7 Beard Oil for Curly Beard Options Every Guy Should Know About

Beard oil for curly beard is essential if you want to keep your curls soft, defined, and easy to manage. 7 Beard Oils Every Curly-Bearded Guy Should Know About can help you choose the right blend for your beard's unique needs.

Three days after your trimming, you are looking for fuller, more well-defined curls, and by the end of the third day, they've pulled tight against your jaw, and there is no definition whatsoever, and they're frizzed out as though you slept on them all night and then every night since. We've tried this product, less, a different comb, nothing for more than a day.

A curly beard isn't one texture with one set of needs, it's several problems piled on top of each other (dryness, shrinkage, frizz, breakage, buildup and more) and no one oil is going to work for all of them equally. Most of the time the bottle of “beard oil” found on the drugstore shelf is a mediocre bottle of one carrier oil used for five purposes.

The raised and irregular cuticle of curly and coily hair hold less natural moisture than straight hair, making it very different to care for. The same hair care routine that works perfectly for a friend with straight hair, won't work for you if you have curly/coily hair; because by the time you are done with your hair, it looks dry, shrunk, and flyaway.

The solution is not to change brands every few months — it's knowing which oil is best for what type of trouble your curls are in, and then using it for this purpose, rather than for the sake of it.

After washing your hair, the oil will leave it with a "straw-like feel" that will be prevented by Jojoba Oil.

The issue is not the oil; it's the what that the oil isn't replacing. This is because washing curly beards removes more of the natural sebum than straight beards because the coils block the natural flow of sebum down the beard.

The molecular structure of jojoba oil is most similar to human sebum oil, allowing it to replace the oil that has been washed away, rather than just top up the surface. Use 5–7 drops on a towel-dried beard in the first 10 minutes after leaving the shower, before the cuticle opens up, and run your fingertips, not a comb, through the beard, down to the skin.

When used in this manner, jojoba does not merely lie on top of the hair – it works with the oil production of the beard and this is why beards grown on jojoba will require less maintenance between washings than beards that use heavier, cosmetic oils.

When frizz is ruining your curls, Argan Oil is designed to correct them.

If the curls hold their shape immediately after oiling but lose shape after a couple hours, it's probably an oil that is too heavy and/or absorbs too slowly for this type of hair. Frizz shouldn't be an indication that the beard is not getting enough product — it is a sign that the product is not absorbing quickly enough to seal the beard before the ambient moisture has time to make an appearance.

Argan oil is less dense than heavier oils such as castor or coconut oil, so it penetrates deeper into the hair shaft than these other oils, and prevents the hair shaft from absorbing the humidity before it can cause frizz due to swelling of the cuticle. This is more important with curly beards, as they have a raised cuticle structure that is more susceptible to humidity changes than straight hair's flatter cuticle.

Place 3-4 drops of the product on damp hair, scrunching up the hair into the curl rather than down, in order to strengthen the curl and not to break it out. A second application of 1-2 drops in the middle of the day is sufficient to keep the seal if the climate is humid or it is the rainy season and does not put the stress that came from the initial application.

You could also use Castor Oil to add weight that makes your curls look full.

Your Curls Aren't Short, They're Shrinking — Castor Oil Adds the Weight That Stops It

If your beard looks shorter than it is, it's actually shrinking, not growing slowly. The curl is drawing the hairs up towards the skin and if there's not enough hair to support the curl, it will conceal an inch or more of beard length. It is one of the more frequent annoyances with curly beards: guys believe that their beard is developing slowly when it is, instead, only coiled tight.

The thicker, heavier oils will offset the shrinkage by adding weight to the shaft to loosen the coil up a little and allow gravity to do its work of pulling the curl pattern down and away, rather than up and in. In contrast to lighter oils that leave a grease layer, Jamaican black castor oil is thick enough to do it as well.

