2025 Lather Log: Year-End Wrap-Up

Discussion

Welcome to your 2025 Lather Log. 21,627 shave reports from 283 distinct shavers during 2025 were analyzed to produce this report. Collectively, these shavers used 2,226 distinct soaps from 439 distinct brands. 247 of those shaves used samples of 117 unique soaps.

Observations

  • After a breakout 2024, when it landed on the top step for the first time ever, House of Mammoth drops back to fourth this year, while Stirling takes back the top spot. After seven straight victories (2016–2022), Barrister and Mann has now settled into a very consistent second place. If you're curious what the podium challengers looked like over the past decade, here you go:

Soap Brands Ranking History (2016-2025)

Shows ranking history for all brands that have ever been in the top 3

Brand2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Barrister and Mann1111111222
Catie's Bubbles67981213111183
Chiseled Face35445756510
Declaration Grooming7422224578
House of Mammoth119171142314
Mickey Lee Soapworks23714202044815648
Stirling Soap Co.4233333131
  • Austere August did its part to keep Midnight Stag on the podium. Its 187 August shaves helped extend Stag’s podium streak to seven straight years. Even so, there was never much suspense about the top step: I, Rich Moose ran away with it. The r/wetshaving exclusive logged 403 shaves from 53 users, beating perennial workhorse Tabac (now on its fourth consecutive podium) by more than 100 shaves and staking out one of the clearest wins on the entire report. Here’s how the podium players have placed over the years:

Soap Scents Ranking History (2016-2025)

Shows ranking history for all scents that have ever been in the top 3

Soap2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Barrister and Mann - Leviathan25233610352922
Barrister and Mann - Seville1112236385
Chiseled Face - Ghost Town Barber153164182984382744
Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag104117121121213
House of Mammoth - Indigo8282592021761026
L'Occitane - Cade32151021692131051
Mäurer & Wirtz - Tabac4464452142122
Noble Otter - Barrbarr141314141511412347
Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Sea Spice Lime53101312
Stirling Soap Co. - I, Rich Moose (r/wetshaving exclusive)1
Stirling Soap Co. - Varen317278149868328
  • Stirling's Executive Man man surges 95 spots in the rankings to seize fourth.

  • In other climbing news, Mike’s Natural jumps 32 spots to 7th among brands, powered by multiple soaps that absolutely rocket up the charts: Orange, Cedarwood & Black Pepper (+608 vs 2024), Vetiver (+184), Rose/Patchouli/Cedarwood (+457), Lime (+720), Bay Rum (+724), and Hungarian Lavender (+1206) all muscle their way into the top 100.

  • Fanzine Saponifications makes about as loud a debut as you can. It lands 13th in total shaves with 524 uses from 50 users, and puts three soaps into the top 60 scents (Caravaggio, This is not a Test, and Testing… Testing) in its first year on the Lather Log.

  • Across the full year, Stirling stands alone atop the Brand Diversity table, with almost 40 more scents than runner-up Barrister and Mann (134 vs 96). The race for third was much tighter: Catie’s Bubbles just edged out Talent Soap Factory, 80 to 79.

  • It's a photo finish in the Soap Diversity By User contest, with u/RedMosquitoMM just clipping u/brokenjaw622 147 to 146.

  • Martin de Candre Vetyver’s top-20 finish is almost entirely a one-person show: u/putneycj3 logs 112 of its 144 shaves. In related news, his 93.3% Boring Score easily earns him the Most Boring Shaver prize: 112 of his 116 shaves use MdC Vetyver, with the remaining 4 shaves spread across just two other soaps. u/SneakyPsyduck is a distant second at only 51.8% boring.

Notes & Caveats

  • Tables show all entries with 5 or more shaves to provide comprehensive coverage without artificial row limits.

  • The unique user column shows the number of different users who used a given brand/soap/etc during the year.

  • The Brand Diversity table details the number of distinct soaps used during the year from that particular brand, showing all brands with 5+ unique soaps.

  • The change Δ vs columns show how an item has moved up or down the rankings since the previous year. = means no change in position, up or down arrows indicate how many positions up or down the rankings an item has moved compared to the previous year. n/a means the item was not present in the previous year.

  • Lather Games stretches the definition of "Soap Brand" and "Scent", so take the totals at the top with a grain of salt.

