Coconut oil is cheap, available, and genuinely useful. It is also the plant fat most often associated with clogged pores on a face, and it does not have much staying power on hands that get washed. Both have a place, and they are not the same place.
Side by side
| Tallow balm | Coconut oil | |
|---|---|---|
| Similar to human sebum | Closely | Not particularly |
| Absorbs | Yes | Partly, sits on top more |
| Survives a hand wash | Yes, beeswax | Poorly |
| Congestion on faces | Uncommon | Commonly reported |
| Works under a beard | Yes | Coats hair, misses skin |
| Solid at room temperature | Yes, firm | Yes, melts near 76F |
| Cost | Higher | Very low |
| Vegan | No | Yes |
The fatty acid difference
Your skin makes sebum, which is largely a blend of fatty acids. Beef tallow happens to be built from mostly the same ones in roughly similar proportions, which is why it absorbs and behaves like something your skin recognizes.
Coconut oil is dominated by lauric acid, which your skin does not produce in any quantity. That gives it real antimicrobial properties and a distinctive feel, but it also means it behaves more like a coating than a refill.
The pore question
Coconut oil has a long-standing reputation for causing congestion on faces, and while individual reactions vary enormously, it comes up often enough to take seriously. If you have tried coconut oil on your face and broken out, that is a common experience and not a reason to conclude all fats will do it. See does tallow clog pores.
The melting problem
Coconut oil turns liquid a little above room temperature, which means a jar in a warm bathroom is oil, and a jar in a cold one is a solid you have to gouge at. A balm with beeswax in it holds a consistent texture across a much wider range, and it melts on contact with your hands rather than in the tin.
Where coconut oil wins
- Cost, by a wide margin.
- You want a single plant-based ingredient with nothing else in it.
- Body and legs after a shower, where congestion is not a concern.
- Hair, as a pre-wash treatment.
Where tallow wins
- Skin under a beard. Oil coats hair and misses the roots.
- Hands that get washed constantly, because the beeswax means it is still there after.
- Faces, for most people, on the congestion question.
- Consistent texture in a cold house or a hot truck.
For the record, coconut oil is one of the seven things in mine, in a small amount, to help the whole thing melt at body temperature. The argument between single ingredients is mostly a marketing argument. Full list here.
Made by hand in small batches in Wakarusa, Indiana. Seven ingredients, and 5% of every sale goes to FreedomSystem, which connects veterans through authentic camaraderie and meaningful programs.