Hair is damp but not wet when you work it, use 4-5 drops to work in mid-shaft area, not the roots, then allow to air-dry for at least 20 minutes before working with it to form the curl or comb it.

The elongation effect accumulates with repeated use – most men will notice a much looser, longer reading curl pattern within 2-3 weeks of regular usage, rather than overnight.

Humid Air turns heavy oils into a greasy mess — Grapeseed Oil doesn't.

In hot or humid weather, the problem is probably not the amount of oil you're applying, but that it's too thick for the environment. It's a frequent mistake for men replacing the lighter oils that they used to combat shrinkage with heavier ones, because the more saturated the oil, the quicker it can become greasy in humid weather.

Grapeseed oil is one of the lightest carrier oils available and absorbs nearly instantly, leaving the beard conditioned, but not with that excess shininess that other oils cause on the surface in warm climates. It's also non-comedogenic, meaning it doesn't clog your follicles the way some heavier oils can if you use them for an extended period of time during the summer.

Replace with grapeseed, at 3-5 drops during the summer or humid climates, and condition without the greasey midday shine, by working it in fully instead of leaving it on the surface.

This is not in conflict with the above castor oil fix, it's just a guide to match oil weight to season – heavier oil for shrinkage, lighter oil for humidity and shine.

If you have thick curls and want to get rid of the itchy spots underneath, you can use Sweet Almond Oil to soothe the itchiness.

If your beard appears to be well oiled, but the skin beneath it feels itchy and irritated, it is probably the density of the curly hair that is blocking the oil from reaching your skin. The skin problem is being presented as a hair-care problem and treating the hair that shows in harder will not make a difference.

The physical configuration of the hair curl in curly beards allows them to hold more hair per inch of beard than straight beards do, and that means that the skin below the beard is physically protected from products that are just applied to the surface of the hair. Sweet almond oil is safer for direct, repetitive application to the skin and absorbs into the skin easier, than heavier oils used primarily for the hair shaft.

Divide the beard into small sections with your fingers and rub about 2-3 drops directly into the skin at the base of the beard, spending about 15 seconds on each section, daily for a week and then re-evaluate.

Almond oil is not irritating or heavy on the skin which is inflamed, so it doesn't exacerbate the hair's shrinkage problem like a heavy backing would do.

A Dull, Flat-Looking Beard Re-gains its Shine, thanks to Hemp Seed Oil

When the bearded hair is not just plain but also has a floppy, dull look, it is not because the hair is not moisturized enough but because it is not lubricated with the fatty acids that add the natural shine and light reflection to the hair. Even in healthy condition, the cuticle of curly hair scatters light more than that of straight hair, so it is not a given that the hair will be shiny.

Hemp seed oil contains a high ratio of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, which gives the outer cuticle layer the capacity to reflect light evenly, instead of scattering it in all directions like a dry or damaged cuticle layer does. This is a different process from hydration, so it can be moisturized, and a beard still appear dull.

After the regular conditioning oil, apply 4-6 drops and condition as usual, layering on top of the oil, but combing in the direction of the curl to ensure it is distributed evenly throughout the mid-shaft to the ends.

The fatty-acid light-reflecting effects are more visible than the deeper repair that takes place in the skin's structure from other oils in this list, so most men will see a shine difference within about a week.

Your curler tips need to break off before the rest of your beard?

If you see that your curls are thinning or frayed or even a bit split at the ends, the breakage is localized exclusively at the ends of the curls and occurs due to the fact that the end of the curl is the oldest, most exposed part of the hair and the place where the twist of the curl puts the maximum mechanical stress. It's not just about dryness or frizz; you can have a well-groomed, well-oiled beard and yet be seeing the loss of hair at the ends in a week.

The problem is the pattern of the coils, as each one formed along a curly strand is a weak point where the fibers can break and the tips have just been exposed to the most number of curls by being the oldest hair on the beard. Oil blends with added vitamin E add strength to the tips to resist the mechanical stress, but oil blends that do not include vitamin E do not condition the shaft.

