Can't go wrong with Proraso imo, excellent soap, inexpensive. Other notable contenders are Arko (stick or bowl), Derby (stick or bowl), some of the classic European shaving sticks (Speick, Tabac, Wilkinson Sword, Palmolive, etc), Cella, Culmak, etc. There are many more but all the above are $10 or a good deal less and are recognized as solid performers, so you could get a couple and see what you like.
Budget shave soap recommendation
- Thread starter ElwoodP
- Start date
Yes, Alex Karras (spelling?). One of the few professional athletes that acted almost as well as he played his sport! He was no "Paper Lion"...... He was a tough son of a gun!
Now I'm curious. I'll have to place an order soon. Does Arkoland sell funnel cakes?
That’s funny, your pointing out possible spelling errors!
Yes, but ONLY lemon flavored!Now I'm curious. I'll have to place an order soon. Does Arkoland sell funnel cakes?
The most "economical" soap for you is the one that meets your needs and fulfills most of your preferences. That may or may not be an inexpensive soap.
Arko does work for many people, but I cannot use it. I used it only once. I got a poor shave and the soap left my face feeling tight and dry after the shave. Furthermore, many people do not like the citronella scent of the soap. Thus, for me, it was not economical, even though it was cheap. Since I only got one shave from my purchase, and that shave was not a good one, it was one of the more expensive soaps I have ever used.
Personally, I have not had good experiences with inexpensive soaps; but my needs and preferences are probably higher than most.
Arko does work for many people, but I cannot use it. I used it only once. I got a poor shave and the soap left my face feeling tight and dry after the shave. Furthermore, many people do not like the citronella scent of the soap. Thus, for me, it was not economical, even though it was cheap. Since I only got one shave from my purchase, and that shave was not a good one, it was one of the more expensive soaps I have ever used.
Personally, I have not had good experiences with inexpensive soaps; but my needs and preferences are probably higher than most.
@ElwoodP if you're looking to save up front costs, I have a RazoRock What the Puck Lime and a few creams/croaps that I've been intending to give away. PM me if you're interested.
Razorock What the Puck is an excellent soap and often on sale at Italian Barber for $2.99 a puck or $10-$12 for a set of all four current scents. Thread with many recent posts, including mine, on What the Puck via the link below. Like the scents of the Black, Blue and Green that I recently purchased and have realized excellent performance with the Black Fougere scent so far. While the Lime is no longer sold you should consider Eben Stones generous PIF offer above if you want to try it out for performance.
Arko is the best value overall as others have mentioned now that Williams is discontinued for roughly $2 a stick. Also Van Der Hagen Luxury (not the cheaper Deluxe that is less slick) is a good value at $4-$5 per puck. Lots of posts from me and others on both of these.
www.badgerandblade.com
For a passable shave soap at the lowest possible price per ounce you can blend Dove Men+Care with Ivory (grate them both and mix with a bit of water). Dove is a superlathering ingredient and Ivory provides tallow based slickness. You can vary the blend until you find what works best for you. I blend a lot. Link to the results from a number of my experiments including this specific blend (#4 in post) is here:
www.badgerandblade.com
P.S. If you have sensitive skin, as does RayClem who posted above, you should reach out to him as he has over 200 soaps from his efforts to identify those that work best for him. While these will not likely be budget soaps, focusing on recommendations that will work well for you may be less costly in the long run. For artisan soaps he's one of the most knowledgeable B&B members.
Arko is the best value overall as others have mentioned now that Williams is discontinued for roughly $2 a stick. Also Van Der Hagen Luxury (not the cheaper Deluxe that is less slick) is a good value at $4-$5 per puck. Lots of posts from me and others on both of these.
razorock what the puck triple milled shave soaps
I have all 4. Excellent soaps! I get great face lathers with badger, boar and synths with them. I ended up grating them and pressing each into standard size empty soap containers. Stacks nice.
www.badgerandblade.com
For a passable shave soap at the lowest possible price per ounce you can blend Dove Men+Care with Ivory (grate them both and mix with a bit of water). Dove is a superlathering ingredient and Ivory provides tallow based slickness. You can vary the blend until you find what works best for you. I blend a lot. Link to the results from a number of my experiments including this specific blend (#4 in post) is here:
Dove Men+Care: Miracle Superlather Ingredient & Very Good for Shaving When Mixed with Ivory in 50/50 Blend
As promised in my post on Big Jim's thread (link below) I've further experimented and tested Dove Men+Care (DMC) in various shaving soap blends. Overall results were as follows: Dove Men+Care is an excellent superlathering ingredient when combined with other shave soaps either per shave or in...
www.badgerandblade.com
P.S. If you have sensitive skin, as does RayClem who posted above, you should reach out to him as he has over 200 soaps from his efforts to identify those that work best for him. While these will not likely be budget soaps, focusing on recommendations that will work well for you may be less costly in the long run. For artisan soaps he's one of the most knowledgeable B&B members.
