Buzz cuts have emerged as a popular and stylish option for those with a receding hairline. Not only is it a low-maintenance way to disguise male pattern baldness, but as many celebrities have shown, the style has proven to be a confident and fashionable look.
Over 85% of men will experience hair loss or thinning hair at some point in their lives, with 66% having visible hair loss by 35 years old [1]. So it’s important to find a hairstyle that makes you feel confident.
In this article, we will explore the best buzz cuts for receding hairlines, including which styles work best for the different stages of hair loss, and the upkeep needed for each style.
Buzz cuts are favoured by balding men for three key reasons:
Short hair helps conceal hair thinning on one side of the head far better than long hair. With the hair cropped close to the skin, your hair distribution will look more even, rather than allowing patches of the scalp to be visible through your hair.
Secondly, by losing hair length with a close crop, you can minimise the immediate visual impact of a receding hairline from male pattern hair loss. Buzz cuts help to make this balding far less obvious and noticeable.
Finally, the buzz cut allows men to embrace their balding in a strong and confident manner. As many bald celebrities have shown, the buzz cut for a receding hairline is a powerful and attractive look for many face shapes which makes it one of the best haircuts for bald or balding men.
There are lots of different types of buzz cut, all of which can help disguise a receding hairline. Here are some of the most popular types of buzz cut for balding men.
The induction buzz cut (also referred to as the traditional or military buzz cut) is an iconic hairstyle that provides a close trim all over by using hair clippers without any guard or attachment to trim hair to a short stubble.
Like an induction buzz cut, a burr cut is the same length all over the head, but it leaves the hair a little longer (usually trimmed with a number 2 or 3 clipper guard). So it works best if your receding hairline is in the early stages (ideally no more advanced than Norwood stage 2). There’s no tapering or fading involved in a burr cut.
This hairstyle is a popular type of receding hairline buzz cut. The fade helps blend your thinning areas into your hairstyle. With a buzz cut fade, your hair is left slightly longer on top and tapers towards your neck. It also looks great if you usually wear stubble or a beard.
Considering a buzz cut to hide your receding hairline? It’s not easy to know if it will suit you before you take the plunge, so use these tips to decide if a buzz cut will suit you:
Crew cuts are popular with men who have fuller hair, while the buzz cut is ideal if your hairline is receding. However, crew cuts and buzz cuts have become more interchangeable in recent years with the rise of the buzz cut fade.
Buzz cuts refer to a type of hairstyle where the hair is trimmed all over with hair clippers to a uniform length all over the head. Fade buzz cuts refer to hairstyles that are tapered at the side and back to different lengths. This taper gradually fades to create a smooth transition from longer hair to shorter hair and eventually the skin on the head or neck.
There are many buzz cut fades to choose from, including:
These refer to how blunt you want your fade to be. Skin fade removes almost all the hair from just above your ears, while a low fade is less dramatic, tapering more evenly towards your neck.
As always, show your barber a picture of what type of hairstyle you’re after, and ask their advice on the best buzz cut to hide your receding hairline.
When dealing with a receding hairline, finding the right hairstyle can make all the difference. Buzz cuts offer a practical and low-maintenance haircut that can be a stylish solution for men looking to embrace their receding hairline.
All these options can create a confident and fashionable look that shows you’re unafraid of embracing your natural self. Remember to consult with a professional hairstylist to determine the best buzz cut for receding hairline style that suits your face shape and personal preference.
Also known as the ‘military buzz cut’, this classic buzz cut evenly trims the hair into a close, equal crop over the head. Nicknamed for the trimmer setting, which uses no clipper guard to achieve this uniform look, the standard induction cut is the simplest and most straightforward option with no products or styling time needed.
This buzz cut is one of the most convenient choices for those with a busy lifestyle, as it can easily be achieved at home. However, it should be noted that a zero buzz cut will need a touch-up roughly twice a week.
Versatile and timeless, the standard induction significantly removes attention to the receding hairline as the contrast between hair and scalp is hugely reduced. Those who wish to go even shorter would need to consider shaving their head instead of a buzz cut.
The ‘high and tight’ style is somewhere between a crew cut and a buzz cut, and is slightly longer on top than your typical buzz cut fade.
While the sides and back remain extremely short, the top is left with slightly more length, giving the look more depth and dimension while remaining sharp and clean.
Minimal styling is needed with this look. Some may wish to run a light pomade or wax through the top, but it depends on the natural hair texture and direction.
This look tends to work best if your hairline has only just started to recede.
The burr cut is a longer variation of the zero buzz cut. Like the zero, the burr cut is all one length, but there’s a fair bit of length left across the scalp.
Because the hair is longer (between a number 2 and 3 on the clipper guard), it only requires around one touch-up a week. This is easily achieved at home as the hair is all one length.
