Comparison 2026 · 10 products · Amazon.co.uk

Two of the top ten are not knives at all.

We analysed the Amazon.co.uk subcategory Kitchen Knives and kept only products with at least 200 reviews and 4.3 stars. Ranked by estimated monthly revenue, a single Ninja block set earns more than five times the runner-up — and the runner-up is a honing rod, with an electric carving knife further down.

Top 10 by revenue Filter: ≥ 200 reviews, ≥ 4.3 ★ Ranked by estimated monthly revenue Updated: 22 July 2026

The rankings

Sorted by sales strength (estimated monthly revenue)

Category best seller

Ninja StaySharp 6-Piece Knife Set with Block

The revenue leader by a distance at roughly £85,000 a month — a six-piece set whose block is built around a sharpener, so the edge is dressed every time a knife goes back in.

Check the price on Amazon

8.6

/ 10 · 4.7 ★ (712)

01Best seller

Ninja StaySharp 6-Piece Knife Set with Block

Ninja · 6-piece · sharpener

8.6/10 ★★★★½

4.7 ★ · 712 reviews

The revenue leader by a distance at roughly £85,000 a month — a six-piece set whose block is built around a sharpener, so the edge is dressed every time a knife goes back in.

Chef, slicing, bread, utility and paring knives
Block with an integrated sharpener, plus kitchen scissors
Stainless steel blades, white finish, model K62006EUWH

£169.99 Amazon ›

SHAN ZU Honing Steel, 20 cm High Carbon

SHAN ZU · 20 cm · honing rod

9.0/10 ★★★★½

4.5 ★ · 10,848 reviews

Not a knife at all but a 20 cm honing rod, sitting at number two because Amazon files it under kitchen knives — with 10,848 reviews behind it at £33.99.

20 cm rod, high carbon steel
Sold as both a honing steel and a sharpening rod
Listed for kitchen knives, no handle guard mentioned

£33.99 Amazon ›

03Lowest price

Amazon Basics 12-Piece Knife Set, Multicolour

Amazon Basics · 12-piece · colours

9.5/10 ★★★★½

4.7 ★ · 25,578 reviews

The cheapest entry here at £12.30 for twelve pieces, and the one that moved the most units — though the price climbed 81% over the observed period.

Twelve pieces in one set, own-brand
Colour-coded handles for separating tasks
Listed without a block, unlike the 14-piece at rank 4

£12.30 Amazon ›

04Top rated

Amazon Basics 14-Piece Knife Set with Block

Amazon Basics · 14-piece · block

9.6/10 ★★★★½

4.7 ★ · 33,186 reviews

The most reviewed product in this comparison with 33,186 ratings, and the cheap answer to the storage question: fourteen pieces and a block for £20.99.

Fourteen pieces including a storage block
Stainless steel blades, black handles
Four variants sold under the same listing

£20.99 Amazon ›

PAUDIN 8-inch Chef Knife, Pakkawood Handle

PAUDIN · 8 in · pakkawood

8.9/10 ★★★★½

4.7 ★ · 2,039 reviews

The classic single-knife purchase: one 8-inch chef knife at £21.97 in a gift box, which is about what the fourteen-piece set at rank 4 costs.

8-inch chef knife, high carbon stainless steel
Pakkawood handle, supplied in a gift box
Sold for chopping and carving, home or restaurant

£21.97 Amazon ›

HOBO 15-Piece Knife Set with Block and Sharpener

HOBO · 15-piece · block

8.4/10 ★★★★½

4.4 ★ · 1,754 reviews

The biggest set here at fifteen pieces and £79.99, and one of the two weakest ratings in this top ten at 4.4 stars.

Fifteen pieces with a wooden block
Sharpener included in the set
High carbon stainless steel, coloured wooden handles

£79.99 Amazon ›

Victorinox Swiss Classic 3-Piece Knife Set

Victorinox · 3-piece · paring

8.6/10 ★★★★½

4.8 ★ · 315 reviews

The highest-rated entry at 4.8 stars and the smallest set: paring, tomato and breakfast knives for £18 — none of them a chef knife.

Three knives: paring, tomato and breakfast
Robust plastic handles, green finish
Stainless steel blades from the Swiss Classic line

£18.00 Amazon ›

SHAN ZU 8-inch Damascus Chef Knife, G10 Handle

SHAN ZU · 67 layers · G10

9.0/10 ★★★★½

4.6 ★ · 5,545 reviews

The Damascus option at £59.76 — 67 layers of clad steel and a G10 handle, so nearly three times the price of the PAUDIN chef knife at rank 5.

8-inch chef knife, 67 layers of Damascus steel
High carbon steel core, G10 handle
Sold as a professional chef and utility knife

£59.76 Amazon ›

SHAN ZU 8-inch Damascus Knife, second listing

SHAN ZU · 67 layers · G10

8.6/10 ★★★★½

4.6 ★ · 1,202 reviews

Almost the same knife as rank 8 — same brand, same 67 layers, same G10 handle, 15p more — but a separate ASIN with its own 1,202 reviews and a 35% price rise.

8-inch kitchen knife, 67 layers of Damascus steel
High carbon steel core, G10 handle
Separate listing from the chef knife at rank 8

£59.91 Amazon ›

Russell Hobbs Electric Carving Knife 13892

Russell Hobbs · electric · 120 W

8.7/10 ★★★★½

4.4 ★ · 6,035 reviews

The second entry here that is not a knife in the usual sense: a 120-watt electric carver at £18.99, bought for the Sunday roast rather than for prep.