Last edited:
If you're unbothered by shaving with urinal cakes, Arko's the way to go! 
Seriously, though, Arko's not a bad soap, but its scent leaves something to be desired (especially for those who are not asnomic
). It also leaves some people's skin a little dry, but that can be remedied with an aftershave balm.
Personally, for an inexpensive shave soap, I much prefer Proraso, which I have frequently found for $5 per tub/tube at TJ Maxx, Ross, Burlington Coat Factory, etc. I also liked Van der Hagen's Luxury shave soap a couple years ago, but it looks like (i.e., I'm not certain) the soap may have been changed.
RazoRock's What the Puck line of shave soaps are also excellent inexpensive soaps. If you wait around, you can catch them on sale for around $3/tub (or even less).
I've also managed to buy new Taylor of Old Bond Street Sandalwood pucks for $5. However, that was when they were on sale; I have not seen them sold at that price since. (Incidentally, I am a fan of TOBS Sandalwood, so I was pretty ecstatic when I saw them being sold at that price.)
There's a thread about Dollar Tree's new shaving soap, which others insist doesn't meet the technical definition of "soap" but rather argue it's a detergent. Be that as it may, some forum members have reported good shaves with it. Personally, I've not tried it, but it seems promising.
Speaking of Dollar Tree, some forum members have reported getting good shaves from the Old Spice body soaps sold there. Again, I haven't tested this out, but if you're looking for inexpensive shave soaps, this could be an option.
While there are some other decent inexpensive shaving soaps, by and large, for good inexpensive shave soaps, mostly you'll have to wait and get lucky to find them when they're discounted.
Seriously, though, Arko's not a bad soap, but its scent leaves something to be desired (especially for those who are not asnomic
). It also leaves some people's skin a little dry, but that can be remedied with an aftershave balm.Personally, for an inexpensive shave soap, I much prefer Proraso, which I have frequently found for $5 per tub/tube at TJ Maxx, Ross, Burlington Coat Factory, etc. I also liked Van der Hagen's Luxury shave soap a couple years ago, but it looks like (i.e., I'm not certain) the soap may have been changed.
RazoRock's What the Puck line of shave soaps are also excellent inexpensive soaps. If you wait around, you can catch them on sale for around $3/tub (or even less).
I've also managed to buy new Taylor of Old Bond Street Sandalwood pucks for $5. However, that was when they were on sale; I have not seen them sold at that price since. (Incidentally, I am a fan of TOBS Sandalwood, so I was pretty ecstatic when I saw them being sold at that price.)
There's a thread about Dollar Tree's new shaving soap, which others insist doesn't meet the technical definition of "soap" but rather argue it's a detergent. Be that as it may, some forum members have reported good shaves with it. Personally, I've not tried it, but it seems promising.
Speaking of Dollar Tree, some forum members have reported getting good shaves from the Old Spice body soaps sold there. Again, I haven't tested this out, but if you're looking for inexpensive shave soaps, this could be an option.
While there are some other decent inexpensive shaving soaps, by and large, for good inexpensive shave soaps, mostly you'll have to wait and get lucky to find them when they're discounted.
Depends on how you define cheap.
I bought some Truefitt & Hill 1805 soap in February this year. I’ve used t every day, it’s my only soap. I do a daily four pass shave.
Five months on and Im not even halfway through it, I think it may last me a full year.
It’s a hard soap, makes a great lather really easily, likes water and a little goes a long way.
It has a classy fresh scent and is a very good performer.
I bought it with a wooden bowl but you can buy the soap alone for £15.
365 shaves for £15 works out about 4 pence a shave.
Tough to get much cheaper than that, especially for a good soap.
I bought some Truefitt & Hill 1805 soap in February this year. I’ve used t every day, it’s my only soap. I do a daily four pass shave.
Five months on and Im not even halfway through it, I think it may last me a full year.
It’s a hard soap, makes a great lather really easily, likes water and a little goes a long way.
