Is IPL Effective for Male Thick Beard?

The question to ask first is whether a man wants to have laser hair removal on the beard area. 

When the male beard is removed, it is not cosmetically pleasing as it interferes with a man being perceived as a man.  Even cleanly shaven, a man has some hint of facial hair.  When there is no hair, the brain perceives the face as that of a prepubescent boy or a woman.  That is not a good outcome.

If a man has pseudofolliculitis, that is ingrown hairs that create nodules and pustules, that result in hyperpigmentation, that's a good reason for laser hair removal in the chin/neck area.

Please consider what the cosmetic outcome of laser hair removal for a male beard is before proceeding to other options.

That being said, IPL used at correct settings should work for the beard.  The success of a laser or IPL hair removal depends on several things:

- how many hair follicles are in active growth phase at the time of treatment

- how big the difference between skin color and hair color is.  Laser or IPL is not effective for grey, blond or red hair.

- how regular the hair removal sessions are.  There needs to be regularity with a span of 6-8 weeks between treatments initially as it resets the hair growth cycles to the same phase, enabling treatment of a large number of hair follicles at the same time.