The Best Pocket Knives of 2025

How We Tested the Best Pocket Knives

Out of all of the things we test around GearJunkie, pocket knives seem to get easier and easier every year — because everyone wants one. Suffice it to say, the knives we’ve recommended on this list weren’t just tested at a desk or in some random workshop in the Midwest, they were used, abused, loved, and carried for extended periods.

For this update, we enlisted our resident knife tester, Nick LeFort to take the reins to determine what knives out there were worthy of this list. He spent the fall and winter testing out a variety of knives in his day-to-day life, out on adventures, and in all conditions. LeFort believes that the best way to see what a knife can do is to rely on it in real life. He’s not wrong.

So, What Did They Do?

Where you can find YouTube and the internet peppered with people cutting rope and cardboard in their garage, you’re more apt to find Nick out in the woods, down by a river, or wherever his day takes them. Heck, you may see him wandering around Whole Foods with one of these knives (in their pocket, of course). To him, testing isn’t a 9-to-5 job; these knives are part of his life.

Having a keen sense of how a particular knife steel performs, or how a certain handle material’s grip could be impacted by inclement weather, as well as a vast knowledge of what’s going on in the market, he was able to act and react accordingly. On these few aspects as well as many others. The end result is the purest form of product testing: in the moment.

The bottom line is that our approach to testing is to make sure a product and its parts perform as expected. With marketing being what it is, with the intent to sell one particular knife above all of the others, it’s easy to buy into the hype. In this case, we look at that hype and see if it’s all just talk or the real deal.

Buyer’s Guide: How to Choose a Pocket Knife

Knife Steel

The amount of knife blade steel and handle materials out there is pretty impressive. But, where the handle materials seem to have stabilized, there’s new steel coming out every year. As you can see from the above selection of eight knives, there are seven different knife steels. Our recommendation is to consider each steel on a case-by-case basis. But they should still meet or exceed the following requirements:

Corrosion Resistance

The last thing you want is your knife turning orange on you out in the field. Especially if you’re planning on using it to prepare food. All of the steel mentioned in this guide either has exceptional corrosion resistance or has been coated to eliminate the occurrence of rust.

Abrasion Resistance

Some people consider this property to be more form than function. But in all reality, if your blade can easily get scraped up that can lead to chipping, which then could lead to blade failure.

Edge Retention/Ease of Resharpening

No matter what knife you carry, the worst knife you could carry is a dull one. That being said, you want to look for knife steels that either excel in edge retention or can be easily resharpened.

You can learn more about specific knife steels here.

Handle Material

When it comes down to handle material it’s all about grip. Ergonomics play a part in this as well, as you could have great handle material in a weird shape that will cause fatigue. In the end, you won’t want to use the knife and you’ll have wasted your money. These are some of the more preferred materials on the market today:

G10 & Micarta

G10 and Micarta are both extremely strong materials. Both excel in grip whether your hands are wet or dry, which is why those two materials are so popular with EDC, Survival, Tactical, and Bushcraft-style knives.

Nylon & Plastic

Nylon and plastic also make for great handle materials because they’re durable and lightweight. They’re also generally textured. It’s this texturing and styling that increases the grip on a knife with these materials.

Note: Nylon and plastic handle scales carry a litany of names. Some of the more popular names are: FRN/Zytel (Fiber Reinforced Nylon), GRN (Glass Reinforced Nylon), GFN (Glass Filled Nylon), and Grivory (Injection Molded).

Carbon Fiber

A lot of folks think carbon fiber is just pretty to look at, but in all reality, this woven material is lightweight and strong. Depending on its composition, it could be the perfect balance between strength, weight, and durability. You can bet your bippy you’ll pay more for a knife with carbon fiber, but it’s worth it.

Aluminum & Titanium

Both aluminum and titanium are incredibly strong and lightweight materials, making them great for knife handle scales. But where aluminum has become relegated to budget knives, titanium is usually saved for premium and ultra-premium knives. The only drawback to both of these materials is that they can be slippery when wet.

Ease of Use

Ease of use is a big deal when considering what knife is right for you. It can come in many forms from ergonomics, to lock design, to the hardware used to keep the knife together and in good functioning order. All in all, the last thing you want to do is struggle with or be uncomfortable using your knife.

Accessibility

Aside from how a knife functions, your ability to access it plays a role in its reliability. After all, if you can’t reach it when you need it, then why carry it at all? The right knife for you will be easy to carry in your pocket or on your belt.

Ergonomics

A good knife will feel right in your hand. From the shape of the handle scales to the overall thickness, and even texturing, ergonomics can be the difference between you being confident with your knife or leaving it in your drawer at home. When you consider a knife, put it in your hand and give it a good squeeze. Then, push down hard on a hard surface. If everything feels right, that’s your next knife.

Lock Mechanism

Without fail, you will find yourself in a position where you need to rely on the lock on your knife more than you expected. 

