What’s the best razor for coarse facial hair that gives you the best shave without the associated pain to both your skin and wallet? With so many razor blade options to choose from it can be difficult to make an informed decision when you have coarse facial hair.
Choose a razor that meets your budget that comes with a pivoting head. A single, double or triple blade will suffice. Find a product with at least one lubricating strip with an additive like Aloe Vera or Vitamin E. The better quality blades also have soft microfins that help to hold the facial hair taut to give a better shave. A Double Edge (DE) blade is an option if you suffer from ingrown hairs and don’t mind paying more up front for the handle. The best razor for coarse facial hair won’t bruise your wallet and gives you a clean, close shave for your type of thick hair. Going cheap will result in more difficult and painful shaves as well as increased likelihood of cuts, ingrown hairs and irritated skin.
Best Disposable Shavers For Coarse Hair
The BIC Sensitive Shaver single disposable razor is what many of us used when we first started shaving because they were cheap and easy to find. It’s not the only game in town though.
Here are 4 choices to consider with different blade options for different budgets:
Single Razor Blade: Generic Brand
Depending on where you live, you undoubtedly have access at local stores to generic single blade razors if you want a cheap option. Be careful not to go too cheap as your skin will pay for it. I’d avoid the cheapest brands that don’t at least have a lubricating strip. You can do better.
And if you are able to spend a bit more up front on a nice handle, consider a Double Edge (DE) razor blade…
Best Double Edge (DE) Razor Blade: Merkur Double Edge Razor Blades
A DE blade is a single razor blade with two sharp edges both of which can be used for shaving. DE blades fit into a handle that you also must purchase and can be expensive. Merkur is widely regarded as making one of the best if not the best double edge razors. They come in both non-adjustable and adjustable types. The adjustable version enables you to turn the razor to adjust the angle and exposure of the blade as you like.
A benefit of DE blades is that men tend to notice fewer if any ingrown hairs due to the blade design. DE blades cut the hair at skin level rather than lifting and cutting the hair below the skin like many 2+ blade razors do. This can lead to ingrown hairs for many men, particularly men with very curly facial hair.
So if ingrown hairs are an issue for you, you may benefit from a DE blade.
One downside of a DE razor is the up front cost of the handle. They can cost anywhere from $20-$60 on average depending on the brand. Having said that, replacement blades tend to be cheaper on average than disposable blades.
These DE blades are higher quality than the 2 twin blade disposables we’ll discuss below if you don’t want to spend the money up front on a more expensive DE blade handle.
Twin Razor Blade Disposable: Gillette Sensor2 and Sensor2 Plus Disposables
If you really want a twin blade disposable, your options are limited for brand name products but generic options abound.
I used Gillette Sensor2 and Sensor2 Plus brands to shave my head and face back in the day. They’re not as good as the Gillette Sensor Excel that I also used in the past (see below) but they work better than cheap single blades with no lubricating strip. They come with a pivoting head and soft handle which the BIC cheap brand doesn’t have. Having said that, I wouldn’t use these Gillette products as they’re hard to find and expensive as a result.
If you simply want a disposable twin blade, find a decent generic brand you have access to locally.
It’s increasingly difficult to find brand name twin blade razors form the big manufacturers like Gillette, Schick. They now concentrate on the higher end and more expensive 3-5 blade razors. The lower end market in some respects is now the domain of generic brands.
Gillette discontinued their 2-blade Sensor Excel product awhile back. I bought that razor for years! You can still find razor replacements but they no longer sell sell the handle that you also need.
There are plenty of decent generic brand twin blades with a lubricating strip that give nice shaves. In fact, I use one such generic blade myself for shaving both my face and head. I don’t even know the brand name but it works for me and I don’t spend too much on it! You can read more about that here.
Triple Blade: Gillette Mach3
The Mach 3 has 3 stainless steel blades, soft microfins to gently stretch and smooth skin before shaving and a lubricating strip to smoothe skin after shaving. I find them easy to rinse and the blades don’t get clogged with shaved hair.
Best Electric Shavers For Coarse Hair
The best razor for coarse facial hair might actually be an electric shaver for you. You can get a wet shaver to use in the shower to keep your skin wet and lubricated while shaving. Something to consider.
Previous electric shaver models came with replaceable lubricant packs. You manually squeezed lubricant on your skin while shaving to keep your skin moist and avoid excessive friction. I had a shaver with lubricant but the cost of the small lubricant packs was excessive in my opinion. The lubricant dispenser broke and I simply had a regular electric shaver again with no lubricant feature.
Now, you can simply buy wet/dry electric shavers that offer the option of using shaving cream instead.
Here are three popular and widely available electric shavers for coarse hair:
Braun Electric Shaver Series 9 9370cc/9290cc
This wet/dry electric foil shaver comes with a built-in precision trimmer and is rechargeable with up to one month of shaving advertised. It also comes with a cleaning and charging station and travel case. The wet/dry option enables shaving of wet and dry skin which is a must for coarse skin. The option to choose means you can decide what’s best for you.
