The Best Silverware Sets
Below find my (admittedly subjective) take on the best silverware sets to buy right now, whether you want classic, modern, or something in between.
BA's favorite flatware: Made In
Made In Cookware - Flatware Set - 4 Place Settings (20 Piece Set)If you're looking for silverware that's substantial and timeless, let me introduce you to the restaurant-quality flatware from DTC brand Made In . Made In makes cookware and tableware in sustainable manufacturing facilities around the world, and the mirror-polished flatware comes from Italy. It's curvy in all the right ways, hefty to hold but not too heavy, and is free of any ornate embellishments. And given the high quality, the price is nice too; a 20-piece set (four 5-piece place settings) is just under $200. I've been using this as my everyday flatware since I first tested silverware sets in 2022 and I can't imagine I'd ever want to swap it for anything else. Most of my pieces go through the dishwasher at least once a day and they still look great years later, with very minimal signs of wear and tear.
The particulars
Material:Pieces in each place setting: Dinner fork, salad fork, tablespoon, dessert/teaspoon, dinner knife Additional pieces available:Dishwasher-safe:
The best budget flatware set: Oneida Colonial Boston
Oneida Colonial Boston 45-Piece Flatware Set, Service for 8If this early-American-inspired flatware looks familiar, it probably is. Though the form has been minimally altered for a slightly more modern design aesthetic, it's pretty much the same Onedia cutlery set that graced so many honey oak dinner tables in the '80s and '90s. Made from 18/10 stainless steel, the contemporary Colonial Boston flatware features a brushed satin handle that is, admittedly, a little scratch prone (but hey, the scratches might just add to the vintage vibe). This affordable flatware is available in a 20-piece set (service for four) or a 45-piece (service for eight plus a serving spoon, pierced serving spoon, sugar spoon, serving fork, and butter knife) Colonial Boston flatware is also available as open stock—meaning you can buy extra spoons, forks, and knives without buying four whole table settings.
The particulars
Material:Pieces in each place setting: Dinner knife, dinner fork, salad fork, dinner spoon, teaspoon Additional pieces available:Dishwasher-safe:
The best modern silverware set: Fortessa Jaxson
Fortessa Jaxson 18/10 Stainless Steel Flatware, Brushed/Mirrored Stainless Steel, 20 Piece Place Setting Service for 4Abstract adaptations of everyday items are cool and all, but I don't want a fork that looks like a Cybertruck if I can't overload it with a giant bite of salad . Actually, I wouldn't want a fork that looks like a Cybertruck even if I could fit more than a single bean onto its three tiny tines. That's why, for those of you with more abstract aesthetics, I offer up Fortessa Jackson, which is modern flatware that's also functional. The slim, four-sided handles are nicely weighted and give this line its modern look. It's available with both polished and brushed handles (I prefer the brushed). More importantly, the parts that are supposed to cut and move food actually do, as long as you don't mind perfectly round spoon heads, that is.
The particulars
Material:Pieces in each place setting: Salad fork, dinner fork, table knife, soup spoon, teaspoon Additional pieces available:Dishwasher-safe:
The best mixed material silverware set: Mepra Fantasia
Mixed-material flatware (wooden or resin handles, metal fork tines) is an easy way to add visual interest to your table setting, but most of what you can find online is low quality or high-maintenance. The colorful bistro-style stuff looks cheap , and wood-handled flatware generally requires hand-washing. But then there's Mepra's popular Fantasia line. This high-quality Italian-made flatware is made of 18/10 stainless steel with resin handles and comes in a variety of colors (options vary by retailer) and it's durable and dishwasher safe. Overall, the pieces are noticeably smaller than most of the other sets I tested—especially the "teaspoon" which is so tiny it looks more like a sugar spoon. It may be laughably small, but it's actually my favorite little spoon to use for eating yogurt or ice cream and stirring my lattes .
The particulars
Materials:Pieces in each place setting: Dinner fork, salad/dessert fork, tablespoon, teaspoon, dinner knife Additional pieces available:Dishwasher-safe:
The best lightweight silverware set: Henckels Alcea
HENCKELS Alcea Flatware Set, 65-Piece, Silver & Steak Knife Set of 8, Stainless Steel Knife Set, SilverHeft can be indicative of quality, but accessibility-wise, heavy flatware isn't always ideal. So if you're in search of something lightweight that still looks and feels nice, the 18/10 mirror-polished Alcea from Henckels is a great option. Henckels is a Zwilling/J.A. Henckels sub-brand that generally offers similar products (both are probably best known for their knife sets ) at lower prices. Depending on where you shop, you can get a 60-piece set of this durable, lightweight flatware for about $100 to $120.
