Kershaw and Buck are two very big knife brands. They often make knives in the same price range, out of the same steel, and market to the same people. With all of these things in common, and Kershaw and Buck being competitors, it only makes sense to see which company makes better knives.
Here is the short answer:
Kershaw specializes in EDC knives in the budget category. Buck mainly makes knives in the mid-tier category. Kershaw will have more variety of knives to choose from compared to Buck and Kershaw uses better steel for the price. If you had to choose, Kershaw would probably be better.
With the short answer out of the way, we can look at which company makes better knives, why you would want one company over the other, and the best knives by each company.
Buck Knives
Buck Knives is a 4th generation knife company that makes knives of all categories but is mainly known for their fixed blade knives. Their fixed blades are primarily used for hunting but are good for all fixed blade knife uses. Buck makes knives in the budget to mid-tier knife range that are pretty average for their price range.
Kershaw Knives
Kershaw has been in business for over 40 years and when Pete Kershaw started the company, he mainly made knives for outdoorsmen. After gaining quite a bit of popularity, Pete branched out and started to make different kinds of knives. In the 1990s, Kershaw partnered with Kai Group and they soon would design a new era of knives and start to produce those knives and sell them to the public. Nowadays, Kershaw makes about every type of knife imaginable but mainly specializes in the budget EDC knife category.
Which company makes better knives?
Now we can go into an in-depth answer on which company makes better knives.
When it comes to steel, it depends on how expensive of a knife you are buying. If you are going to buy a less expensive knife then Kershaw will have better steel. However, if you are buying a knife in the mid-tier price range, Buck will have better steel.
Handle-wise, Kershaw uses materials like G-10 which is a handle material that is proven to have great durability. Buck uses materials like phenolic and stainless steel to make their handles. I have never found any problem with either of the handles so it doesn’t really matter what you choose.
When you would want one knife over the other
If you want a more modern folding knife for an affordable price, you will want to go with Kershaw. Kershaw has a wide variety of knives in the budget category. Kershaw knives will often have assisted opening knives with decent steel and all the modern features.
If you want a fixed blade knife in the upper mid-tier range, you will want to go with Buck. They make better fixed-blade knives than Kershaw and use better designs with their fixed blades.
Overall it really depends on what you want out of your knife. If you want a fixed blade, you will want to go with Buck. If you want a folding knife, you will want to go with Kershaw.
Our favorite knives by each company
With a more in-depth dive into each company and how they compare we can look at what the best knives are for each company
Buck Knives General 120
The General is a knife that is made for all general purposes that you use a fixed blade for. If you need a fixed blade that will work for any fixed blade task this is the knife for you. It has a thick, durable, 7 and 3/4-inch 420 HC blade and a black phenolic handle with a stainless steel pumble and a stainless steel hand guard.
Kershaw Clash
The Kershaw Clash is a great all-around EDC knife. It has assisted opening, a flicker, and an internal blade lock making it a great folding knife. It has a partially serrated 3-inch 8Cr13MoV blade that holds its edge very well and has proven to be very durable.
Conclusion
While both Kershaw and Buck make pretty good knives in either category, fixed or folding, if you want a fixed blade knife you are going to want to go with Buck. But if you want a folding knife you are going to want to go with Kershaw.