Thirteen knives I own that usually cost under $100, banded by price, with my lefty result on each. A budget knife and a high-end knife are in totally different classes. It makes no sense to compare one to the next, so nothing here is measured against a pricier knife.
Knife laws differ by state and city, including on blade length and how a knife may be carried; check your own before you buy.
A 0.68-inch neck knife on a bead chain, with no clip and no lock. CIVIVI puts three spare blades in the box.
Check price at CIVIVIBought at retail
A keyring knife: a small blade, a nail file with a screwdriver tip, tweezers and a toothpick. No clip and no lock.
Bought at retail
One clip-point blade on a slip joint, so no lock, and no clip either. Buck says it is designed to be carried in the pocket.
Bought at retail
Two blades, a clip point and a spey, on a slip joint. No lock and no clip, so nothing on it picks a side.
Bought at retail
A stainless steel frame lock that opens with a thumb stud. Mine is the gray 2490, and I checked it in hand: the clip does not swap sides. CRKT sells it today as the 2490KS, black stonewash, same dimensions, and the band is that one’s price.
Bought at retail
Two ways to open it, a thumb hole and a front flipper, and a button lock to close it.
Banish on AmazonBought at retail
In my hand: It's one of the easiest knives to recommend.
Check price on AmazonBought at retail · Full review
Maksim Epifantsev’s design: a thumb stud to open it and Kizer’s button liner lock to close it.
Microbe on AmazonBought at retail
Thumb studs on both sides and a crossbar lock, so it opens and closes the same in either hand.
Check price at CIVIVIBought at retail
In my hand: I've found some rust on the blade edge of my CIVIVI Baby Banter. Even though it's coated, it still has some exposed blade at the edge, and that's the part that has a bit of rust on it. Not a big deal, you can just buff it out, but an interesting find.
Check price at CIVIVIBought at retail
Jonathan Styles’ design: a thumb hole and a front flipper to open it, a liner lock to close it.
Check price at Kizer Also on AmazonBoth buttons go to the G10 build. Mine is the aluminum one (V3634SA7), sold out at Kizer on Oct 1, 2026.
Bought at retail
A front flipper to open it and a liner lock to close it.
In my hand: Almost the same as the Microblade. I just removed the pocket clip. It's not ideal, because it's a bigger knife than the Microblade, so it's not a fifth-pocket knife. The locking mechanism is not the best, but it's usable.
Bought at retail
Opens with a flipper or a removable thumb stud, and locks with a titanium frame lock.
In my hand: I removed the thumb stud, since it didn't work really well at launching the blade anyway. I just used the flipper. I removed the pocket clip too, because I just put it in my fifth pocket, so there's no need for a clip. So essentially it's designed for righties, but it's manageable for lefties.
Bought at retail
In between? I own three that usually cost $100–150: the Kansept Mini Korvid, the Spyderco Dragonfly 2 and the CIVIVI Vision FG. They are on my pocket knives page.
Spending more? The eight knives I own that usually cost $150 and up have their own page.
Knives I own that you can’t buy new from the maker or an authorized dealer are left off this page. They are with the rest of the drawer on my pocket knives page.
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