7 best beard trimmers to style and maintain your facial fuzz

The market is flooded with overcomplicated trimmers that try to be all things to everyone. The Philips oneblade is not one of them. Instead, it’s a decidedly no-frills option that’s easy on the face, body and wallet, with its protective cutting guards and modest price tag. But while it’s perfect for stubble, the maximum 5mm cutting length won’t be sufficient for those with the bushiest beards.

The oneblade comes with two cutting blades (one for the face and one for “sensitive areas”), an adjustable guide comb for achieving different lengths of stubble, and a body comb for the perfect length of chest foliage every time. The adjustable guide is a little fiddly but easy enough to use, with settings from 1mm to 5mm.

One cool feature that sets the oneblade apart from competitors in its price range is the tilting “360” blade, which follows the contours of the face, neck and, well, wherever else you’re brave enough to venture with it. It works wet and dry too, which is good news for the multitaskers out there who like to combine their shave with a shower.

It might not have the most powerful motor, offer any special features or have a notably long battery life, but in terms of sheer bang for your buck, this dinky trimmer from Wahl is impossible to fault.

For just £15, it comes with all the attachments you need to sculpt and maintain a neat short beard or stubble, and the six-position adjustable cutting guide is simple and easy to use.

Granted, some of the parts feel a tad plasticky and cheap, but in terms of performance, it does a remarkable job for the money, munching its way through coarse facial hair with ease. There’s even a storage/charging stand to keep the unit and all of its various parts neatly tidied away when it’s not being used.

We’d recommend the groomsman to anyone on the hunt for a simple, budget-friendly beard trimmer, who doesn’t plan on venturing north or south of the face.

American brand Manscaped offers a range of purpose-built products designed to tackle below-the-belt grooming, and its range has since expanded to deal with trimming needs north of the nipples, too. Case in point: this so-called “beard hedger”.

This neat little trimmer uses an adjustable cutting guide to achieve beard lengths of 0.5mm to 10mm. It goes up in 0.5mm increments and is set by turning a rubberised dial in the middle of the handle, with a dial that clearly displays the selected cutting length. The cutting guide has a nice curved shape to it, which we found made it one of the more comfortable of the lot in terms of how it feels against the face. It feels good in the hand too, thanks to the rubberised grip.

We were a little underwhelmed with the build quality, given the almost £100 price tag – it feels a little light and plasticky in comparison to similarly priced competitors. However, in terms of sheer performance, this trimmer is hard to fault.

This beautifully solid and sturdy trimmer from Philips is an excellent high-end option that offers precision trimming and a bombproof design. It works with an in-built adjustable blade that cuts from 0.4mm to 5mm, and there’s a clip-on comb attachment that extends the range from 5.4mm to 10mm. It’s as simple as that. To cycle through the different lengths, all you have to do is spin the central wheel to your desired cutting length and trim away.

Everything about this trimmer feels premium, from the weighty metal handle to the satisfying incremental clicks of the adjustment wheel. That said, the straight, cylindrical handle may not be to everyone’s liking, especially those who are used to a slightly curved design.

We also like how easy it is to clean – simply flip the blade back to expose the inner workings and run it under a tap to give it a good rinse.

If you’re looking for an all-in-one solution to handle anything from rogue nose hairs to head shaving and everything in between, then this is one of the best options. The series 7 includes everything you need for a full beard and body grooming session, including a Gillette proglide razor, complete with a blade. All the tools required to put your barber out of business.

The trimmer itself works brilliantly. The on/off button is nice and tactile with a good click to it, and the cutting blades glide through even thick hair without any fuss. The adjustable cutting guides are a little awkward to adjust, but they work just fine once you get the hang of them.

The biggest selling point with this trimmer, though, is how much you get for your money. At £59.99, it’ll do the jobs of multiple grooming tools, making it an excellent value proposition.

This powerful little trimmer performs far above its dinky size. It’s built like a tank with its full metal body and is the perfect pocket-size companion for weekends away and holidays where washbag space is in short supply.

It will do its thing for four hours on a single charge, which is great news for people who often forget to charge their electronics. What’s more, it has a one-minute quick charge feature, which allows you to get a quick blast of trimming action if it does run flat when you’re in a rush.

The wide range of clip-on cutting guides means that you can adapt the cutting lengths easily. This is both a blessing and a curse because while it offers a huge range from 0.5mm to 25mm, it also means there are lots of small parts to lose. Still, if you’re the kind of person who knows what length he likes and sticks to it, this won’t be an issue.

For the deep-pocketed shoppers out there, this premium trimmer from Braun offers a luxurious grooming experience complete with a clever tilting blade and a handy cleaning station to keep it operating smoothly. We’ve been using this trimmer for several years now and it’s still going strong. We’ve not even had to replace the blade yet, which we know for sure still isn’t worn out, thanks to the handy light-up wear indicator on the handle.

The series 7 comes with a range of cutting attachments, including a foil shaver (a rarity these days), a precision trimmer and a handy attachment just for cutting stubble to the optimal length.

One of the coolest features is the autosense technology, which adapts the cutting power based on how thick the hair is. This helps to maximise battery life, as well as making for a more comfortable trimming experience.