Buying razors can be a pain in the ass face wallet. At the grocery or drug store, for example, you can expect to pay $25 to $30 for a pack of eight replacement blades. Eight! Online, you can find blades a little cheaper, and the relatively new Dollar Shave Club (DSC) — remember the funny video they did? — ships a variety of blades directly to members. You want to save money, but you also want a decent shave that won’t cut up your face or look sloppy. So the question is, with these options out there, what’s the best way to shave?
We decided to find out. And since finding out involved dealing with numbers, we had our accountant, Dan, do the test on his own face so he could use spreadsheets — nerd! — to figure it all out. We assumed the average guy shaves once every other day. Then we compared the cost-per-blade, noted how many shaves a blade lasts before getting dull, and used those numbers to calculate the cost-per-use and the real cost-per-month. Sound confusing? It isn’t. And it’ll give you some insight into the best way to shave.
1. LOWEST-COST RAZORS
Schick ST2 Disposable vs.
DSC Humble Twin
Schick ST2 is Amazon’s highest-rated disposable razor, and they can be purchased in bulk packages of 72 for $30.15. They last about four uses a pop, resulting in a cost-per-use of $0.10. That means that every month, you’re spending a total of $1.57 on shaving. The Humble Twin from Dollar Shave Club is a no-frills razor that takes double-blade heads. The subscription costs $1 per month, not including a $2 shipping charge. So the actual cost-per-month is $3, but it includes five blade changes. This works out to a cost-per-blade of $0.60, and cost-per-use of $0.20.
Results
What’s the best way to shave if your biggest priority is saving money? The Humble Twin. The ST2 felt flimsy and required too many strokes, resulting in irritation. For $1.43 more per month, you get the Humble Twin’s steel handle and better blades. The automatic monthly replenishment means you’ll shave just three times with each blade, so you’ll never have to attempt to squeeze more shaves out of a dull razor.
