To get the most for your money, check out what consumer reports' found out in its latest tests.
In Alfred Hitchcock's "North by Northwest," Cary Grant may have been able to get away with using a tiny woman's razor to get a clean shaven, but men these days want a shaver that's more on the cutting edge.
Consumer reports tested 14 electric shavers to find which gives the closest shave.
Consumer Reports staffers tested foil shavers and rotary shavers.
"The staffers who used the rotary shavers used each one of those for a week, and the staffers who used the foil shavers used each one of those for a week; and they each self-evaluated for smoothness," said Maxine Siegel with Consumer Reports.
Sensory panelists also evaluated the shavers. To judge roughness, they trained with sand paper, with one on the scale being the roughest and nine the smoothest. Then they touched the staffers' cheeks, jaws and chin to assess the closeness of the shave. All the shavers rated good to excellent.
If you're buying a shaver for a man who already uses an electric, stick to the type they use, since their skin is already used to it.
The top-rated foil shaver was the Braun 360 Degree Complete for $170 dollars. The Philips Norelco Speed-XL for $130 dollars came out on top for rotary shavers.
Be aware you need to use a new shaver for at least three weeks before deciding whether it's right for you.
Both the shavers Consumer Reports recommends offer at least a 30-day money-back trial. That gives you enough time to size up the shaver to see if it's right for you.