Soap Brands

RankBrandShavesUnique UsersAvg Shaves per UserMedian Shaves per UserΔ vs 2024Δ vs 2020
1Stirling Soap Co.2,397141176↑2↑2
2Barrister and Mann2,07015613.36=↓1
3Catie's Bubbles1,63396175.5↑5↑9
4House of Mammoth1,60711014.64↓3↑7
5Spearhead Shaving Company9101009.14.5↑1↑14
6Noble Otter8441087.84↓2↓2
7Mike's Natural Soaps7345613.13↑32↑32
8Declaration Grooming615996.23↓1↓6
9Summer Break Soaps5871015.82==
10Chiseled Face552688.12↓5↓5
11Ariana & Evans5416883↓1↓2
12Talent Soap Factory536569.63↑1↑196
13Fanzine Saponifications5245010.54n/an/a
14Southern Witchcrafts416735.73↓3↓8
15Zingari Man414854.92↓3↓7
16Chicago Grooming Co.340675.13↓1=
17Mäurer & Wirtz3146352↓3↑21
18Martin de Candre311358.93↑15↑8
19Wholly Kaw251653.92↓3↓12
20Proraso231693.31↓3↓7
21Maggard Razors2025141=↑1
22Henri et Victoria200219.52↑5↑25
23Cella186424.41↓4↑5
24MacDuff's Soap Company167443.82↓7↑184
25Mitchell's1481311.41↑69↑6
26Taylor of Old Bond Street137275.11↑14↑4
27Williams1221111.11↓5↑9
28Back to Basics Log Cabin1041104104↑41n/a
29=Red House Farm103392.61↓9↑179
29=Gentleman's Nod103254.12↑3↑35
31Moon Soaps1002542↑3↑60
32CBL Soaps97214.62↑142↑50
33Australian Private Reserve93224.22↑17↓19
34Grooming Dept87117.92↓3↓17
35Saponificio Varesino81213.93↑7↓8
36=Arko74362.11↓11↑10
36=Dr. Jon's74203.71↓7↓13
36=Strike Gold Shave74126.22↑41↑58
39Black Ship Grooming72213.41↓11↓10
40=Murphy and McNeil692331↓5↓15
40=Tallow + Steel69193.61↑24↓22
42=Hendrix Classics & Co65272.41↓12n/a
42=Los Jabones de Joserra65213.11↑22↑105
44Bartigan & Stark6423232↑18n/a
45=Eleven63262.41↓23↑40
45=RazoRock63222.92↓4↓13
47PAA57124.81.5↑30↓12
48Mickey Lee Soapworks54105.41.5↑8↓28
49Adopted Acres51311.61↑110n/a
50=Highland Springs Soap Co.50114.51↑25↓6
50=Tcheon Fung Sing5068.31↑44↑44

