23 Impressive Full Beard Styles For a Bold Look (2024)

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tips for scraggly beard hair

The full beard has become one of the most popular beard trends. With full facial hair styles, your look can be bushy, long, and sleek or neatly trimmed and thick. The great thing about full beards is their versatility and impressive shape accentuating your face and cheekbones.

A Full Beard is defined as a beard grown steadily for 2 to 4 months with little to no trimming. Beards grow approximately 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch per month, so a full beard will take shape around month 2. The jaw, chin, and cheeks will grow to 2 inches (5cm) or more, depending on the ability to grow facial, along with other factors like age, race, and family genetics.

We look at the latest trends in fuller style beards and show you the styling tips that make these look pop for different hair types, face shapes, and necklines.

Best Full Beard Styles

A full beard is easy to achieve if you have naturally thick facial hair. But for those struggling with a thin or sparse beard, fix your patchy beard before trying to grow a fuller style.

Thick, big beards are prone to bushiness, so grooming and shaping are key to maintaining a full beard.

Classic looks typically have defined necklines with different lengths and textures. For example, a full beard may have longer chin hair, or you can combine your beard with a thick mustache. The options are endless if you love styling your facial hair.

1. Classic Full Beard

Classic Full Beard
See below for tips on how to grow thick facial hair.

2. Long Thick Full Beard

Long Full Beard
Thick beard with a slight curl.

3. Bushy Garibaldi Beard

Garibaldi Beard style - thick and bushy
Thick and bushy Garibaldi Beard style.

4. Thick Short Beard

Short Full Beard
Short beard with thick density.

5. Full Beard with Fade

Full Beard Fade
See more Faded Beard Styles

6. Full Beard with Taper

Tapered Full Beard
Cool Taper Haircut and beard.

7. Full Beard with Handlebar Mustache

Handlebar Mustache Full Beard
Wicked handlebar mustache on a full beard.

8. Undercut with a Full Beard

Undercut with Full Beard
Undercut hairstyle pulled into a small tail and paired with a beard. Image courtesy of BespokeUnit.com

9. Thick Stubble Beard

Ricky Martin Stubble Full Beard
While shaved to stubble, full beards still reveal their thickness and coverage. Ricky Martin’s stubble is envious.

10. Full Beard with Goatee

Long Goatee Beard
Full goatee beard style is just wild. See more long goatee styles.

11. Full Beard Hair with Straightener

Before After Beard Straightener
Before and after with a beard straightener, image courtesy of TameFinish.com

12. Square Full Beard

Square Full Beard
The square beard looks great in a fuller length.

13. Ducktail Full Beard

Ducktail Beards
See more ducktail beard styles.

14. Thick Patchy Beard

u Reeves with Thick Patchy Full Beard
See more of Keanu Reeves’ Patchy Beard Style.

15. Long Hair with Full Beard

Highlighted and blonde Long Beard
Long hair with a full blonde beard.

16. Bald with a Full Beard

Bald with Full Beard
See more Bald with Beard Styles

17. beard fade and Comb Over

Comb Over Hairstyle and beard fade
Cool Comb Over Hairstyle w fuller beard

18. Jake Gyllenhaal Full Beard

Jake Gyllenhaal Full Beard
See more Jake Gyllenhaal beard styles.

19. Questlove Full Beard

Questlove Beard
See more Black Men Beard Styles

20. Jared Leto Full Beard

Jared Leto Beard
Jared Leto with really long hair paired with a matching beard.

21. Childish Gambino Full Beard

Black Bushy Beard
A little salt and pepper in the beard.

22. Sean Connery Full Beard

Sean Connery Gray Beard Style
Sean Connery with a Full Gray Beard

23. James Harden’s Full Beard

James Harden with trademark full beard style
See James Harden without a beard.

Are Full Beards in Style?

When looking at full beards, it’s easy to see the possibilities, but are these beards desirable? Full beards are in style, according to celebrities currently sporting thick and long facial hair.

Long beards and full beards depend on the style of hair growth, so if you want to join in on this trend, you may have to spend time growing your facial hair long enough to trim and style.

Some of the most admired male celebrities have incredibly thick beards right now.

It’s important to note that not all these beards could be natural, as many men have beard wigs and fake facial hair to take on certain roles in movies. However, that goes to show you how desirable these fuller beards are.

How to Grow a Full Beard

For some, a long, full beard doesn’t come overnight. In fact, many men have slow beard growth problems. This is typically due to genetics, but some studies indicate that hair growth is connected to your diet and hormones.

