Contouring for Men: How to Choose the Best Beard for Your Face Shape

Hey guys, listen up: Whether you realize it or not, facial hair holds the power to transform the appearance of your facial features completely. With the right grooming techniques, you can sculpt facial hair to make your cheekbones look sharper, downplay the size of your nose, and even slim the appearance of your entire face. Don’t believe us? Think of some of your favorite male celebrities with facial hair and without it. When done right, facial hair changes everything!

Just as you can use face makeup like foundation, highlighter, and concealer to contour different facial features, facial hair allows you do the very same—by rocking the best beard styles for round, oval, square, rectangular, and heart-shaped faces, you can enhance your best features while minimizing those you aren’t such a big fan of. Read on for our guide on how to choose the right beard for your face shape, plus our best facial hair tips and products to add to your regular grooming routine.

THE BEST BEARD STYLE FOR ROUND FACES

For guys who have round faces, facial hair that helps elongate the appearance of your chin and jaw, such as a beard or a goatee, is a smart move. Because your face is naturally wider and fuller around your jawline, growing out your beard can help give off a more oval-shaped appearance. Keep your sideburns and cheek hair shorter to promote a lengthened look even more.

When growing out your beard, remember it’s also important to take care of it! To keep your skin hydrated and healthy, use a beard moisturizer, like the L’Oréal Paris Men Expert 3-Day Beard Moisturizer, regularly—especially during colder months when both outdoor and indoor air becomes extra dry.

THE BEST BEARD STYLE FOR RECTANGULAR FACES

Since rectangular-shaped faces are naturally long and typically thin around the cheeks, a beard style that’s fuller around the cheeks will help create a more balanced look. A shorter beard with fuller sides will make your naturally narrow face appear a bit wider. A chin strap is also a great option. Whichever look you choose, tame it with a little bit of the L’Oréal Paris Studio Line Hair and Beard Cream, and whatever you decide to do, try to avoid a long beard as it will visually extend your face even further.

THE BEST BEARD STYLE FOR SQUARE FACES

Remember what we said about round faces? Those rules apply here too! If you have a square shape, you’ll want a beard style that helps elongate the appearance of your features. Once again, when growing out your beard, you shouldn’t let it get too full around your cheeks or sideburns since length is what you want to create. The Van Dyke beard is a particularly great choice for those with square faces. This look entails pairing a mustache with a goatee while shaving off all cheek and sideburn hair (think of some famous male action movie stars and you’ll get the idea).

With a Van Dyke beard, you’ll need to keep your cheeks clean-shaven for a polished look. Post-shaving and trimming, reach for a soothing and moisturizing balm, like the L’Oréal Paris Men Expert Hydra Energetic After Shave Balm, to help keep your skin hydrated. To use, apply a dime-sized amount all over your freshly washed and shaved complexion.

THE BEST BEARD STYLE FOR OVAL FACES

Lucky you! An oval face shape is considered ideal and means you can rock any type of beard or facial hair you want. Going clean-shaven is also always a good option. If you do decide to get rid of your facial hair, don’t forget to upgrade your SPF game in any areas where you used to have hair. To keep things simple, you can use a facial moisturizer with SPF, like the L’Oréal Paris Men Expert Vita Life SPF 15 Anti-Wrinkle & Firming Moisturizer. In addition to helping keep your skin healthy and protected against UVA/UVB damage, using SPF daily can also help reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles with continued use over time.

THE BEST BEARD STYLE FOR HEART-SHAPED FACES

Those with heart-shaped faces typically have a wider forehead, which tapers down to a pointed chin. Grown-out stubble with a mustache, also known as a beardstache, is a great look for guys with heart-shaped faces (à la many popular male musicians). This will help add a bit of fullness to your narrow chin, which will even out the appearance of your entire face.

You’re making major strides in your grooming routine, but how about your skin care habits? Next, refresh your skin care routine with our Best Skin Care Tips for Men.