Best electric shaver 2024: top grooming options from Braun, Philips and more

The best electric shavers easily chop through beards, moustaches and other facial hair for a smooth customised look. Wet or dry, we've got an electric shaver for you, from the likes of Philips, Braun, Panasonic and many more.

Why buy the best electric shaver, you might ask. Not all men shave every day anymore, and some men barely shave at all. However, for the old guard who prefers a smooth appearance, and younger men turning away from the beard, an electric razor is just the thing, and these are the best electric shavers on the market right now.

Keep reading to discover our full rundown of the best electric shavers, top picks, buying advice and the best prices. You're in for an absolute treat. 

WRITTEN BY

WRITTEN BY

Lizzie Wilmot

Lizzie is T3's Home Staff Writer, also covering style, living and wellness. Whilst Lizzie may not be in need of an electric shaver herself, it doesn't mean she knows any less. Lizzie spends a lot of time comparing electric shaver models and brands, and has recently began sharing her top tips and tricks for looking after your shaver and prolonging its lifetime.

The top three

Best electric shavers ranking 2024

The best electric shaver overall

The Series 9 Pro+ is Braun's most recent electric shaver, and it's made a pretty strong impression so far. Designed to provide ultimate closeness and skin comfort, it has five specialised ProShave elements, including ProLift Blade, that help give you the best shave possible. 

Not only that, but there's a portable charging case and separate charging doc which is ideal for grooming on the go or at home. There's also a built-in precision ProTrimmer which is enhanced with surgical-grade steel, providing maximum cutting efficiency. 

There's no denying that the Series 9 Pro+ is an expensive electric shaver, but we have noticed it's frequently discounted around certain shopping events, such as Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day. Therefore, if it's caught your eye, we'd seriously recommend you wait a few months to grab one. 

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The best wet and dry electric shaver

Thanks to a new blade design and more generously sized foil holes, the Philips Shaver Series 9000 Prestige can tackle thick stubble – up to a week’s worth, even. Where other electrics force you to hack away over and over if you’ve missed a few days, you can pretty much just run this over once. 

It has three intensity levels, the idea being that the especially sensitive-skinned can keep it lighter. Using a rotary shaver is weird enough at the best of times, as they have such a light touch. This model also comes with a beard trimmer that is unusually good for a shaver attachment, although it would be better if it was a built-in, pop-up one rather than having to be fitted as an attachment – you pull off the rotary head and put this in its place. In some Prestige packages there's also a rotating brush that you can use to deep cleanse your face. The Philips 9000 Series Prestige also comes with a wireless Qi charging pad, which you can also juice your phone and other compatible gadgets on. 

A full recharge is actually comparatively slow at three hours, but obviously the idea is that you leave charging pad and razor out. 

Read our Philips Shaver Series 9000 Prestige review and check our Philips discount codes to bag the best deal.

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The best flexible electric shaver

This offering from Braun is an absolute cracker in every respect, but mostly in the way it shaves. AS brilliant as the Philips rotary models are, they do feel like you’re rubbing your face with the back of a spoon. By contrast, this brand new foil model feels firm, narrow and not quite as comfortable against the skin. 

Like the top Philips models, the whole head is spring loaded so it moves around with the contours of the face. On top of that, the three slim foil blades also move independently from side to side. The upshot is a shaver head that mooches around the face like a caterpillar, snipping here, there and everywhere until there isn’t a bristle left in sight.

Naturally you can also use the Series 7 70 as a wet shaver, especially as the whole unit is fully waterproof. You can simply go about the morning business while shaving and before you know it the job is done. The Series 7 comes with a hard case, a single precision trimmer attachment and a SmartCare Centre. 

Read our full Braun Series 7 review to find out more. 

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The best electric shaver for long stubble

As the predecessor to our absolute favourite model, the Braun Series 9 was only knocked back a few months ago. If you're a two to three shaves per week kinda guy you may prefer this one, as it is slightly better on longer stubble patches. That's thanks to the titanium tipped blades that give it its 'gold-painted' appearance.

