Beard vs No Beard: Should You Grow One or Shave It?

Halloween eve, and the fog was thick on my bridge. A traveler came out of it with a lantern in one hand and a razor in the other. "Troll," he said, "No Shave November starts in two days. Do I shave now and start clean, or keep this scruff and see what happens?" I told him crossing costs a toll. He paid it with a question, which is cheating, but it was a good one.

Here's my answer, and yours. In the beard vs no beard fight, there's no winner for everybody. Grow one if your face likes the shape it gives you, your job allows it, and you'll spend five minutes a day on it. Stay clean shaven if your skin handles a razor well, your workplace wants a bare face, or you hate anything touching your lip. Not sure? Don't guess. Grow it for 30 days, then decide. A razor fixes a bad beard in ten minutes. Nothing fixes a beard you never tried.

Beard vs no beard: the short scorecard

I've watched a lot of faces cross this bridge. Here's how the two choices stack up on the things that matter day to day.

Notice the trap in that last row. Stubble is the worst of both. That's the toll every beard charges at the gate, and it's why so many travelers turn back.

Face shape and jawline

This is the big one, so look in a mirror and be honest with yourself.

• Round face or soft jaw: a beard that's shorter on the sides and a bit longer at the chin adds length and gives you an edge where there wasn't one. This is where beards earn their keep.
• Long or narrow face: keep the chin shorter and let the sides fill out. A long pointy beard makes a long face longer.
• Square face, strong jaw: you win either way. Clean shaven shows it off. A short boxed beard frames it.
• Weak chin or double chin: a beard is your friend. It draws a jawline where your neck and face blur together.

Patchy growth matters too. Patchy doesn't mean "shave." It means pick a style that works with what you've got. The patchy beard styles guide has options, and beard styles for men covers the rest.

Your job and the dress code

Some bridges have rules. Some workplaces do too.

Most offices are fine with a beard now, as long as it looks kept. Neckline clean, cheeks tidy, no crumbs. A few jobs are different. If you wear a tight-fitting respirator mask for work, many safety programs require a clean shave where the mask seals, because hair breaks the seal. Food service may ask for a beard net. Some uniformed jobs have their own grooming rules. Check before you grow, not after your boss checks for you.

Skin: razor bumps vs beard itch

Every face pays one toll or the other. Pick the one you can afford.

If shaving hurts

Curly or coarse hair cut close to the skin can curl back in and grow under the surface. That's razor bumps and ingrown hairs: red, sore, sometimes infected. If you shave every day and your neck looks like a gravel road, a beard may give your skin a break, because the hair isn't being cut at skin level anymore. More on that in our guide to ingrown beard hairs.

If growing itches

The other toll: two weeks of itch. New hairs have sharp, freshly cut tips, and the skin underneath can dry out. Most guys feel it from about week one to week three, then it calms down as the hair gets longer and softer. A few drops of beard oil on the skin each day helps a lot. The beard itch guide walks through it week by week.

One warning, and I'll only give it once. If you get a rash that spreads, bumps full of pus, or redness that hangs on for weeks under either a beard or a razor, see a dermatologist. That's not a toll. That's a problem.

Time and cost of upkeep

Travelers think beards are lazy. Wrong. A beard swaps one chore for a different one.

Clean shaven: shave most mornings, five to ten minutes. Blades, shaving cream, maybe aftershave.

Beard: wash it a few times a week with a beard wash instead of harsh hair shampoo, put on oil after the shower, comb it through. That's two or three minutes. Trim every week or two to keep the neckline and cheeks clean. You'll need a decent trimmer.

Here's what I use on my own. Yes, a troll uses beard oil. You try living under a damp bridge.

• The Troll Beard Oil. 1 oz, $18.99. Sandalwood Pipe, Refreshing Stream and Bright Spring Air. Fresh, not heavy. Made with castor, coconut, sweet almond, argan and jojoba oils plus fragrance oil. This is the one that gets you through the itchy weeks.
• The Troll Beard Balm. 2 oz tin, $23.99. Once you're past a month or so and the hair starts sticking out sideways, a little balm holds it down.
• The Barkeep Beard Oil. Same price, no added fragrance. If your skin is touchy or you'd rather wear cologne, take this one.

Sweet almond and argan come from tree nuts, so if you have a nut allergy, check with your doctor and patch test a drop on your jaw first. Want to see every scent? The full beard oil shelf is in one place, and there's beard wash for the washing part.

Should I grow a beard? Run the 30-day test

Here's my riddle. What do you lose by trying a beard for a month? Answer: a month of shaving. That's it.

1. Shave clean on day one. Everything starts even. It's also how most people kick off No Shave November, so you'll have company.
2. Don't trim the shape for four weeks. Tidy the neck if work demands it. Leave the rest alone. Hair grows at different speeds in different spots, and early trims make it look patchier.
3. Oil it daily from week one. Three to five drops, worked into the skin. This is what gets you through the itch.
4. Take a photo every Sunday. Same light, same angle. You won't see progress in the mirror. You'll see it in the photos.
5. Decide at day 30, not day 12. Weeks two and three are the ugliest. That's the beard awkward stage, and it's where most travelers turn around.

At day 30, look at the photos and ask three questions. Do I like my face more? Does my skin feel better or worse than when I shaved? Will I actually spend three minutes a day on it? Two yeses, keep it and get a proper trim. Two nos, shave it and stop wondering.

Beard or clean shaven: when to pick each

Still stuck on beard vs no beard? Find yourself in this list.

• Grow it if shaving gives you bumps, your jaw is soft, you like a rugged look and you don't mind a little daily care.
• Shave it if your job requires a mask seal, your growth is very sparse and you don't like any of the patchy styles, or anything on your lip drives you mad.
• Split the difference with short boxed stubble kept at a few millimeters. You get some shape without the full commitment. Keep it soft with oil, though, or the kissing row of that table comes back to bite you.

FAQ

One last thing

The traveler on my bridge? He kept the razor in his pocket. I saw him again at the end of November, beard full at the chin, a little thin on the cheeks, grinning like he'd found gold under my bridge. "Still deciding," he said. He wasn't. He'd paid the toll, and now he crosses for free.

Your beard, your story.

— The Troll

Keep reading in the Wizard's Library

• Surviving the beard awkward stage
• No Shave November: the beard guide
• Beard burn: what it is and how to stop it