No self-respecting beard game is complete without one of the best beard brushes. If you’ve been using any old hairbrush to tame your wires or just plain skipping the beard-brushing step in your routine, there are a few reasons you should reconsider.
If you’re using a hairbrush on your beard, you might be taming your hair, but you’re also transmitting whatever gunk was on your head into your beard. All that dirt, dead skin and sweat is going straight to the roots of your chin mane. That’s not good for your facial skin, and it’s certainly not conducive to a healthy, fresh-looking beard.
If you’re not brushing your beard at all, you’re missing out on an essential step of beard care. Without any products, just brushing your beard with one of the best beard brushes can help get flyaway, coarse beard hairs under control, help prepare your beard for combing or any other styling, and help clear out beard dandruff and the daily build-up of gunk. Brushing with a proper beard brush also helps exfoliate your beard skin, stimulate follicles and hair growth, and spread around the natural oils already in your beard, which is undoubtedly better than borrowing oils from your scalp. And if you do need some products for your beard, like beard oil, a brush will also help spread the oil around for even distribution and maximum impact.
If you’re still skeptical, keep this in mind too: You only have to buy the brush once, and it will elevate your beard game for the next decade, so it’s a solid investment in your grooming routine.
Related Stories
Given the importance of a good beard brush, we rounded up a few of the best beard brushes out there for your perusal. When it comes to picking the right beard brush, keep this breakdown in mind:
- Soft Bristles: Better for shorter, thinner beards
- Firm Bristles: Better for longer, thicker beards
- Medium-Strength Bristles: Decent for most beards, not great for all
There are two main types of bristles: boar bristles and synthetic bristles. Unless you’re allergic and require synthetic materials or feel strongly about the use of animal by-products (like we do), you might only be familiar with a boar bristle brush because boar bristles are the most common. At least, they used to be. However, if you’re increasingly interested in a cruelty-free option, we have listed excellent vegan beard brushes for you, including plant-based and synthetic options.
And if neither kind of brush strikes your fancy, we even found a soft horsehair brush, perfect for shorter beards and sensitive skin.
Our brush picks also vary in size and come in military-style or with handles, but ultimately those factors are less essential to the quality and more about personal preference. Yup, no matter which brush you go for, you’ll be getting one of the best beard brushes. And as a bonus, if you’re curious about beard oils (also essential to any beard care routine), we’ve included one of our top beard oil picks at the bottom too.
1. Kent MG3 Beard Brush
BEST OVERALL
British brush company Kent has been in the brush game for over 200 years. Founded in 1777, the world’s oldest brushmaker is literally one year younger than the United States of America. So given how long Kent’s been in business, it should come as no surprise that Kent makes some of the best beard brushes in the world.
What makes Kent’s brushes a step above the rest is the quality of materials. The company only uses the finest woods and buys bristles from the best bristle sellers around the world. The result is a thoughtfully made, well-considered, high-quality brush.
For those set on boar bristles only, we recommend Kent’s MG3 White Boar Bristle Brush. This beechwood brush with medium-strength white boar bristles is suited to all kinds of beards and will help remove dirt, promote hair growth and spread your beard’s natural hair oil. The bristles are cut more or less evenly, but each bundle of bristles varies in length to ensure no follicle goes unbrushed. The quality of craftsmanship in this brush should last you forever if you don’t abuse it.
2. G.B.S Military Style Beard Brush
BEST OVERALL VEGAN BRUSH
For an all-around great vegan beard brush, pick up the G.B.S Military Style Beard Brush. With reinforced medium-firm synthetic bristles and a durable wooden handle, this beard brush will go the distance, again and again, to tame, soften and style your beard. It’s easy to grip and maneuver, so you’ll have no trouble brushing shorter or longer beards.
3. Live Bearded Wooden Beard Comb and Brush
BEST MILITARY-STYLE BRUSH
So, unfortunately, this military-style beard brush is competing directly with our top pick. Still, if you’re not looking to spend more than $50 on a military-style brush, Live Bearded’s Wooden Beard Brush is a great alternative. Made from pearwood and black boar bristles and intended for all beard types, this brush will tidy up whatever issues you’re facing with your beard. It also has a notch in the wood for improved grip, and it’s a little bit smaller than the best overall beard brush, making it that much better for your pocket or toiletries bag.
4. Kent BRD2 Men’s Beard and Mustache Brush
BEST HANDLED BRUSH
If you’re more accustomed to a brush with a handle, we got you covered. Kent also makes a handled beard brush with the same features and attention to detail as our top pick. The brush itself is noticeably smaller than other beard brushes, which makes it better for finishing and final styling and suitable for mustaches. But the high-quality bristles and craftsmanship still keep it ideal for that initial thorough brushing if you need it for that, and it’ll still work to clean up any beard type, whether long or short. And if you’re on the go, it comes with a nice little travel bag, so whatever gets on your brush stays on your brush and off your clothes.
