Beard Balm vs Pomade: Which One Suits Your Skin Better?

You have grown a beard, which only requires patience, but the actual game begins after the beard growth when you need different beard products for maintenance.

Men with sensitive skin have different sets of products, while men with thicker and coarser hair have entirely different grooming products.  And knowing that facial hair and skin type differ from each other becomes more difficult to choose the product.

Keeping all these things in mind, we have framed an article on beard pomade vs balm that not only works best on unruly facial hairs but is also compatible with different skin types.

To deeply understand both the beard care products, we have explained them separately, and then we have covered the difference between beard balm and pomade.  Besides, we have also included how to apply sections so that anyone who has just stepped into the beard grooming world will find no difficulties.

So let’s get started.

What is Beard Balm?

So what is a balm? Beard balms are a leave-in conditioner that includes beard oils, butter, and a high proportion of beeswax.  The thicker texture allows you to control, tame, and hold your unruly flyaways.  And the presence of natural ingredients helps to moisturize the skin.  These ingredients help in retaining the shininess and natural oil.

What is Beard Pomade?

Pomade is quite similar to beard balm but is thinner than beard balms.  The cream-like consistency is easy to spread on your beard, making the facial hair and skin beneath nourished and moisturized.

Also, you can use pomade for styling purposes as it ensures a soft light styling hold to make your facial mane look healthy and attractive.  There are two types of pomades, i.e., petroleum-based and water-based.

The only difference between both types of pomades is water-based pomades are easily washable, whereas petroleum-based takes time to wash away.

Now that you are familiar with beard balm and pomade- let’s understand the core difference between both products.

Beard Balm vs Pomade 

Unscented Beard balm is thicker than pomade, providing a good hold for an extended period when you literally want to wear different beard styles.  Beard balm contains shea butter, beeswax, jojoba oil, coconut oil, olive oil, and other oils. If you are a fragrance lover, you can check out scented beard balms.

Beard pomade, as discussed, is thinner and creamier than unscented beard balm.  It resembles hair gel, and most men use it for styling purposes.  Beard pomade works best if you find it difficult to tame unruly facial hair.  It not only smells good but also hydrates the beard and the skin underneath.

Now that you know the fundamental difference between beard balm and pomade- let’s move onto our next section that shows the key benefits of both beard products.

Benefits of Beard Balm and Pomade

Since both the beard essentials cater to grooming, they share similar benefits, which are as follows:

• Both beard balms and pomade contain beeswax, coconut oil, shea butter, keeping beard dandruff, split-ends, and dead cells at bay.  Also, the moisturizing properties in both the products hydrate and protect from itch and discomfort.
• The presence of oils and butter conceals moisture allows you to style your beard.  Furthermore, the beeswax provides hold and keeps your beard style intact.
• Since you will be using beard balm or pomade, you will not have that urge to scratch. Both the products soften and condition your facial mane.

So these are the benefits of beard balm and pomade.  Now, let’s see how to apply both products?

Application Of Beard Balm

Beard balms come in solid-state, which means you need to scoop a small amount out using your thumbnail, emulsify in your palm, and rub until it melts.  Start applying beard balm from the neck area across the facial mane. Apply balm evenly across beard.

After you apply beard balm to every beard strand, you want to use a beard comb to distribute the beard product evenly.  A beard brush will work wonders in shaping and styling your beard.  You need to use either of the products for maintaining facial hair.

How to Apply Pomade?

Although the application procedure is quite similar to beard balm, pomade requires following some pre-application regimens.

Step 1:

Firstly, wash your beard with warm water to open up pores.  It makes it easier for pomade to absorb under the skin.

When washing your facial mane, you can use beard shampoo to remove dirt, debris, and other unwanted particles to keep the beard kempt and neat.  Make sure you don’t use chemical-based products for washing.

Now that you wash your face – dab your facial hair under a towel to completely dry out.  Again you don’t need to be aggressive while drying out, as it may pull out some beard hairs.

