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The Best Razors for Shaving Your Head

To safely shave your head you need an ergo-friendly razor capable of navigating curves.

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By Brett Braley-Palko and Adam Hurly

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If you’re about to shave your head for the first time, then you’re probably a little nervous. Not just to find out how handsome you are without hair but also for the shave itself. Shaving your own head takes patience, precision, and a whole lotta confidence — though that confidence is quickly earned after the first few shaves. Still, it’s a daunting task, made difficult by awkward hand angles, blind spots, skin rolls, and a pesky mole or two. All you want is a smooth, irritation-free, nick-free shave, and that’s not too much to ask.

Products in the Guide

Razor Blades vs. Electric

For this task, what you need is an ergo-friendly razor that helps navigate curves and can deliver a clean, problem-free shave, even if you can’t easily see the results. Much of your confidence will be channeled into that razor itself, and a subpar pick could deter you from maintaining the habit. (And it could make you late to work, if you’re bleeding all over your oxford shirt.)

If you’re new to having no hair up there, try an electric shaver or an analog one with safety features built in. Because you aren’t able to see for the entirety of your session, it’s best to get something that won’t nick you if you take the wrong angle. Tom Dewing, a longtime barber of Pittsburgh-based Crown Barbershop, agrees.

“It’s best to go with something that offers additional safety features because for the majority of the time, you’re going by feel alone. I try to avoid using a razor and go for a foil shaver, as it offers a close shave without the additional risk of nicking the back of a head.”

So now that you know what to look for, it can be a bit daunting.There’s an array of options — from safety razors to completely innovative bald-head devices — so, lucky for you, we chose our favorite from each bucket.

Best Overall Razor for Shaving Your Head: HeadBlade MOTO Head Razor

Pros

  • Easy hand-held design for maneuverability
  • Able to glide over bumps and nooks of one’s head

Cons

  • Blades are too sharp with limited range, causing nicks
  • Blades are hard to replace
  • Shaving Method: Blades
  • Blade Material: Stainless Steel
  • Warranty: 2 years

This thing looks like a teeny snowmobile, but it’s an expertly designed palm pilot for polishing your dome. Simply slide your finger into the rubber ring, and the ball at the device’s front end helps glide the rear-end razor around your head. That rear end pivots and flexes every which way as it hugs the curves and mows everything in its path. We’d suggest bundling it with the brand’s slick shave cream for the smoothest experience.

Best Upgrade Razor for Shaving Your Head: Supply Single-Edge Razor

Pros

  • Easy to clean
  • Extremely consistent/close shave

Cons

  • New users mention getting handle of angle for best shave down
  • Blades dull quickly for some with coarser hair
  • Shaving Method: Blades
  • Blade Material: Alloy
  • Warranty: Lifetime

Trueheads still swear by the safety-blade shave, even with the variables of backward, upside-down, blind-spot shaving. That’s because once you have the hang of a safety blade shave, you really can’t justify switching back to anything else. Still, our pick for the best safety razor for head shaving goes to Supply, the brand that also makes safety shaving easy for beginners. Their single-edge razor feels familiar in your hand, almost like a cartridge shave, and they even drafted up a blog post on how to best utilize the razor for your head. Together, that post and this device should significantly lessen your learning curve.

Best Affordable Razor for Shaving Your Head: Gillette SkinGuard

Pros

  • Lubrication strip helps reduce irritation
  • Easy to use out of the box

Cons

  • Blade dulls quickly
  • Replacement blades are not as waste-friendly
  • Shaving Method: Blade
  • Blade Material: Steel
  • Warranty: Lifetime warranty for handle

If you choose a cartridge, then remember to choose ergo-friendly and sensitive on skin. Gillette’s SkinGuard masters both: it lubricates and soothes skin immediately before and after the blades, and it does the task with just two blades instead of 3-5. (This is a big factor in how sensitive these blades are for the skin — and that skin up top your head is particularly prone to redness, nicks, irritation, ingrowns, and the likes).

