Sometimes you just need a really small knife…
They’re typically easier to carry than a large knife, and for most everyday tasks they can get the job done very well…
Right now, two of the most popular small folding knives come from Spyderco (which is one of my favorite knife manufacturers)…
| Images | Products |
 | Spyderco Ladybug (Check Price And Reviews On Amazon!) |
 | Spyderco Dragonfly (Check Price And Reviews On Amazon!) |
And in this Spyderco Ladybug Vs Dragonfly comparison, we’re going to put these two knife designs up against each other in the following six categories…
- Blade Steel And Materials
- Blade Shape And Handle Design
- Locking Mechanism
- Size And Dimensions
- Pocket Clip And Carry Position
- Price Comparison
In the end, I’ll tell you which knife I think comes out on top (which one I prefer), and you should have all the information you need to determine which is the right knife for you…
Let’s get to it!
Blade Steel And Materials…
Spyderco Ladybug
The Spyderco Ladybug is an extremely compact knife. But even though it’s a small knife, I’m happy to say that Spyderco didn’t skimp on the quality level of the materials…
For example, the blade steel used on the Ladybug is VG-10 which is a pretty high quality steel. It originated in Japan and was first marketed as a material for Japanese Chef’s knives…
Eventually, folding knife manufacturers saw its potential, and started making designs using it. Personally, I like VG-10 because it’s strong, it resists corrosion well, and it maintains an edge pretty well…
It’s also pretty easy to sharpen. So I think it was a good choice by Spyderco to go with VG-10 in this design…
Now the handle on the Ladybug is made from fiberglass reinforced nylon or FRN. I really like FRN because it’s impact resistant, strong, and very lightweight…
It also feels great in your hand, and gives you a good purchase on the knife when you’re using it to cut.
Spyderco Dragonfly
The Spyderco Dragonfly is also a small knife design, and again, Spyderco (wisely) chose to include very high-quality materials…
It uses the same VG-10 blade steel that Ladybug uses, which again, is a great steel because it is highly rust resistant and maintains an edge well…
And the handle on the Dragonfly is also fiberglass reinforced nylon (FRN) which, again, is a strong handle material, but at the same time it’s extremely lightweight…
All in all, I’m very impressed by the VG-10 blade steel and the FRN handle material that Spyderco uses on both the Ladybug and the Dragonfly.
Blade Shape And Handle Design…
Spyderco Ladybug
Like I mentioned before, the Ladybug is a small knife, and it has a very small blade. That being said, the blade shape is essentially a drop point with the traditional Spyderco styling…
It has kind of a leaf-like shape and has a hollow grind (though some versions have a full flat grind), which means you can get it extremely sharp. It comes with either a Plain Edge or the SpyderEdge which is Spyderco’s version of a serrated blade…
Personally, I like to go with plain edges on my knives because it just makes them easier to sharpen, but I like that Spyderco offers this design withe Spyder Edge for those that want serrations…
In addition to that, Spyderco offers the Ladybug with a Hawkbill blade as well, and I really like all the blade options available for this design…
The Ladybug also features the traditional Spyderco deployment hole which allows you to open the knife very easily with one hand…
And there is jimping on the spine to help give you more control over the blade when you’re making fine cuts…
Now like I mentioned before, the handle on the Ladybug is made from fiberglass reinforced nylon, and it has bi-drectional texturing. Even though it’s small, it’s a very comfortable and ergonomic handle…
It features a lanyard hole that you can use to attach the knife to your keychain, and overall, the handle texturing really locks the knife in when you’ve got it in hand…
Last, the Ladybug comes in a number of different handle materials such as Blue, Purple, Yellow, British Racing Green, Black, and others…
I’ve always liked when knife companies offer a variety of different colors because it means you can pick out a knife that fits your personality and style.
Spyderco Dragonfly
The Dragonfly is basically a smaller version of the famous Spyderco Delica, so it has a blade shape that is similar, but of course, it’s scaled-down…
Like the Ladybug, the Dragonfly’s blade is basically a drop point with the classic Spyderco lines and styling…
That being said, it’s a little bit larger than the blade on the Ladybug, and it’s also more rounded and broad. Instead of a hollow grind like the Ladybug, the Dragonfly has a high-performance full flat grind…
I really like the full flat grind because it allows you to get the knife very sharp (even though it is razor sharp out of the box), and it makes the knife a greater cutter, slicer, and dicer…
You can get the Dragonfly with a Plain Edge or a Spyder Edge if you want serrations on your blade, and it comes in versions with an Emerson blade, a Hawkbill blade, and a Wharncliffe blade…
Personally, I prefer the standard Dragonfly blade with a Plain Edge, but I think the Emerson blade and the Wharncliffe are really cool options too…
The Dragonfly also features the traditional Spyderco deployment hole, which allows you to open the knife easily with one hand, and there is jimping on the spine and finger choil to allow you more control over the blade when making precise cuts…
Once again, the handle on the Dragonfly is made from fiberglass reinforced nylon, and it has bi-directional texturing…
Because it’s a little larger than the handle on the Ladybug, it’s more comfortable in your hand and you can really get a good purchase on the knife…
Last, the handle on the Dragonfly also comes in several different colors such as yellow, black, orange, green, gray, and others…
And, like I said, I like the variety of colors that Spyderco offers this knife in because you’ll probably be able to find it in a color that matches your particular taste.
