14 Best Bar Soap Brands For Men Reviewed

A quality bar of soap that has been designed for a man’s naturally rough skin should not only get you clean but also prevent any irritation.

But it goes further than that.

The best bar soap should be made from quality ingredients, have a scent (or lack thereof) that you prefer, moisturize your skin, develop a nice lather, and of course, give you the confidence you need when exiting the shower.

In this guide, you will quickly learn all the essential considerations when buying a new bar of soap, along with reviews of some of the most popular and emerging bar soaps currently available.

Best Soap for Men: Quick Picks

  • Dr. Squatch [Best Smelling] — There is no denying that Dr. Squatch knows how to make a great smelling bar of soap that still produces results.  The impressive lineup is second to none.
  • Duke Cannon [Longest-Lasting] — This ‘Big Ass Brick’ lives up to its name. The oversized bar will last you several weeks before needing to be restocked. Great if you shop by value.
  • Jack Black [Premium Upgrade] — If you like high-performing products that rely on only a few yet proven ingredients, then there is none better than Jack Black.  

The Best Bars of Soap for Men Reviewed

1. Dr. Squatch [Best Smelling]

dr squatch soap

A great-smelling and all-natural soap made for men.

Founded in 2013 and located in Los Angeles, CA, Dr. Squatch took the internet by storm with its viral ads of its flagship fragrance-packed and effective soap bars. Their bar soaps rely on a concentrated mixture of natural ingredients, including olive oil, coconut oil, shea butter, peppermint leaves, and many more.

While Pine Tar is their most popular bar of soap, Dr. Squatch also makes many others, including Fresh Falls, Bay Rum, Birchwood Breeze, and more. Most of their soaps contain exfoliation properties, which Dr. Squatch labels as grit, that’ll work hard to soften even the roughest of skin. While the 5oz bar of soap is affordable at $7.00 each, it does dissolve quickly. When testing our bar of soap, we found that it will last about ten showers before dissolving. Lastly, Dr. Squatch stands by the performance of their products and offers you a Sudisfaction Guarantee if you aren’t satisfied.

Features:

  • Subscribe and save program saves you $1 per bar.
  • Made in the USA.
  • Made from sustainably sourced ingredients.
  • 10+ different scents available.

Pros

  • Deep exfoliation makes your skin softer
  • Contains ingredients you can pronounce
  • Invigorating scent

Cons

  • A bit pricey

2. Duke Cannon Supply Co. Big Ass Brick of Soap [Long Lasting]

Duke Cannon Supply Co soap

This USA-made brick of soap lasts forever.

Founded in 2011by Ryan O’Connell, Duke Cannon is a premium men’s grooming brand quickly making its way into grooming regimens across the country. Their products are consistently well-reviewed by men while remaining affordable.

At three times the size of your standard bar of soap, the Big Ass Brick of Soap is in a class all of its own. While sure, the oversized bar may take some getting used to, once acclimated, you’ll be getting your body squeaky clean in no time.

Doing the cleaning, the Big Ass Brick of Soap relies on less than ten ingredients, making it among one of the cleanest ingredients labels on our list. Looking for a particular scent?  You’ll be happy to know that Duke Cannon makes the Big Ass Brick of Soap in over 20 unique scents, including Campfire, Fresh Cut Pine, Buffalo Trace, and more.

Features:

  • Made in the USA.
  • A portion of the proceeds supports U.S. Veterans.
  • Duke Cannon offers First Responder and Military discounts.
  • Not tested on animals.

Read the in-depth review.

Pros

  • Value is unmatched
  • A diverse line of scents to choose from
  • Supports several social initiatives

Cons

  • Almost too big to handle
  • Large size makes it not great for travel

3. Jack Black Performance Remedy Turbo Body Bar Scrubbing Soap [Premium Upgrade]

jack black soap

The exfoliating grit paired with the natural ingredients makes it a winner.

It’s easy to see why men have been trusting Jack Black since 2000; they make consistently great men’s grooming products that deliver results.

