1. OLFA Rotary Circle Cutter
The OLFA Rotary Circle Cutter is the best circle cutter for fabrics, paper, denim, foam, felt, fleece, and any other thin material. It cuts perfect circles from 1.5 to 8.75 inches in diameter. This tool is not suited for wood, metals, and other hard thick materials.
Why do you need the Best Circle Cutter?
If you are into arts, crafts, woodwork, or do-it-yourself tasks, chances are you will need the best circle cutter. These devices make it easy for you to cut perfect circles anywhere on your crafting or work material. They are great for making buttons, scrapbooks, and cards, and drilling holes in wood and metal. Circle cutters usually have a diameter range that allows you to cut circles from as low as 0.5 inches to 12 inches or more.
Not all circle cutters are created equal. They are generally divided into two categories: one for fabrics and paper and another for wood and metals. These two have very different mechanisms of operation. A circle cutter for fabrics and paper uses a blade and can be operated by hand. On the other hand, the best circle cutter for wood and metals uses a combination of drills and blades. It also requires you to use a drill press, which is a tool you attach to the cutter that will automatically spin the circle cutter around at high speeds.
The most important thing to look for is the quality of the blade, regardless of what type of circle cutter you have. After all, it works by using a metal blade to cut through fabrics and paper. You can get away with using a cheap blade if you are only cutting paper. However, if you end up cutting fabrics and other harder materials, you better make sure you have a quality blade.
Next, you need to consider the versatility of the circle cutter. You need to examine the cut radius ranges and the increment increases and compare that to your work needs. In other words, if you need large circles, be sure to get a circle cutter that can cut with a rather large radius.
Finally, you should look at some of the features and details of the circle cutter. Can it cut clockwise and counterclockwise? Does it have a double-sided blade? Does it have easy-to-read measurements? These are all questions you should ask yourself before buying. Also please make sure the circle cutter is easy to grip and that it doesn’t slide around.
What is the Best Circle Cutter?
- OLFA Rotary Circle Cutter
- General Tools 4 Inch Circle Cutter
- Martha Stewart Crafts Large Circle Cutter
- EK Tools Scissor Pro Circle Cutter
- Fiskars Fabric Circle Cutter
1. OLFA Rotary Circle Cutter
If you want the best circle cutter for fabrics and paper, the OLFA Rotary Circle Cutter is the way to go. It allows you to effortlessly cut perfect circles from 1.5 to 8.75 inches. Perhaps the biggest selling point is the 18mm rotary blade, which is extremely sharp and accurate. It slices through materials smoothly without creating unnecessary roughness around the edges. This blade cuts through just about most thin materials including foam, fabrics, denim, felt, fleece, and paper. Be sure to place your material on top of a cutting mat if you don’t want to damage your table.
Another cool feature is that the OLFA circle cutter works great for both left and right-handers. It has a cool ratchet handle that is ambidextrous and aligns with your hands and wrist, reducing wrist fatigue as well. To cut, you must use a clockwise motion. Unfortunately, it doesn’t exactly work counterclockwise.
The biggest thing that annoys us about this circle cutter is the fact that it makes a small pin indentation in the center of the circle, where you drop the needle. It is a small one, but it may be noticeable on paper. Other than that, it works like a charm. It has a built-in blade cover and plastic pivot spike guard to protect it when you are not using it.
2. General Tools 4 Inch Circle Cutter
If you are looking for the best circle cutter for wood, metal, and other hard materials, the General Tools 4” Circle Cutter is a great choice. This round shank circle cutter can be used to cut circles in anything from sheet metal to copper, aluminum, plastic, wood, and other composition materials. Please keep in mind that this is NOT a circle cutter for paper and fabrics and absolutely will not work. The General Tools Circle Cutter is for drill press use only.
It is a professional-grade tool with an extremely sharp and durable blade and drill. It mounts to a drill press and spins at a maximum safe speed of 500 RPM. This blade can be adjusted to accommodate the thickness of the material you are cutting. It goes from 7/8 of an inch to 4 inches in diameter. You can make all these adjustments with a hex wrench, which is luckily included. Both the 1/4-inch pilot drill and cutting blades are replaceable. The shank is 3/8 inch round.
All in all, this is a great round-shank circle cutter for making smooth cuts in wood and metals. It is important to limit your drill press to at most 500 RPM before using it. Be sure to plan ahead with this tool as you’ll need to subtract the width of the blade to cut out your perfect circle.
3. Martha Stewart Crafts Large Circle Cutter
The Martha Stewart Crafts is the best circle cutter for fabrics and paper if you want large circles. This circle cutter cuts perfect circles from 4 to 12 inches in diameter and it goes in 1/8 inch increments. It is designed for thin materials and paper, so please don’t try to use this on wood, plastic, or metals. The toughest material it can cut through is probably denim or poster board paper.
One of the things we like about the Martha Stewart Crafts is that it has a double-sided blade to allows you to cut both clockwise and counterclockwise. This is great to make sure your circle comes out nice and smooth every time. We highly recommend that you use a cutting mat with this to make sure you don’t damage anything.
We also like the ergonomics of the Martha Stewart Crafts. It is equipped with soft grip handles and a shuttle, which help you get a lot of control over your cuts. The measurement markings are also very easy and intuitive to read. And best of all, it doesn’t leave a small hole in the middle of your circle like some other circle cutters. It also comes with 3 replacement blades as a backup plan. Our only complaint is that the blade quality is a little cheap and it is hard to remove it to install another. However, with 3 backup blades, we think we can live with this issue.
4. EK Tools Scissor Pro Circle Cutter
If you want to cut small and precise circles on paper, the EK tools scissor pro is the best circle cutter for you. This particular model is designed to cut circles from 1 to 6 inches in diameter. It also goes in 1/16-inch increments, which is much more detailed than most circle cutters we have seen. It is designed to specifically cut paper, although you can certainly cut circles in other materials such as fabrics.
The best feature of this circle cutter is probably the level of precision. It has crosshairs, which help you align it properly. Other circle cutters lack this level of detail and precision. We also found no issues with the blade moving out of position while you are cutting. It can be held steady without moving when you are cutting.
Finally, we like how it doesn’t make a hole in the center of your circle. The EK tools scissor pro really takes all the annoying nuances of its competitors and fixes them. Although the blade is not the sharpest and breaks down easily, it does come with 3 replacement blades.
5. Fiskars Fabric Circle Cutter
The Fiskars Fabric Circle Cutter is the best circle cutter for fabrics. It is specifically designed to cut circles in fabrics of all types from 2 to 12 inches in diameter. We like the setup of this circle cutter in that the cut paths are already traced out for you. It has a semi-fold design that has increments of 1 inch. This setup prevents you from twisting and reaching and eliminates pinholes and tracing. With the Fiskars Fabric Circle Cutter, you can easily secure the fabric being cut so that it doesn’t slide around when you are cutting.
All you have to do to operate this device is to press down to engage the blade. Then you just have to run the blade along the track to get your circle. With this tool, you no long get rough edges, bumps, or even holes in the middle. You can also use this on felt, denim, and paper. While we recommend you use this or any circle cutter on a self-healing cutting mat, it is not a requirement.