Panasonic Arc4 Electric Shaver
This wet/dry electric shaver includes a pop-up beard trimmer and 4-blade foil cutting system. It includes a flexible pivoting head that adjusts to your skin contours. It can also be used as a wet/dry shaver with the same benefits as the Braun shaver mentioned above. Both the shaver’s stainless steel blades and foils are hypoallergenic to shave gently on sensitive skin. Comes with an LCD panel with digital display.
Philips Norelco Electric Shaver 6800
Another wet/dry shaver, this 3-head rotating shaver is showerproof and can be used with or without shaving cream. Multi-flexing heads move in 8 directions to adjust to your specific face and scalp shape. Expensive but it’s easy to operate and hold in your hands. Sleek shaving heads compared to older bulkier shaver models.
Why Do I Have Coarse Facial Hair?
Genetics and hormones.
Facial hair growth is largely determined by our genetics and hormones. If you have more hair follicles, you will tend to produce more hair which gives you a thicker, fuller beard. The hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT) further stimulates hair growth so the more DHT you have, the more likely you are to grow a full, thick beard.
Also, facial hair tends to be thicker and bristly than the hair on your head.
Plus, the darker your hair color, the fuller your facial hair appears. Lighter hair makes patchy beards more noticeable.
While the ability to grow facial hair is often seen as manly and masculine, men who can’t grow beards as well as they’d like aren’t necessarily suffering from a lack of testosterone. Most men who grow patchy or sparse beards don’t suffer from low testosterone. It’s their genetics and the ability of their hair follicles to deal with the affects of DHT which can promote hair growth.
The more frequently you shave, the easier it will be.
Don’t let your facial hair get too long as it’ll be harder to shave. I find after two days or not shaving my face, I really feel a difference and not in a good way. The shaver drags across the skin and hair in a harsher way. I don’t have overly coarse hair I don’t believe but I do feel more resistance if I skip a day shaving.
As far as shaving my head, I can easily shave every 2 days but once I get to the the third day, I notice it becomes more difficult to do.
More Blades = Better?
Not necessarily.
A quick history lesson….
The original straight razors (or a very early variation of them) date back to Ancient Egypt but by 1680, the first commercial versions were produced in the UK.
Gillette then patented and produced the original double edge (DE) razor with disposable cartridges.
Once their patent ran out, Gillette moved to 2 and eventually 3 blade razors. As competition increased, new features like pivoting heads, lubricating strips and battery-powered vibrating heads were added!
Schick’s 4-blade Quattro was released in 2004.
Gillette released its 5 blade Fusion razor two years later in 2006.
By 2012, South Korea’s Dorco manufactured the first 6-blade razor and then released their 7 blade razor.
Dorco shut down their US online website in 2019 and is now found on Amazon at a slightly higher price. And it was discovered that blades sold at Dollar Shave Club are actually rebranded Dorco razors, also at a higher price.
The Best Razor For Coarse Facial Hair
I heard a rock guitarist once say that guitarists don’t need a double neck guitar. They just want one.
Single, double and triple blades were the norm until 2004 and somehow men managed to get by with 1-3 blades up until that point in world history. It’s difficult to say if you need more blades or if you will notice an advantage over a razor with fewer blades.
In my experience, the cheapest disposable single blades with no lubricating strips or other features are to be avoided for shaving in general. I tried it a few times and generally cut my head and face more frequently so I don’t use them. They are outdated technology.
There are plenty of other cost effective options that are slightly more expensive. They will save you in the longer run in terms of cuts, abrasions, irritated skin and ingrown hairs.
I personally choose a:
- Razor blade product with a lubricating strip to help soothe the skin immediately before and/or after shaving.
- Razor with a pivoting head to adjust to the contours of your skin.
- Double or triple blade at most. I use a generic twin blade razor with lubricating strip and pivoting head currently and it works just fine for my face and head.
- Decent shaving cream. Cheap shaving cream from a pressurized can often has chemicals in them and don’t lubricate or moisturize well enough for some men with coarse beards. Consider shaving cream in a tube as these products are not under pressure. They often foam up better with more impressive lathering over their canned counterparts.
That’s all I look for in a shaver these days!
And all the major razor blade manufacturers sell various versions depending on where you live and what you have access to.
Conclusion
- The best razor for coarse facial hair suits your budget and also gives you a clean, close shave. It may be a manual razor or electric shaver.
- Coarse hair is caused by genetics and hormones. Not much you can do about it except how you deal with it.
- Don’t let your hair get too long. Shave regularly as the longer your hair gets the more difficult it will be on your skin.
- Have a warm shower first to moisten your hair and skin before shaving.
- Buy the best quality razor you can afford and that meets your budget. A decent double or triple blade should do the trick. It’s difficult to say if you’re really going to benefit from additional blades.
- The best razor for coarse facial hair with a single blade is a DE razor. I wouldn’t use a cheap disposable single blade again.
- Try different brands and products to see which one you like best. Some products may suit you better.
- A DE razor is a consideration if you get ingrown hairs.
- Get a decent shaving cream. Cheaper brands in a can often foam up well but once you apply them to your skin, they are actually full of air and aren’t particularly thick. Consider shaving cream from a tube if the canned products don’t work for you.