Step 2:

Secondly, choose the pomade that contains natural ingredients.  Since they are either petroleum or water-based, you only have two choices.  In our opinion, you must try petroleum-based pomade because of its thick consistency compared to its counterpart.  The watery consistency increases the chances of not being able to hold on to your facial hair.

Now that you have chosen pomade- it’s time to sort out the one with the best fragrance that you want to sniff throughout the day.  Due to the inclusion of essential oils, you will have myriad scents to smell.

If we were at your place, we would select the one we prefer in colognes or perfumes.  So, if you ask us, we would say sandalwood or lavender.  Choosing the fragrance depends on personal preference.

Note:  Make sure you buy fragrance-free beard pomade if you have allergic or sensitive skin.

Step 3:

Lastly, it’s time to apply pomade.  We recommend using a fingertip-sized portion

of pomade to apply on beard hair.  Don’t use excessive due to its thinner texture.  You may end up clogging up pores that may hinder growth.

Make sure your fingers are properly clean to avoid any residue settling on your beard.  As discussed earlier, a medium-side beard requires a fingertip-sized amount.  However, the quantity may vary, depending on beard length and thickness. 

One thing we can say after using a pomade on a beard is the application closely resembles hair gel.   For applying, you must spread it well between your palms and fingertips to coat your facial hair evenly.

Run your palms and fingers like beard comb through your beard multiple times to distribute it.  Massage with your palm into your skin as well to make your beard look shiny and luscious.

If you feel that you have over-applied, rinse off your beard with water and re-apply it, but this time with less amount.

Now that you know how to apply both products, it’s time to know the difference between beard oil and wax.

Beard Balm vs Beard Oil vs Beard Wax vs Beard Butter

You might be thinking- are only beard balms and pomade the beard products?  Well, there are two other products, i.e., beard oil and beard wax.  Let’s understand them deeply.

Beard Balm vs Oil

Beard oils are popular across the globe.  Most bearded men consider it a vital product for their beards.  It contains different oils like carrier oil and essential oil.

Out of numerous carrier oils, jojoba oil is the most common oil found in every grooming product.  Jojoba seeds are pressed to extract the oil, which is rich in hydrating and moisturizing properties.

Besides, the essential oils add fragrances to beard oil.  And not only scents but antiseptic properties quickly heal any wounds caused during shaving.

Beard Balm vs Wax

Beard wax closely resembles oil and balm, but the functionality is entirely different.  Apart from the carrier and essential oil, it contains a high proportion of beeswax and shea butter.  The presence of these ingredients makes the product extraordinary and different from others.

The procedure to apply beard wax is quite similar to balm.  Just take a small amount of wax and rub it between your palms until it melts.  Start from hair follicles to coating the tips of beards.  After coating each hair strand, style the way you want using a comb.  It can also be used as mustache wax to wear different mustache styles.

Now let’s answer some commonly asked questions.

Beard Balm vs Beard Butter

These are the products that get most people confused! The reason is simple, they are too similar.

Now, beard balm is a product that has beeswax, natural butter, and different oils as its ingredients; while beard butter has all of those except beeswax. Now you might be wondering if one ingredient makes difference, but it does. Beard balm is used for styling purposes, while it helps lock moisture among things. But beard butter is used for light hold because of the absence of beeswax (a sticky substance). It serves the purpose of conditioning the beard, softening facial hairs, and moisturizing skin under it.

That said, both products are equally good, but if you are looking for a styling agent then go with beard balm, but if you are looking for a moisturizer then get beard butter.

Conclusion

As said, growing facial hair will require patience if everything else works accordingly, but maintaining it will require a lot of exercises.  We hope this article finds you well and you are now clean with both the products discussed in this article.

To summarize, we can say that balm is for a styling purpose, whereas pomade (beard creams)helps you get a healthy beard.  Besides, the hair type also plays a significant role in choosing the product.  So, check whether you have thick and coarse hair, which is compatible with balm, or thin and dull hair that requires pomade.