The Best Spatulas

Ganda Suthivarakom, who wrote our original guide, has spent many hours researching and testing spatulas. Michael Sullivan, who conducted the last round of testing, in 2016, spent dozens of hours using spatulas for everything from flipping delicate fish fillets to frosting cakes (and just about everything else in between).

To find out what makes a great spatula, we talked with several experts, including Judy Haubert, then associate food editor at Saveur; Tracey Seaman, then test-kitchen director for Every Day With Rachael Ray magazine; Pattara Kuramarohit, chef instructor at Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena, California; Brian Huston, a chef and 2015 James Beard Award semifinalist; Chef Howie Velie, then associate dean of culinary arts at the Culinary Institute of America; and Pim Techamuanvivit, jam maker and restaurateur behind San Francisco’s Kin Khao. To help winnow our selection, we turned to reviews from Cook’s Illustrated, Real Simple, and The Kitchn. We also looked at highly rated spatulas on Amazon.

Every cook will need a spatula (or, more likely, several spatulas) in their toolkit. Aside from knives, spatulas are probably the tools most often reached for in the kitchen. And as with knives, when it comes to spatulas, it’s important to know which one is a good fit for your task. We spoke with our experts about the spatulas they always have on hand. Judy Haubert, then associate food editor at Saveur, told us, “For flipping and turning foods while pan-searing or sautéing, I use at least four different kinds of spatulas, depending on what I’m cooking.” Even though it’s nice to have a plethora of kitchen tools to choose from, we recommend that you buy only the ones that match your cooking needs. After doing our own research and interviewing the pros, we were able to narrow down spatulas to four key types you should own (along with two honorable mentions).

The essentials:

• Metal fish spatula: This is the platonic ideal of the spatula, with a sharp, slim edge that easily slips under browned foods, slots that distribute tension so food doesn’t fall off, and a flexible, curved offset.
• Plastic or silicone-coated spatula: For cooks who work with nonstick pans, plastic spatulas are a necessity in order to keep pans scratch-free.
• High-heat silicone spatula: These are useful for mixing custards and batters, as well as for scraping down the sides of a bowl or pot.
• Metal turner: These sturdy spatulas help smash burgers down to get beautifully crisped edges, and they cut and lift bar cookies and lasagna with ease.

Not necessary, but useful:

• Wooden spatula: This flat wooden utensil is perfect for scraping browned bits from the bottom of a pan while deglazing.
• Offset spatula: Bakers adore these long, narrow metal spatulas, which allow you to frost cakes in wide fluid strokes and lift thin, brittle cookies off a tray.

Forget that it’s got “fish” in its name—a good fish spatula is a versatile utensil with the right amount of flexibility and strength. Our favorite is the Victorinox Swiss Army Slotted Fish Turner. It performed all the tasks we threw at it beautifully, and at less than $20, it’s affordably priced. Its high-carbon stainless steel blade and walnut handle should last you a lifetime (with a warranty to back it up), but due to the wood handle, it’s not dishwasher-safe. The Lamson Flexible Stainless Steel Slotted Spatula features the same blade and performed equally well across all our tests, but its handle is made from polyoxymethylene. This means it’s dishwasher-safe but also a little heftier (which some may prefer and others may not), and it is prone to melting if left against the edge of a hot pan. The Lamson also costs over twice as much as the Victorinox.

In our tests, the gentle slope of the Victorinox’s blade seamlessly slid under over-easy eggs, flour-dusted tilapia fillets, and freshly baked cookies, manipulating each of them without breaking any yolks, losing any crust, or wrinkling the tops of the cookies. And though it’s very flexible, the blade is still sturdy enough to hold a stack of eight pancakes without bending. Its handsome walnut handle is lightweight and comfortable to hold, which means your wrists won’t tire if you’re planning to sauté several fish fillets at once. Though you shouldn’t let the wood handle get too close to a flame, you won’t have to worry about it melting, like other fish spatulas we tested that have synthetic handles.

