Do not press. Let the teeth do the work.
About eight months of use, my own IKEA knife
Equipment review
Serrated bread knife
Any sharp serrated knife · at least nine inches
By Steven · Updated September 2026
Brand makes far less difference than sharpness.
Buy something sharp rather than something expensive, at least nine inches, and keep it somewhere it will not be blunted by other cutlery. Two things that are not about the knife: let the loaf cool completely before you cut it, and revive a day-old loaf rather than fighting it.
BakeClass Snapshot
- Cost
- Budget
- Longevity
- Replaceable
- Learning curve
- Immediate
- Best for
- Everyone who slices a loaf
Buy something sharp rather than something expensive, at least nine inches.
Do I actually need one?
Yes.Yes. A sourdough crust is far tougher than a supermarket loaf, and the base is tougher still because it has spent the bake sitting on the hot floor of the pot. A blunt serrated knife struggles in two specific places: starting the cut through the top crust, and finishing it through the base. A sharp one goes through both without you noticing. Since a serrated edge cannot practically be sharpened at home, this is closer to a consumable than an heirloom - which is a good reason not to spend a fortune on it.
What it does, and why this one
Cuts through a hard crust without crushing the crumb underneath. The serrations saw through the crust while the blade passes through the soft interior, which a straight edge cannot do - it compresses the loaf ahead of itself and you end up with a squashed slice.
Nine inches of blade is comfortably more than the width of a 500g loaf, so you cut in one pass rather than sawing across in stages. Beyond blade length and sharpness there is not much to choose between bread knives, which is the point. Mine came from IKEA and cuts beautifully. Buy something sharp with enough length and spend the difference on flour.
Pros and cons
What works
- A sharp blade makes the base of the loaf as easy to cut as the top
- Nine inches clears a standard loaf in one pass
- Inexpensive knives do this job perfectly well
What does not
- A serrated edge cannot practically be sharpened at home
- Loose in a drawer against other cutlery it goes blunt faster than it needs to
My experience
Mine is an IKEA knife, about eight months old, and it still cuts as well as the day we got it. I also still have the old blunt one, so the comparison is direct rather than remembered - and it is not subtle. The old knife struggled to start the cut through the top crust, and struggled far more at the base, where the crust is hardest after sitting on the floor of the Dutch oven. Getting that last bit of the slice off was a genuine effort. With the new one the base cuts as easily as the top. Technique matters too: do not press. Light pressure and let the teeth do the work, and the loaf keeps its shape.
Steven, BakeClass
Alternatives
Any sharp serrated knife of about nine inches. Brand makes far less difference than sharpness.
Will you outgrow it?
You will not outgrow it, but you will eventually replace it when it goes blunt, because a serrated edge cannot be brought back.