What Is a Multitool? A Funny But Practical Guide to EDC Tools, Pliers, and Prybars.
What Is a Multitool? A Funny But Practical Guide to EDC Tools, Pliers, and Prybars
Because the line between multitool and multifunction mystery object is thinner than your pocket clip.
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Let’s talk multitools.
We love them. We carry them. We drop them on our toes… well, I have… once… and we still carry them. But here’s a question that might cause a friendly argument over in your favourite EDC Facebook group: What actually qualifies as a multitool?
Is it just those plier-packed folding gadgets with 17 vaguely useful tools and one thing nobody knows the purpose of? Or, can a simple titanium prybar with a bottle opener count too?
Let’s dig in and try to define the elusive multitool with minimal gatekeeping and maximum pocket judgment.
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The Classic Multitool: Leatherman-Style EDC Tools
When most people hear “multitool,” their brain summons an image of a Leatherman: fold-out pliers at the core, with a lineup of screwdrivers, knife blades, files, saws, and possibly a fingernail sacrifice or two.
This is the gold standard for multitools. The real deal, do it all, belt clip clanking workhorse. It tightens bolts, pulls splinters, opens beers, and occasionally causes airport delays… not for me though!
Heavy? Yes. Overbuilt? Probably. Still useful? Absolutely.
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The Original Multitool: Swiss Army Knives
Before multitools were cool, the Swiss were cramming can openers, scissors, and tiny toothpicks into red plastic scales. The Victorinox and Wenger Swiss Army knives have been quietly solving problems in backpacks, glove compartments, and dad drawers for generations.
No pliers here, well, not as standard, unless you go for the mechanic for example… but we still call these multitools so, clearly, folding pliers aren’t required to join the ‘multitool’ club.
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Prybars and Pocket Widgets: Are They Multitools or Just… Tools?
Here’s where it gets spicy.
Say you’re carrying a minimalist EDC prybar. It doesn’t fold. It doesn’t have pliers. But it pries, scrapes, opens bottles, and maybe even fits a hex bit.
Is it a multitool? Technically, it might fit better under the label multifunction tool, a tool with multiple uses, but no moving parts. Sounds less sexy, right?
But in the EDC world, we blur those lines. If it lives in your pocket, solves more than one problem, and makes you feel smugly prepared, chances are people will still call it a multitool and they won’t be wrong.
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Multitool vs. Multifunction Tool: What’s the Difference?
It mostly comes down to:
• Multitool: Often folding, packed with functions, usually plier-based or knife-based. Think Leatherman, Gerber, SOG, Victorinox etc…
• Multifunction Tool: Usually a single solid piece. Think titanium prybars with bottle openers, or minimalist tools that double as bit holders, scrapers, or screwdrivers.
Both are useful. Both can live in your pocket. And honestly, both terms get used interchangeably in the real world, whether the gearheads like it or not.
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Is It Still EDC If It Doesn’t Have a Bottle Opener?
Short answer: Yes.
Real answer: Are you even trying… do you even EDC bro?
The bottle opener is the unofficial mascot of EDC tools. It’s the easiest way to prove that your gear is both useful and social. Whether you’re cracking a beer, a kombucha, or an artisanal bottle of pop with a handwritten label, being the person with a bottle opener is always a win… especially whilst the people around you are rummaging through that Dad Drawer I mentioned earlier and yours is to hand.
You might not need to saw through wood every day, but opening a cold one? That’s a real world test of utility.
So, of course, a multitool can be EDC without a bottle opener… but it might feel like a party without a packet of party rings.
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Types of Multitools: Pocket-Sized Problem Solvers
Let’s break it down like a gear taxonomy chart:
• Full-Size Multitools: Leatherman, SOG, Gerber. Folding pliers, loaded features, might poke you in the leg.
• Mini Multitools: Smaller, lighter, often keychain ready. Still surprisingly sharp and useful but still good at disappearing in couch cushions.
• Single-Piece Tools: Pries, pokes, opens, turns. No moving parts. Usually made of titanium or stainless steel.
• EDC Utility Tools: Carabiners with tools, key organisers with screwdrivers, multi-use gadgets you barely notice until you need them.
All of them solve more than one problem. All of them earn their keep. And all of them are, at their core, multitools.
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What Really Makes a Tool a Multitool?
Here’s Phil the philosopher’s take:
A multitool is anything that earns the space it takes up by doing more than one job.
It might fold. It might not. It might be high-end titanium or £10 from B&Q. Doesn’t matter. If it does more than one thing and makes your life a little easier, it qualifies.
If it opens your beer as well as your Amazon package?
It is a Multitool.
If it pulls nails and tightens bolts or screws?
It is a Multitool.
If it breaks the first time you use it?
That is not a multitool. That’s just regret.
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Final Thoughts (and a Bottle Opener Test)
Multitools aren’t just tools—they’re a mindset. They say, “I’m ready.” Ready to fix, tighten, open, cut, pry, or just stand around being overprepared in the best way possible.
Whether it folds like origami or is a single chunk of metal, if it solves multiple problems it’s earned the title, or at least in my book.
And if it opens a bottle at the end of the day?
Well then, it might just be perfect.
