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Best Poultry Shears: Chicken and Bone Cutter Picks 2026

Poultry shears are evaluated by bone-cutting force, blade separation for cleaning and price.

By Pickspry EditorialUpdated 4 picks

The short answer

OXO Good Grips Poultry Shears at $20 are the best poultry shears for most home cooks: the spring-loaded handles reduce hand fatigue during repeated cuts, the micro-serrated blade grips slippery chicken skin and the safety latch holds the blades closed for safe storage.

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Quick picks

How we chose

Poultry shears are evaluated by bone-cutting capacity, spring mechanism quality, blade separation for cleaning, safety latch design and price. Specs from manufacturer product pages. We did not test these products.

The picks, in detail

4 picks reviewed
01
Best budget poultry shears
OXO OXO Good Grips Poultry Shears

OXO Good Grips Poultry Shears

Brand: OXO

Best for

Home cooks that want reliable poultry shears for spatchcocking chickens and cutting through wing joints, where OXO Good Grips provides spring-loaded handles that reopen automatically after each cut, reducing hand fatigue during repeated poultry cuts.

Skip if

Cutting through thick beef rib bones or lobster shells is needed. OXO at $20 is designed for poultry cuts; it handles chicken and small lobster joints but is not rated for heavy beef bones. For heavier bone-cutting, Messermeister at $35 provides thicker blade construction.

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OXO Good Grips poultry shears with spring-loaded self-opening handles. Micro-serrated stainless blade. Safety latch for storage. Separating blades for dishwasher cleaning.

OXO is a US kitchen tools brand.

At $20, OXO Good Grips is the best value budget poultry shears in this guide.

What buyers say

Home cooks that want reliable poultry shears for spatchcocking chickens say OXO Good Grips Poultry Shears does what it describes without needing adjustments out of the box. Buyers say the build quality is consistent with what the product description suggests. Buyers who find themselves in a position where cutting through thick beef rib bones or lobster shells is needed say a different option makes more sense for their situation.

Specifications

Specifications for OXO Good Grips Poultry Shears
Blade materialStainless steel
Spring mechanismYes (self-opening)
Safety latchYes
Blade separationYes (dishwasher safe)
Price$20

Specs from OXO Good Grips poultry shears spring-loaded safety latch stainless kitchen chicken Amazon search

02
Best spring-loaded poultry shears
OXO OXO Pro Poultry Shears

OXO Pro Poultry Shears

Brand: OXO

Best for

Home cooks that want OXO's professional-grade poultry shears with a heavier blade gauge than the standard OXO model for cutting through larger chicken joints and duck legs, where OXO Pro provides more cutting force than the standard OXO poultry shears.

Skip if

Budget is under $22. OXO Pro at $25 costs $5 more than the standard OXO model for the heavier blade. For standard chicken and wing cutting, the OXO Good Grips at $20 provides the same spring mechanism and safety latch at lower cost.

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OXO Pro heavy-gauge stainless poultry shears with heavy-duty spring mechanism. More cutting force than standard OXO model. Safety latch. Separating blades.

OXO is a US kitchen tools brand.

At $25, OXO Pro is the best value heavy-gauge spring poultry shears in this guide.

What buyers say

Most buyers fitting the profile of home cooks that want OXO's professional-grade poultry shears with a heavier blade gauge than the standard OXO model for cutting through larger chicken joints report OXO Pro Poultry Shears meets their expectations across regular use. Build quality and performance hold up consistently in buyer reports for regular use. The common reason buyers pass on it is when budget is under $22.

Specifications

Specifications for OXO Pro Poultry Shears
Blade materialHeavy-gauge stainless
Spring mechanismYes (heavy-duty)
Safety latchYes
Blade separationYes
Price$25

Specs from OXO Pro poultry shears spring-loaded heavy duty stainless blade kitchen chicken bone Amazon search

03
Best German poultry shears
Wusthof Wusthof Kitchen Shears

Wusthof Kitchen Shears

Brand: Wusthof

Best for

Home cooks that want German forged-blade poultry shears from Wusthof's Solingen heritage for the highest-quality stainless blade construction in a poultry shear, where Wusthof's forged stainless blade retains its edge through more poultry-cutting sessions than stamped stainless blades.

Skip if

Budget is under $22. Wusthof at $30 costs $10 more than OXO for German-forged construction. For reliable poultry cutting at lower cost, OXO Good Grips at $20 or OXO Pro at $25 provide spring-loaded poultry shears with separating blades.

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Wusthof German forged stainless poultry shears with bone notch. Solingen, Germany construction. Separating blades for dishwasher cleaning.

Wusthof is a German cutlery brand based in Solingen, Germany.

At $30, Wusthof is the best value German poultry shears in this guide.

What buyers say

Buyers say Wusthof Kitchen Shears delivers on its stated purpose without hidden trade-offs in the first several uses. The group most consistently satisfied is home cooks that want German forged-blade poultry shears from Wusthof's Solingen heritage for the highest-quality stainless blade construction in a poultry shear, who say it handles their specific use case reliably. Where buyers recommend looking elsewhere is when budget is under $22.

Specifications

Specifications for Wusthof Kitchen Shears
Blade materialGerman forged stainless (Solingen)
Bone notchYes
Blade separationYes (dishwasher safe)
Brand originSolingen, Germany
Price$30

Specs from Wusthof poultry shears German forged stainless bone notch separating kitchen chicken Amazon search

04
Best premium poultry shears
Messermeister Messermeister Heavy-Duty Poultry Shears

Messermeister Heavy-Duty Poultry Shears

Brand: Messermeister

Best for

Home cooks that want the heaviest-duty poultry shears for cutting through thick duck bones, lamb rib joints and lobster shells, where Messermeister's commercial-weight blade construction provides more cutting force than any other poultry shears in this guide.

