Beard butter v's beard balm

What is the difference between Beard Butter and Beard Balm?

Since becoming co-owner of Bigfoot Beard Co, I have been asked numerous times about the difference between beard butters and beard balms. 

I have also been asked about their benefits and if I would recommend one over the other.

Deciding between beard balm or beard butter for some people is a straightforward choice. For others however, not knowing the differences between the two is where the confusion comes in.

To look at, they appear the same. Same packaging, same colour, same aesthetics and even the same scent, in some cases.

So what are the differences?

Well, that's a great question and one that I’m going to jump in to now.

In short, beard balm is a physically harder product than beard butter. There is a reason behind this and it comes down to the amount of bees wax used in each of the products.

Bees wax is an essential ingredient in both balm and butter but a greater amount is used when producing any beard balm.

The reason for using a higher amount of bees wax in the balm is simple, it gives a stronger hold and thus, keeping your beard in the shape you styled it.

The use of a higher amount of bees wax does come with a downside, however.

As previously mentioned, this does make the balm a physically harder product and some find it hard to remove from the tin.

Once out of the tin, working the balm into your hands before application to your beard will melt the balm and make it far more manageable.

I have used many balms over the years and have found that using a small plastic implement such as a guitar pick or even a trolley coin work perfectly to help get the balm out of the tin.

Remember, the fact that a balm has a greater amount of bees wax in results in a harder product and therefore gives a stronger hold to your beard.

Of course, being able to give your beard a nice shape is not the only thing a balm will offer. There are numerous other benefits that many don't know about.

These benefits come down to the other ingredients used the balm and I will write up another post about these soon.

So if I’m using a beard balm to help style my beard, why would I use a beard butter?

This is where the difference comes in.

Beard butter is a far softer beard product due to the fact it has a lower amount of bees wax in its ingredients.

Due to this, a beard butter is not specifically used to style your beard, although some guys do use it too, myself included.

It allows your beard to be reworked throughout the day and in my opinion, gives a far more comfortable hold.

A good quality beard butter serves as a deep conditioner to soften and moisturize your beard and the skin underneath.

The naturally occurring, Shea butter, absorbs into the beard hair giving your beard a fuller appearance.

Beard butter, like the beard balm, contains other natural ingredients. These naturally occurring products promote healthy beard hair as well as aiding in beard growth.

Whether you choose to use a beard balm or a beard butter (or even a beard oil or a combination) is very much a personal choice.

In short, a beard balm will help to style and hold your beards shape and a beard butter will help condition and moisturize your beard.

Me personally?

As previously mentioned, i have used many beard balms over the years. I have also used several butter and oils.

I like the more natural feel to feel to the butter and when using butter will always use an oil as well. Butter first, oil second.

There are times when I do use a balm, however. These are generally days when i know that i want my beard to stay in the shape I styled it in the morning, work meetings, weddings, nights out etc.

Remember, it is all about personal choice. If you have never used a beard balm or a beard butter, I encourage you to give them a go.