Paul Chen Professional Multi-Tool Review: A $13 Oddball That Gets a Lot Right

Introduction

Some budget tools surprise you. This one surprised us enough that it earned a full write-up. The Paul Chen Professional Multi-Tool sells for around $12 to $13, yet it packs a combination of features that no major multi-tool brand currently offers in anything like this form. It is not perfect, and we will get to its one clear weakness, but for the price it is genuinely special.

What’s On the Outside

The headline feature here is a one-handed opening blade with a liner lock, and surprisingly there is no blade play at all, which is rare at this price point. On the opposite side you get a small slip-joint saw, and a file that doubles as a cross-cut and straight file with a sharpening groove. A pocket clip rounds out the outside, which is another touch you rarely see on budget multi-tools.

The frame itself is not the highest quality construction, and the packaging can be tricky: our sample opened slightly past the closed position after being pulled open while partially unfastened, though the scissors still worked fine afterwards. Your unit should arrive properly closed.

The Shears Are the Star

The real reason this tool exists is the pair of large, straight shears inside. These are no joke. They will cut through a live branch up to a certain size, and they are tougher than the scissors in pretty much any other multi-tool we have handled. They are Gerber-style in design, and straight blades mean material can occasionally slide out, but the cutting power remains impressive.

The weak point is the small spring-loaded plier on the outside. The metal is quite soft and the pliers are not particularly useful. If you plan to modify the tool, removing the plier head entirely would actually slim down the frame without losing anything you would miss.

What’s On the Inside

Like a Gerber, you have to open the front layer to access the inner tools. Here you get a can opener, a bottle opener with an integrated flathead driver that is very tight to open at first, and on the other side a full three-dimensional Phillips driver. Both are slip-joint in form but neither feels loose or half bad in use.

Who This Tool Makes Sense For

This is not a heavy-duty workhorse. The pliers are soft, and the frame is not in the same build-quality league as major brands. But the combination of a one-hand blade, a pocket clip, serious shears, and usable screwdrivers at this price is something we simply have not seen elsewhere. It was out of stock on Amazon for a while and has since returned.

Buying Advice

If you want a folding pruning-style multi-tool to throw into a gardening kit, this is one of the cooler options out there. The blade, pocket clip, screwdrivers, and shears all fit that use case well, and at $12 to $13 it is an easy experiment.

Some owners have even transplanted the shear assembly onto a stronger Gerber platform, which says a lot about how good the cutting head is compared to the rest of the package.

Conclusion

The Paul Chen Professional Multi-Tool is a cheap oddity that happens to be better than the competition in a few specific ways. Skip it if you need real pliers. Buy it if you want a unique, gardening-friendly multi-tool with unusually tough shears and a one-hand blade for the price of a lunch.