How Do I Get a Full Beard on My Face?

One of the characteristics that we notice about full beards is that thick hair covers most of your jaw, upper lip, chin, and neckline.

If you have a beard this thick and lustrous, then you’ve probably already grown your hair out significantly for years, but it can take others many years to grow long hair this thick.

The key to styling and trimming a full beard is using beard hair to accentuate your face shape.

Trouble growing a full beard

What Will Your Full Beard Look Like?

Everyone goes through facial hair changes, starting from puberty. For those still young and growing a beard as a teenager, you may have to wait several years for thick growth. Even by your late 20s, your beard may still grow in patches that don’t connect.

Not seeing your facial hair grow?

You may not have waited long enough. One example is Keanu Reeves, who only recently showed off his thick, patchy beard. However, he wasn’t always able to grow hair like this in his younger years. See the comparison below:

Full beards are incredibly attractive, but there are varying lengths and thickness levels. Your beard doesn’t have to be long to be considered full. These beards are more defined by how your hair connects and covers your face with thick growth.

Here’s a simple video on trimming your beard:

Full Beard Grooming

Your beard care routine matters for the health of your facial hair and growth thickness. Some studies indicate that boar bristle brushes and beard oil can help beards become fuller and thicker, even directing growth over patches.

Invest in Pro Tools

Barbers use a variety of tools to get the perfect full beard look. However, you don’t need all the professional tools to groom and maintain a full beard, particularly if you want to let it grow longer and bushier.

Wash and Dry First

Before trimming your beard, it’s best to shampoo and condition it in the shower, then dry it off by patting it with a towel or blow drying it.

You don’t want to trim or cut your beard while wet since your hair could appear longer than it is when dry.

Cut and Style Tips

Grooming a beard may seem intimidating or time-consuming, but there are quick ways to trim up a beard in the morning without spending 20 minutes shaping and comparing sides for symmetry. Here are a few pro tips from barbers who regularly create full beard looks for their customers:

Electric Trim with Guards

Start trimming with an electric razor or beard trimmer. You need to have guards to shave with different lengths, starting with a #3 to keep your length or going shorter with a #2.

If you want to fade your beard to a clean or bald fade, you’ll need shorter guards like a .5 or 1. Check out our step-by-step beard fading guide for more tips on professionally shaving your beard.

Use a Beard Shaper Tool for Precise Lines

If you’re going for a specific shape or want to define your cheek and neckline expertly, a beard shaper tool is a great item in your beard kit.

You only need to hold the beard shaper tool to your face and line it up to shave along with the guide for the perfect line. This can help create a symmetrical neckline and cheek definition, especially with long beard styles.

Trim Down with Barber Shears

Trimming shears or barber’s scissors work well to trim up between major cuts. You can trim away stray hairs or even out each side using shears.

You’ll need to brush or comb through your beard to see the length and uneven areas you want to trim. After brushing through, scissors can clip away at longer hairs and shore up the sides to match length.

Maintain Your Mustache

Full beards also have thick mustaches that cover the upper lip and connect to your beard hair. You only need a pair of barber shears and a mustache comb to trim up your mustache.

Comb through your mustache first and then use the shears to trim away hair along your lip, being careful not to cut too short.

You may want to invest in mustache wax to shape and soften your mustache hair, especially if you want to grow a handlebar mustache with your full beard.

FAQ

What is the best shape for a full beard?

The optimal beard shape depends on facial structure: square faces should accentuate the jawline, round faces should add cheekbone angles, oval faces suit any style, and rectangular faces benefit from highlighting facial structure.

How should a full beard look?

A full beard should be about 2 inches long below the chin, with the hair on the cheeks, jaw, and chin grown out. To maintain a clean appearance, it should be brushed, trimmed, and sculpted to a smooth, rounded finish.

Are full beards attractive?

Yes, full beards are generally considered attractive. They are perceived as markers of masculinity, maturity, and social maturity. Men with full beards are viewed as more masculine and aggressive, while light stubble is preferred for relationships.

What does a full beard say about a man?

A full beard often signifies masculinity and maturity, symbolizing strength and wisdom. It distinguishes mature men from younger ones and conveys a sense of respect and authority across various cultures.

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AUTHOR

I'm the founder of Bald & Beards, an amateur barber and I've been obsessed with men's grooming, styles, and trends for over 20 years.