Best Shave Kit: Gillette Baldly Shave-It Kit

Pros

  • All-in-one kit
  • Close, safe shave

Cons

  • Cream included can cause irritation for sensitive skin
  • Blades noted to dull quickly
  • Shaving Method: Razor
  • Blade Material: Steel
  • Warranty: 5 year

If you’re looking for an all-in-one solution that takes the guesswork out of finding the right shaver, cream, and refills for you, Gillette has you covered. Their Baldly line has everything you need to begin – or continue – your bald-embracing journey. The additional stand included for the razor is a hygenic bonus, making sure you don’t just throw your nasty razor in a drawer to collect bacteria.

Best In-Hand Design: Wyklaus Head Shaver 7D

Pros

  • Ergonomic design for easy handling
  • Close, consistent shave

Cons

  • Over time, battery loses charge quickly
  • Harder to clean than others on list
  • Shaving Method: Rotating electric blade
  • Blade Material: Steel
  • Warranty: 1 year

When shaving your head, consistency is key. And, of course, you want to avoid any cuts. Luckily, Wyklaus’s Head Shaver 7D does both extremely well. This is in part due to the in-hand design, which fits smoothly into the palm of your hand without having to worry about grips, slips, and mishaps. The electric razors glide easily around your dome to shave down stubble while being gentle enough to avoid irritation.

Head Shave Club Halftime Razors

Pros

  • Dual-blade helps to get any spots you missed
  • Easy to replace blades

Cons

  • Users note blade dulls easily
  • No warranty listed
  • Shaving Method: Blades
  • Blade Material: Steel
  • Warranty: None listed, but a 30-day return policy is offered

These little dual-ended blades will remind you of finger skateboards, and they kinda replicate those little toys as they ride over your melon. They allow you to shave easily in different directions, back and forth or side to side (though you still want to mind the direction your hair grows, and if you’re prone to ingrowns, shave with it, not against it). It also utilizes a cooling aloe strip to help calm skin post-shearing. Of the bunch, it’s the easiest manual razor to use on autopilot mode once you get the hang of it. But even then, please remember to make smooth, steady strokes—no haste!

Remington Balder Pro Head Shaver

Pros

  • Waterproof
  • Great for maintenance

Cons

  • Won’t give you a super-close shave as a razor would
  • Harder to clean than traditional wet razor
  • Shaving Method: Rotating electric blades
  • Blade Material: Stainless steel
  • Warranty: 5 year

Though it’s not a razor, this electric shaver is a must-own for every bald guy, especially if you don’t want to do a full shave every few days. It’ll clip you down to a barely-there length and won’t ever break the surface of the skin so that you never have to worry about nicks, infections, ingrowns, irritation, and more. (It’s best for navigating around moles, too.) It’s waterproof, holds a 50-minute charge, and has five clippers that hug your head as you glide it around like a Zamboni.

Andis 17150 Pro Foil Shaver

Pros

  • Reduces irritation with foil design
  • Gets as close as a shave as many razors without the irritation

Cons

  • Harder to clean
  • A bit hefty to hold when maneuvering
  • Shaving Method: Foil
  • Blade Material: Titanium
  • Warranty: 1 year

If you want a single electric device for your face and head, then make it Andis’ foil shaver. It’s not going to straddle your curves like the Remington above, but those foil heads can relax with pressure or with each new angle. It’s still fairly easy to glide it up and down the backside of your head (pull that skin taut), and it holds an 80-minute charge so that you get a few weeks of wear with each plug-in.

Merkur Mk34c Double Edge Razor

Pros

  • Well-constructed weight allows for smoother and more consistent shave
  • Incredibly long-lasting and rust resistant

Cons

  • Blades can be very sharp for those unaccusomed
  • Price-prohibitive compared to other wet razors
  • Shaving Method: Blade
  • Blade Material: Steel
  • Warranty: 10 years

Merkur’s weighted Mk34c razor delivers an ultra-close shave using inexpensive double-edged blades. But that doesn’t make it cheap. The handle itself is hefty and helps the razor do most of the work. When a razor is too light, you adjust your pressure instead of letting the blade naturally cut through close hairs. A heavier razor results in a smoother, more even shave even if it’s your first time shaving your head.

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