We’re confident that the Victorinox is a buy-it-for-life item that will get regular play in your kitchen. But if you encounter problems with the spatula during normal use, it’s backed by a lifetime warranty, and you can contact Victorinox for a replacement.

The Lamson Flexible Stainless Steel Slotted Spatula performed identically to the Victorinox—handling eggs, fish fillets, and warm cookies with ease. But our testers found its polyester handle was slightly heavier to hold. If you like a heavier handle or want something that is dishwasher-safe, this is a great option. However, it usually costs over twice as much as the Victorinox, and it has only a 30-day return policy. Keep in mind that the synthetic handle on the Lamson spatula will melt if rested on a hot pan or stove.

For lefties: We tested the Lamson Chef’s Slotted Turner (which is different than the flexible turner we recommend), and we found it had lovely balance in the hand but too much flexibility in the middle of the blade to support heavier foods. That said, it’s one of the few spatulas we found that come in a left-handed model.

To avoid scratching the delicate surface of your nonstick pans, you’ll want to invest in a silicone spatula like our favorite, the GIR Mini Flip. Although it can’t beat metal for sharpness or dexterity, its tapered blade (which has a fiberglass core and a seamless silicone exterior that comes in many fun colors) allowed us to slide it underneath warm cookies without breaking them. Don’t be deceived by this spatula’s smaller-than-average size and thickness; its sharply angled blade, paper-thin edge, and offset handle let us flip delicate fried eggs and heavy pancakes with confidence. It’s also simple to clean, with no grooves that can trap food.

If the GIR Mini Flip sells out, or you want a spatula with a wider blade, we also recommend the OXO Good Grips Silicone Flexible Turner. Though we prefer the angled edge on the GIR Mini Flip, the OXO was a close second. The OXO’s blade is thinner and bigger than the GIR’s, but the edge isn’t as tapered, so it required more effort to wiggle under fish, fried eggs, and cookies. However, the OXO’s wide blade excelled at holding and flipping large pancakes with ease. The cushy, rubberized handle is comfortable to hold, and the whole spatula is dishwasher-safe and heat-resistant up to 600 degrees Fahrenheit. Some reviews on Amazon.com complain of the silicone splitting apart. We didn’t run into that problem in our testing. But if you do, OXO products come with a great satisfaction guarantee, and we’ve usually found the customer service to be responsive.

The parallel sides, non-angled head, and flexible edges of silicone spatulas make them great for getting all your brownie batter into a pan, pressing down doughs, and folding in ingredients (yes, like the cheese, David). We like the GIR Ultimate Spatula. Though the tip is thick enough to give the spatula heft for pressing down doughs, the tool is flexible enough to glide smoothly and cleanly around the edges of a mixing bowl. We also liked that the GIR Ultimate Spatula’s head is slim enough to fit into a small jar and that its angled tip can get around the bottom of sloped-sided cookware. Also, its grippy, rounded handle felt better in the hand than many competitors’ flat, thin sticks. Since both flat sides of the spatula are symmetrical, it can be used by left- and right-handed cooks.

Much like the GIR Mini Flip (our spatula pick for nonstick cookware), the GIR Ultimate Spatula has a fiberglass core coated in a thick, seamless layer of silicone, and it is available in many colors. The silicone coating is heat-proof to 464 degrees Fahrenheit and heat-resistant up to 550 degrees Fahrenheit. So this spatula is perfect for high-heat cooking, and it’s also dishwasher-safe. After years of using the GIR Ultimate, we’ve found that the edges of the silicone blade can develop nicks and notches from scraping around the blades of a blender or food processor. But overall this is a sturdy spatula, made more durable by the lack of seams.