With a bright eucalyptus scent, the Jack Black Performance Remedy Turbo Body Bar Scrubbing Soap provides a fresh and invigorating start to your day.  Doing the hard work of getting you clean, Jack Black relies on lava rock to provide an exfoliating grit and then follows it up with ginkgo biloba leaf extract, shea butter, and murumuru seed butter leaving your skin nourished and soft. If you use a standard drugstore soap, we think you find this soap by Jack Black to be an instant upgrade that you’ll love working into your grooming regimen.

Features:

  • Made in the USA.
  • 6oz size is larger than most.
  • Compatible with all skin types, including sensitive skin.

Note: If you have hard water, you may find that the soap leaves a sticky or tacky finish.  If you don’t like tactile feedback when rinsing, consider this soap for only soft water use.

Pros

  • Contains high quality and natural moisturizes
  • Lava rock provides a gentle exfoliation grit
  • Large size provides better value

Cons

  • May cause a tacky feeling depending on the hardness of your water

4. Anthony Exfoliating & Cleansing Bar Soap

anthony bar of soap

Rich exfoliating grit and suitable for all skin types.

This bar of soap by Anthony effectively provides a deep cleanse to your skin.  Packed with large moisturizing jojoba oil spheres, coconut oil, and shea butter, it provides the necessary moisture and nourishment that your skin requires.

The new 5oz size is still larger than most soap bars, although still only half the size of the Duke Cannon Big Ass Brick of Soap.  For skin compatibility, this bar of soap by Anthony will work on all skin types. Lastly, this soap is expensive. However, at $20 for a single bar, it works well as a gift for you or someone else.

Features:

  • Made in the USA.
  • Dermatologist tested.
  • It does not contain parabens or phthalates.

Pros

  • Compatible with all skin types
  • Heavy exfoliating grit
  • It contains several moisturizing ingredients

Cons

  • The price is expensive considering its a bar of soap

5. Baxter of California Men’s Exfoliating Body Bar

Baxter of California Men’s Exfoliating Body Bar

A refreshing and masculine fragrance that’ll last you several weeks.

L’Oréal-owned Baxter of California makes an exfoliating and moisturizing body bar made explicitly for men.  Lathering into a refreshing and manly fragrance of cedarwood and oakmoss, it’s unique compared to other soaps on our list.

While the price is steep at $20, the bar is 7oz allowing it to last longer than most.  For context, a soap bar from Dove Men+Care is only 3.75oz.

Additionally, in this soap from Baxter of California, you’ll find the jojoba meal and crushed olive seed to give your skin a new lease on life.  Ideal for men with tough, cracked, or dry skin, this soap will help put moisture back where it belongs.

Features:

  • Suitable for all skin types.
  • You can use the soap daily.
  • Made in the USA.
  • Paraben-free.

Pros

  • Double the size of other soap bars
  • The refreshing and masculine fragrance is a crowd-pleaser

Cons

  • May cause irritation for men with sensitive skin

6. Marlowe No. 102 Men’s Body Scrub

A great value and all-natural bar soap.

Able to easily last a couple of weeks before replenishment, the Marlowe No. 102 Men’s Body Scrub is a perfect pick if you are on a budget.  The large 7oz bar of soap is packed with natural ingredients, including green tea, willow bark, and deep-sea algae, all of which contribute to overall skin health and reconstruction. In addition, this soap is rich in antioxidants and vitamins that empower your cells so that they remain elastic and youthful.

It’s a top contender when it comes to value.Ingredients List

7. Mistral Men’s Soap

mistral soap

Triple-milled soap is available in a variety of scents.

Mistral has a wide range of soaps that deliver some of the most intoxicatingly good fragrances currently available.  There is something for any man to enjoy, from a blend of bourbon and vanilla to a classic sandalwood fragrance.

Delivering the results, Mistral relies on a triple milling process that removes impurities to deliver a silk-like experience when washing.  Additionally, you can expect the bar of soap to last a week or two longer than most, especially given that it is 7.9oz in size.