The particulars
Material:Pieces in each place setting: Dinner fork, salad fork, dinner knife, dinner spoon, teaspoon Additional pieces available:Dishwasher-safe:
The best semi-formal silverware set: Lenox Pearl Platinum
While "silverware" and "flatware" are used interchangeably to refer to forks, knives, and spoons, everything I've tested here is technically flatware. To truly qualify as silverware or "silver flatware," the pieces would need to be made with silver or at least be silver-plated, and I did not test any sterling silver flatware sets. That said, if you want something that looks like it might have come from Tiffany, but you don't have $1,300 to drop on a single place setting , the Lenox Pearl Platinum flatware offers a similar elegant look thanks to a mirror polish and minimal embellishments. Though the knife handle is hollow, the rest of the pieces are nicely weighted and Lenox offers a limited lifetime warranty against defects.
The particulars
Materials: 18/10 stainless steel "with platinum accents" Pieces in each place setting: Dinner fork, salad fork, tablespoon, teaspoon, knife Additional pieces available: Not currently, but you may be able to find some second-hand or backstock Dishwasher-safe:
The best silverware set if you want serving pieces included: Mikasa French Countryside
Mikasa French Countryside 45-Piece Stainless Steel Flatware Set with Serveware, Service for 8 Mikasa French Countryside 65-Piece 18/10 Stainless Steel Flatware Set, Service for 12Mikasa may be best known for colorful vintage and contemporary dinnerware sets , but the brand actually has all of your tabletop needs covered with dinnerware, serveware, drinkware, and flatware. And if you like the shiny Lenox flatware above, but prefer to spend your money on something that includes serving pieces, consider Mikasa's French Countryside. The two sets are visually quite similar (the Mikasa has slightly more embellishment), but both the 45-piece and 65-piece Mikasa sets come with standard 5-piece place settings plus a 5-piece serving set (a serving spoon, pierced serving spoon, cold meat fork, sugar spoon, and butter knife).
The particulars
Material:Pieces in each place setting: Dinner fork, salad fork, tablespoon, teaspoon, knife Additional pieces available: Yes (included) Dishwasher-safe:
How we picked the best flatware sets
Most of the gear we test and review here has to perform in some way (think: blenders making smoothies, air fryers crisping nuggets, or chefs knives mincing garlic and breaking down squash). But unless it's oddly shaped for artsy aesthetic purposes , flatware generally performs as intended.
Understanding that not everyone prefers the same things I do, I put together a shortlist that included a variety of styles, finishes, and price points then spent hours reading customer reviews because I didn't want to bother testing anything that had lots of honest seeming complaints regarding durability.
Finally, I ordered the sets that remained and used them at home for weeks, noting how they felt in my hand and how well they held up after many, many dishwasher cycles.
Stainless steel is an alloy (a metal made by combining multiple metallic elements) and you will typically find stainless steel flatware labeled as either 18/0 or 18/10. The 18 is the percentage of chromium in the alloy. Chromium hardens steel and it's also what makes it "stainless" because it helps prevent corrosion. The second number tells you whether or not the alloy also has 10% nickel—which can make stainless steel shinier and more corrosion resistant.
Why we don't recommend gold flatware
I know, I know. Gold flatware looks so cute on your table—especially around the holidays—but that faux gold finish isn't practical. No matter how well you treat it, the "gold" will wear away with everyday use. A polished gold will last longer than a matte gold, and handwashing exclusively can extend its glow too, but unless you have a cool $200K to drop on a set of flatware and serving utensils made with actual gold , your gold flatware won't stay gold forever. The same is true for matte black and other trendy metallic finishes.
That said, if you really want gold or black silverware for dinner parties or other special occasions , Cambridge ( a Lenox brand ) has 20-piece flatware sets available in black , gold , copper , and champagne finishes. Yes, the product description says it's dishwasher safe, but if you buy it, you should definitely plan to hand-wash it because again, if you don't it won't stay gold for long.
