An Expert Explains the Difference

A newly purchased knife is razor-sharp and swiftly cuts through any produce in sight, from cucumbers to squash to tomatoes. Over time, the blade dulls with repeated use. That tomato doesn’t feel as easy to slice anymore. If your knife feels dull, it could mean it needs to be honed or sharpened. 

A little bit of knife maintenance goes a long way, but it’s not one size fits all. When I first learned to cook, I purchased a mechanical sharpener simple enough to use each time my knife began to dull. Then, several years later, I heard the term “honing” for the first time and realized I had missed an entire portion of knife maintenance! 

Honing and sharpening are two completely different but critical components required to keep your knives in tip-top shape. Here’s what you need to know about honing and sharpening.

What Is the Difference Between Honing and Sharpening?

Honing is a process where you realign the edge of the blade by dragging your knife from heel to tip across a long, sturdy rod called a honing steel. It does not actually sharpen the knife, even though some honing steels are confusingly termed “sharpening steels.” The natural wear-and-tear of the knife causes microscopic “teeth” on the blade’s edge to bend or misalign. Honing steels help put these bent serrations back in place.  

Honing helps keep a knife sharper for longer, but it won’t make a dull knife sharp. We recommend honing your knife at least a few times a week if you cook regularly, and many chefs actually hone each time they enter the kitchen. Consistent honing prevents you from having to sharpen your knife too often. 

Sharpening is a process where you shave some of the dulled metal off your knife to expose a new, sharp edge. Sharpening is recommended when honing no longer works because the metal is too fatigued. Typically, sharpening is only required a couple of times a year. 

How Do I Know if My Knife Needs Honing or Sharpening? 

If your knife feels dull, most of the time, a quick honing will do the trick. However, your knife will need sharpening if, even after honing, it feels challenging to slice through a vegetable cleanly. A sharp knife easily cuts through a tomato, but a dull knife will struggle. 

Once you’ve sharpened your knife, you can test to see it’s sharp enough by firmly holding a piece of paper and drawing the blade of your knife through the paper. If the blade feels resistant or cannot create a straight line, it will need additional sharpening.