Overall, Mistral is a solid pick if you like great scents and smooth results.Ingredients List

8. Triumph & Disaster Shearer’s Soap

An old-school soap bar that has a heavy exfoliating grit.

If you like one of those off-the-beaten-path types of soaps that have a nostalgia feel to it, then we think you’ll love the Triumph & Disaster Shearer’s Soap.  The glycerin-base enhances the humectant properties of the soap, allowing your skin to feel well moisturized.  Additionally, Triumph & Disaster adds poppy seeds to exfoliate the skin to provide a deeper cleaning.  This extra grit will leave you feeling fresh and rejuvenated after exiting the shower.Ingredients List

9. Oars + Alps Peppermint Charcoal Bar Soap

A unique blend of ingredients gives this soap a competitive edge.

Like their award-winning natural deodorant, Oars + Alps hits another homerun with their Peppermint Charcoal Bar Soap.  What makes this soap perform so well is its reliance on proven and effective ingredients, including activated charcoal, witch hazel, glycerin, volcanic sand, and more.  

By including activated charcoal, the Oars + Alps bar soap works well in removing excess oils, bacteria, and more from the skin’s surface.  While this bar soap is made for men of all skin types, we think those with oily skin will enjoy the advantages the most.  

Related: Oars + Alps ReviewIngredients List

10. Dove Men+Care Body & Face Bar

A good mass-produced soap that works well with hard water.

If you want a good bar of soap that you can pick up from your corner drugstore today, then go with the Dove Men+Care Body + Face bar.  Containing ¼ moisturizing cream, this nourishing soap won’t dry out your skin.  Unlike other all-natural soaps that cause soap scum, we found that this soap bar by Dove Men+Care works well for those with hard water.  Overall, it’s an affordable and effective soap that gets the job done.Ingredients List

11. Ursa Major Morning Mojo Bar Soap

Gender-neutral and made from a Certified-B corp.

Do you like buying products from companies that give back to the community?  Then you should move Vermont-based Ursa Major to the top of your consideration list.  This Certified B-Corp has put together a refreshing and gender-neutral soap that you’ll love to share with others.  The rich blend of ingredients, including peppermint, honey, sea fennel, shea butter, and more, has everything your skin craves.  Expect your skin to feel noticeably softer after a few uses.

Of course, given that this soap is all-natural, it is free of all the common hazardous ingredients found in many of the mass-produced soap bars, including SLS, SLES, artificial fragrances, and more.Ingredients List

12. Speick Bar Soap

Speick Bar Soap

An old-school soap bar that is made in Germany.

Before brands like Dr. Squatch and Duke Cannon were capturing the hearts of men, there was Speick.  This 85-year-old German brand has perfected the art of making soap.  Highly reviewed yet hard to find, this soap bar relies on many of the ingredients found in the trendy brands, including honey and beeswax.  

The soap delivers a pepper-like fragrance that’ll stand out (in a good way) amongst your grooming products.  Ingredients List

13. Beast Light Scrub Bar Soap

Beast Light Scrub Bar Soap

A good daily soap from an emerging brand that is all-natural.

While we fell in love with their Yawp body wash, the Beast Light Scrub Bar Soap is a toned-down cleanser that delivers tried-and-true results.  Delivering the moisturizing formula, you’ll see that Beast relies on sweet almond oil, olive fruit oil, castor seed oil, and a plethora of other natural ingredients.  The result is a bar that lathers nicely while leaving your skin feeling soft and moisturized. In addition, expect the soap to deliver a lovely light and fresh scent.Ingredients List

14. Malin + Goetz Bar Soap

Malin + Goetz Bar Soap

Unique fragrances and triple-milled.

The Malin + Goetz Bar Soap is a good choice if you like a slim ingredient list yet want designer-like results.  Available in several fragrances, including peppermint, rum, and lime, it is perhaps one of the most unique lineups on the market.