5. Golden Beards Vegan Beard Brush
BEST HANDLED VEGAN BRUSH
The Golden Beards Vegan Beard Brush is made in Germany and uses natural fibers from the agave lechuguilla in northern Mexico to make its bristles. They have a soft-to-medium bristle strength, so they’re suitable for most beards except the longest of beards. And even then, this beard brush will still probably get the job done.
6. ZilberHaar Regular Soft Bristle Beard Brush
BEST SOFT BRISTLE BRUSH
If you’ve got a shorter, thinner, less coarse beard and plan to keep it that way, you should probably go for a soft-bristle brush. The softer bristles will antagonize your skin a lot less, which you’re going to want because there’s less hair to brush through. We recommend the ZilberHaar Regular Beard Brush. It’s made in Germany with a pearwood handle and soft boar bristles in the brush, so you can work out your beard’s kinks without overly irritating your skin.
7. Peter’s Beard Beard Brush
BEST FOR SENSITIVE SKIN / BEST HORSE HAIR BRUSH
The Peter’s Beard Beard Brush is great for primarily one reason: Instead of using boar or synthetic bristles, this brush opts for softer horsehair. Though that means it doesn’t work very well for coarse and longer beards, the horsehair makes the brush much more suitable for sensitive skin and shorter beards. If you find most beard brush bristles too stiff for your skin, this is definitely the best beard brush for you.
8. Every Man Jack Beard Brush
BEST SOFT VEGAN BRUSH
The Every Man Jack Beard Brush is an excellent pick for those seeking softer vegan bristles. The square wooden handle may not be the most ergonomic, but it’s not like you need very much for five minutes of grooming, and you’ll still appreciate how soft the bristles are. If you can’t abide animal by-products in your brush and have a shorter beard, this beard brush will work great for you.
9. ZEUS Firm Bristle Beard Brush
BEST FIRM BRISTLE BRUSH
If you’ve got a thicker, longer, curlier or coarser beard, you’re going to want to go with a firm brush. If you’re brushing through thick beard hair, the bristles need to be more firm to pass through the hair to style, pick up dirt and exfoliate your skin. We recommend the ZEUS Boar Bristle Beard and Moustache Brush. ZEUS is a barbershop staple for its high-quality brushes and reasonable price point. The firm boar bristles in this pear wood-handled brush can move through even the most unruly beards so that you can get that unruly mess under control. The brush is also small enough to work as a mustache brush effectively.
10. Mountaineer Brand Cactus Bristle Military Style Beard Brush
BEST FIRM VEGAN BRUSH
The Mountaineer Brand Cactus Bristle Military Style Beard Brush is a great firm bristle vegan brush. The extra stiff cactus bristles will cause no problem handling long and coarse beards, and the beechwood handle feels durable and high-quality. If you’re looking for a stiff vegan brush that opts for natural instead of synthetic or animal bristles, this will be the best beard brush for you.
11. Grave Before Shave Beard Brush
AMAZON HIGHLY RATED
It’s always a good idea to see which products reviewers love. When it comes to beard brushes, reviewers love the Grave Before Shave Beard Brush, giving it 85% five-star ratings on over 1,600 reviews. As the name implies, this is the best beard brush for serious beards. No matter how long or coarse your beard is, this bamboo brush with firm boar bristles will bring it under control.
12. Grow Alpha Beard Grooming Kit
BEST VALUE
It might be hard to justify the splurge on grooming when you’re only getting a beard brush. But a beard brush, a beard comb and grooming scissors altogether? That’s an easier splurge to justify. That’s why we recommend Grow Alpha Beard’s Grooming Kit. It contains a quality boar bristle brush, beard comb and tiny scissors for touch-ups. The grooming kit also comes in four different colorways, so your brush and comb match and make the set really feel like it’s yours. And if different colorways sound like a red flag, Grow Alpha Beard merely colors the wood, but the brand still uses either bamboo or pearwood, both of which are quality woods for beard brushes. So if you’re worried about the expense, go for this kit. It’s suitable for most beards and offers multiple solid grooming tools for the price of one.
13. Red Premium Pocket Wave x Bow Wow Boar Brush
FRESH DESIGN
There are a lot of great beard brushes out there, but because beard brushes are pretty simple, there’s not a lot of room for variety and innovation. The Red Premium Pocket Wave x Bow Wow Boar Brush is trying to change that in small, cool ways. This curved boar bristle brush, made in partnership with rapper Bow Wow, has a cool pattern on the handle that we can only describe as Versace-like or Gucciesque. Designed for heads and beards, this is one beard brush that’ll stand out on your bathroom counter.
Also Consider
1. Honest Amish Beard Oil
BEST BEARD OIL
If you’re just getting started on a beard care routine, not only will you need one of the beard brushes above, you’ll also have to pick up a high-quality beard oil. The best beard oils use essential oils to help soften and condition your beard. Some even include scented oils for some extra pop and flair for your beard. We recommend Honest Amish’s unscented Classic Beard Oil. Packed with essential oils like argan and jojoba, it offers excellent value and is a great beard oil for experienced and amateur users alike.
Here's Why Leave-In Conditioner Is a Well-Groomed Man's Secret Weapon