Some of the more common lock types are liner/frame locks that use a bar that indexes into the back of the blade. There are also button-style locks that use a steel barrel to keep the blade engaged. However, the most popular lock type is the crossbar lock which also uses a steel bar to hold the knife in place.

In my time and experience, I have never seen a crossbar-style lock mechanism fail without some outside force, creating a major disruption in how the knife functions. Like a truck running it over.

Pocket Clip

The right pocket clip will keep your knife in place in your pocket and will be easy to insert and remove. Generally, pocket clips are steel or titanium, designed to retain their shape, and be around half the length of the knife when they are closed.

However, there are wire pocket clips that can deform over time. There are also shorter pocket clips that, depending on the size of the knife, can cause it to float around in your pocket, or even come out of your pocket.

I would pick a wire pocket clip over a shorter clip any day.

Ball Bearings

Ten years ago, you needed to pay $300 to get a knife with ball bearings in it, but now you can find them for under $100.

Ball bearings assist in the opening and closing of a knife. In fact, there are some knives out there that are so fluid in operation, due to ball bearings, that they’re just as fast, if not faster than an automatic knife. They’re also legal in more places than an auto.

Price & Value

Knife pricing isn’t as cut and dry as I think most of us would like it to be. Yes, just like with any other consumer good, factors like materials, design, and function all play into the final price of a knife. However, as we’ve recently seen with a reliable and desirable $10 knife from Walmart, there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes that determine what we pay at the store for a knife.

How much material a knife manufacturer buys has a major impact on the price you pay for a knife. Material prices, in general, will fluctuate based on how much of each item a brand purchases overall. We’ve most recently seen this with MagnaCut, which became a popular steel seemingly overnight. As more brands adopted it in their knives, the overall price of the steel itself went down.

Another major factor is the country of origin. Within the last decade, the quality of knives made by overseas brands like WE Knife, CIVIVI, and most recently, OKNIFE has improved beyond anything we could have imagined. However, the brand’s prices are still comparatively lower than similar knives made in North America.

This brings up the brand name factor. Knives from brands like Benchmade generally retail for more than similar knives from other brands. It’s not outside the realm of reason that you’re paying into the brand as much as you are the product. In the case of Benchmade, you’re also buying free sharpening for life as well as a pretty significant lifetime warranty.

With that said, we’re going to break knives down into the following three categories based on pricing in general. But, to be fair, in the production knife world, there are no clear and defining lines between Budget knives, Mid-tier knives, or Premium knives. The following is a generalization of what you can expect from each category.

Budget

You can expect to pay less than $100 for budget knives, which usually have more affordable materials. Does this make the knife any less useful? No. A budget knife should do everything you would expect it to. However, it may require more maintenance to keep it up and running.

Knives like the CRKT CEO Microflipper ($60) and CIVIVI Yonder ($67) that use Sandvik 12C27 and Nitro-V are considered budget knives. Although both steels are stainless and will, therefore, stand up against moisture and stave off rust and corrosion, both steels require more sharpening to maintain their reliable edge.

Another great budget example is the OKNIFE Rubato 2 ($85). It has premium 154CM, Micarta handle scales, a stainless steel liner, and a crossbar lock. Ten years ago, this knife would have cost $150-175, but as other steels have taken precedence over 154CM, the price of that steel has plummeted. This is a major bonus for anyone looking for a heck of a knife on a budget.

Mid-Tier

A majority of people carry mid-tier knives around. Ranging from $100 to $200, they may feature a range of steels like 154CM, M390, S35VN or even MagnaCut. All four of those steels can also be found on premium knives, due to their corrosion and abrasion-resistant properties, toughness, and edge retention. Mid-tier knives tend to have a more robust build than Budget knives.

There also may be a heavier focus on ergonomics and knife weight. The Knafs Lander 2 ($129) is a great example of a mid-tier knife. It has S35VN steel, Micarta, G10, or carbon fiber handle scales, and a crossbar lock. These are all desirable materials and features at an easy-to-digest price

Premium

Premium knives are the cream of the crop and make up a small segment of the market. They may be priced higher due to the manufacturer or where the knife is made. They could also use new and innovative materials, or a combination of all three of these reasons.

Another variable is availability. Some manufacturers make knives in smaller batches. Other knives are custom. In these instances, you can expect to pay more as well. The Schwarz Knives Overland Sport ($265) from Schwarz Knives is a small-batch, customizable, made-to-order knife. Due to its exclusivity, its price is reasonably high. 

Where a lot of people instantly think of Benchmade as their prime example of premium, there’s also DPx Gear, which is a smaller, boutique-style brand. They offer production knives like the HEST/F 4.0 ($275), which is hand-made from premium materials. So, again, like Schwarz Knives, there’s a hint of exclusivity here, although in the case of DPx, it’s on a larger scale.

Frequently Asked Questions