Meat or Chinese Style? Picking the Best Value Cleaver

A cleaver is the knife you reach for when a chef’s knife would be the wrong tool: chopping a whole chicken into pieces for caldo de pollo, cutting through pork ribs for chile verde, splitting a winter squash or chopping grilled carne asada fine for tacos. The wide blade also scoops what you have cut straight into the pan. None of that needs an expensive knife, but it does need a blade with enough weight, a handle you can hold firmly and an edge that does not chip at the first bone.

This guide is for the cook who wants a dependable cleaver from the entry tier of a known maker. Our main guide to the best cleaver covers the top picks, from the Global G-12 to the Shi Ba Zi Zuo 8-inch Chinese cleaver; here we look only at other entry-level cleavers and explain how to judge value when the price is low. None of the cleavers on this page appear on that guide or on our bone cleaver and chef knife cleaver guides.

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Quick verdict: which value cleaver to buy

Below are five standouts side by side, all eight cleavers in detail, and a plain explanation of what a cheaper cleaver gives up and which of those things actually matter.

Five value cleavers at a glance

Our five standout cleavers, one for each kind of cook, with the style and care each maker or listing states. All eight are reviewed in full below.

Product images from Amazon. Features and care instructions are as stated by each maker or listing; check the listing before you buy.

Our picks for the best value cleaver

These eight cleavers come from established cutlery and kitchenware makers, mostly from the lowest tier of each maker’s range. They cover the choices that matter at this level: Western meat cleaver or Chinese cleaver, stainless or carbon steel, stamped or forged, plastic or wood. Each pick explains who it suits, the specifications that matter and one honest reason to skip it.

How to judge value in an inexpensive cleaver

We do not quote prices, because they change daily. Instead, here is what a low-cost cleaver usually gives up compared with the picks on our main cleaver page, and which of those things matter.

• Weight and balance. America’s Test Kitchen found cleavers of 14 to 15 ounces easiest to use, with weight evenly balanced between blade and handle. Budget listings rarely state weight, so look for a full tang and a riveted handle as signs of balance.
• The edge angle. America’s Test Kitchen notes that Western cleavers usually have edges of 20 degrees or more, which resist chipping on bone but slice less finely. A listing that states its edge angle, as Babish and imarku do here, is easier to judge.
• Steel and listing detail. Low-cost listings often skip the steel grade, hardness and construction. We marked anything missing as not stated. Fewer details is not proof of a poor knife, but it is a reason to prefer a maker you know.
• Storage. A cleaver’s wide blade often does not fit a knife block. Cleavers that come with a guard or cover, like the Cuisinart, KitchenAid and Farberware, save you buying one separately.
• Warranty and replacement. Most listings on this page do not state a warranty, which is common at this level. Restaurant-supply makers such as Winco keep the same models in their catalogs for years, so a worn-out cleaver is easy to replace with the same one.

How to choose a cleaver on a budget

1. Western meat cleaver or Chinese cleaver

America’s Test Kitchen describes Western cleavers as heavier and axe-shaped, with larger edge angles for chip resistance, and Chinese cleavers as lighter knives with thinner, more rectangular blades. Choose a Western cleaver for chicken bones and ribs; choose a Chinese cleaver for vegetables, herbs and boneless meat. For heavy bones, see our bone cleaver guide.

2. Blade length and height

The same review preferred blades between 6.75 and 7.25 inches long and at least 3 inches tall. A 6-inch cleaver is easier to store and handle; a 7-inch one does more per stroke and scoops more food.

3. Spine thickness

America’s Test Kitchen liked moderate spines of about 2.5 to 3.3 millimeters. Thicker spines felt like an axe; thinner ones felt fragile on bone.

4. A handle you can grip with greasy hands

Look for wood or rubbery plastic, a full tang and rivets. The review preferred handles at least 4.75 inches long, so there is room for your whole hand.

5. Stainless or carbon steel

Stainless steel is easier to look after. Carbon steel, like the Old Hickory, sharpens easily but needs drying and oiling. Either way, hand wash and dry the cleaver, and use a sturdy wooden or plastic board rather than glass or stone. Keep the edge up with one of the tools in our knife sharpener guide.

How we chose these eight cleavers

We started with the cleaver jobs a Mexican home kitchen actually does: cutting chicken into pieces for soups and stews, splitting pork ribs, breaking down winter squash and chopping grilled meat for tacos. We then looked at the entry tier of each established cutlery and kitchenware maker with a cleaver in stock on Amazon in the United States, and read each listing for the style, blade length, steel, construction, handle, care instructions and warranty. We cross-checked details against maker information and food-service and knife retailers, and used America’s Test Kitchen’s published meat cleaver review for what makes a cleaver work.

We left out every cleaver already recommended on our best cleaver, bone cleaver and chef knife cleaver guides, along with cleavers that were in short supply when we checked and sellers with no identifiable maker. We checked the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s recall database for each brand on this page and found no cleaver recalls. We have not used these cleavers ourselves; where we describe how a feature performs, we say whose findings those are.

Value cleaver questions, answered

What is the best affordable cleaver?

For most cooks, the Winco Acero 7-inch Cleaver: a full-tang, riveted, NSF-certified restaurant cleaver with a tall blade in the length America’s Test Kitchen preferred. The Ontario Old Hickory is the pick if you want carbon steel made in the USA.

Is a budget cleaver good enough for bones?

For chicken and pork ribs, yes, if you choose a Western meat cleaver such as the Winco, Cuisinart or Ontario. Thin Chinese cleavers like the Shi Ba Zi Zuo and imarku are better kept for vegetables and boneless meat. For beef bones and big joints, a heavier dedicated bone cleaver is safer.

What should I expect from a cleaver on a small budget?

A stamped or simply forged stainless blade, a plastic or wood handle, few details about steel and weight, and often no stated warranty. Expect to sharpen it yourself, or pick a model with a self-sharpening cover.

What is the best inexpensive Chinese cleaver?

The Shi Ba Zi Zuo 7.5-inch, from a maker that specializes in Chinese cleavers, with a clad steel blade and a rosewood handle. The imarku 7-inch is the alternative if you prefer a Pakkawood handle and a stated edge angle.

Can a cleaver go in the dishwasher?

Only the KitchenAid here is listed as top-rack dishwasher safe, and KitchenAid still recommends hand washing. Babish and Farberware say hand wash, and the carbon-steel Old Hickory must never go in the dishwasher.

Our final pick for a value cleaver

Buy the Winco Acero 7-inch Cleaver if you want one inexpensive cleaver for chicken, ribs and vegetables. Choose the Ontario Old Hickory for carbon steel made in the USA, and the Shi Ba Zi Zuo 7.5-inch for a thinner Chinese cleaver. Whatever you choose, use a sturdy board, keep the edge sharp and dry the blade before you put it away.

If you would rather spend more, our main guide to the best cleaver covers the top picks. For a dish built on slow-cooked, chopped meat, read our explainer on barbacoa.

And if you would rather someone else did the chopping tonight, see the menu or call to order.