Then, every week apply the vitamin-E oil mixture directly to the last half inch of curls, working through them with your fingers for 5-10 seconds to allow the oil to be absorbed by the twist zones and not the surface of the hair.

The reason why split ends do not work their way up the shaft is because they are reinforced each week with that occasional trim of 1/8", but not 1 inch when breakage is ignored too long.

Creating a Curly-Beard Oil Routine that is ACTUALLY a solution.

This isn't about the one miracle oil; it's about matching seven different curly-beard problems to the oil that was actually devised to solve each one. Dryness, frizz, shrinkage, humidity-related grease, skin irritations, dullness and tip breakage are all mechanical problems and no one bottle was going to solve all seven.

A realistic weekly routine would include the jojoba after each wash, argan daily, castor a few times a week, grapeseed as needed during the hot, humid season, almond oil as needed when irritation arises and the vitamin-E blend worked into the skin occasionally, and hemp seed as needed for shine, and the vitamin-E blend worked into the tips once a week. It's sounds like a lot listed out, but really is only a 2 minute addition to a routine that you already have.

Wait for 2 weeks before evaluating the frizz and dryness reductions, as this is where it will show the most results. Shrinkage and shine can take anywhere from 3-4 weeks on a regular basis to make a difference; tip breakage can take longer to make a difference since this is about preventing new damage, rather than undoing already split tips.

All of these oils will not affect the natural texture of your curls, nor will they correct an underlying skin condition that requires the care of a dermatologist, not a grooming regimen. That is the difference between a good beard day and three days later it's a lopsided beard? That gap narrows significantly when each problem is receiving the dedicated oil designed to address that particular problem rather than one bottle being asked to do all seven jobs.

FAQs

Does beard oil work for the curly/hair with coils?

Yes, but it works better for curly hair than straight hair; one generic oil does not work equally well for dryness, frizz and shrinkage, so there is a specific oil for specific problems. Oil regimens are important for curlys, not just lessened, as they have a raised cuticle structure and retain less natural moisture.

How often should you oil a curly pony?

Dosing once daily is recommended for general conditioning, and light dosage (1-2 drops) during humid conditions, along with a weekly dosage for tip reinforcement. Excessive amounts of oil can cause the grease to build up in warm and humid environments.

Is it okay to use multiple beard oils in a beard routine?

Yes — if you are applying various oils to achieve different results (e.g. jojoba for moisturizing, hemp seed for shine) then this is possible but each layer must be light enough to absorb before the next layer is applied. Multiple heavy oils are more likely to cause buildup than multiple lighter heavy oils if they are applied at the same time.

Should you apply heavy oils, such as castor oil daily to a curly beard?

It can be, depending on the climate: if the use of heavy oil is done daily, it can lead to greasy buildups in humid weather, but not in dry weather. Most men will find that they get better results if they rotate a heavier oil, such as castor, a couple times a week, instead of using it every day for the entire year.

What is the maximum time curly beard hair takes to stop looking shrunk?

The majority of guys will see their curls become visibly looser and their reading length is longer, but shrinkage is a curl feature that cannot be achieved with consistent use of weighted oil; these characteristics will return if the padded oil is not used. It is a management procedure, not a cure.

Why do you have grease-like curls in summer and fine curls in winter?

Oils that are heavier are easier to use in dry winter air, but can be too rich in the humid summer weather when oil weight and humidity can produce shine and buildup. This is typically cured by switching to a lighter oil, such as grapeseed, in warmer, more humid climates, without sacrificing the conditioning benefits.

How to apply the treatment to dry skin without disturbing the hair about the oil application?

Yes — the thick density of curls may make it difficult for a beard to absorb regular oil – often requiring an extra (lighter) oil to be applied directly to the skin and roots of the hair. When treating the skin as its own step, as opposed to assuming that the beard oil brushes off it, irritation is typically eliminated sooner.