If you regularly work with larger batches of dough, batter, or frosting, the Rubbermaid Commercial High-Heat Silicone Spatula, with its wider head, is a great alternative to the GIR Ultimate. It’s a stalwart found in many commercial kitchens, as well as a favorite of several staffers on the Wirecutter kitchen team. Some of our testers found the head to be a bit too stiff and the flat handle less comfortable to hold than the GIR spatula. However, after long-term testing the Rubbermaid spatula, we’ve found that the blade softens over time and becomes more flexible with use. It’s also not as easily nicked as the edge of the GIR spatula. The Rubbermaid is a little more difficult to clean than the GIR because it has more crevices for food to hide in, but it’s also dishwasher-safe. The Rubbermaid spatulas come with a one-year limited warranty.

If you plan to do a lot of cooking on a grill or griddle, we recommend that you get a good metal turner. The Winco TN719 Blade Hamburger Turner is the perfect spatula for muscular tasks like smashing, cutting, and lifting hefty pieces of meat. It’s both sturdy and solid, with no slots to push meat through, like on the fish spatulas we tested. Since it’s heavier than most others, the TN719 excelled at smashing burgers on a griddle, Shake Shack–style, with minimal effort. This heavy-duty metal turner was the only model we tested that had beveled edges on all three sides of the blade, which allowed the spatula to slide easily under pancakes and freshly baked cookies. Though it’s not dishwasher-safe, the sapele wood handle is a pleasure to hold and feels secure in the hand when you’re flipping burgers on a grill. Since Winco items are designed for commercial restaurants, the warranty is voided if this spatula is used at home. However, since the TN719 is so durable and inexpensive (under $10 at the time of writing), the lack of a warranty isn’t a dealbreaker.

If you want a smaller metal turner that’s lightweight, we suggest the Dexter-Russell Basics Pancake Turner. Its thin blade is more flexible than our main pick’s, so it doesn’t smash down burgers quite as easily on a griddle. The Dexter-Russell also lacks beveled edges on the blade, but our testers found the thin edges still allowed the blade to slide easily under freshly baked cookies. Though the thin rosewood handle isn’t as wide as our main pick’s, we still found it comfortable to hold. The Dexter-Russell spatula also comes with a lifetime warranty. If you encounter problems with the turner during normal use, contact Dexter-Russell for a replacement.

Not everyone needs a wooden spatula, but they are useful for scraping the browned bits from the bottom of a pan when deglazing, and they’re gentler on enameled cookware (like a Dutch oven) than metal spatulas. If you want a wooden spatula, it’s hard to beat the inexpensive Helen’s Asian Kitchen Bamboo Stir Fry Spatula. Its sharp, angled edge and rounded corners can even reach the rounded perimeter of sloped cookware. And the wide handle makes this spatula easy to grip, for tasks like breaking up ground beef in a skillet. Keep in mind, however, that bamboo utensils don’t always have the longest lifespan, and this spatula doesn’t come with a warranty. But considering the price, we don’t think that should be a dealbreaker for most.

If you’re an avid baker, you’ll likely need an offset spatula for everything from frosting fabulous cakes to jimmying cookies off a crowded pan. We found the Ateco 1387 Offset Spatula with Stainless Steel Blade to be the best tool for the job. The mirror finish on the Ateco 1387 allows the blade to slide effortlessly under warm, delicate cookies better than the competition. The angle of the offset blade was easy on the wrists and provided enough clearance so our knuckles didn’t mar the surface of a cake while frosting. And the wood handle is lightweight and easy to hold so our wrists didn’t tire after frosting several cake layers.

If you’re looking to do more-detailed decorating tasks, the mini Ateco 1385 Offset Icing Spatula is our pick. The Ateco 1385 had the shortest blade of all the mini spatulas we tested, allowing us to have better control as we frosted cupcakes. The short blade also allowed for easy maneuvering around a crowded cookie sheet. We also like how easily the Ateco 1385 can spread even layers of mayonnaise and mustard on sandwiches.

