Meat or Vegetable? How to Choose the Best Chef Knife Cleaver

“Cleaver” covers two very different knives. A meat cleaver is a thick, heavy, axe-like blade for chopping through chicken joints, pork ribs and the bone-in pieces you get when you break down a shoulder for carnitas. A Chinese cleaver, the caidao, looks almost the same but is a thin, light chef’s knife with a tall rectangular blade, made for slicing, chopping and scooping vegetables. Use the second on bone and you will chip it; use the first on onions and you will crush them.

That is why “cleaver-style chef’s knife” can mean either, depending on who is selling it. This guide separates the two clearly, names nine cleavers worth buying from makers who state what each one is for, and explains which one a home kitchen actually needs.

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Quick verdict: which cleaver to buy

Five cleavers side by side

Our five standout picks, meat and vegetable, with what each maker or its listing states about bone. All nine cleavers are reviewed in full below.

Product images from Amazon. Bone use is listed only as the maker or its listing states it; check the listing before you buy.

Our picks for the best chef knife cleaver

The first five picks are meat cleavers, heavy enough for bone. The last four are Chinese vegetable cleavers (caidao): thin, tall blades that work as an everyday chef’s knife and should be kept away from bone unless the maker says otherwise. Each review states the type, what the maker says about bone, and one honest reason to skip it.

Meat cleaver or Chinese cleaver: telling them apart

The two look alike, but nearly everything about them is different. America’s Test Kitchen sums it up: Western meat cleavers are heavy and axe-shaped, while Chinese cleavers are lighter, with thinner, more rectangular blades.

America’s Test Kitchen found that cleavers of 14 to 15 ounces worked best for chopping, that blades over a pound were tiring, and that very thin blades chipped or warped more easily on bone, while moderately thick spines of about 2.5 to 3.3 mm cut best. It preferred blades of about 6.75 to 7.25 inches, at least 3 inches tall, with a slight curve to finish the cut.

Where a cleaver earns its place in a Mexican kitchen

A meat cleaver is the tool for jobs a chef’s knife should never do: cutting a whole chicken into pieces for caldo de pollo or pozole, splitting pork ribs, separating bone-in pieces of pork shoulder before it goes into the pot for carnitas, and halving a hard calabaza. Once the carnitas are cooked, the bones slip out and meat claws do the shredding.

A Chinese vegetable cleaver earns its place at the other end of the prep: onions, tomatoes and serranos for salsa, a mountain of cilantro, cabbage for tostadas. The tall blade doubles as a scoop to carry everything to the bowl or the molcajete. If you prefer a conventional shape for that work, see our guide to the best chef knife; for a Japanese vegetable cleaver and a nakiri, see the best Japanese knife.

How to choose a cleaver

Decide on meat or vegetables first

This matters more than brand. If you need to go through bone, buy a meat cleaver that its maker rates for bone. If you want a tall chef’s knife for vegetables, buy a Chinese cleaver and keep it off bone.

Weight

For a meat cleaver, America’s Test Kitchen’s 14 to 15 ounces is a good target: heavy enough to do the work, light enough to control. A vegetable cleaver should feel lighter, about the weight of a chef’s knife.

Blade length and height

A 6-inch meat cleaver is easy to control but short for a whole bird; about 7 inches covers most home jobs. For a Chinese cleaver, 7 to 8 inches long and at least 3 inches tall gives you room to chop and scoop.

Steel and edge

Hard, thin edges are excellent on vegetables and chip on bone. Only some makers state hardness: Wüsthof states 58 HRC for its cleaver, and the Shibazi listing gives 55 to 57 HRC.

Handle and care

Choose a handle you can grip with wet or greasy hands. Wooden handles, and most of the knives here, should be washed by hand. The Henckels, Victorinox and Winco listings say they can go in the dishwasher.

A board that can take it

A meat cleaver needs a thick wood or plastic board that will not crack or slide; glass, stone and thin boards are a bad match. Our cutting board guide covers the options, and our knife sharpener guide covers keeping either kind of cleaver sharp.

How we chose these nine cleavers

We started from the jobs a Mexican kitchen gives a cleaver: portioning chicken and pork on the bone, splitting hard squash, and chopping piles of vegetables for salsa. We then looked for meat and vegetable cleavers from makers who say what their knives are for (Global, Wüsthof, Henckels, Lamson, Mercer, Shun, Shibazi, Victorinox and Winco) that were sold on Amazon in the United States and in stock when we checked. Specifications come from the maker’s own page where we could read it, otherwise from the brand’s Amazon listing, and from America’s Test Kitchen’s own measurements where we say so. We used America’s Test Kitchen’s meat cleaver review for how several of these cleavers perform. Dexter-Russell’s cleavers and Chinese chef’s knives, the Chan Chi Kee (CCK) cleavers that many cooks rate highly, and the Zwilling-branded cleavers were unavailable or down to their last few units on Amazon when we checked, so they are not reviewed. We left out marketplace brands with unverifiable steel or “Damascus” claims. We have not used these products ourselves; where we describe how one performs, we say whose findings those are.

Cleaver questions, answered

What is a cleaver-style chef’s knife?

Usually a Chinese chef’s knife, or caidao: a tall, rectangular, thin blade used like a chef’s knife for slicing and chopping. It looks like a meat cleaver but is not built for bone.

Can a Chinese vegetable cleaver cut bone?

Not unless the maker says so. Thin vegetable cleavers such as the Shun Classic and the Shibazi slicer can chip on bone. Use a meat cleaver rated for bone instead.

What is the best cleaver for meat and bone?

The Global 16 cm meat cleaver, which Global says is designed to cut through bones and which matches the Global G-12 that America’s Test Kitchen rates highest. The Wüsthof Classic 6-inch is the German alternative.

How heavy should a meat cleaver be?

America’s Test Kitchen found 14 to 15 ounces worked best. Heavier blades added power but were tiring, and lighter ones needed more effort.

Do I need a cleaver if I have a good chef’s knife?

For bone, yes; a chef’s knife should not be used on it. For vegetables, a Chinese cleaver is a matter of preference: it does the same work with a taller blade that also scoops.

Which cleaver to start with

If you cut through bone, start with the Global 16 cm meat cleaver, or the Wüsthof Classic 6-inch for a smaller, German-made option. If you want a cleaver-shaped chef’s knife for vegetables, the Shun Classic vegetable cleaver is the refined choice and the Shibazi 7-inch the traditional, affordable one. Many kitchens end up with one of each.

A cleaver is one piece of a working kitchen. Our guide to Mexican cooking tools covers the rest, and salsa roja vs salsa verde is a good place to put a pile of chopped chiles to use. And if you would rather leave the chopping to someone else tonight, see the menu or call to order.