We Tested 5 Wildly Different Types of Pie Slicers — And the Winner Was Exceptional

We’re not a gambling team here, but we’d put good money on there being a lot of pie in your future. Whether it’s classic apple, sweet pecan, or savory pumpkin, there’s one thing all those pies have in common: They all need to be sliced before you can enjoy them. (Unless they’re individual pies or you’re not willing to share!)

A knife would be the most obvious tool for the task, but it’s not the easiest — or the best — option out there. The reason? A knife can easily scratch many pie plates, doesn’t always leave the cleanest edges, and is not great at digging out the slice once you’ve made your cuts. So what is the best tool for slicing (and possibly serving) pie? To find out, I tested five popular, but wildly different styles of slicers. The results may surprise you — they definitely surprised me.

I bought several different types of pies and got to work slicing each of them with the different tools I was vetting. I used each slicer with each type of pie for consistency and paid close attention to how easy it was to slice, how well they worked, and how easy they were to clean.

The ratings: Each slicer received an overall rating, with 1 being my least favorite and 5 being the best. Like the rest of our showdowns, this one considered the final results, ease, and price. Keep reading below for the results — along with the rating, you’ll find more details about how each slicer performed.

• Ease: 2
• Slicing: 1
• Price: 2
• Rating: 1

If you just want to portion the pie and mark where you want to slice, then this Winco tool works semi-decently. However, it doesn’t actually slice the pie, and it might not work with your pie plate depending on its size and shape — it’s just too big for many pie plates and won’t work well for ones with larger or decorative edges. It’s also not dishwasher-safe, which can be a big consideration when you’re entertaining for a holiday and already have a ton of dishes to wash. This was my least favorite and I think even eyeballing it is a better way to gauge your slices.

• Ease: 3
• Slicing: 1
• Price: 4
• Rating: 2

This slicer is somewhat easy to use: You hold each handle in either hand and then press it downward to slice. The issue I experienced is that, often, it didn’t slice all that effectively and couldn’t muscle through the pie’s bottom crust. It also squishes each slice as you lift it up and out of the plate. It’s better for custard, pumpkin, or pecan pie — ones that have a more solid filling — but works very badly for apple pie. When I attempted to take out an apple pie slice, the pie crumbled and the apple slices fell out as I tried to lift it from the pan. However, it’s dishwasher-safe and kind of fun to pull out at parties, so there’s that.

• Ease: 2
• Slicing: 1.5
• Price: 2
• Rating: 3

To use this slicer (also from Winco), you hold the two handles and press it down into the pie. It reminds me of those apple slicers that you’d use to cut the fruit into perfect wedges in one fell swoop. Again, the issue here was that this cutter was too large for many pie plates and didn’t reach the bottom of the pie, so it was unable to slice through the crust. I guess you could use this to get things started and then finish up with another tool, but that’s an extra step and defeats the purpose. This slicer is also very sharp, so use caution when handling it.

• Ease: 4
• Slicing: 3.5
• Price: 4
• Rating: 4

This nylon slicer from OXO has a serrated edge that easily slices through the top portion and filling of the pie, although it did require an extra push to get through the bottom crust. The shape of the slicer also means that it easily reaches under and retrieves pie slices. While it didn’t slice as effortlessly as the best model I trialed, the flexible, hard plastic head is safe to use with nonstick pie plates, which is a definite perk. It’s also dishwasher-safe.

• Ease: 5
• Slicing: 5
• Price: 4
• Rating: 4.5

Who knew I could love a pie slicer so much? This OXO pick was the best of the group, thanks to serrated edges on either side of its stainless steel head that easily sliced through both a pie’s filling and its crusts. It’s also flexible, and can easily reach under the crust to easily to retrieve a slice of pie. It has a comfortable, grippy handle, too.

Do you have a favorite tool for slicing pie? Tell us about it in the comments!