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Jun 07, 2025

How to Sharpen a Serrated Knife the Right Way

We independently evaluate all of our recommendations. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Though it's a painstaking task, you don’t have to do it often. Food & Wine Unlike

We independently evaluate all of our recommendations. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation.

Though it's a painstaking task, you don’t have to do it often.

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Unlike the chef's knives or santoku knives in your knife block, your serrated knife (a.k.a bread knife) doesn't require frequent sharpening. The majority of a serrated knife's blade is only in contact with food as opposed to the harder surface of a cutting board, so it doesn't dull as quickly as a straight blade. That's good news, because the unique grooves on a serrated knife can be difficult to sharpen accurately. But don't be discouraged: It's still possible to sharpen a serrated knife yourself if you know what you're doing. We take blade care seriously and have compiled everything you need for painless knife sharpening, including gear recommendations.

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How often you need to sharpen a knife depends on how you use it and how often. If you're constantly sawing through tough baguettes, you'll need to sharpen more often than the cook who only breaks out the serrated knife once a week to cut a bagel. But regardless, you won't need to sharpen a serrated knife nearly as often as a straight blade. While a chef's knife that's used daily needs sharpening every month or two. a bread knife can go for a year — or multiple years for casual bread-slicers.

There are a few telltale signs that it's time to sharpen your serrated knife. First, look for lots of crumbs when you cut bread. This means that the knife is tearing through your loaf rather than cleanly slicing the bread. A craggy edge on the cut crust and needing more force than usual to break through it is also an indication that your knife is dull. According to John Somerall, a classically trained chef, knife sharpener, recipe tester, and Food & Wine's senior research strategist, “If you notice blunt serrations or difficulty when cutting bread, it’s time to inspect your edge and consider if sharpening is required." This is somewhat subjective; different loaves of bread behave differently than others, and if you're not expertly attuned to your knife, you may not notice right away.

If you suspect that your knife may need sharpening, the best test is to break out a tomato. Tomato skin is the perfect litmus test for serrated edges, and the soft flesh beneath will immediately let you know if the rest of the blade is dull and prone to mashing. Slice off a few pieces and take note of how easy it is to get through the skin, and if your tomato is looking squished or has ragged edges. If your slices aren't looking straight and even, or if it was difficult to cut the tomato without smushing it, then it's time to sharpen your serrated knife.

For a straight-edged knife, a honing steel (sometimes called a sharpening rod) is the tool you use to keep the blade in good condition between full sharpening sessions. It realigns microscopic burrs and dents in the blade but isn't meant to actually remove metal to create a new edge.

But for sharpening a serrated knife, a round honing steel is the key to getting into the valleys between the teeth; each one is essentially its own tiny blade that needs separate honing. Rather than pulling the entire blade across the steel as you would with a straight knife, you'll push the steel through each individual scallop of a serrated knife one by one.

For this task, we recommend the Shun Classic Combination Honing Steel. It may be a bit expensive, but it's built to last and can also be used to hone any kind of knife. An extra-hard ceramic-coated steel is also an excellent choice for serrated knives, and the Messermeister Ceramic Sharpening Rod is another one of our favorites. The texture on this steel is a finer grit, meaning it's less abrasive and can easily burnish each serration without overdoing it.

Most serrated knives have one flat edge, with the serrations carved in from the other, beveled, side. This flat side can be sharpened just like a straight-bladed knife, especially if you use a sharpening stone. Many of the more "automatic" knife-sharpening devices out there sharpen both sides of the blade at once, which is great for a straight knife but will ruin a serrated one.

A whetstone is a step up from tabletop knife sharpeners and requires a little more skill and practice. However, learning how to sharpen your knives with a whetstone will allow you to have more precise control over the edge and increase the longevity of your blade. For beginners or casual knife care enthusiasts, we recommend the King Whetstone Starter Set. It has everything you need to care for most knives; the dual-grit stone can accommodate a wide range of blades, and the angle guide really comes in handy if you're still getting used to sharpening on a whetstone. The KERYE Japanese Whetstone Sharpener Set is an excellent deal on a complete kit. It's ideal for cooks who want to delve deeply into knife care and sharpening. It includes tons of extras like blade oil and a leather strop for removing burrs.

There's no real way around it; sharpening a serrated knife can be a monotonous task. Thankfully, it doesn't need to be done very often. A dull knife is a dangerous knife, so it's always worth spending a few extra minutes a couple of times a year to prevent stitches in the future.

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Zwilling Pro 9-inch Bread Knife ($140 at Zwilling)

When we tested bread knives, this Zwilling was our favorite. The unique serration design made it stand out from the pack — the pattern has differently shaped peaks and valleys that really grab onto the food. It was easy to sail through tough baguettes and hefty boules, and it even made quick work of a fresh tomato, giving us pristine slices. It's comfortable and easy to grip, which we were thankful for when working through some especially tough crusts.

Misen 8 Inch Serrated Knife ($94 at Amazon)

This Misen bread knife was our best value pick because it performed just as well as some significantly more expensive options. We were surprised at how well this knife worked through the tomato, showing no signs of tearing. We attribute this to the more rounded valleys of the serrations.

Shun Classic Offset 8.25-inch Bread Knife ($165 at Amazon)

When it comes time to cut through very soft items like milk bread or to slice a cake without marring the frosting, an offset knife like this Shun is the best tool. The handle sits above the blade, allowing you to slice straight down all the way to your cutting board or cake stand while keeping your knuckles out of the way. We appreciated the comfort of the handle during testing, and the design provides more stability than traditionally shaped bread knives.

Nick DeSimone is a Food & Wine staff writer and former restaurant cook. After spending nearly a decade on the line, they became an expert in knife care. This roundup includes knives and care tools they've personally used in restaurant kitchens and at home. You can find more of their work on Allrecipes, EatingWell, The Kitchn, and other platforms.