Dual serrated 203 mm stainless steel blades
120 W motor with a blade release button
Dishwasher-safe blades, wrap-around cord storage

£18.99 Amazon ›

Side by side

Swipe horizontally for all columns

Product	Score	Stars	Reviews	Feature	Material	Price	Offer
01. Ninja StaySharp 6-Piece Knife Set with Block Best seller Ninja · Ninja	8.6	4.7 ★	712	6-piece · sharpener	Stainless steel	£169.99	Amazon ›
02. SHAN ZU Honing Steel, 20 cm High Carbon SHAN ZU · SHAN ZU	9.0	4.5 ★	10,848	20 cm · honing rod	High carbon steel	£33.99	Amazon ›
03. Amazon Basics 12-Piece Knife Set, Multicolour Lowest price Amazon Basics · Amazon Basics	9.5	4.7 ★	25,578	12-piece · colours	Stainless steel	£12.30	Amazon ›
04. Amazon Basics 14-Piece Knife Set with Block Top rated Amazon Basics · Amazon Basics	9.6	4.7 ★	33,186	14-piece · block	Stainless steel	£20.99	Amazon ›
05. PAUDIN 8-inch Chef Knife, Pakkawood Handle PAUDIN · PAUDIN	8.9	4.7 ★	2,039	8 in · pakkawood	High carbon stainless steel	£21.97	Amazon ›
06. HOBO 15-Piece Knife Set with Block and Sharpener HOBO · HOBO	8.4	4.4 ★	1,754	15-piece · block	High carbon stainless steel	£79.99	Amazon ›
07. Victorinox Swiss Classic 3-Piece Knife Set Victorinox · Victorinox	8.6	4.8 ★	315	3-piece · paring	Stainless steel	£18.00	Amazon ›
08. SHAN ZU 8-inch Damascus Chef Knife, G10 Handle SHAN ZU · SHAN ZU	9.0	4.6 ★	5,545	67 layers · G10	Damascus clad steel	£59.76	Amazon ›
09. SHAN ZU 8-inch Damascus Knife, second listing SHAN ZU · SHAN ZU	8.6	4.6 ★	1,202	67 layers · G10	Damascus clad steel	£59.91	Amazon ›
10. Russell Hobbs Electric Carving Knife 13892 Russell Hobbs · Russell Hobbs	8.7	4.4 ★	6,035	electric · 120 W	Stainless steel	£18.99	Amazon ›

What matters when buying

Six criteria

Set or single chef knife

Five of these ten are sets and three are single knives. A set buys you coverage and a block; a single 8-inch chef knife at £22 does most of the work in a domestic kitchen. Count how many pieces you would genuinely pick up before paying for fifteen.

Blade steel and hardness

Every blade here is stainless, but high carbon stainless holds an edge longer than the softer steel in a £12 set — and is more brittle if you lever with it. Cheap sets are bought to be replaced; a high carbon chef knife is bought to be sharpened.

Damascus layers, and what they buy

The 67 layers advertised on the SHAN ZU knives are cladding around a hard core. The pattern is decorative; the cutting is done by the core steel and by the grind. That is the honest reason a Damascus knife costs £60 where a plain high carbon chef knife costs £22.

Handle: pakkawood, G10 or plastic

Pakkawood looks like wood and tolerates water better; G10 is a glass composite and shrugs off both; moulded plastic, as on the Victorinox, is the least glamorous and the easiest to keep clean. Wet hands are the test, not the photograph.

Block, magnetic strip or drawer

Only the block sets solve storage. Loose knives rattling in a drawer lose their edge against each other, which is why the 12-piece here ships with guards and the 14-piece with a block. Factor the worktop space a block eats before you buy one.

Sharpening is a separate decision

Only the Ninja and the HOBO set include a sharpener, and the honing rod at rank 2 realigns an edge rather than grinding a new one. Whatever you buy, budget for a way to keep it sharp — a blunt £60 knife cuts worse than a sharp £12 one.

Frequently asked questions

Why is a honing steel second in a knife ranking?

Because Amazon files it in this subcategory and we show the subcategory as it is. The SHAN ZU rod at rank 2 is a sharpening accessory, not a blade, and the Russell Hobbs at rank 10 is an electric carver. Both sell well enough on revenue to be here, which tells you something about what people buy in this category.

Do I need a 14-piece set or three knives?

Most home cooks use a chef knife, a paring knife and a serrated bread knife. The three-piece Victorinox at £18 and the fourteen-piece Amazon Basics at £20.99 cost almost the same, so the question is whether the extra eleven pieces and the block earn their worktop space.

Is a Damascus knife worth three times a plain one?

The two SHAN ZU Damascus knives sell at about £60, the PAUDIN chef knife at £21.97. All three are high carbon steel. You are paying for the clad pattern, the G10 handle and the finish — not for a fundamentally different cutting edge.

How was this ranking created?

The products are ordered by estimated monthly revenue per ASIN, not by star rating and not by bestseller rank. Only products with at least 200 reviews and an average of 4.3 stars were included. That is why an expensive block set leads while a £12 set that shifts far more units sits third.

How the score is calculated — and what it is not

The score is not our own hands-on test. It is calculated transparently from public Amazon data: 75% from the average star rating and 25% from the number of reviews, weighted logarithmically. The ranking order itself comes from estimated monthly revenue per ASIN. Prices, ratings and review counts were retrieved from Amazon.co.uk on 22 July 2026 and can change at any time.

Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases — at no extra cost to you. All links are affiliate links. Prices are snapshots taken on 22 July 2026; the current price is shown live on Amazon. Product images and details come from Amazon or the manufacturers.