Soaps

RankSoapShavesUnique UsersAvg Shaves per UserMedian Shaves per UserΔ vs 2024Δ vs 2020
1Stirling Soap Co. - I, Rich Moose (r/wetshaving exclusive)403537.63n/an/a
2Mäurer & Wirtz - Tabac288555.22=↑50
3Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag2361515.74↓2↓2
4Stirling Soap Co. - Executive Man1921413.71.5↑95↑5
5Barrister and Mann - Seville187384.92↑3↓3
6Fanzine Saponifications - Caravaggio185218.83n/an/a
7House of Mammoth - Kryptonite180218.61↓2↑191
8Fanzine Saponifications - This is not a Test178286.44n/an/a
9Mike's Natural Soaps - Orange, Cedarwood, & Black Pepper174266.72↑608↑342
10Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Leather (r/wetshaving exclusive)169473.62n/an/a
11House of Mammoth - Hygge168237.33↓4↑501
12Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Sea Spice Lime152453.42↑1n/a
13Mitchell's - Wool Fat1481311.41↑272↑6
14Cella - Almond Shaving Cream147304.91↑12↓1
15House of Mammoth - Sonder1442952↓11↑287
16Martin de Candre - Vetyver1441113.12↑245↑190
17Summer Break Soaps - Steady141851.71n/an/a
18Mike's Natural Soaps - Vetiver127139.83↑184↑520
19Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Black Watch126343.71.5↓7n/a
20Williams - Mug Shaving Soap1221111.11↑5↑22
21Barrister and Mann - Roam Two121254.82↑31↑75
22Barrister and Mann - Leviathan116244.82↑7↓19
23Barrister and Mann - Lavender113215.42↑36↑1
24Stirling Soap Co. - Scots Pine Sheep1131110.32=↑152
25Stirling Soap Co. - Haverford112195.92↑31↑76
26House of Mammoth - Indigo111244.61.5↓16↑177
27Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Roman Spice108333.32↓6n/a
28Stirling Soap Co. - Varen106234.64↓25↑249
29Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Heather105283.82↑18↑12
30Back to Basics Log Cabin - Glycerin Shave Soap1041104104↑129n/a
31House of Mammoth - Alive101166.32↓13n/a
32Catie's Bubbles - Top of the World100214.83↑296n/a
33House of Mammoth - Shire100244.22↓24↑20
34Barrister and Mann - Spice98283.51↑6↑136
35House of Mammoth - Tobacconist951951↓21↑1352
36Mike's Natural Soaps - Rose, Patchouli, Cedarwood93910.33↑457↑570
37CBL Soaps - Inconceivable91185.12.5n/an/a
38House of Mammoth - Beloved91910.13↑5n/a
39Proraso - Sandalwood (Red)88214.22↓9↓24
40Stirling Soap Co. - Christmas Eve87194.63↑10↑19
41Proraso - Menthol and Eucalyptus (Green)864221↓24↓30
42Stirling Soap Co. - Oro Valley86712.33↑54n/a
43Noble Otter - Barrbarr85322.71↓20↓29
44Noble Otter - Rawr85204.22↓29↑33
45Chiseled Face - Ghost Town Barber85184.71↓18↓27
46Maggard Razors - Limes & Bergamot84136.51↓5↑83
47Catie's Bubbles - Blugère83312.72↑1↑1012
48Mike's Natural Soaps - Honey & Grapefruit81711.62n/an/a
49Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! 3 Scots80253.23↓33n/a
50Catie's Bubbles - Tonsorium8098.91↑243↑498
51Mike's Natural Soaps - Bay Rum7898.73↑724↑1008
52Martin de Candre - Fougère77155.12↑80↑108
53House of Mammoth - Smash77184.31↓17n/a
54Catie's Bubbles - Connecticut Shade73135.62↑3↑277
55Mike's Natural Soaps - Lime73145.22↑720↑493
56Fanzine Saponifications - Testing... Testing72164.53n/an/a
57Arko - Shaving Soap713621↓38↑19
58Catie's Bubbles - Maggards MeetUp (Year Unspecified)7117171↑481↑821
59Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Spiced70213.31↓22↑88
60Catie's Bubbles - Crangère672232n/an/a
61Talent Soap Factory - Switchback67513.42↑62n/a
62Catie's Bubbles - 32265164.13↑127↑76
63Barrister and Mann - Le Grand Chypre64262.51.5↑7↓46
64Noble Otter - Monoi De Tahiti63173.72↓6n/a
65Zingari Man - El Cantinero63115.71n/an/a
66Noble Otter - Orbit62292.11↓22↓61
67House of Mammoth - You & I (Will Die)62222.81↑22n/a
68Barrister and Mann - Vespers62262.42↑17↓42
69Catie's Bubbles - Retreat62125.23↑59n/a
70Bartigan & Stark - Campione6216262↑48n/a
71Barrister and Mann - Nordost61193.23↓2↓38
72Chicago Grooming Co. - AG 1889612032↓61n/a
73Noble Otter - Lonestar61106.12.5↓6↑131
74Barrister and Mann - Fougère Gothique601542↑53↓20
75Talent Soap Factory - Fantasy Donut58163.61.5↑129n/a
76Barrister and Mann - Cheshire57173.42↓31↓4
77Stirling Soap Co. - Deep Blue Sea57124.82.5↓2↑206
78Noble Otter - Jasmine Green Tea56124.72.5↑106n/a
79Catie's Bubbles - Menage a Lavande5696.23↑245↑32
80House of Mammoth - Almond Leather56782↓21↑610
81House of Mammoth - Santa Noir55143.92.5↓32n/a
82Stirling Soap Co. - Sheep55105.52↓36↑131
83Chiseled Face - Guy Noir5377.61↑405↑1304
84Henri et Victoria - Coeur de Vetiver53226.526.5↑311n/a
85Chiseled Face - Trade Winds5286.51↑3↑103
86Stirling Soap Co. - Electric Sheep5295.81↓10↑94
87Barrister and Mann - Fougère Angelique51133.93↑29↓36
88=Barrister and Mann - Waves51124.22↑38↓50
88=Catie's Bubbles - Barnegat Bay5168.54.5↑110↑685
90Mike's Natural Soaps - Hungarian Lavender5086.23↑1206↑242
91Spearhead Shaving Company - Seaforth! Fleur de France49212.32↓14n/a
92Noble Otter - Neon Sun49143.51.5↑20n/a
93Pré de Provence - No. 634876.92↓38↑76
94House of Mammoth - Z484124.5↑681↓7
95Maggard Razors - Orange Menthol4785.91↑402↑297
96Red House Farm - No Scrub46271.71↓62n/a
97Barrister and Mann - Hallows46251.81↑6↓81
98Wholly Kaw - Hiatus46315.34↑330n/a
99Declaration Grooming - Yuzu/Rose/Patchouli45202.21↓38↓91
100Barrister and Mann - Marilyn4585.63↑47n/a