There are some drawbacks to the Ateco 1387 and 1385: They’re not dishwasher-safe and don’t come with a warranty. However, senior Wirecutter writer Lesley Stockton has been using her wood-handled Ateco spatulas for at least 14 years and reports that they’re still going strong.

Spatulas are workhorses in the kitchen. They need to be able to lift and support heavy items while maneuvering around delicate foods in tight spaces. We looked for many types of spatulas that would be a joy to use and help you with a wide range of tasks—from cooking tender cuts of meat or seafood to spreading batter or frosting—on a variety of cooking surfaces, including stainless steel or nonstick.

All of our experts agreed on one thing—if you have one spatula, make it a fish spatula. “I’d say that the majority of our guys use fish spatulas, slotted so it looks like a rake. I think everyone has that in their bag. It’s probably the most used savory spatula,” said Brian Huston, then chef of Boltwood (the restaurant is now closed). And it’s not just for fish. “We do tend to use it for burgers and protein on the grill if we’re searing,” he admitted. Chef Howie Velie, then associate dean of culinary specializations at the Culinary Institute of America, confirmed the multi-use importance of fish spatulas in pro kitchens. He said, “The spatula doesn’t know that it’s made for fish. For me and for a lot of other chefs, it’s kind of an all-purpose, light spatula. I use it for everything.”

Aside from metal fish spatulas, we also looked at spatulas that would work on nonstick cookware. When you’re working with nonstick pans, it’s important to use only plastic, wood, or silicone utensils, to avoid scratching the coating on the pan. Like metal spatulas, the best nonstick-safe ones have a thin edge that can slip under foods. They also maintain flexibility for maneuvering and strength for lifting. For these reasons, we focused on plastic and silicone spatulas for nonstick cookware, since they can be made thinner and more flexible than wood. (Wood spatulas can be useful for other things, like gently scraping the browned bits of food from a Dutch oven without damaging the enamel, so we tested them separately.)

We also tested silicone spatulas designed for mixing and baking—these are best for scraping down bowls and ensuring that custards don’t stick to the bottom of a pan. A great silicone spatula can scrape down both the straight sides of a sauté pan and get into the rounded bottom of a bowl. It should be stiff and thick enough to press dough together, but flexible enough to wipe down a bowl with ease. It should also be wide and thin enough to fold ingredients together. The experts we spoke with suggested that seamless, one-piece spatulas were easier to keep clean than those with crevices (say, where the blade attaches to the handle).

Although the light, elegant fish spatula really does a great job in almost every situation, when you’re working with metal pans or on a grill, sometimes a heftier metal turner is the best tool for the job. A metal turner also surpasses the fish spatula in its ability to cut sharp, even lines through bar cookies and easily lift heavy pieces of food.

Because metal turners complement the fish spatula, we chose ones that offered different desirable attributes—an offset angle for easy leverage; a comfortable stiffness for strength; a flat, non-slotted blade for evenly smashing down burgers (video) or pressing grilled cheese sandwiches flat. We also found that a shorter handle allows for great control in flipping, lifting, and carrying.

We also looked at wooden spatulas, or turners, which have an angled flat edge for removing fond (brown, caramelized bits) from the bottom of a pan. Wooden spatulas are the best tool to use with a Dutch oven because they won’t scratch the enamel the way metal can. Some have rounded corners for use on sloped-sided pans. We tried to find wooden spatulas that were sturdy and had a blade that could easily scrape both the bottom and sides of a pot or pan.

Finally, another multitasking spatula worth adding to your arsenal is an offset spatula. These thin, narrow offset palette knives are usually about 9 inches long, and they are designed for bakers who want to add polish to cakes and spread thick batters into the corners of pans. But they also come in mini sizes (roughly 4½ inches long), which are great for handling more-delicate tasks like decorating cupcakes and even spreading mustard or mayo on your bread. We looked for offset spatulas with strong, flexible blades that were thin enough for delicate tasks like lifting thin cookies from a pan or frosting a cupcake.

