How to Use Beard Wash and Shampoo

What it does

Regular shampoo is built for the hair on your head. Your beard hair is coarser, the skin underneath is more sensitive, and the oils your face produces aren't the same as your scalp. Wash your beard with regular shampoo every day and it'll get dry, brittle, and itchy fast.

Beard wash cleans without stripping. It pulls out the food crumbs, sweat, and product buildup, but leaves enough of your natural oils that your face doesn't feel like sandpaper afterward.

We make two:

Beard Wash. A bar, just for the beard. Designed around the fact that beard hair and face skin need different treatment than scalp hair.

All Hair Everywhere Shampoo. A liquid in a squeeze bottle. Same idea, but it works on everything. Beard, head, body, wherever you've got hair. Same gentle clean, same Sara-approved ingredient list. If you've been using a different shampoo for your head and a separate beard wash, this combines the two. One bottle in the shower instead of two.

Both clean the same way. Pick based on whether you want a beard-only bar or one bottle for everything.

How to use it

If you're using the Beard Wash bar:

  1. Get the beard wet. Warm water.
  2. Rub the bar between your hands to work up a lather, or rub it directly on the beard a few times.
  3. Set the bar down and work the lather in with your fingertips, getting down to the skin. The skin is the part that actually gets dirty.
  4. Massage it around for 30 seconds or so.
  5. Rinse thoroughly. Leftover wash is one of the main causes of beard itch.
  6. Pat dry with a towel, don't scrub.
  7. While it's still slightly damp, hit it with beard oil or balm.

If you're using All Hair Everywhere Shampoo:

  1. Get wet. Warm water.
  2. Squeeze a small amount into your hand. Dime-sized for the beard, more if you're washing your head and body too.
  3. Work it in with your fingertips, down to the skin.
  4. Massage around for 30 seconds.
  5. Rinse thoroughly.
  6. Pat dry, then hit the beard with oil or balm while it's still slightly damp.

That last step matters either way. Washing without conditioning afterward is half the job.

Bar care

If you're using the bar, let it dry between uses. A soap dish with drainage is your friend. A bar that sits in a puddle turns to mush fast. Treat it right and it'll last you a couple months.

How often

Two or three times a week is plenty for most guys. Daily is too much, even with a gentle wash. Your beard has natural oils that take time to come back, and over-washing is what creates the dry, itchy beard people then blame on the wash.

If you work outside, sweat a lot, or get into something gross, wash as needed. But for most guys, 2-3 times a week is the answer.

Common mistakes

  • Washing every day. Your beard isn't your armpit. Back off.
  • Using regular shampoo or body wash because you ran out. One time is fine, every day will dry you out.
  • Skipping the oil or balm afterward. Wash strips a little, even when it's gentle. Always condition.
  • Not rinsing all the way out. Leftover suds in the beard cause itch. Rinse longer than you think you need to.