This edition of our Best Shave Club Series we take a look at the Billie vs. The Wet Shaving Club.
Shaving should be for everyone. Man, woman, whoever you are, if you want smooth skin and/or a smooth face, you should be able to get a razor and blades for a fair price. And you definitely shouldn’t be charged more because of your gender. Kind of a no-brainer, right?
Well, it seems that not everyone got that memo about decency. For way too long, women have been charged more for products marketed to them that are functionally the same as identical products marketed to men. This is known as the “Pink Tax”. Razors are believed to be major examples of the Pink Tax in action, with many mainstream ones literally being pink.
At Wet Shaving Club, we’re never going to charge you more for something because of who you are. All our classic safety razors are going to give you a great shave no matter how you use them.
Our competitor for this article was also not a fan of the Pink Tax and decided to do something about. Billie is a women’s shaving company founded in 2017, and is big on body positivity and empowerment. These are incredibly important values for any company.
But do they achieve their goal in bringing the best value and shaving experience to their customers? Let’s compare Billie vs. Wet Shaving Club and find out. As always, we’re going to focus on razors and blades.
Getting Started
If you’ve read any of our previous comparison articles (if you haven’t you totally should), you’ll know that we like easy, breezy shopping experiences. Make it simple to get your best razor deal and keep the aggressive upselling to yourself, thank you very much.
That’s how we do it here at the Wet Shaving Club. Pick the razor you want and off you go. Take a year’s supply of blades on the house while you’re at it. Additional (and awesome) shave supplies optional, and we’re not pushy about it.
But what about Billie? To their credit, they keep things simple by only offering one razor and making it easy to find on their homepage. And that’s about as easy as it gets. Pretty much everything on their website related to their razor directs you to a “Gets Started” button which takes you to a series of question prompts.
All of our least favorite hits are here – gratuitous upselling, asking how often you shave and choosing the color of your razor handle. Why couldn’t I pick a color on the product page? Lots of little things that take up time. It’s kind of annoying, and in our opinion not consumer friendly.
There is a quick checkout option where you can add a handle to your cart and sign up for 4 blades a month. But, you need to look for it and you don’t appear to be able to choose your handle color. Also, in our experience the website didn’t always work when you tried to do this.
If you want to buy a razor and get on with your day, it’s easy choosing between Billie vs. Wet Shaving Club. Go with us.
Who’s Got Your Fave Shave?
Women who shave tend to have lot more area that they need to run a razor through compared to men. Some of those areas can be delicate, so you definitely don’t want irritation.
Billie sells cartridge razors, and if you couldn’t tell from what we sell, we’re not fans. The multiple blades don’t necessarily give you a close shave, since they’re all at different angles. They alternate between raising hairs up and cutting them, meaning only a few are actually shaving.
Plus, the added blades mean more sharp edges are scraping across your skin with each stroke. This might lead to irritation and ingrown hairs, which you definitely don’t want in a sensitive area like your underarms.
On top of that, the spaces between cartridge razor blades are really small, so they can easily trap stubble and debris. This ups the chances of them becoming havens for germs. That’s pretty gross, and not great for skin irritation either.
Classic double edge safety razors, like the ones we sell, only have one blade edge making contact with the skin at a time. At the correct angle, the shave you get can be way closer than those from cartridges with less irritation. Plus, there’s enough space between the blade and the razor to easily clean them, meaning they’re more hygienic.
Another bonus point for classic safety razors is that they don’t trap you using one company’s blades. Since they’re standardized, if you don’t like a blade brand you can easily change. Cartridge razors tend to trap you into a shave system, meaning that you can only buy blades from the company that sold you the handle. Although Billie doesn’t say it outright, we don’t see any reason to believe that their razors are any different.
When it comes to shaving with Billie vs. Wet Shaving Club, we believe you will like what we at The Wet Shaving Club have to offer!
Go Green or Go Home
We’ll cut right to the chase – double edge safety razors like ours are better for the environment. Both the razors and the blades are completely made out of metal, which can be easily recycled.
Cartridge blades, like those that Billie sells, are pretty much guaranteed to go into a landfill. They’re a combination of plastic and metal, and few local recyclers are equipped to process them. Plus, plastic itself is rarely recycled, so the green thing to do is use less of it in the first place. Considering Billie’s razor handle is also plastic, that’s another thing destined for the dump if you ever decide to stop using it.
If you look at the environmental impact of Billie vs. Wet Shaving Club, it’s easier being green with us.
The Cost
Part of Billie’s mission statement is to fight back against the Pink Tax. But are they really giving women the best bang for their buck? Let’s find out. To keep things consistent, we’re going to price out two years of shaving with Billie vs. Wet Shaving Club (handle and blades), assuming that you’re using roughly a blade per week.
So how did Billie do?
One year – $108
Two years – $216
Oof. That’s pretty pricey, especially when you look at how much our razor deals cost. Wet Shaving Club’s ‘Merica Razor will cost you $69.99. That is right, a 100% Stainless Steel Razor made right here in the USA will cost you only $70. How much are blades? You can buy them anywhere for as low a 10 cents per blade!
Despite being against the Pink Tax, Billie’s prices are pretty taxing. Let your bank account breathe easy and go with us.
Conclusion
Like with other cartridge razor companies, the choice is pretty simple. If you compare Billie vs. Wet Shaving Club, we’re easier to get started with, give you a better shave, cost less and are better for the planet.
For a shave fit for a queen (or king), check out our store.