We designed our tests to cover some common uses for each type of spatula, as well as to evaluate dexterity, strength, flexibility, and overall ease of use.

With the metal fish spatulas, we flipped flour-dusted tilapia fillets and over-easy eggs in an All-Clad skillet. And we lifted freshly baked Tate’s chocolate chip cookies from a cookie sheet to see how easy it was to maneuver the spatulas and how well they performed delicate tasks. We also used them to flip pancakes to see how well they could support the weight of heavier items. We performed all the same tests with the spatulas designed for nonstick cookware, but we cooked the fish, eggs, and pancakes in a nonstick pan instead of a tri-ply skillet.

We prepared pancake and cake batter, and then we used the silicone spatulas to scrape down the sides of a mixing bowl. We also scraped the pancake batter out of a one-cup Pyrex measuring cup to see how flexible these spatulas were when maneuvering around small, tight corners. To see how they would perform with thicker, heavier ingredients, we used them to prepare cake frosting and sticky cookie dough. We even pressed the heads of the silicone spatulas against the bottom of the hot pan to see if they could withstand high heat.

We used the metal turners to make burgers on an outdoor grill to see how well they could hold the weight of a ⅓-pound patty. We tested to see if each turner’s edge was thin and sharp enough to cut brownies in a pan.

We used the wooden spatulas to break up ground beef in a skillet. We also browned chuck steaks and deglazed the pan using the spatulas to scrape up fond (the browned bits on the bottom of the pan). We evaluated how much surface area they could cover and how easy they were to hold.

For the large offset spatulas, we frosted cake layers to evaluate overall ease of use and flexibility. We used the mini offset spatulas to frost cupcakes. We used both large and small spatulas to transfer cookies from a cookie sheet, to test how easily they lifted thin, delicate items. We took note of the thinness of the metal, the material and weight of the handle, the tension in the blade, and the degree to which the blade was offset.

Although we didn’t do lengthy tests for stains or smells on silicone spatulas, Pim Techamuanvivit of Kin Khao suggests using separate spats for strong-flavored foods. She told us, “I have certain types of spatulas I use only for my jams. Those are not allowed to have any contact with those that I use when I make curry or stir-fry. I keep them separate because it doesn’t matter how many times you wash a silicone spatula that touched a curry paste—it’s going to smell like curry paste, and it’s just going to transfer.”

If you’re worried about scraping off the seasoning on your cast iron pans when using a fish spatula or metal turner, don’t be. The Lodge Cast Iron website says, “Cast iron is the most durable metal you’ll ever cook with. That means any utensil is welcome—silicone, wooden, and even metal.” However, the site does recommend using wood, silicone, or nylon utensils with any porcelain enameled products.

Over the years, we’ve nicked the tips of our spatulas by scraping down the bowl of a food processor fitted with a sharp stainless steel blade. To avoid damaging the head of your silicone spatula, try to remove the blade attachment before scraping, if possible. Not only will you avoid ingesting small bits of silicone, you’ll also extend the life of your spatula.

Wood turners and spatulas with wooden handles can crack from excess moisture after hand-washing with soap and water. To avoid any cracking, Emma Christensen from The Kitchn suggests, “Once a month or so, rub in a little [food-safe] mineral oil with a soft cloth. This will restore the warm polished look and keep the wood in good condition.” Don’t be tempted to use olive oil on your wooden utensils because it can go rancid and possibly transfer off-flavors to your food. Also, avoid running any utensils containing wood through the dishwasher.

When storing offset spatulas, avoid cramming them in a crowded kitchen drawer; they can get bent out of shape. Once bent, they’re nearly impossible to flatten out again, which can be annoying when you are trying to create a smooth surface on a frosted cake.

Regardless of a spatula’s material, avoid placing it on a screaming-hot pan or too close to your heat source.

All-purpose spatulas

The Mercer Hell’s Handle Fish Turner was our top pick in the original publication of this guide. However, after long-term testing it over a couple of years, we’ve found that the wide handle isn’t as comfortable as the Victorinox’s. We do like the large version of the Mercer spatula for grilling, though.

