8 Benefits of Beard Combs: Style Like a Pro

According to several style experts, the beard fashion trend is here to stay—at least for now. And if you have decided to be part of this trend, you might as well take good care of your beard.

One of the ways to properly care for a beard is by using a beard comb. If you’re not yet convinced, we’ve listed below eight benefits of beard combs that will certainly make you change your mind.   

1. Keeps Your Mouth Clear of Facial Hair

A beard comb is handy for keeping facial hair brushed away from your mouth, particularly if you aren’t interested in eating your mustache all day between trimmings. It can also tame flyaway beard hairs for a more kempt appearance.

Aside from being a cleanliness issue when it comes to eating, having facial hair get in your mouth throughout the day can be plain annoying.

2. Prevents Ingrown Hairs

By keeping your beard brushed with a beard comb, you can prevent ingrown hairs. Ingrown hairs typically happen once the tip of a hair follicle has curled and started to grow into the skin. This hair gets curled up under the skin and creates an irritating bump that not only hurts on its own but can be further irritated while shaving, especially if it is nicked and cut.  

By combing out your beard hairs consistently, you reduce the risk of the individual hairs getting back under the skin and growing. 

3. Better Styling Control

Beard combs offer better control for styling and brushing your beard. This comes from the broader teeth, and the different materials beard combs are made of, where hair combs are typically plastic. Beard combs are widely available in many materials, like wood, plastic, metal, and even horns. These different materials can make styling easier by giving you more control. 

To keep your beard styled the way you prefer, try using a beard balm or mustache wax to help the style last longer.

4. Lines up Hairs for a Kempt Appearance

Brushing your beard with a beard comb keeps the hairs straight, meaning your beard looks nicer and more well-maintained. It can also help your beard look longer since the hairs are brushed straight. Having your hair straight is the key to maintaining a long beard without looking disheveled or untidy.

5. Keeps Your Beard Clean

Regularly using a beard comb keeps your beard clean, as it removes dander and food particles. Running the beard comb over your face can also help exfoliate, so those skin flakes fall off while you are grooming and can be easily removed rather than staying in your beard all day long.

Thanks to the small size of beard combs, they can fit easily into your pocket or wallet for midday touch-ups when you aren’t at home.

6. Distributes Natural Sebum Oil & Supplemental Oils from Beard Care Products

The skin beneath your beard produces oils naturally, and combing through the hairs on your beard can help to distribute these, as well as any additional oils provided by beard care products. Products like beard oil, beard balm, or beard butter keep your beard soft and hydrated as well as looking the best it can. Beard grooming kits, in particular, are a great place to start for daily beard maintenance if you aren’t sure what products or combs will work best for you. 

Wooden combs and horn combs are perfect for this since they are porous and can help distribute these oils evenly throughout your entire beard and each hair.

7. Detangles Stubborn Beard Knots

Using a beard comb, even infrequently, makes it easy to detangle stubborn knots in your beard. A beard comb is handy here because the teeth are spaced specifically for beard hair, and the handle is wider than a regular hair comb, meaning the comb is less likely to slip out of your hand while you are trying to comb through a particularly stubborn tangle.

Routine brushing with a bread comb can help prevent these knots in the first place, though they are sometimes unavoidable. Using a beard conditioner in tandem with a beard comb is the best way to detangle your beard.

8. Can Help to Tame a Beard Cowlick

Do you have a persistent cowlick in your beard? Or maybe part of your beard hair grows in the opposite way of the rest? Then, a beard comb is your number one tool to help straighten the stubborn hair out.

A beard comb, along with beard balm or beard butter, can help alter the direction that hairs grow. However, unfortunately, you can’t really train a cowlick away.

Common Questions

Does combing a beard help it grow?

First and foremost, combing a beard helps it look longer than it is. Aside from that, proper beard care and maintenance will keep your beard feeling and looking healthy and clean. However, a beard comb is unlikely to make a beard grow faster.

Are beard combs worth it?

Yes! Beard combs do so much to help your beard.  Combing out your beard will make it look neater and remove debris. As well, a good beard comb will spread the natural oil on your face throughout the beard, meaning your beard will be softer, and you will have less oil build-up under the facial hair, leading to fewer pimples.

Do beard combs smell?

As long as you keep your comb clean and maintain it the same way you maintain your beard, you won’t have a foul odor coming from your beard comb. However, some materials have a naturally pleasant aroma. For instance, plenty of wooden beard combs smell like sandalwood or cedarwood, occasionally even providing your beard with that lovely-smelling outdoorsy vibe.

Which comb is better for facial hair: plastic, horn, metal, or wooden combs?

A wooden comb is considered the best general comb for facial hair – it is porous to help evenly distribute oils, it has a beautiful natural smell, and is very versatile for many different beard types. 

  • Plastic: Often the cheapest material, making it the easiest to access. Unfortunately, plastic is also the easiest to break and the least effective at styling and spreading product. But plastic combs can be a useful comb to leave in your car or your bag since it will mainly be used to touch up an unruly or weather-afflicted beard and wouldn’t be used often.
  • Horn: Naturally softer and gets rid of static, so your beard already won’t be a frizzy mess after you brush it. They are also more durable than your average comb and help prevent split ends.
  • Metal: The most sturdy and long-lasting comb. However, metal combs usually aren’t super versatile and adaptable. So these combs are suitable for the man in your life that is exceptionally rough and breaks things often.

Why would I use a beard comb over a hair comb?  

The easy answer is because a beard comb is made for a beard. The most in-depth explanation is that a beard comb is better suited because the shape and style make it easier to hold and work better with beard care products.

Wrap Up

From preventing ingrown hairs to keeping the beard clean and detangling knots, beard combs have many benefits that you just can’t ignore. We’ve also answered some common questions about this topic so that you have all the information you need. If you weren’t before, we hope that you are now an enthusiast of beard combs. 

Adam Williams

As the lead editor of Tools of Men, Adam loves men's grooming products. Particularly of interest is managing facial hair and perfecting the art of the modern man's skincare routine. His work has been featured or quoted in several publications, including New York Magazine, Vice, Sharpologist, MIC, Elite Daily, and more. When Adam isn't working, he enjoys spending time with his two little kids who keep him both on his toes and young at heart.

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