“With pizza cutters, you often get what you pay for,” says Myke Olsen, owner of Myke’s Pizza in Mesa, Arizona. “If you’re making pizza a lot at home and you go to the grocery store and find a $5 pizza cutter, you’ll probably replace it in a couple of months.” In other words, pizza cutters don’t need to break the bank, but it’s useful to go to something that will actually work, rather than just rolling listlessly over your pizza without making even a dent in the crust. To achieve this, you need to decide whether you want a rocker or a wheel cutter, and then buy the sharpest blade you can. It’s also important to keep the blade sharp by protecting it during storage. Once you have a good pizza cutter, it’s worth protecting (and maybe buying multiples). “I have strong feelings about the pizza cutters that we use because we’ll slice hundreds of pizzas a week, and they seem to work well. So I just end up buying the same thing over and over again, and we have like ten of them at our pizzeria,” Olsen says. Here are our favorite pizza cutters for your next homemade pizza night. What We Don’t Love: Too big to store in most drawers Pizza cutters mostly come in two forms: straight-blade rockers and wheeled slicers. If you’re not already converted to rocker blades, the Checkered Chef Premium Pizza Cutter (with an added cutting board!) may just do the trick. Not only does this rocker cutter slice through your cheese, toppings, and crust in an all-in-one fell swoop, it also is easy to grip and makes you feel like a pizzaiolo in your little Neapolitan shop. This promises that in four cuts, you’ll have eight slices of pizza, thanks to the sharp blade, which comes with an equally important protective cover. The accompanying 13.5-inch wooden board has precise cuts to guide you and can double as a regular cutting board or serving platter. Its wooden surface will help keep the blade sharp for many pizza nights to come. If its ease of use isn’t enough, consider how easy it is to clean. No rolling and jiggling around a wheel, just give the blade a quick hand wash or throw it in the dishwasher (the wooden board should be hand washed though). Price at time of publish: $19 Blade Length: 13.5 inches | Blade Material: Stainless steel | Dishwasher Safe: Yes (cutter only) What We Don’t Love: Pricier than others If you’re team pizza wheel, it’s hard to do much better than the Rösle Pizza Wheel, made by a German brand that’s been manufacturing reliable kitchen tools since 1903. The whole thing is made from 18/10 stainless steel, including the super-sharp wheel, which promises to cut through your entire pie on the first go. The handle is made from stainless steel as well, but with a satin finish, and a ring, making storage as easy as hanging it up proudly in your kitchen. There’s a finger guard to make sure the only thing you’re slicing is the pizza, and it comes with a lifetime warranty. What more could you want? Price at time of publish: $26 Height: 7.8 inches | Blade Material: Stainless steel | Dishwasher Safe: Yes What We Don’t Love: Harder to store The Kitchenstar 14-Inch Pizza Cutter, like our other rocking blade pick, is sharp, easy to use, and dishwasher safe. It doesn’t have the same grippy handle, but it’s also more affordable, placing it solidly as our budget pick. The blade protector is a solid BPA-free plastic contraption that more than does the trick, and is great for safety when placed in an overcrowded kitchen drawer. There is an exposed hole on the blade for hanging on a rack instead. This is a great entry-level option for those wondering about rocker blade life, and you may just find yourself reaching for it when it’s time to cut other things, like cake or brownies. For those who like to order the extra-large pizza, this does come in 16-inch and 18-inch versions, in addition to the 14-inch. Price at time of publish: $24 Blade Length: 13.75 inches | Blade Material: Stainless steel | Dishwasher Safe: Yes What We Don’t Love: Flimsy cover Aside from its flimsy cover, the OXO Good Grips Large 4-Inch Pizza Wheel and Cutter is pretty much a win all-around. It’s easy to grip, thanks to the ribbed nonslip handle, and has a large, sharp stainless steel wheel. There’s a thumb guard to ensure that your fingers don’t get sliced with your pie, and it’s dishwasher safe. This is undoubtedly a sturdy and versatile pick—you can use it for brownies, cakes, quesadillas, or even chopped salads. It’s from a brand that already has a huge amount of loyalty among cooks, and OXO donates 1 percent of its yearly sales to support environmental nonprofits. And, at this price, you can even buy a backup. Price at time of publish: $16 Height: 10.5 inches | Blade Material: Stainless steel | Dishwasher Safe: Yes What We Don’t Love: Pricier than others Are you going for a more refined kitchen aesthetic? Or maybe you want to feel like you’ve been whisked away to Naples each time you get the pizza cutter out. Whatever your reason, the Bugatti Italy KISS Pizza Cutter is as beautiful it is functional. Made entirely out of stainless steel with either silver or 24-carat gold plating, the wheel is sharp, and the handle is styled out of two kissing faces. Though it weighs less than half a pound, it still runs a little heavier than most wheel cutters, meaning it feels sturdy in your hands. It’s pricier than our other picks, but it makes up in style what it lacks in affordability. Price at time of publish: $65 Height: 6.7 inches | Blade Material: Stainless steel | Dishwasher Safe: No What We Don’t Love: On the small side Let’s get the cons out of the way first—this pizza cutter has the smallest wheel on the list and is not the sharpest option either. That said, it will certainly do the trick. It’s the customization option that makes this a great potential gift for a wedding or someone filling out their first kitchen. There’s a 50-character limit on the customization, meaning you can inscribe a personal message or inside joke. The wooden handle makes it look homey and is easy enough to grip. It may not be the very best pizza cutter in the whole wide world, but it does make a very thoughtful gift and will serve the giftee well. Price at time of publish: $15 Blade Material: Stainless steel | Dishwasher Safe: No
What to Look for When Buying a Pizza Cutter
Wheeled vs. Rocking Blades
Although some old-school spots use pizza shears, you’ll generally find two kinds of pizza cutters. Wheeled cutters are a little more common among home cooks, thanks to their affordability and ease of use. Rocking blade cutters tend to be better at cutting through the pizza on the first use and are easier to clean, but can be hard to fit in a drawer the same way a wheeled cutter can.
Size
If you’re an infrequent pizza eater in a small apartment, a small wheeled pizza cutter may be the best move for you. If you have a large kitchen with plenty of space to stash new kitchen tools, you may find the rocking blade is ideal. Smaller cutters generally are flimsier but easier to store.
Versatility
Pizza cutters can be handy for more than just pizza. Many can double as pastry cutters (especially for lattice crust pies), toast crust cutters for picky eaters, herb choppers, fresh ravioli cutters, and more. When you’re considering a particular pizza cutter, it’s worth seeing if it’s recommended for any other uses.
How can you sharpen a pizza cutter?
If your pizza cutter is stored properly with the cover on and never used on a pizza stone, you may not have to sharpen the blade regularly or ever. However, with frequent use, you may find it helpful to sharpen your pizza cutter. Steel blades can be sharpened with a regular knife sharpener or a whetstone.
Can you use a pizza cutter on a pizza stone?
No. You should always move the pizza, calzone, or any other item you plan on which you plan on using a pizza cutter to another surface first. Using a pizza cutter on a pizza stone can dull the blade.
Why Trust Simply Recipes?
Christine Clark is a writer, cheese educator, and home cook. When she’s not writing about food, she’s generally cooking it. She aspires to find the perfect whole wheat pizza crust recipe. Read Next: The Best Knife Sets
