Giving yourself a haircut can be tricky, but more guys are learning to cut men’s hair than ever before. Men who cut their own hair can save money and time at the barber shop. For guys who want short hair on the top, back and sides, cutting your own hair at home is easy and simple. With the right clippers and guard combs from a self-haircut kit, you can trim and taper fade your hair regularly.
To inspire you, we’ve put together this step-by-step guide to teach you how to cut your own hair. Whether you want a crew cut, buzz cut, or just want to trim your back and sides short, here’s everything you need to know about cutting guy’s hair at home!
Contents
1 Best Self Hair Cutting Tools1.1 Clippers1.2 Scissors1.3 Mirror2 Choose The Best Men’s Haircut2.1 Buzz Cut2.2 Crew Cut2.3 Taper Fade and Undercut3 Wash Your Hair4 Where To Cut Your Hair5 Cutting Your Own Hair with Clippers6 How To Cut Men’s Hair6.1 Cut The Sides of Your Hair6.2 Cut The Back of Your Hair6.3 Fade Hair: How To Give Yourself A Fade6.4 How To Cut The Top of Your Hair6.5 Clean Up The Hairline and Neck with Trimmers6.6 Style Your Hair7 Cutting Your Own Hair At Home For MenBest Self Hair Cutting Tools
When figuring out how to give yourself a haircut at home, having the proper barber tools is essential. In fact, the best self hair cutting tools can make or break your experience. By investing in the right clippers, scissors, mirror, and trimmer, you’ll prevent your DIY haircut from becoming a mistake. Let’s explore the tools you’ll need to have before you cut your own hair.
Clippers
Good hair clippers are critical to getting the best haircuts for men. Clippers are particularly important if you plan to cut your hair short, especially on the back and sides. Furthermore, if you want to learn how to fade hair, you’ll need a set of guards and combs to taper and blend your faded cut.
Here are the best hair clippers for men to get:
Professional Clippers For Barbers: Wahl Professional 5-Star Magic Clip High-Performance Clippers For Home: Wahl Clipper Elite Pro Cordless Hair Clippers: Wahl Color Pro Cordless Hair Clipper Self-Haircut Kit: Remington HC4250 Shortcut ProIf you value performance, invest in professional hair clippers. For barber clippers and trimmers, get the Wahl Professional 5-Star Magic Clip. Trusted by barbers and known for its performance, precision and durability, this clipper comes with self-sharpening blades, a very powerful motor, corded and cordless use, and 8 attachment combs. Ultimately, you can’t go wrong with Wahl’s line of commercial-grade products.
On the other hand, guys who want affordable high-performance home clippers should consider the Wahl Elite Pro. This model is well-made and comes with self-sharpening premium blades, a quality motor with 15% more power than the standard, an adjustable taper lever, and 10 attachment guards for every length you’ll need. The only drawback is that it is a corded product.
The best cheap cordless clippers for home-use is the Wahl Color Pro. This complete hair cutting kit might be everything you need on a budget.
Lastly, if you want an easy way to give yourself a buzz cut or crew cut with clippers, then the Remington HC4250 Shortcut Pro Self-Haircut Kit is the ideal model. These hair clippers are highly-rated and popular for many reasons. This trimmer provides 40-minutes of cordless run-time, a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, 9 comb sizes, and stainless steel blades powered by a solid motor that will cut through thick hair without pulling or snagging.
Scissors
You’ll also want to buy shears or scissors. While you’ll primarily use clippers on your back and sides, scissors are useful for cutting the hair on top of your head. With a comb for guidance, guys need shears to lightly trim the longer hair.
For this reason, you’ll want very sharp, stainless steel scissors that won’t ever dull and a design that offers an ergonomic hold for maximum comfort and maneuverability. The Equinox Professional Shears and Utopia Care Professional Barber Scissors are excellent choices.
Mirror
When you’re cutting your hair at home, you’ll want to see your head from every angle. A three-way mirror provides the ideal system so you have a clear and consistent view of the back, sides, and crown of your head. The Self-Cut System Three-Way Mirror is the top-rated product on the market.
However, a cheap handheld mirror may suffice if you plan to do your hair cutting in the bathroom and have a large vanity mirror.
Choose The Best Men’s Haircut
Once you’ve assembled your tools, the next step in the process is to choose a flattering haircut. The haircut that looks best is usually dependent on your face shape, hair texture, desired length, and favorite hairstyle.
If you know you like a certain look because you’ve been getting your hair cut a specific way for years, this is a good place to start. Otherwise, keep things simple when you’re cutting your own hair for the first time to avoid any issues.
Buzz Cut
One of the easiest haircuts to master on your own is the traditional buzz cut. To achieve a buzzed haircut, you’ll use your clippers to buzz your hair all around. To do a buzz cut yourself, we recommend the back and sides be cut to a shorter length than the hair on top. Be sure to buzz your head against the grain to ensure the length remains even all over.
Crew Cut
The crew cut is another classic masculine haircut you can trim at home. With short hair on the sides and back, guys can do a crew cut hairstyle with slightly longer hair on top. Style the look with a side swept or spiky front for a stylish finish.
When you give yourself a crew cut, use a number two or three guard along the back and sides of your hair and a number four or five guard size on the top of the head. Haircut numbers correspond to different clipper sizes to create the different lengths you’ll need for haircuts, leaving you with a clean, trendy men’s hairstyle.
Taper Fade and Undercut
The most trending men’s hairstyles right now come with a taper fade or undercut on the sides. However, fading hair is not something you want to experiment with as a beginner. Fortunately, an undercut haircut is all one-length on the sides and back, and can be a great way to complement short or medium-length hair on top.
With just a simple trim, you would be able to style a comb over, slick back, faux hawk, fringe, crop top, spiked or messy hairstyle.