The 5oz Malin + Goetz Bar Soap has been triple-milled, making it feel softer on the skin while also providing great value. Ingredients List

15. Kiehl’s “Ultimate Man” Body Scrub

Deep exfoliation is suitable for all skin types.

Keihl’s consistently delivers quality-made products that perform exceptionally well. For example, this exfoliating bar soap by Kiehl’s works hard to lift even the most stubborn dirt from the skin’s surface.  Doing the heavy lifting, Kiehl’s relies on oatmeal, oat bran, pumice, and more.

While the $15 price is steep for a 7oz bar, it’s a good choice if you want a little treat for yourself.

Best Brands by Average Review Rating

Ever want to know which brand of soap is highest rated?  So did we!  

To answer this question, we analyzed 100+ different bars of soap from several online stores.  Then we combined all the different varieties down to the brand level.  Once we compiled this list, we could see which brands were well-rated and which ones were not.  

Here’s what we found out:

Interestingly, you’ll see a lot of brands that you wouldn’t expect on this list, along with a few you will.  For example, it’s no surprise that Oars + Alps bar soap is at the top of the list, as they did a good job in making a well-balanced product. 

More surprising however was the ranking of mass-produced brands such as Ivory, Zest, etc.  It just goes to show you that chasing trends isn’t nearly as important as delivering a bar of soap that just simply works.

Fun Fact

The non-profit organization Clean the World, has donated 50+ million bars of soap since 2009.

5 Tips When Buying a New Bar of Soap

1. Skin Type

Your skin type extends beyond just your face. Here’s a general categorization of each of the most common skin types that men have, along with a few pointers to keep in mind:

  • Dry Skin: When buying a bar of soap for dry skin, you want to find one packed full of natural oils or moisturizers that will complement the natural sebum oil your skin produces.  Try to steer clear of chemicals within bars of soaps that will cause unnecessary dryness or irritation.
  • Oily Skin: Men with oily skin should buy a bar of soap that contains natural or compatible ingredients that aren’t so heavily focused on the moisturizing aspects. The addition of either an Alpha-Hydroxy Acid (AHA – normally glycolic acid) or Beta-Hydroxy Acid (BHA – normally salicylic acid) will help to break down the natural oils that your skin is overproducing.
  • Combination Skin: A mixture of oily and dry skin, combination skin is the most challenging type to manage.  You may need to experiment a little here.  For starters, we recommend that you try a few different natural or organic bars of soap and see if the results are positive.  If not, then you might want to experiment with a bar of soap that contains AHA.  AHA is a fair bit milder than BHA and shouldn’t cause dryness of the skin.
  • Sensitive Skin: Go with a bar that has very few ingredients.  You don’t want harsh surfactants, detergents, fragrances, or preservatives in your soap.  pH-balanced or fragrant-free soaps are often the best here.  While natural soaps seem like an obvious choice, they often can cause allergic reactions.  The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently touched on this very topic here.  
  • Normal Skin: First, there is no “normal” skin type.  However, if you find that your skin isn’t oily, dry, nor sensitive, then feel free to try out various soaps and scents to your heart’s desire.
  • Other Skin Ailments:  Medicated bar soaps designed to treat skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, etc., should be selected with caution.  We strongly recommend that you seek medical advice from your family doctor or dermatologist before making a purchase.

Fun Fact

The term “soap opera” was first used in 1939.

2. Ingredients

A single bar of soap can contain a plethora of ingredients. Here are a few tips to help you navigate the ingredient label:

Natural Ingredients

  • Carrier Oils:  Several types exist, including jojoba, sweet almond, argan, and more.  These natural oils are commonly made from trees and nuts and have nourishing and moisturizing effects on the skin.  
  • Essential Oils: These are added to soap primarily for fragrance.  Some small companies may make medicinal claims regarding essential oils; however, these are hardly ever scientifically proven.
  • Glycerin: With moisture-retaining properties, glycerin will work to keep your skin feeling and looking healthy. In addition, glycerin bars of soap are often clear – making them easy to spot on the store shelf.

