UrbanUpdate

If you’re like many, many guys we know, and have an impressive quarantine beard coming in, you might find yourself wondering how to use beard oil. Most years, by mid-spring we’re focused on buzz cuts, sunglasses, and bathing suits, but this year’s pandemic-influenced look is shaping up to be a bit different.

It's a tough time, to be sure, but that's all the more reason to be sure your beard-growing experience is optimistic and intentional. Beards can either signal "I'm thriving" or "I gave up weeks ago," and you want to be sure your Zoom mates are seeing the latter. And there’s plenty to know about growing in your beard: you’ve got to trim it strategically as it grows, which probably means picking up one of our favorite beard trimmers for the task. There are all kinds of beard products stock up on, from balms to brushes. But no product is as important as beard oil. Beard oil is going to make the beard-growing experience a whole lot smoother—and we mean that literally.

To explain how to use beard oil, and all the benefits it delivers to your whiskers, we called up Hung Nguyen, manager of Fellow Barber in New York City's West Village. Here are Nguyen’s tips for how to use beard oil properly, plus all the benefits you'll get from a twice-daily application.

The Benefits of Beard Oil

The most obvious benefit of beard oil is moisture. It absorbs quickly into the whiskers to soften and hydrate them, which makes them more cooperative and reduces scraggly rogue hairs. It also reduces beard itch (for you and your partner), and it gives everything a nice, healthy luster.

It also delivers moisture under your beard: “It can save your skin, too,” Nguyen says, which often ends up neglected and parched. It’s hard to nurture that skin with your everyday moisturizer, but a beard oil easily reaches the skin and pumps it full of nourishing natural oils to keep it soft and healthy, and to prevent the dreaded beard dandruff.

How to Apply Beard Oil

You don’t need to use very much beard oil in order to get its many benefits. “A little goes a long way,” says Nguyen. “Start with a pea-sized amount—a drop or two—and add more as needed.” It’s easiest to apply this drop to your fingertips, and then to warm it up between both hands.

Nguyey says to target the skin when you apply the oil. In other words, if you act as if you’re applying the oil to your face, it will get massaged everywhere it needs to go (as opposed to patting it flatly onto the hairs and expecting it to penetrate.)

Brush your fingers or palms up across each cheek, mussing the hair up as you go. Then run the fingers or hands from the neck up into the underside of your beard and jaw. Don’t forget to run it through the mustache afterwards, too.

Then, take a comb and style everything back into place. Not only will this make your beard look presentable again, but it will also distribute the oil evenly throughout the entire beard.

When to Apply Beard Oil

You'll want to apply beard oil before bed and in the morning, says Nguyen. In both events, be sure you’re doing so after cleansing the face and beard, and then patting it entirely dry. (After a shower obviously works great.)

Because beard oils absorb quickly, you don’t need to worry about them staining your pillowcase. And don’t skip this bedtime application, because it’s probably the more important of the two: “When we’re sleeping, our body is calm and we’re not touching our face,” Nguyen points out. “So it allows the oil to go to work,” without interference.

Then, a morning application makes sure you have the softest and most presentable beard throughout the day.

The Best Beard OilsStubble & Stache

Stubble & Stache beard oil$29

Amazon

Beardbrand

Beardbrand “Four Vices” beard oil$40

Grooming Lounge

A scented blend of coffee, tobacco, hemp, and hops, these “four vices” combine into one very perfect earthy-floral finish. The oil itself is a blend of jojoba, castor, and grapeseed, and Beardbrand prides itself for the eye-catching shine that its oil delivers to your beard. It’s still lightweight, though, and the product soaks happily into your mane as you showcase its luster.Brothers Artisan

Brothers Artisan Oil

Grooming Oil$20

Brothers Artisan Oil

This homespun "grooming" oil has been on our list for years. It handles a number of TLC needs around the face and head: use it to soothe skin, tame and condition the hair, and (above all) calm pesky beard hairs.Baxter of California

Baxter of California beard oil$27

Baxter of California

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Adam Hurly has been covering men's grooming since 2013 (and for GQ since 2016). He is also a travel writer. In Fall 2024, Adam is launching Blue Print by Adam Hurly, a men's grooming platform. Adam resides in Lisbon (previously Berlin, NYC, and San Francisco). He is a Sioux Falls, SD, native... Read moreWriterInstagramRelated Stories for GQGQ RecommendsBathroom and ShowerBeardsFacial Hair