Brand Diversity

RankBrandUnique SoapsΔ vs 2024Δ vs 2020
1Stirling Soap Co.134==
2Barrister and Mann96=↑1
3Catie's Bubbles80↑2↑3
4Talent Soap Factory79↑2↑160
5Ariana & Evans77↓1=
6Declaration Grooming73↓3↓4
7Wholly Kaw47=↓3
8MacDuff's Soap Company45↓1↑156
9Zingari Man43=↑3
10House of Mammoth38=↑9
11Noble Otter37↑1↑6
12Summer Break Soaps35↑1↑17
13Chicago Grooming Co.30↑2↓5
14Chiseled Face28↓4↓4
15Hendrix Classics & Co25↑6n/a
16RazoRock23↑8↓1
17Grooming Dept22↑1↓10
18Southern Witchcrafts21↓3↓5
19=Los Jabones de Joserra20↑13↑94
19=PAA20↑9↓10
21=345 Soap Co.19↓7↑108
21=Black Ship Grooming19↓4↓5
21=Gentleman's Nod19↑15↑13
21=Murphy and McNeil19↓1=
21=Spearhead Shaving Company19↑3↓7
26=First Line Shave18↓2↑38
26=HAGS18↓5n/a
26=Saponificio Varesino18↑6↓1
29Dr. Jon's17↓8↓7
30=Australian Private Reserve15↑6↓7
30=Hoffman's15↑11n/a
30=Mike's Natural Soaps15↑18↑5
30=Shannon's Soaps15↓11↑19
30=Shavologist15↑18n/a
35=Strike Gold Shave14↑29↑2
35=Taylor of Old Bond Street14↓3↓9
37=Aion Skincare13↑145n/a
37=Red House Farm13↓1↑127
37=Tallow + Steel13↓9↓19
40=Abbate Y La Mantia12↓16↑3
40=Henri et Victoria12↑1↑9
40=Master Soap Creations12↓4n/a
40=WestMan Shaving12↑12n/a
44=Soap Commander11↑12↓14
44=The Cajun Blade11↑93n/a
46=Bundubeard10↓18↑31
46=Crowne & Crane10↓10↑118
46=Elysian10↓5n/a
46=Ethos10↑28↑41
46=Mama Bear's Soaps10↑55↑118
46=Moon Soaps10↑2↑52

Soap Diversity by User

RankUserUnique SoapsShavesAvg Shaves per SoapΔ vs 2024Δ vs 2020
1u/RedMosquitoMM1473002↑7↑69
2u/brokenjaw6221463672.5↑30n/a
3u/Environmental-Gap3801403652.6↑3n/a
4u/350484671373652.7↑1↑1
5u/snoo-ting1364093↑60n/a
6u/socialkittielynx1352642↑32n/a
7u/AdWorried28041293572.8↑9n/a
8u/PhilosphicalZombie1282832.2↓2↑95
9u/oswald_heist1223592.9↑2n/a
10u/SamIAmShepard1193663.1↑2n/a
11u/gcgallant1182852.4↓10n/a
12u/Impressive_Donut1141144343.8=n/a
13u/sahenders1111281.2↓3n/a
14u/partyman97_31073673.4↑8n/a
15u/djundjila1062602.5↓6↑212
16u/Engineered_Shave1034294.2↓14n/a
17u/Gaidin231001992↑37n/a
18u/frankieIVfingers981461.5↑27↑71
19u/hugbckt971741.8↑15n/a
20u/B_S80933093.3↑47↓9
21u/2SaintsDude912102.3↓1n/a
22u/InfernalInternal883654.1↓18↑294
23=u/Old_Hiker873624.2↑2↓19
23=u/rocketk455873454↑1↓6
25u/BossHoggins10823574.4↑16n/a
26u/wyze0ne802453.1↑1↑22
27u/loudmusicboy793654.6↑1n/a
28=u/tsrblke763614.8=n/a
28=u/expoqeteer762092.8↑192n/a
30=u/EldrormR703414.9↓16↑1
30=u/Crossan1983703254.6↑11n/a
32u/schontzm68921.4↑7n/a
33u/pi-rho672193.3n/an/a
34=u/anchovie7468653625.6↑27n/a
34=u/jwoods23651963↓18n/a
34=u/Ramjet615651712.6↑3↓27
37=u/Eructate641392.2↓34n/a
37=u/pridetwo641091.7↑60n/a
39u/Priusaurus631101.7=n/a
40u/el_guapo26611772.9↓9n/a
41=u/Tetriside591552.6↑7↑9
41=u/raymoonie591262.1↑2n/a
43=u/psychonaut7343581652.8↑86n/a
43=u/solongamerica581372.4↑20n/a
45u/FireDragonMonkey573666.4↓25n/a
46=u/josiguuh551242.3n/an/a
46=u/curbside_champ55771.4↑1n/a
48=u/scribe__533656.9↑30↓28
48=u/bmac92531402.6↓12n/a
50u/FredBikes9876523075.9↑57n/a

