Keep Blades Sharp With The Best Sharpening Stones
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Sharp Pebble Premium Sharpening Stone -
SHAN ZU Whetstone Knife Sharpening Stone -
CWINDY Dual Sided Sharpening Stone -
Finew Professional Whetstone Sharpening Stone -
KNIFEPLANET Premium Knife Sharpening Stone -
Buyer's Guide
Knives are a must-have in virtually every kitchen. Used to cut ingredients into various shapes and sizes, many chefs spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on buying one or a set that’ll serve them well throughout their career. But even the best knives start to dull over time, and you’ll need something to ensure that they’ll stay usable for as long as possible. And that’s where we introduce the best sharpening stones.
The idea of resharpening a blade has existed ever since blades themselves were invented. A blade dulls over time after repeated use, so a resharpening helps bring it back to prime condition. Of course, there’s a limit to how much you can sharpen, but this already extends the lifespan of a blade for far longer than one would expect. Here are some of the best sharpening stones in 2022 you can get online right now.
Sharp Pebble Premium Sharpening Stone
- Two-sided whetstone
- Great for sharpening dull or chipped knives
- Not the best for refining and polishing
SHAN ZU Whetstone Knife Sharpening Stone
- Great for refining blades
- 1000 and 6000 grit options
- Difficult to repair chipped blades with
CWINDY Dual Sided Sharpening Stone
- Great for kitchen knives
- Ideal for beginners
- Not usable for serrated or chipped blades
Finew Professional Whetstone Sharpening Stone
- Comes with a leather strop
- 4 grit options for comprehensive sharpening
- Takes time to learn how to use strop
KNIFEPLANET Premium Knife Sharpening Stone
- Comes with flattening stone
- Grit for sharpening and polishing
- Slightly larger than other stones, making it a little more difficult to store
The Best Sharpening Stones Models of 2022 in Detail
Sharp Pebble Premium Sharpening Stone - Best Overall
Knives can still technically be used when they’re dull - you may need to put in some extra effort, but it’ll eventually get the job done. However, the same can’t be said for chipped knives - these knives can be very difficult to work with due to the uneven blade. Chipped knives can only be fixed with a sharpening stone that has a low grit value, and this sharpening stone by Sharp Pebble is perfect for both chipped and dull knives that otherwise would be unusable in the kitchen. The 400 grit side of the sharpening stone is perfect for the knives that are in the worst condition possible - this means chipped and extremely dull blades. 1000 grit is better reserved for moderately dull blades that can be returned to almost good-as-new condition once they’ve been thoroughly sharpened.
- Two-sided whetstone
- Great for sharpening dull or chipped knives
- Not the best for refining and polishing
SHAN ZU Whetstone Knife Sharpening Stone - Runner Up
Sharpening a dull knife is good and all, but you can’t just sharpen a knife with a 1000 grit whetstone and be done with it. In fact, you’ll need to do quite a bit of refining after sharpening a blade to ensure that every slice and cut you make with it is consistent and clean. This is done in different ways, but a common method to refining a blade involves using a sharpening stone with a high grit value. This set of whetstones comes with a 1000 grit and 6000 grit side, allowing you to both sharpen and refine your blade. Mind you, with these values, it can be tough to repair very damaged and chipped blades. Low grit values are a must-have if you want to have any sort of success with them. However, if all you need to do is to sharpen some dull knives, this set is perfect to not only resharpen them but to refine them for consistency, too.
- Great for refining blades
- 1000 and 6000 grit options
- Difficult to repair chipped blades with
CWINDY Dual Sided Sharpening Stone - Honorable Mention
A common issue some people have with sharpening stones is that it can seem very difficult to do, and to the untrained eye, that may certainly be the case. And while there is some level of skill and nuance to the craft, sharpening knives using sharpening stones isn’t all that difficult. However, if you want to ensure that you’re sharpening your knives properly, you can always get a sharpening stone set with a guide to help you get the right angle for sharpening all the time. The angle guide should help beginners more easily get into the groove of sharpening knives with a sharpening stone. Think of it as training wheels of sorts. Eventually, you can remove the guide if you’re confident enough without it. The sharpening stone comes with 1000 and 6000 grit options, perfect for most kitchen knives.
- Great for kitchen knives
- Ideal for beginners
- Not usable for serrated or chipped blades
Finew Professional Whetstone Sharpening Stone - Contender
Sharpening a knife is pretty simple - you take it to a sharpening stone, work your way through with it, and eventually, it’ll become sharp again. But it doesn’t have to end there - many craftsmen also use a leather strop to finish things off with a good polish that can even result in a sharper blade. The strop is used to remove any burr that remains from the sharpening stone and can help polish the blade itself. This can be a great way to finish your sharpening session to ensure your blade is clean and sharp. Aside from the leather strop, the set also comes with plenty of neat features. You have 4 grit options with 400, 1000, 3000, and 8000 grit, as well as a non-slip bamboo base and a guide for your blade. All of these come together to give you a great sharpening set if you're beginner or advanced that’ll help you turn any blade into a sharp knife ready for use again in the kitchen. All you need, of course, is a dull blade to sharpen.