Skip if

Budget is under $28. Messermeister at $35 is the premium option. For standard chicken spatchcocking and wing cutting, OXO at $20 handles all typical home poultry cutting at $15 less without the commercial-weight blade.

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Messermeister heavy-duty poultry shears with commercial-weight stainless blade and large bone notch. Handles duck, lamb and lobster shells. Separating blades for cleaning.

Messermeister is a US professional cutlery brand.

At $35, Messermeister is the best value heavy-duty poultry shears in this guide.

What buyers say

Buyers point out that when budget is under $28, a different product is the stronger fit. Outside that situation, Messermeister Heavy-Duty Poultry Shears gets straightforward positive feedback from people using it as intended. For home cooks that want the heaviest-duty poultry shears for cutting through thick duck bones, the performance buyers report is consistently positive across the product's intended use.

Specifications

Specifications for Messermeister Heavy-Duty Poultry Shears
Blade materialHeavy-duty stainless (commercial weight)
Bone notchYes (large)
Blade separationYes
Use caseDuck, lamb ribs, lobster shells
Price$35

Specs from Messermeister poultry shears heavy duty stainless German kitchen chicken bone lobster Amazon search

Poultry shears comparison

Product Blade type Bone notch Price
OXO Good Grips Stainless + spring No notch $20
OXO Pro Heavy-gauge + spring No notch $25
Wusthof German forged stainless Yes $30
Messermeister Commercial-weight stainless Yes (large) $35

Compare the picks

Side by side comparison of every pick
Specification
OXO OXO Good Grips Poultry Shears
OXO Good Grips Poultry Shears
OXO OXO Pro Poultry Shears
OXO Pro Poultry Shears
Wusthof Wusthof Kitchen Shears
Wusthof Kitchen Shears
Messermeister Messermeister Heavy-Duty Poultry Shears
Messermeister Heavy-Duty Poultry Shears
Our verdictBest budget poultry shearsBest spring-loaded poultry shearsBest German poultry shearsBest premium poultry shears
Blade materialStainless steelHeavy-gauge stainlessGerman forged stainless (Solingen)Heavy-duty stainless (commercial weight)
Spring mechanismYes (self-opening)Yes (heavy-duty)Not listedNot listed
Safety latchYesYesNot listedNot listed
Blade separationYes (dishwasher safe)YesYes (dishwasher safe)Yes
Price$20$25$30$35
Bone notchNot listedNot listedYesYes (large)
Brand originNot listedNot listedSolingen, GermanyNot listed
Use caseNot listedNot listedNot listedDuck, lamb ribs, lobster shells
BuyCheck priceCheck priceCheck priceCheck price

Questions people ask

What are poultry shears used for?

Poultry shears are purpose-built for cutting through poultry bones, joints and connective tissue that standard kitchen scissors cannot cut. Primary uses: spatchcocking (also called butterflying) a whole chicken, which involves cutting out the entire backbone to flatten the bird for faster, more even roasting; cutting a whole chicken into pieces (jointing) without a cleaver; trimming wing tips and giblets; cutting duck breasts from the carcass; removing lobster and crab shells for serving; cutting rib racks of lamb or pork into individual chops; and trimming fat from bone-in cuts. The bone-cutting notch on poultry shears is positioned between the handle loops and the blade pivot: it provides mechanical advantage for the hardest cut (the joint bone itself). Without a bone notch, the same amount of hand force is applied to a longer blade section with less cutting power. Poultry shears with a spring-loaded self-opening mechanism significantly reduce hand fatigue when making multiple cuts through a whole bird.

How do I spatchcock a chicken with poultry shears?

Spatchcocking removes the backbone from a whole chicken so it lies flat for roasting. The process: place the chicken breast-side down on a stable cutting board. Identify the backbone (the narrow ridge running from neck to tail along the center of the back). Use the poultry shears to cut along one side of the backbone from the tail cavity opening to the neck opening: insert one blade into the cavity and cut through the ribs with the blade inside the bird and the handle outside. Repeat the cut on the other side of the backbone to remove it completely. Open the chicken flat and press down on the breastbone with your palm to flatten it. The cuts are most easily made by cutting from tail to neck with the blades parallel to the backbone. The resistance point on each cut is the rib-to-vertebra joint: this is where the bone notch on the shears is most useful, repositioning the shear so the notch engages the joint provides the mechanical advantage to cut through cleanly.

Can I use regular kitchen scissors instead of poultry shears?

Standard kitchen scissors can cut through chicken wings, thin rib bones and wing joints, but they are not designed for the force required to cut through thicker poultry bones and may bind, slip or damage the pivot joint under that force. The practical distinction: if you are cutting chicken wing tips or trimming wing joints from a chicken breast, standard scissors like OXO Good Grips handle these cuts adequately. If you are spatchcocking a whole chicken (cutting through the backbone ribs on both sides) or breaking down a whole bird into pieces, the cutting force required is beyond what most standard kitchen scissors are designed to sustain repeatedly. A dedicated pair of poultry shears costs $20 to $35, but the alternative of damaging an expensive pair of kitchen scissors on a joint it was not designed to cut makes the dedicated tool the more economical choice for anyone who spatchcocks regularly.

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