Chemicals

Whether it’s to deliver a manly scent or prevent the growth of harmful bacteria, chemicals contained within bars of soap are a fact of life. While some men work hard to nix chemicals from all aspects of their grooming regimen, it’s always important to do your research and formulate your own decision on what you do or don’t want in your bar of soap.  

Here are some of the more common chemicals found in soap:

Parabens: Parabens are a vital ingredient for large companies that distribute their products worldwide (i.e., Unilever, Proctor & Gamble, etc.). Parabens act as a preservative to prevent the growth of bacteria within the soap during shipping.

For their safety, the FDA states the following:

FDA scientists continue to review published studies on the safety of parabens. At this time, we do not have information showing that parabens, as they are used in cosmetics, have an effect on human health.https://www.fda.gov/cosmetics/cosmetic-ingredients/parabens-cosmetics

Hypoallergenic: Companies claim that hypoallergenic bars of soap will produce fewer allergic reactions than everyday products. However, the FDA states the following:

There are no Federal standards or definitions that govern the use of the term “hypoallergenic.” The term means whatever a particular company wants it to mean. Manufacturers of cosmetics labeled as hypoallergenic are not required to submit substantiation of their hypoallergenicity claims to FDA.https://www.fda.gov/cosmetics/cosmetics-labeling-claims/hypoallergenic-cosmetics

Fragrance/Perfume: This is an umbrella term for a collection of 3,000 chemicals, making it impossible for you to know what’s in the soap. Fragrance is considered a Trade Secret (source), and the ingredients contained within don’t need to be disclosed.

To prevent an allergic reaction, men with sensitive skin may want to consider a fragrance-free soap instead.

Pro Tip: Unscented soaps may still contain fragrance. Companies will add scents to unscented soap to neutralize the smell.

3. Specific Use or All-in-One Soaps?

Having a separate bar of soap for your body, face, hands, beard, etc., can become quite the hassle. However, all-in-one soaps tend to deliver subpar results than specific use soaps. So, if possible, avoid going with an all-in-one soap, especially between both face and body use.

4. Extras

Here are a few additional features that companies are adding to their soap bars:

  • Moisturizing: No matter your skin type, adding moisturizers to your bar of soap will almost always be a good thing.  Your skin is a natural and living organ and therefore should be treated as such. Moisturizing properties in a good bar of soap will help to make you look and feel better.
  • Exfoliating: This added grit to the soap bar effectively removes the dead skin cells and helps smooth out the skin.  However, don’t overdo it.  Excessive use of a gritty exfoliating soap may lead to mild dryness.
  • Toner: While not nearly as good as a dedicated toner, the inclusion of key ingredients, such as witch hazel, into the bar of soap can help even the appearance of splotches or dark spots on your skin.
  • Antibacterial: While many companies claim that antibacterial soaps help destroy bacteria or prevent illness, according to the FDA, there has been no scientific evidence to support those claims (source).  

5. Scent

From masculine notes of sandalwood or cedarwood to an invigorating peppermint or eucalyptus – the chances are that you can find a scent that you will love. If you wear a body spray or cologne regularly, consider selecting a complimentary scent. This will help prevent any clashing in your aroma.

Fun Fact

Bar soap was invented by the ancient Babylonians around 2800 B.C.

Bar Soap FAQs

As it stands at the time of publication, the currently recommended soaps based on the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology (AOCD), particularly for dry skin, are the following brands:

  • Dove
  • Olay
  • Basis
  • Cetaphil Skin Cleanser
  • CeraVe Hydrating Cleanser
  • Aquanil Cleanser

Are bar soaps unsanitary?

No. According to a 1965 study, scientists put this theory to the test by having one contaminated subject wash their hands with a bar of soap and then have a clean secondary subject use that same bar of soap – the result: no transfer of harmful bacterial.

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.

Ask a Question