Most Boring Shaver

Boring Score is the chance that two shaves picked at random from a user used the same soap (higher means more repetitive). Effective Soaps converts that into an equivalent even-rotation count: the number of soaps they would need to use equally often to produce the same score. Example: someone can log 20 soaps but still have ~2 Effective Soaps if one soap dominates roughly 70% of their shaves and the rest are just occassional.

For the mathematically inclined: Boring Score is a diversity/concentration index (HHI in economics, Simpson’s index in ecology). More detail at Wikipedia: Diversity index.

RankUserBoring ScoreEffective SoapsUnique SoapsShavesΔ vs 2024Δ vs 2020
1u/putneycj393.3%1.13116n/an/a
2u/SneakyPsyduck51.8%1.9264n/an/a
3u/SirKravsALot46.8%2.1556↑162↑384
4u/Raz0r-35.8%2.81496n/an/a
5u/sgrdddy33.2%31755↑118↑434
6u/lakes196427.1%3.723186n/an/a
7u/ginopono25.0%43363↑177n/a
8u/Glass_Procedure749724.9%49356↑153n/a
9u/FrattySatty9224.3%4.1955n/an/a
10u/SexBobomb23.8%4.21086↑145n/a
11u/el_charminman22.2%4.56279↑145↑382
12u/KerblimeySkal19.0%5.327111↑175n/a
13u/SuperLuck511618.6%5.42291n/an/a
14u/Lob-Star17.2%5.83478n/an/a
15u/BrianRampage14.6%6.81485n/an/a
16u/seanpjohns13.7%7.38156↑160↓15
17u/blipsnchitz713.3%7.533109↑161n/a
18u/teeraymcfly13.0%7.74089↑188n/a
19u/chronnoisseur42O11.9%8.446102↑172↑357
20u/truebill4711.7%8.517123↑161↑286
21u/whosgotthepudding10.5%9.543110↑251n/a
22u/Crossan198310.4%9.670325↑206n/a
23u/AmusedStew10.2%9.822114n/an/a
24u/nofun10.0%1024132n/an/a
25u/jimm2629.9%10.120159↑172n/a
26=u/coco_for_cocoapuffs9.8%10.234124n/an/a
26=u/GoldenSteelBoy9.8%10.226108↑188↑217
28u/josiguuh9.6%10.555124n/an/a
29u/[deleted]9.5%10.539168↑257↑443
30u/Priusaurus9.0%11.163110↑207n/a
31=u/Breadheater98768.3%1241360↑162n/a
31=u/JoelB8.3%121964n/an/a
33u/VisceralWatch8.3%12.122165↑149↑364
34u/bmac928.2%12.353140↑200n/a
35u/Letitroll137.7%12.91587n/an/a
36=u/sandstorm997.4%13.523339↑122n/a
36=u/Impressive_Donut1147.4%13.5114434↑242n/a
38u/solongamerica7.4%13.658137↑254n/a
39u/FireDragonMonkey7.0%14.357366↑212n/a
40u/mpark62886.9%14.537113n/an/a
41u/Tetriside6.7%1559155↑212↑305
42u/pi-rho6.5%15.467219n/an/a
43u/Old_Hiker6.5%15.587362↑203↑339
44u/Eructate6.3%15.864139↑239n/a
45u/glink486.1%16.344236↑181↓44
46u/jwoods236.0%16.665196↑227n/a
47u/LarskiTheSage6.0%16.72856n/an/a
48u/tsrblke6.0%16.776361↑182n/a
49u/Gerry70705.8%17.228111n/an/a
50u/raymoonie5.4%18.659126↑246n/a

Posted Jan 18, 2026, 3:32 PM UTC

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