It has a classy fresh scent and is a very good performer.
I bought it with a wooden bowl but you can buy the soap alone for £15.
365 shaves for £15 works out about 4 pence a shave.
Tough to get much cheaper than that, especially for a good soap.
Last edited:
When it rains in Arkoland lemon drops fall from the sky and there are no urinals or public washrooms…anywhere.
Sir, all your requirements point me to one clear direction, a great Italian pride: Proraso. The latest Super Formula is just outstanding and can easily compare with any other top quality soap, regardless of price point.
“Ach Brito Mogno”…. The only soap with a Klingon name. Good stuff. Try it.
Arko is a pretty good soap. I have the small puck in the little red container. Impressive performance for such an inexpensive soap.
I am here to convert the OP to the wonderful world of the shaving stick....
start with Arko stick - buy it in a twist up container from Shave Nation or others, so you don't have to faff around with the paper etc... and after use putting the cap back on removes the, errr, olfactory element in your bathroom.
Arko - cheap yet excellent performance so use that as a baseline.
then sticking with things that stick... splash out on a refill of Mitchell's Wool Fat. No need for the expensive (but lovely) ceramic dish.. get the puck. Load up your brush and lather up on your face. Great, isn't it?
Now take that MWF, and some Arko and grate them 50/50 and mash the mix into one of those twist up containers. Enjoy.
Finding the world of Arko a tad not to your perfume preference? Or just curious?
Next try the classic that is Cella.
Get the cute little red tub - load brush and lather on face like the MWF. Enjoy that lovely marzipan scent and the Arko like perfomance... and yes it 'sticks' if you mix it 50/50 with MWF (which is a hard soap, so offsets the much softer Cella). Best to freeze the Cella overnight before trying to grate it 50/50 with MWF - and now you have 2 fabulous sticks to enjoy.
Mike's Shave soaps look like a good firmer soap too, but I haven't tried them... yet.
I'd been using my Cella/MWF stick for a few days, and realised I missed the old Arko... cracked open the stick and smiled.
Just like something out of the classic Hayseed Dixies song -
"It all came back to me, baby
In one vaporous rush I remembered you well
How could I ever forget, that you're a piece of... soap?"
Poop in a jar
start with Arko stick - buy it in a twist up container from Shave Nation or others, so you don't have to faff around with the paper etc... and after use putting the cap back on removes the, errr, olfactory element in your bathroom.
Arko - cheap yet excellent performance so use that as a baseline.
then sticking with things that stick... splash out on a refill of Mitchell's Wool Fat. No need for the expensive (but lovely) ceramic dish.. get the puck. Load up your brush and lather up on your face. Great, isn't it?
Now take that MWF, and some Arko and grate them 50/50 and mash the mix into one of those twist up containers. Enjoy.
Finding the world of Arko a tad not to your perfume preference? Or just curious?
Next try the classic that is Cella.
Get the cute little red tub - load brush and lather on face like the MWF. Enjoy that lovely marzipan scent and the Arko like perfomance... and yes it 'sticks' if you mix it 50/50 with MWF (which is a hard soap, so offsets the much softer Cella). Best to freeze the Cella overnight before trying to grate it 50/50 with MWF - and now you have 2 fabulous sticks to enjoy.
Mike's Shave soaps look like a good firmer soap too, but I haven't tried them... yet.
I'd been using my Cella/MWF stick for a few days, and realised I missed the old Arko... cracked open the stick and smiled.
Just like something out of the classic Hayseed Dixies song -
"It all came back to me, baby
In one vaporous rush I remembered you well
How could I ever forget, that you're a piece of... soap?"
Poop in a jar
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #36
For right now I define cheap as "low initial cost" because I'm still purchasing equipment. Rather have recently purchased..
Eben Stone is graciously sending me the lime puck from Razorock and a few other items. The generosity of members in this forum is outstanding. Honestly refreshing in this day and age.
Once I'm firmly into the hobby, I will be willing to spend more on something that I know I like. It is the learning what works that I'm trying to do on a budget.
Buy samples if possible along the way. Going through full size tubs/tubes that you like only so so is tedious.
- Thread starter
- #38
I want to thank Eben Stone for his generosity in sending me the lime puck from Razorock and several other items as well. The irony is that I was looking for a lime shaving soap yesterday. Then he offers that to me right before I was going to look on Amazon. Serindipity.
erasmic shaving soap is a good shout for a budget soap
Similar threads
