Beard Brush or Beard Comb: What's best for your beard?

Beard care should start with a brush or a comb made from the finest quality all natural materials. Using a brush or comb – or both - optimizes blood circulation by massaging the hair follicles, giving your beard a healthy foundation with stimulated growth properties. Of course, it also straightens and strengthens your beard, improving both texture and appearance, and as part of your daily routine brushing and combing should not be neglected.  

These simple but vital tools will untangle the hair avoiding the dreaded beard-tug, and help to lay it in the desired direction. Providing you choose the right equipment they can only be an asset to your beard wardrobe, but to be so beneficial you need to consider carefully your choice of tool to purchase.

So here we’ll answer the questions you should be asking to untangle the conundrum of what you need. We’ll look at the differences between brushes and combs, consider what might be right for you, and learn more about the many aspects of their uses.

Beard Brush or Beard Comb?

Maintaining both the health and appearance of your facial hair is worth every effort, from the beginnings of new beard growth to the longest, thickest mane. Establishing a daily routine to tame rebellious hairs using grooming accessories is vital to keep them in the best possible order. But what should you use: a brush or a comb?

The answer is that different styles of beard need different tools which should do the job you require of them and make your beard ‘feel right’. If you have a brush or comb that tries to pull out the hairs, dump it in the trash right now! There is no explicit answer as to whether you should use a brush or a comb, and actually a combination of both tools may suit your beard better than just one on its own. For example, long, thick manes will benefit from a robust workout using a natural bristle brush, stimulating the roots and untangling the long hairs, followed by the calming effects of a long-toothed comb to tame and smooth those whiskers into a smart and neat impression.

So let’s look at the benefits of each, and what they are best suited for.

Beard Brushes

Suitable for any type of beard, brushes fabricated from natural materials help to invigorate the skin, clean the hair of debris, and stimulate growth. They also encourage the production of sebum oil; a welcome addition to the hearty beard. New beards can especially benefit from a natural boar bristle massage, enhancing exfoliation and stimulating blood circulation. These properties make a great foundation for whatever style of beard you’re aiming for. If you feel itchy and in need of a good scratch, make sure there are no other issues that need to be addressed (see our Itchy Beard article for help). Use our Boar Bristle Brush for a good massage to give your hair follicles a treat, getting rid of any dead skin at the same time. Massaging the face and straightening the hairs can only enhance the health of your beard providing you use good quality natural tools. Bad tools can easily lead to bad beard troubles! Our boar bristle brush is designed specifically with the beard in mind and is suitable for all beard types, with its massaging properties and the unique conditioning and cleansing benefits that boar bristles bring. They help to keep frizziness at bay and protect your hair from breakage by balancing your skin’s natural oil production, leaving a soft and full feel without seeming greasy.

Dense beards often need the help of a brush to untangle the hairs before using a comb for fine tuning. If your desire is to grow a big beard (or you already own one) we recommend combining the use of a good quality brush with Beard Oil or Beard Balm which will leave your luxuriant locks soft and stylish. Oil will soften the hairs and make them feel smooth and sumptuous; whereas balm will help you sculpt and shape them into the fashion of the style you are striving for. Dab the oil or balm onto the beard in several areas and use the brush to coat the hairs evenly. Brush the beard in the direction of growth to restore order, and remember: it’s better to use a very small amount of product and add more as necessary, than to overdose and be left with a clogged and messy facial feature! The product should be evenly and finely distributed throughout by the end of the exercise. After distribution, the balm-enhanced beard can be styled into the shape you require.

It’s always best to brush when the beard is dry, or when using balm or oil, regardless of the length and density of the hair.

Beard Combs

Wooden Beard Combs are great for thinner beards that don’t have a high density of hair, and for using on thicker beards after brushing to lay longer hairs down, helping to keep them straight and leaving a neat and manageable result. Combs will help to untangle without causing frizz (providing the hairs aren’t too knotted), and like the brush, can be used with beard oil to spread the product consistently throughout the hair. Combs should be used in your regular daily beard management routine, taking care to groom in the natural direction of growth to help stimulate blood supply and avoid damage such as split ends. However, if you tend to be a bit of a comb freak, try not to use it more than 3 – 4 times a day, otherwise you risk damaging the hair cuticles.

If you have a new beard you can start to use a comb as soon as the hairs are of a length that the teeth can divide and move through them. Train the hairs to grow in the direction of the style you’ve chosen using a natural fine toothed comb. Your new snazzy beard should be kept smart and well-groomed. For long beards with dense hair a comb with widely spaced teeth is best to help glide through without unfortunate tugs and snags.

However, there is no hard and fast rule for what comb will suit you best but you should choose one you feel comfortable with – something that feels right in your beard and in your hand. Here at Real Bearded Men we offer a choice of combs:

Our Sandalwood Comb, handcrafted from 100% jade sandalwood with an uncomplicated handle and sleek look. Sandalwood emits a rich woody scent which will retain its fragrance for decades. Its aroma promotes relaxation, and the wood itself can soothe skin, reduce signs of aging, plus its anti-inflammatory properties keep hair and skin smooth and soft. Each comb is unique and designed to fit easily in the hand. This comb is recommended for long, thick beard hair.

Our Ox Horn Comb is a sturdy fold-up tool which will not only to groom the hair but also massage the scalp, increasing beneficial blood circulation which in turn boosts growth. Its fine-toothed design makes it great for short beards and softer hair, and the natural amino acids and keratin within the horn composition keep your beard safe from static. Ox Horn Combs have been manufactured since the early 16th century, and were known for their supple texture and beneficial properties even in those early days.

The best time to comb your beard is immediately after washing or cleansing. If you sport a mustache, a great additive to combing is to use Wax to help the hairs lay and grow in the correct direction – great for some of the more opulent styles such as the Handlebar! Wax is best applied while your hair is still damp. Warm a little between your fingers and dab along the upper edges of your mustache. Use the fine toothed comb to disperse it down through the hair, making sure that it’s evenly spread. If you find you’ve used too much wax just comb the excess out.

Why Use Natural Products?

Combs made from manmade materials such as plastic are to be avoided at all costs! Why? For several reasons! They can cause a buildup of static which dries the hair and makes it frizz. And secondly each plastic tooth has an almost inconceivable sharp edge which tears the hair, causing split ends. A dry, frizzy beard with split ends is not the aim of any guy who wants a beard to be proud of!

However, natural materials give your hair optimum health benefits. Natural wood and horn gently massage and untangle without causing static, keeping your beard healthy, hydrated and soft.

To conclude, take the time to use the brush and comb to settle your beard hairs down into their natural growing direction, or to style into something more awesome! Always brush or comb before trimming to eliminate tufts and knots, and to bring the hairs to their natural length so that you can determine what needs to be trimmed – and what doesn’t.

Don’t forget that owning quality tools is a great start to your beard regime but it's not enough on their own to make that breathtaking, magnificent facial adornment of your dreams. Beard Oil and Beard Balm can help you create the style you desire while maintaining optimum health and care of the face, the quality of the individual hairs and the overall effect. Whether you choose a long or short style, whether your beard is a new acquisition or been residing on your face forever, you can find everything you need at Real Bearded Men.