So you have made it through the first four weeks of beard growth, which are said by many to be the hardest part to power through. In a way, the worst is behind you, and from now on things should be getting a lot easier.
Other articles in this series:
- 2 Month Beard Growth Guide
- 3 Month Beard Growth Guide
- 4 Month Beard Growth Guide
- 5 Month Beard Growth Guide
- 6 Month Beard Growth Guide
- The Yeard (12 Month Beard)
One month of beard growth is roughly ½ inch in length and doesn’t yet look that impressive.
It’s around the 1 month mark where the beard growth phase is often called “the awkward phase” as your beard is still finding its shape and there will be a lot of beard patches and bald spots as the hairs grow in at different rate.
How exactly should you take care of your one month beard though? Should you yet be applying beard oil, is beard shampoo necessary at this point, and what about trimming?
Let’s take a deeper look:
What Does 1 Month of Beard Growth Look Like
On average, facial hair grows about half an inch per month, but that’s the average.
For some men, it can be less than that, and for someone with very fast growth rate, hitting the 1″ mark isn’t unheard of.
Your coverage varies as well. No matter how thick and full your beard growth is, you will still see your skin through the facial hair after the first month, but if your growth is patchy, you may have a lot of hairs on the chin and mustache area, and barely any on the cheeks.
This is all part of the process. The 1-month beard is often called “the awkward beard” because it doesn’t tend to look too good at this point. It’s the strange zone between a heavy stubble and a real beard that just looks plain awful in 90% of the beardsmen.
Below are some examples of various one-month beards and what you should expect.
1 Month Beard Examples
If your beard doesn’t look nice and sharp after the first four weeks, don’t get discouraged. It isn’t supposed to! The awkward growth phase is called the awkward phase for a reason.
Beard Oil is Unnecessary at this Point
The purpose of beard oil is to moisturize the beard once your facial hair gets long enough so that the sebaceous glands can’t keep up anymore and the natural sebum oil production isn’t enough for the full length of your facial hair.
Another purpose is to replenish the natural oils you lose when washing the beard.
But since the 1-month beard is so short, it really doesn’t get so dirty that you would be needing to wash it.
Furthermore, it’s suggested that you start using beard oil around 1.5″ beard length as this is close to the cut-off point where your own sebaceous glands can barely keep up with the oil production.
Since your one-month-old beard is still around 0.5″ in length, using beard oil at this point is simply unnecessary (though if you struggle with beard itch, it may still be worth using it).
No Need to Get Beard Shampoo Either
We often recommend that you use beard shampoo over generic scalp-hair shampoo.
This is because beard washes have fewer detergents, and they strip off less of your natural sebum oils (which helps reduce beard dandruff and dry skin underneath the beard).
But do you need to use beard shampoo on a 1-month beard?
The answer is no. Even if you would power-wash your beard with strong generic shampoos, it’s still so short that the sebaceous glands have no problems re-moisturizing the whiskers.
Beard washes are only beneficial for lengthier beards, and using them after the first four weeks is still very early and potentially just a waste of money.
What about Beard Brushes and Combs?
Choosing between a beard comb and a beard brush can be difficult since they’re both very useful beard products.
But for a beard that has been growing for just a month, you’re unlikely to need either one yet.
You see, beard combs are more useful for longer beards, as they can help untangle the snags from your beard. At 1 month in, how many tangles are there in your beard? None.
As for a beard brush, it can be a bit more useful in the beginning, just because daily brushing can help stimulate circulation and natural sebum production, but even the brush is not that necessary during the first month.
Trimming the One Month Beard – Should You?
Most beard grooming experts talk about the 4-week rule, which means that you should not trim or cut your facial hair in any way shape or form during the first month of growth.
This is because you really don’t have anything to cut before this, and if you try, you’re likely to just cut off too much and go too high with the neckline, too low with the cheekline, which ruins your future growth entirely.
But once you reach the one month mark in your beard journey, should you now start trimming?
We say no, absolutely not. After the first month you’re still walking the baby-steps of beardedness, and trimming at this point is simply foolish.
This is the awkward beard growth stage, let it be awkward and don’t try to sugar-coat it.
If you absolutely need to clean up and shape your edges, then I would suggest that you carefully trim the neckline only.
And when doing it, DO NOT trim around your natural jawline. This would be way too high and it’s a common rookie beard mistake that only exposes the soft under-chin fat area and makes your beard’s neckline creep up to your mid-cheek when you open your mouth.
Quick tip: Try to leave at least one finger-width of space between your Adam’s apple and beards neckline, and maybe even less just to be sure.
See how there’s plenty of space between the actual jawline and the bottom of the beard?
That’s what you want to do.
Never ever go around the jaw. It looks good from the front, sure, but wonky from every other angle and especially when you open your mouth.
Conclusion
This wraps up our quick guide to taking care of a one month beard and what to expect from it.
The main takeaway is this:
This early in your journey, you really don’t need much of any beard products, you don’t need to use oil yet, brushing is OK but definitely not necessary. There are no knots yet that you could comb, and really, you should still keep off from the beard scissors and beard trimmer for now.
Your beard may look awkward and unkempt, but that’s cool, it’s what almost always happens at this point of growth. Just power through and worry about the products and trimming later on down the road.