Like the high and tight, this looks works best if you have slight recession around the temples. Since the hair is longer, there’s still some contrast between your forehead and hair, especially if you have dark hair and a light skin tone. This will still be fairly pronounced with a burr cut.
A skin fade is a great option for people who aren’t ready to take the plunge and go for a military-grade buzz cut, but want their temple hair loss to appear less dramatic.
A skin fade buzz is cropped extremely close to the skin around the temples and ears, blending your receding hairline into the style.
If you have good hair density around your mid-scalp and crown, you can even leave your hair a little longer on top to detract from any frontal balding.
Growing a beard can distract from your M-shaped hairline, especially when paired with a stylish buzz cut. Male icons like Pep Guardiola and Jason Statham are keeping this bald with a beard trend popular.
If you struggle to grow a substantial beard, stick with stubble, or try a solution like Minoxidil for beard growth to enhance your facial hair.
If you still have good density through your mid-scalp, a crew cut can give you extra length on top without exposing too much of your frontal thinning.
Style your short fringe down to hide your hairline, or brush it up into a light quiff for a stylish flourish.
If you’re feeling confident, go the whole hog and shave your hair down to the scalp. This will completely hide any hairline recession.
While it seems like a bold move, a fully shaved head is favoured by tons of famous faces, from Dwayne Johnson to Zinedine Zidane. So you’ll be in great company if you choose to go fully bald.
For a more stylised buzz cut, consider asking your barber to shave a pattern into your hair. This can detract from any thinning around your frontal hairline. It also adds personality and individuality to a standard buzz cut, so be as creative as you like.
You will need to keep some length to achieve this, so start with a burr cut. Visit your barber regularly to keep your chosen pattern sharp and visible.
Looking for a more unique style? This short buzzed mohawk can retain your punk roots despite your thinning hairline.
This style needs plenty of upkeep, so be ready to buzz the sides of your hair regularly to maintain this style.
While buzz cuts remain some of the best hairstyles for men, there’s no reason why women with a receding hairline can’t try out a dramatic new style.
Buzzing your hair can make you feel stylish and empowered, especially if you’ve been struggling with hair loss for a while. See our list of bold bald women for motivation.
If you’re not quite ready to embrace a buzz cut, there are plenty of other great female hairstyles to hide a receding hairline.
Aside from the buzz cut, there are other style options you can consider to accommodate a receding hairline.
Not ready to face the clippers just yet? Try a different hairstyle to disguise your temple hair loss. From brush forwards to bleach, short styles to longer looks, here are the top men’s hairstyles for receding hairlines.
Scalp micro-pigmentation is a non-surgical procedure that can quickly reduce the visual appearance of thinning or receding hair.
It works by tattooing pigment dots onto the scalp to create depth and coverage. This technique works especially well with a buzz cut and can effectively transform the hairline. Find out more about everything you need to know about hair tattoos for men.
Want to stop your receding hairline? Several effective hair-loss medications are available on the market to help tackle hairline recession. Here are the best treatments for a receding hairline.
Minoxidil is a first-line treatment for slowing hair loss and stimulating regrowth along your hairline.
It works by dilating the blood vessels in your scalp, helping more nutrients reach your hair follicles. This nutrition can help reduce thinning and even restore hair if Minoxidil for a receding hairline is used early enough.
Finasteride is an oral drug that affects your hormone levels, minimising the impact of the hormones that cause male pattern baldness.
Finasteride for a receding hairline involves taking a 1mg tablet every day to maintain your hair.
Derma rolling for hair growth is one of the most effective non-medicated treatments for a receding hairline. A derma roller creates tiny wounds that promote hair growth by stimulating the body’s natural healing processes.
Platelet-rich plasma therapy for hair uses concentrated platelets from your own blood to boost cell proliferation in thinning areas, such as along your hairline.
This procedure is less invasive than a hair transplant, but you’ll likely need several sessions of PRP treatment to see hairline improvements.
Many of these medications and treatments can be safely combined to offer the best possible results.
Ask a trichologist to help you devise a personalised treatment plan that helps restore your receding hairline.
If you’ve tried other hair loss treatments and still haven’t seen the results you’re looking for, you may wish to invest in a hairline transplant. Hair restoration surgeries are a permanent hair loss solution that can help you achieve full, thick hair.
Receding hairline transplant costs are much more affordable than you might think. Our UK hair transplant cost analysis shows that the average cost is just £4,820.
Many clinics offer free consultations to determine what hair loss treatment plan is right for you.
At the Wimpole Clinic, we’re proud to have won the Best Hair Transplant Clinic Award for four years running, from 2021 to 2024. If you’re considering hair loss treatment, contact one of our hair loss specialists today to discuss what we can do for you.
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