Paring Knife

Kuhn Rikon Straight Paring Knife
best-paring-knife-8

Kuhn Rikon straight paring knife comes in different colors with a nonstick coating that ensures foods will release from the blade, making each cut easier and neater.

The matching safety strong sheath helps you to keep the knife sharp and protects you when it is stored.

This knife is made from Japanese stainless steel blade that will give you a super-sharp edge and long-lasting performance.

The handle of this knife is easy-to-grip that ensures maximum comfort.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Carbon
  • Blade edge: Paring Knife
  • Blade length: 4 inch
  • Weight: 2.08 ounces
Pros
  • Incredibly sharp knife.
  • Safety strong sheath included.
  • Non-stick coated.
Cons
  • Sometimes food slips right off.

Promising review:Razor Sharp Little Knife ! Bought it for Paring – Almost TOO Sharp for intended purpose ! ” – LesB

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10. Best Paring Knife Set: WÜSTHOF Gourmet 3-Piece Knife Set

WÜSTHOF Gourmet Three Pairing 3-Piece
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WÜSTHOF Gourmet 3 pieces of paring knife set comes with dual riveted synthetic polypropylene handles that resist fading, discoloration, heat, and impact. These knives set includes a 2.25-inch peeling knife, 3-inch straight paring knife, and 3-inch clip point paring knife.

These precisely laser-cut stamped knives offer superb quality, value, and durability. These knives also resist corrosion and dulling.

Every piece of WÜSTHOF cutlery is meticulously crafted in Solingen, Germany from high carbon Stainless Steel blades.

All blades are full-tang handled that longer than 12cm.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Stainless Steel
  • Blade edge: Paring Knife
  • Blade length: 2.25-3 inch
  • Weight: 4.7 ounces
Pros
  • Significantly sharper knives.
  • Easy to keep sharp.
  • Sleek and durable.
Cons
  • Plastic handled.

Promising review: “Bought these as a gift for myself. I really needed a new paring knife and shopped around for quite a while before I decided on these. The quality is wonderful. Very well made. Size is perfect. I have short fingers, fairly small hands and these work well for me, and work well for other family members who have larger hands. Started out sharp and have stayed sharp. Never bought this brand before, but I will be again. Very happy with these knives and the three were a real bargain.” – Sandra Glenn

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11. Best Chef Paring Knife: Zyliss Utility Kitchen Knife

Zyliss Zyliss-31380 Utility Kitchen Knife
best-paring-knife-11

The Zyliss Utility kitchen knife is made from high-carbon stainless steel blade that will retain its super-sharp edge for prolonged use.

The inclusion of an ergonomic handle with a soft-touch rubber grip will reduce hand fatigue while increasing the precision and control of your cuts.

This knife features an all-purpose blade that’s designed to slice, cut & peel a wide range of fruits, vegetables, bread, and meats.

The Zyliss Utility paring knife comes with a blade cover that encourages safe storage in the kitchen or on the go traveling, or camping.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Stainless Steel
  • Blade edge: Plain Knife
  • Blade length: 5.25 inch
  • Weight: 1.6 ounces
Pros
  • Extremely razor sharp knife.
  • Very comfortable to hold.
  • Safety blade guard included.
Cons
  • Catches rust immediately if you don’t dry it right away.

Promising review:An extremely sharp knife, nicely balanced, with a comfortable grip. I found it to be excellent for cutting vegetables, apart from tomatoes, which are best served by a serrated blade, to grip the smooth skin. The sheath helps protect the blade from being hit by other objects in a drawer.” – Praetor

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12. Best Serrated Paring Knife: Victorinox Swiss Classic Paring Knife

Victorinox Swiss Classic Paring Knife
best-paring-knife-12

Victorinox Swiss Classic paring knife comes with a serrated edge that allows you to easily slice through delicate, soft-skinned fruits and vegetables, such as kiwis or tomatoes.

Made in Switzerland, this multipurpose paring knife designed with a short blade for getting accuracy and precision during garnishing, mincing, peeling, slicing, and dicing.

This paring knife is optimally built for jobs where control is very essential. The contoured Swiss Classic handle of this knife is designed ergonomically that will give you a sure grip and easy handling, even when it is wet.

Key Features

  • Blade material: Stainless Steel
  • Blade edge: Serrated
  • Blade length: 3.25 inch
  • Weight: 0.317 ounces
Pros
  • Inexpensive and extremely sharp.
  • Very lightweight.
  • Easy to hold and handle.
Cons
  • Handle could be a bit longer for large hands.

Promising review: “Have used a Victorinox paring knife for at least ten years and it was getting a little dull. A Cook’s Magazine just compared paring knives and while Victorinox was the least expensive, it ranked the best over some very expensive brands. I use this knife alot and love it!!!! Am going to look for a slightly larger blade one for other tasks. Highly recommend!” – Judy Botts

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<strong>Final Thoughts</strong>

A good quality pairing knife turns your job into joy, so spin up your head and don’t show to much apathy to chose a knife. Try to solve all your regarding queries, then here is my top pick, hold on I am also a bit confused between Dalstrog Paring Knife and Zelite Infinity Paring Knife.

These are outstanding knives. Very well made, perfect balance and the quality of the steel holds a great edge. You just have to do a few passes of 2000 grit then 6000 grit to maintain the razor-sharp edge. After having those knife, weirdly cutting is turns into my hobby, now I am cutting things all day long, just kidding but those are equally good. You feel the impact when you cut fruits for making juice.

Lastly, all I want to say that, use a good quality knife safely, changing knife very often don’t make it your hobby, why should you give a space a chip quality knife in your kitchen which bother you in long run.

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