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S90V is the stronger choice for resisting abrasive wear; S30V offers less abrasive wear resistance but a slight toughness advantage. For a pocket knife, this is mainly a question of how much you value longer slicing between sharpenings and what sharpening equipment you already use.
Performance Ratings
For the science, we turn to Dr. Larrin Thomas of Knife Steel Nerds, who has kindly allowed us to share his ratings here.
| Property | CPM S30V | CPM S90V |
|---|---|---|
| Abrasive edge retention | ||
| Toughness | ||
| Corrosion resistance |
Heat treatment, hardness and geometry affect actual knives.
What S90V Adds to a Slicing Knife
S90V rates 9 for abrasive edge retention, compared with S30V at 6. That is a meaningful separation in this framework, but not a promise of 50% more cutting. A thin, well-sharpened S30V blade can still cut better than a thick S90V blade.
If you spend much of the day breaking down cardboard, we would give S90V serious consideration. For opening mail and a few packages, the advantage may be less useful than a handle or blade shape you prefer. More wear resistance is worth paying for when you have enough abrasive cutting to use it.
For more on S30V, see our S30V steel profile.
The Toughness Difference Is Smaller
S30V rates 4 for toughness and S90V 3.5. We would not turn that half-point difference into a sweeping claim that S30V is a hard-use steel or S90V is fragile. Both still need an edge suited to the work.
If a blade regularly chips, changing the edge angle or avoiding twisting cuts may matter more than moving from S90V to S30V. Choose the knife around the task rather than treating the smaller toughness gap as insurance against damage.
For more on S90V, see our S90V steel profile.
Sharpening Is Part of the Decision
S90V’s high vanadium-carbide content contributes to its wear resistance. Diamond or cubic boron nitride (CBN) abrasives are useful for working on these hard carbides, especially when repairing an edge. They are also sensible choices for S30V. The ratings do not measure how many minutes sharpening will take.
Both steels score 7.5 for corrosion resistance, so this comparison does not give either a numerical rust-resistance advantage. Clean and dry the blade after wet or food-related use; neither score promises a maintenance-free knife.
When We Would Pay for S90V
For the same knife at a reasonable price difference, we would lean toward S90V for repeated abrasive slicing, provided you are comfortable maintaining it. S30V remains a sensible choice when the knife you want is available in it or the extra wear resistance would rarely be used.
We would not replace a satisfying S30V knife just because S90V has the larger number. First decide whether dulling is actually limiting your use. Our knife steel guide puts wear resistance alongside the other parts of that decision.
Composition
Our steel composition guide explains what the elements do and how to read these values.
CPM S30V: Reported composition from Larrin Thomas’s July 2026 table, mass %; not a producer specification or batch analysis. This source lists 0.2% nitrogen for S30V; Niagara’s datasheet does not list nitrogen. Knife Steel Nerds: stainless steel composition table (July 2026).
CPM S90V: Niagara typical composition, mass %; selected elements, not a batch analysis. Niagara Specialty Metals: CPM S90V.
| Element | CPM S30V | CPM S90V |
|---|---|---|
| Carbon (C) | 1.45% | 2.3% |
| Chromium (Cr) | 14% | 14% |
| Molybdenum (Mo) | 2% | 1% |
| Vanadium (V) | 4% | 9% |
| Nitrogen (N) | 0.2% | Not listed |
Compare Two Knife Steels
Sources and Update Notes
- Dr. Larrin Thomas: knife steel ratings · Property ratings; the scores describe steels rather than individual finished knives.
- S30V composition reference
- S90V composition reference