We loved the Wüsthof Fish Spatula, which performed identically to the Mercer Hell’s Handle Fish Turner. However, it costs over three times as much as our pick.

The Winco FST-6 6.5-Inch Blade Fish Spatula has a sharp angle at the edge of the blade that made flipping fish fillets more difficult than with our top pick.

The MIU France Slotted Turner had a blade that was too flexible and lightweight to carry heavier foods. It felt flimsy, and there’s almost no curve at the tip, so food just slips right off.

The blade on the OXO Good Grips Fish Turner is far too large for performing delicate tasks like flipping fish fillets and removing cookies from a crowded tray.

Spatulas for nonstick cookware

Target’s Made By Design Silicone Turner is less durable yet heavier than the GIR and OXO turners we recommend. This puts added stress on your wrist, especially after repetitive use, and its lack of angled blade makes it harder to maneuver around a crowded skillet. The GIR and OXO spatulas are more expensive, but they’re worth the cost for a more-pleasant experience.

Although we liked the Matfer Bourgeat Pelton’s thin blade and fish spatula shape for lifting cookies and flipping eggs, the almost completely flat shape makes it too awkward to slide under other foods.

The Kuhn Rikon SoftEdge Slotted 12-Inch Spatula seems like a good idea—a flexible stainless spatula whose edges are covered in heat-resistant, non-scratching silicone. But the silicone edge was too thick and floppy to get underneath foods, canceling out the qualities that make a great fish spatula.

The OXO Good Grips Omelet Turner was way too floppy and flexible. The head measures 7 inches at its longest point and 4 inches at its widest point; the spatula mangled food with its size and softness. Also, its large, rounded corners didn’t navigate a crowded skillet of pancakes very well.

Silicone spatulas

The Vollrath (52010) 10-Inch High Temperature Silicone Spatula performed almost identically to the Rubbermaid High-Heat Scraper, but its warranty is voided if it’s not used in a commercial kitchen.

Although the StarPack Premium Silicone Spatula Set appears to offer more bang for your buck, the interior reinforcements on the smaller spatulas don’t extend the full length of the handle and offer very little support.

Metal turners

Serious Eats’s J. Kenji López-Alt praised the Due Buoi Wide Spatula for burger-smashing, due to its size and weight. But the wide head on this expensive model makes it a specialty item that wouldn’t be as useful for smaller tasks like cutting bar cookies, so we opted not to test it.

Wooden spatulas

We loved the OXO Good Grips Sauté Paddle but were disappointed when the edges of the blade began to crack in several places after only a couple of uses.

The Eddingtons Italian Olive Wood Spatula has both a pronounced upward curve and tip angle, making it less useful for left-handed cooks (or righties switching arms). The finish seems a little more delicate and porous. Even after oiling, the spatula looked a bit dry.

Offset spatulas

We liked the 7.75-inch Ateco 1307 Ultra Offset Spatula, which performed similarly to our top pick. However, the handle is heavier, and the blade isn’t as slick as that of the Ateco 1387.

Though we liked the thumb dimple on the handle of the Wilton 13-Inch Angled Icing Spatula, its blade was thicker than our top pick’s, and it didn’t slide under freshly baked cookies as easily. The Wilton 9-Inch Angled Icing Spatula also had the thickest blade and the largest handle of all of the mini offset spatulas we tested, which made it more awkward to use than our main pick.

The grippy handle on the OXO Good Grips Offset Icing Spatula was very comfortable to hold, but the angle of the blade wasn’t as steep as that of the Ateco 1387, so frosting cakes was more difficult. The handle on the OXO Good Grips Small Offset Icing Knife was equally comfortable, but its longer blade wasn’t as easy to use as that of the Ateco 1385.

This article was edited by Marilyn Ong and Marguerite Preston.