I Tried 14 Different Avocado Tools — And 2 of These Unitaskers Are Amazing

I generally find single-use kitchen tools pretty silly. They’re designed to do only one thing — and that thing is usually one that can be accomplished pretty easily with a mainstream tool I already have. They’re devices I might use it once or twice a season, or once a year, and the rest of the time they just clutter up my kitchen drawers. But. But! I also believe there’s a purpose for everything, even silly gadgets, because if you actually use that silly gadget on a regular basis, and it makes life a tad bit easier, well, it’s not so silly anymore. 

So if you, like me, consume avocados almost daily — whether it’s on toast, in salads, on burrito bowls, in sandwiches — you might be wondering if any of those one bazillion different avocado tools on the market are actually worth it. They’re usually long and wacky-looking. They truly can’t be used for anything else, and they take up a surprising amount of space in a drawer, but it sure would be nice to get just one thing dirty instead of both a knife and a spoon.  

To find out if any of them are actually useful, not just gimmicks, I gathered all of the models I could find and set about testing them. The only criteria for the tool was that it had to do it all — cut through the avocado peel, as well as pit it and slice it. If I had to use any additional tool to complete any of those functions, it was out. 

I ended up with 14 different tools, some more streamlined than others. I found that the tools with a paddle of slicing blades (the most iconic kind and what you were probably picturing) were not only annoyingly bulky, but they also generally performed the worst. The plastic versions were terrible at making clean cuts in the avocado flesh, and didn’t fit well into small avocados. The slices were always messy-looking. The metal ones cut better, resulting in nice, uniform slices — but if the avocado was super-ripe, the slices would get mushed up a bit. And these tools still weren’t very good at getting to all of the avocado flesh unless the avocado was just the right size. Anything bigger or smaller resulted in wasted flesh around the sides and at the bottom near the tapered end. In order not to let it go to waste, I’d have to get a spoon dirty. Plus, I had to slice up the whole half of an avocado, even if I just wanted a slice or two.

Most of the other options weren’t much better. Often the blade used to cut the flesh was also the slicer and scooper. That’s actually fine, but if the blade was too curved, the cuts ended up all wonky instead of uniform. And most tools were not effective at removing the pits. Anything that was supposed to work by grabbing the sides of the pits would usually fail. 

All that said, there was one tool that actually worked, really well, no matter what size avocado I had, and no matter how firmly the flesh clung to the pit. Actually, there were two that I really loved — and they’re nearly identical. 

There’s a lot going for this tool. Its streamlined, knife-like design means it doesn’t take up scads of room in a drawer. The sharp, straight-edge part of the blade cuts through the avocado skin easily and makes precise cuts in the flesh. And unlike the paddle-style tools, you don’t have to slice up the whole half if you don’t want to. The curved side scoops out the flesh perfectly. And three pokey blades tucked into the bottom of the handle work really well to get the pit out because you can stab the pit using downward force, to really get the blades lodged in (give a little twist and the pit comes right out every time). When I’m done using it, I can just toss it in the dishwasher. The TL;DR version: I am definitely keeping this tool.

Buy: Microplane 3-in-1 Avocado Tool, $14 at Bed Bath & Beyond

The Williams Sonoma Avocado Slicer and Pitter is very similar to Microplane’s, which explains why I liked it so much. It doesn’t have the pitter in the handle, but it does have a very sharp serrated edge, which you can whack into the pit for decently easy removal. (Sometimes it took a few good whacks to get it to stab into the pit.) The serrated edge works great for cutting through the avocado skin, too, and makes clean cuts in the flesh. The blade is wider than Microplane’s, making it a little better for scooping, but it does take up more room in a drawer. If you want an avocado tool and want to save a few bucks, this is the one to get.

Buy: Williams Sonoma Avocado Slicer and Pitter, $10 at Williams Sonoma

Do you have an avocado tool that you love? Tell us about it in the comments below.