- Comes with a leather strop
- 4 grit options for comprehensive sharpening
- Takes time to learn how to use strop
KNIFEPLANET Premium Knife Sharpening Stone - Consider
If a sharpening stone maintains a blade, what maintains a sharpening stone? If you’ve asked yourself this question before, then you’ve got good intuition, as this is an actual concern that you should have when getting a sharpening stone. Over time, even sharpening stones start to wear out, slowly curving due to repeated use with a blade. This is remedied through the use of what’s known as a flattening stone, a stone that’s used to put the sharpening stone back into shape. Aside from having a flattening stone, this knife sharpening stone set has everything you need to fix all sorts of knives and blades. The 400 grit stone is great for fixing chipped blades, while the 1000 grit stone is ideal for resharpening. Finally, the 3000 and 8000 grit sones are there to finish off the sharpening process through some thorough polishing. It takes a skilled hand to use this set to the fullest, but if you know how to work your way around it, you can pretty much turn any knife into a sharp blade whenever you want.
- Comes with flattening stone
- Grit for sharpening and polishing
- Slightly larger than other stones, making it a little more difficult to store
Buyer's Guide
A sharpening stone isn’t exactly a chef’s best friend - that honor goes to the knives themselves. However, they are undoubtedly a key part of any chef’s setup, whether professional or as a hobby. This guide should help you figure out what type of sharpening stone you should get.
What Is a Sharpening Stone?
A sharpening stone is a specialized piece of stone that’s designed to sharpen a dull knife. Sharpening stones are rated based on their grit, and different grits serve different purposes for sharpening. Sharpening stones often come in sets that also contain additional accessories such as guides and flattening stones.
Why is it important to have a Sharpening Stone?
You’ll always have a sharp knife at home
Let’s be real - there’s probably a good chunk of you out there who are perfectly fine with using dull blades to prepare food, simply because you just got used to them. However, that doesn’t have to be the case, and you can have a sharp knife at home without spending too much money or effort. With a sharpening stone, you’re pretty much guaranteed to have a sharp knife to work with at home as long as you put in the effort to actually sharpen the tool.
And before you think that it isn’t worth the price, you’d be surprised by how easy it is to prepare food with a sharp knife. It’s far easier to chop vegetables and slice meat, and you won’t even need to worry about applying too much force as the blade will just slide through whatever you’re cutting. It’s a satisfying feeling, especially if you’re the one who sharpened the blade in the first place.
You can save money on knives
When was the last time you bought a new knife? If you’re someone who wants to keep their knives sharp at all times, you’ll save far more money with a sharpening stone than by simply buying new knives whenever your old one becomes dull. This is especially true if you’ve spent money on a high-quality kitchen knife, as you only need a decent sharpening stone to make your knife good as new, which is cheaper than buying another expensive knife.
Sharpening knives can be fun
Finally, let’s also consider the fun factor of sharpening knives. The act of sharpening knives can be fun and almost therapeutic to an extent. It’s simple work that rewards you for putting in the effort, and that’s a feeling that will never get old. You can also sharpen your knives as you listen to your favorite podcasts or jam to music to make things even more interesting.
Things to Consider When Buying a Sharpening Stone
Grit
The grit of a sharpening stone determines what the stone is ideally used for. And while a certain grit is only ideal for one particular thing, most sharpening stone sets are sold with stones that have multiple grits, so you only really need to worry about grit when picking sets that offer only two grit options. We can separate grit categories into low, medium, and high grit values.
Low grit values range from 300 to 1000 and are generally reserved for fixing the dullest of blades and knives with chips on them. These are the most difficult blades to fix, and you’ll need a very low grit value to make any sort of progress. Medium grit values range from 1000 to 4000 and are used to sharpen dull blades. This is where most people find themselves when they want to sharpen their knives. Finally, there are high grit values ranging from around 4000 to 8000+. These stones are used for refining already somewhat sharp blades that are still rough around the edges, so to speak.
Accessories
Most sharpening stone sets come with accessories to make the process easier. Many sets come with a guide to help you angle your blade properly as you sharpen the knife. Other sets come with a flattening stone to keep the sharpening stones in good condition. There are also leather strops to help polish a knife after it’s been sharpened. These accessories aren’t exactly required to sharpen a knife, but they can make the process easier for beginners and are recommended if you're just starting out.
Sharpening Stone Price Range
Sharpening stones vary in price, with the main determining factor being the number of sharpening stones in the set. If the set only offers two grit values, you can expect to spend around $20-$30 on the set, give or take. Sets with four grit values, on the other hand, can cost you around $50 or more and also include accessories.
Sharpening Stone FAQ
Q: Are sharpening stones supposed to be wet?
A: While you can sharpen knives with dry stones, it’s best to wet the stone first to ensure that the process is easier and smoother.
Q: What’s the difference between a sharpening stone and a honing stone?
A: A sharpening stone is a stone that removes material to keep a blade sharp, whereas a honing stone doesn’t remove any material and rather moves it instead.
Q: Is sharpening knives easy?
A: Once you get a feel for the rhythm, sharpening knives can be both easy and fun to do.