Locking Mechanism…
Both the Ladybug and the Dragonfly use the Back Lock locking mechanism. The back lock system incorporates a pivoting arm with a lug on it that engages a notch that’s located on the tang of the blade…
It’s a very common locking mechanism in folding knives, and it does a good job of keeping the blade locked out securely when the blade is fully deployed.
All in all, the Back Lock is a simple locking system, and I think it does a good job of securing the blade on both of these knife designs.
Size And Dimensions…
Spyderco Ladybug
Both the Ladybug and the Dragonfly are small knives (along with the Manbug) that fall into the family of knives that includes the Endura and the Delica…
The dimensions on the Ladybug can vary depending on the particular version you get, but on most versions the blade is 1.93 inches long and the handle is 2.45 inches long…
That brings the overall length on most versions of the Ladybug to just 4.38 inches when the blade is fully deployed.
In addition to that, the Ladybug only weighs around 0.6 ounces. So it is an extremely compact knife overall.
Spyderco Dragonfly
As I mentioned earlier, the Dragonfly is also a very compact knife. It also has different versions which can change the dimensions, but on most versions, the blade is 2.28 inches long, and the handle is 3.33 inches long…
That brings the overall length to 5.61 inches on most versions of the Dragonfly when the blade is fully locked out. In addition to that, the Dragonfly weighs in at around 1.2 ounces…
So when we compare the two knives, the Dragonfly is around 1.23 inches longer than the Ladybug when both of their blades are fully deployed, and it’s about twice as heavy as well.
Pocket Clip And Carry Position…
Spyderco Ladybug
Because of it’s super small size, the Ladybug is designed without a pocket clip. Like I mentioned before, it has a large lanyard hole on the handle rather than a clip…
The hole on the handle is designed to allow you to loop the Ladybug onto your keychain or to loop a line of paracord through it.
This is probably a different kind of carry than you’re used to, but it allows you to carry the knife very discreetly because it will be entirely covered in your pocket (along with your keys).
The negative is that, you’ll probably have to fish out your entire keychain, just to be able to access your knife.
Spyderco Dragonfly
Unlike the Ladybug, the Dragonfly does come with a wire-type pocket clip. It only allows you to carry tip up, but it can be swapped to either side of the knife, so you can optimize it for left-handed or right-handed carry…
Personally, I prefer tip down carry, but I’m ok with tip up carry when I like the knife design (which is the case with the Dragonfly)…
Now the knife does stick up a little bit when clipped into your pocket, so it doesn’t entirely disappear. But it sits fairly low, and I think it’s pretty comfortable and easy to get to.
Price Comparison…
Unfortunately, I won’t be able to give you exact numbers in this category because the prices on these knives are known to change all the time…
That being said, in general, you can usually find the Ladybug for around 23 to 25 dollars less expensive than the Dragonfly…
Even though both of these knives are pretty small, the Ladybug is clearly smaller, and it makes sense that it’s typically going to be the less expensive option.
Spyderco Ladybug Vs Dragonfly – Final Thoughts…
So in the end, in the Blade Steel And Materials category, both the Ladybug and the Dragonfly use VG-10 steel which resists rust well and maintains a fine edge…
And they both use fiberglass reinforced nylon (FRN) as their handle materials, which is strong and lightweight…
In the Blade Shape And Handle Design category, the Ladybug has a hollow ground blade whereas the Dragonfly has a full flat ground blade, which I prefer…
In addition to that, their handles are similar, but because the Dragonfly’s handle is a little bit bigger, I think it’s more comfortable…
In the Locking Mechanism category, both knives utilize the Back Lock locking mechanism, which does a good job of securing both blades…
In the Size And Dimensions category, the Dragonfly is around 1.23 inches longer than the Ladybug when both of their blades are deployed, and it’s around twice the weight as well…
In the Pocket Clip And Carry Position category, the Ladybug has no clip and is designed to be able to loop right on to your keychain. However, the Dragonfly has a wireclip that sets you up for tip up carry…
And last, in the Price Comparison, the Ladybug is usually around 23 to 25 dollars less expensive than the Dragonfly…
So which of these knives do I prefer? I prefer the Dragonfly…
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I prefer the Dragonfly for a few reasons. First of all, I like that it has a larger handle than the Ladybug because it’s just more comfortable when you’re holding the knife…
I also prefer the full flat grind on the Dragonfly’s blade because it makes the knife a fantastic cutter, and I think it looks really sleek…
Last, I like that the Dragonfly has a pocket clip because I prefer clipping knives into my pocket over attaching them to my keys…
For me, it’s a more comfortable way to carry, and you don’t have a bulky keychain moving around in your pocket.
Now if you want to save a few bucks, and you don’t mind not having a pocket clip for carry, then feel free to go with the Ladybug because it’s still a great knife…
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Either way, I hope I was able to show you the major similarities and differences between these two awesome little knives from Spyderco.