Nevertheless, we highly recommend you start with a conservative cut and that means using a longer guard. Once you begin buzzing your hair and get a feel for the process, guys can better determine how to go shorter, if preferred.
Wash Your Hair
Before any hair cutting commences, you must wash your hair. This includes shampooing and conditioning your hair to ensure it’s as clean and smooth as possible. By washing your hair first, you set yourself up for an easier task since it’s always easier to cut clean hair.
Moreover, you’ll only want to begin cutting once your hair has dried. Damp hair is generally more relaxed and longer than dry hair, which means you’ll inevitably cut your hair shorter than you intend to. Give your hair time to dry before you set in with your clippers and scissors.
Where To Cut Your Hair
Determining where to cut your hair is important. If your bathroom has dim lighting, take your tools to an area of the house that is well-lit. Be sure you have enough space to move around, as you’ll need to lift your arms up and move around throughout the process.
Head to your living room, bedroom, or even kitchen, as long as you have the space and light you need. Parts of your home with tile or wood floors are preferred for easy clean-up afterwards.
Cutting Your Own Hair with Clippers
Cutting hair with clippers is easy if you choose one of the most popular short sides, long top haircuts. To start, use the clippers to cut your hair short on the back and sides. Tapering and fading your haircut might take practice, but there are ways to perfectly layer and blend the hair for the right finish.
Afterwards, you’ll need scissors and a comb to trim the top evenly. If you’re going for a very short hairstyle, you might even consider attaching a long guard comb to your clippers and running it through the top. Otherwise, plan on only trimming a quarter, half or full inch off the top.
Follow the steps below to learn how to cut your own hair for men!
How To Cut Men’s Hair
Cut The Sides of Your Hair
First, select a guard size. This varies depending on how much length you want to leave on the sides of your head, so choose a size based on personal preference.
Second, clip the comb on and begin running the clippers along one side of your head. Start at your sideburns and then bring the clippers back from there. You’ll want to start at the bottom of your sideburns and work your way upward to create the right look.
When using the clippers, be sure to keep them steady and tilt them forward slightly. Always keep the clippers flush against your head since this helps cut your hair at one continuous length.
Be sure to use a guard that’s going to be shorter than the one you choose for the top of your hair. This provides you with a sleek finished product.
Cut The Back of Your Hair
If you’re wondering how to cut the back of your hair, don’t panic. Place the clippers at your neckline at the back of your head and use an upward flicking motion to shave the hair along this area.
Your three-way mirror is useful in this instance because it allows you to see the back of your head while you work.
Use the same guard on the back of your hair as you used on the sides to create one even, cohesive length. Blend the hair on the back with the hair on your sides as you repeat the upward flicking motion to create your desired length.
When you blend the lengths, you’re effectively giving yourself a fade which is a great way to achieve a modern look.
Fade Hair: How To Give Yourself A Fade
Giving yourself a fade haircut and tapering your hair with clippers is a unique skill that requires precision, hand-eye coordination and practice. The way you approach fading hair depends on whether you want a low, mid, or high taper fade cut.
A high fade is very short, edgy and works well for men who like bold styles. The low fade looks better on business professionals, and the mid fade offers a balance of both cuts.
To fade your hair gradually, use a number two or three guard to shave down the hair below your selected fade line. To begin the blending process, transition into a number four guard for the hair above this line.
The higher you go, the higher the guard you’ll want to use since fades get shorter as you go down the sides. Make sure your tape is even across the sides and back of your head before proceeding to the next step.
How To Cut The Top of Your Hair
Cutting the top of your hair is also something that is preference-based. If you’re doing a buzz cut, crew cut or a short haircut, then you can cut the hair on top with electric clippers. However, longer styles will require using scissors.
Choose a starting section then use your comb to pull the hair in this section upward in a straight line. Keeping the hair straight, use your scissors to cut along the line at your desired length. Move to the next section and repeat the process until the hair on top of your head is evenly cut.
When you’re cutting the front of your hair, you’ll use a slightly different method. Instead of pulling the hair straight up with your comb, use the comb to bring your hair down toward your forehead.
Trim your hair with the scissors at your desired length after bringing it forward with the comb. If you have a widow’s peak or balding areas you want to mask, leave the hair at the front of your head longer for a more flattering finish.
Run your comb through your hair to see if you’ve missed any areas or to determine if everything is evenly trimmed.
Go back through with the scissors to clean up sections you may have missed or to cut the hair shorter if you left it too long during the initial process.
Clean Up The Hairline and Neck with Trimmers
Grab your clippers again and turn them upside down before bringing them to your hairline. Clean your sideburns and the hair around your ears to provide a polished look.
You want your hairline in this area to neatly hug along the natural curve of your ear. Once you’ve done this, use the clippers to clean the hair heading toward your neckline.
Refrain from trimming the hair along your neckline too far inward, as this breaks up the asymmetry of your haircut and is more difficult to correct at home. The way you choose to trim your neckline is dependent on the type of style you want to achieve.
Rounded, blocked, and tapered necklines are all options to consider when completing this step.
Style Your Hair
After you’ve washed, dried, and cut your hair, apply your favorite styling products to achieve your finished look. Pomade, gels, and sprays are great products to help give you a textured look without taking away from any sleekness.
During the styling process, you’ll get a good look at your handy work and be able to better determine whether anything needs to be touched up or changed during your next haircut.
Cutting Your Own Hair At Home For Men
Discovering the joys of cutting your own hair at home for men can be truly life-changing. You’ll be able to save yourself time and money by learning how to create your favorite haircut in the comfort of your own home.
Touch up your hair as needed to give yourself a refreshed look or head to the barber if you want to gain additional advice before you cut your hair again.