Braun used to be noted in its glory days for producing perfect combinations of form and function, using cutting-edge design techniques. Now I'm not saying Dieter Rams would necessarily be upset by the design of this but, while its functionality is hard to argue with, aesthetically the 9 Series is quite lacking. It looks and feels plasticky, and the way it slots into its charging and cleaning base is not very satisfying. 

That being said, the Series 9 is light, ergonomically sound, waterproof up to five metres and easy to clean. As with its Philips rival, the 50-minute battery life, from just a one-hour charge, is great. The slide-up beard trimmer is nothing to write home about, but at least it's always there, unlike Philips' clip-on one. 

Read the full Braun Series 9 review to find out more. 

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The best electric shaver for sensitive skin

If you want an electric shaver specifically designed for sensitive skin, the Philips Shaver Series 7000 is full of quality features that will do the job. Philips has said that the Philips Shaver Series 7000 was specifically designed to cater to those with sensitive skin, and it reduces irritation, lowers friction and minimises the pulling of hairs.

The Philips Shaver Series 7000 does all of this with its flexible, triple-head design that twists and pivots to adjust to the contours of the face and neck. The shaver also has a microbead protective coating that enables the heads to lift, cut and remove hair without causing any skin damage. While it's a bit clunky to hold, it's a definite win if you want a close shave without a shaver's rash.

Read our full review for a more in-depth look. 

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How to choose the best electric shaver for you

My first bit of advice is to look at what the best shaver deals today happen to be. Their prices go up and down like rollercoasters, and you will frequently find that the most high-end razors somehow cost less than the more bog-standard ones. 

There are a lot of different versions of the Braun and Philips shavers, as you can see. It would take too long to run down the difference between all of them – there are different model numbers for ones with and without cleaning stations, and with and without various accessories such as trimmers and carry cases. 

If you want to stay smooth, without facial irritation, you simply MUST go high-end when electric razor shopping. That's because, despite decades of product development, and billions spent in research, they've really only recently started to crack it, and even then, only on the flagship devices from each of the half dozen brands that dominate the sector. For anyone who only shaves once or twice a week, but wants to be smooth when they do, a manual razor is always better. Irregular shavers who don't need to be baby smooth will be better off with the best beard trimmer and, if you're looking to remove the hair from your body, you'll want the best body groomers and even one of our best IPL machines. 

Another thing to note if you don't shave every day is that you'd be better off using a chainsaw or angry dog to remove three-day growth than a cheaper electric razor - another reason to go high end.

The good thing about electric razors is there isn't really a 'correct' way of using them, unlike bladed razors, but if you suffer irritation easily, a wet and dry model could prove a boon. You can use them with running water, or even shaving cream. 

Particularly when it comes to Phillips shavers and, to a slightly lesser extent Braun, there are usually at least three versions of each shaver. You get the same basic electric razor model in each but with a different array of accessories, from a travel pouch to automatic cleaning and charging stations, for cleaning and sterilising your shaver with an alcohol-based cleaning solution.

Please be aware that to use these stations properly means you will need to buy replacement cartridges of cleaning fluid, FOREVER. You could, of course, not bother with that and just pop the top off and rinse the blades under the tap after every use. Depends on how hung up on hygiene you are.

You will also need to change the blade cartridge every year or so, depending on how often you use it and other variables such as how wiry your stubble is. 

How we test

We spend a lot of time reviewing the best electric shaver, so when it comes to recommending what shaver to buy, you can be safe in the knowledge that we'll recommend the best options for you.

We'll usually spend a week or longer testing new electric shavers, and the review process is fairly straightforward – our reviewers use them to shave their faces. This helps them see how closely they are capable of shaving, and how easy they are to use and achieve the desired style. Our reviewers also test whether the shavers nick your skin or cause any irrritation, and just how long the battery lasts.

If the electric shavers have any advanced features, such as an additional trimmer or quick charging, our reviewers will try these out to test if they work and if they're worth the extra money they no doubt command.

Once the initial review period is complete, we'll publish a full review, give the electric shaver a star rating, and add an abridged review to this guide.

Interested in more? Check out some of our electric shaver maintenance guides:

5 mistakes everyone makes with electric shavers

How to clean a waterproof electric shaver: a step-by-step guide

Philips vs Braun: Which electric shaver should I choose?