How to Make Beard Butter at Home (with Shea Butter & Cocoa Butter)
The Best Natural Beard Butter Recipe to Moisturize and Tame Your Beard
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If your beard feels dry, itchy, or hard to manage, it might be time to add a nourishing beard butter to your routine. The best part? You can make it yourself with just a few simple ingredients you probably already have.
In my case, I make this beard conditioning butter for my husband and he loves it.
This DIY beard butter recipe combines rich shea butter, creamy cocoa butter, and your favorite essential oils to create a conditioning blend that softens coarse hair and moisturizes the skin underneath.
Not only does it smell amazing, but this homemade beard butter is completely natural, toxin-free, and customizable to your scent preferences. Whether you’re new to natural beard care or looking for a better way to tame your beard, this easy recipe is a total game-changer.
Beard Butter vs Beard Balm: What’s the Difference?
If you’re new to beard care, it’s easy to confuse beard butter with beard balm — after all, both keep your beard soft and healthy. But they each serve a slightly different purpose.
Beard butter is rich, creamy, and designed primarily for deep conditioning and moisturizing. It’s made with nourishing ingredients like shea butter and cocoa butter, which melt easily into the beard to hydrate dry hair and soothe the skin underneath. Think of it as a leave-in conditioner for your beard — light, smooth, and perfect for daily use or overnight nourishment.
Beard balm, on the other hand, usually contains beeswax along with butters and oils. The beeswax gives it a firmer texture and a light hold, making it ideal for styling and shaping your beard while still providing some moisture. It’s great if you have a longer or unruly beard that needs a bit of control throughout the day.
In short:
- 🧈 Beard Butter = Deep moisture + softness (no hold)
- 🐝 Beard Balm = Light moisture + styling hold
Both are valuable tools in your natural beard care routine, but if your main goal is a soft, conditioned beard that feels smooth and healthy, you’ll want to give this beard butter recipe a try. It is the winner!
The Star Ingredients Inside This Whipped Beard Butter
With beard butter, or any whipped butter really, the ingredients are pretty flexible depending on what you have already and your preferences. Most types of butter, carrier oil and essential oils will work, and swaps can be made.
However, below are the ones I suggest using and my husband really likes. The end result is a highly conditioning and smooth beard butter.
Shea Butter
Shea butter is the base of most natural beard butters because it’s deeply moisturizing and rich in vitamins A and E. It helps soften coarse beard hair, reduces dryness, and soothes any itch or irritation on the skin beneath. Its creamy texture also gives the butter a smooth, whipped consistency.
I just love Shea Butter, and it’s also the star ingredient in the only head to toe moisturizer I use, which you can find the recipe for HERE if interested.
Cocoa Butter
Cocoa butter adds thickness and staying power to your DIY beard butter, helping it hold its shape while adding a subtle, natural chocolate scent. It’s packed with fatty acids that lock in moisture and protect hair from breakage, keeping your beard strong and healthy.
Jojoba Oil
Jojoba oil closely mimics your skin’s natural sebum, making it one of the best lightweight oils for balancing and conditioning facial hair. It delivers lightweight hydration while helping to regulate oil production. And it absorbs quickly without leaving a greasy residue, which helps keep your beard soft and manageable.
Sweet Almond Oil
Sweet almond oil is loaded with vitamins E and B, which help strengthen hair and add a healthy shine. It’s great for soothing dry or flaky skin under the beard and helps reduce beard dandruff while promoting smoother texture.
Essential Oil Blend
Essential oils not only make your beard butter smell incredible but can also offer added skin and hair benefits — from stimulating growth to reducing irritation. Choosing the right blend gives your homemade beard butter a signature scent that feels both refreshing and masculine.
Essential Oil Blends for Men’s Beard Butter
1. Fresh & Woodsy Blend (classic masculine scent)
- 12 drops Cedarwood
- 10 drops Sandalwood
- 8 drops Bergamot
This blend offers a grounded, earthy aroma with a hint of citrus — perfect for a warm, rugged scent.
2. Energizing Citrus Mint Blend (clean & refreshing)
- 10 drops Peppermint
- 10 drops Sweet Orange
- 6 drops Tea Tree
Ideal for morning use, this blend refreshes the senses while helping to clarify skin and prevent beard itch.
This 3rd option is my personal favourite, and the one I use.
3. Soothing Citrus & Woodsy Blend (clean & fresh)
- 8 drops Lemongrass
- 3 drops Lemon
- 10 drops Cedarwood
- 4 drops Frankincense
- 8 drops Lavender
This blend adds a rich, masculine scent that feels fresh and sophisticated.
Vitamin E
A powerful antioxidant that protects the skin from free radicals and environmental stressors. It also supports healthy hair growth, repairs damage from environmental stress, and leaves the beard looking well-conditioned. In this recipe it is primarily used to enhance the shelf life of your body butter naturally by acting as an antioxidant, which slows down rancidity (oxidation) in the oils and butters used.
Arrowroot Powder (Optional)
This silky, natural powder gives your whipped beard butter a lighter, non-greasy feel. It helps the oils absorb quickly, leaving it smooth and soft to the touch. Arrowroot also soothes irritation and can help reduce shine, making this butter perfect for daily use.
Corn Starch is a good substitute for Arrowroot Powder if that’s what you have already.
Easy Beard Conditioning Butter
Difficulty: Intermediate12
Ounces10
minutes35
minutes45
minutesEquipment:
– Kitchen Scale (buy in CAN or USA)
– 5 2oz tins (buy in CAN or USA)
– Stainless Steel Melting Pot (buy in CAN or USA)
– Hand Mixer (buy in CAN or USA)
Ingredients
Directions
- On your stovetop put a couple inches of water in a pot and bring to a light boil.
- Place your melting pot on a kitchen scale and add the shea butter, cocoa butter and carrier oils (jojoba & sweet almond).
- Place the melting pot with butter and oils over boiling water and stir until the butters are melted.
- Let oils cool for 10 minutes or so at room temperature, then stir in the essential oils and vitamin E (you don’t want the butter and oil to be too hot when these are added or it ruins the effectiveness of the essential oils). Stir at least 2-3 minutes to ensure EO’s are well distributed.
- Pour the melted butter and oils into a big enough bowl to whip them in, and chill in the fridge for 20-30 minutes or until you notice a more solidified cast on top.
- Whip it until it’s creamy and smooth, then add in the arrowroot powder. Continue whipping until you’ve achieved the desired texture.
- Placed the whipped beard butter into tins and cover with lid.
If you loved this recipe, don’t forget to share it with a friend and save it to Pinterest so you’ll always have it handy. And if you want more simple, natural recipes, be sure to subscribe to my newsletter – I’ve got plenty more tips and recipes coming out on a weekly basis for healthy, glowing hair and skin.
