Clipper Kit or Separate Pieces: Which Costs Less
By Elias Becker · Licensed barber, ten years behind the chair · 12 min read
NOVAH Pro Clipper + Trimmer
★ 4.5 stars from 12,000+ Amazon reviews
- Cordless clipper + detail trimmer set
- Both run 5+ hours on standard speed
- Brushless clipper: 6,000 / 6,500 RPM
Key Takeaways
- A clipper kit is not automatically cheaper. On its own site, Wahl lists its Cordless Barber Combo at $289.99, and the Magic Clip and Cordless Detailer Li sold alone at $144.99 each (all checked 2026-10-05): within a cent of each other, though the boxes hold different guides.
- Different models and different box contents change the comparison. Compare like with like, and count what is actually in each box.
- The real saving in a kit is not paying for something twice. If you already own a trimmer you like, price a clipper alone against the set; if you own nothing, a matched set saves you shopping for each piece.
- Before you compare any clipper-only price with a set, add what the set includes and you would otherwise buy: a trimmer, its guards, oil, a cleaning brush, and a charging stand if you want one.
- Prices move every week. Check every figure on the day you buy, on the maker's own page or the listing you will buy from.
Is a Clipper Kit Cheaper Than Buying the Pieces Separately?
A clipper kit is cheaper than buying the same pieces separately only when the set price is lower than the single prices added together, and on the makers' own list prices that gap is often small or zero. The saving people expect from a kit usually comes from somewhere else: not buying a tool you already own, not buying a second set of guards, and not paying for extras you will never use.
A useful example is a maker that sells a set and the tools it is named after. Wahl does. Its Professional 5 Star Cordless Barber Combo pairs a Cordless Magic Clip with a Cordless Detailer Li, and Wahl lists the combo at $289.99. Bought one at a time on Wahl's own site, the Magic Clip (model 08148) lists at $144.99 and the Detailer Li at $144.99, which adds to $289.98. All three prices were checked on 2026-10-05. The boxes are not identical, which we come to below, but on price alone the set does not save you anything at list.
That one example is not the whole story, which is why the table below lines up four makers. Read it as a set of worked examples, not a ranking. The prices are what each maker's own page showed on the dates shown (some were sale or offer prices), and retailers often sell for less.
| Maker | Clipper + trimmer sold as one set | Same maker's clipper and trimmer bought one at a time | What the comparison shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wahl | Professional 5 Star Cordless Barber Combo: $289.99 (checked 2026-10-05) | Magic Clip (08148) $144.99 + Cordless Detailer Li $144.99 = $289.98 (checked 2026-10-05) | Within a cent at list price, but the boxes differ: the combo lists 3 clipper and 3 trimming guides, the Magic Clip alone 8 guides. |
| Andis | inCRED Cordless Combo (CLC-4 clipper, CLT-3 trimmer): $79.99 (checked 2026-10-05) | inCRED Cordless Clipper Kit (CLC-4) alone: $59.99 (checked 2026-10-05). The CLT-3 trimmer alone: not on file | The combo lists above the clipper kit. With no CLT-3 price on file, the separate route cannot be totalled. |
| JRL | FreshFade FF2020 Limited Gold Collection: $270.00 (checked 2026-10-02, sold out on the maker's site that day) | Onyx clipper $195.00 (checked 2026-10-02) + Onyx trimmer $135.00 (checked 2026-10-05) | Different JRL lines, so not like for like. The set is the lower figure. |
| BaBylissPRO | No SilverFX+ and GoldFX+ set on file | SilverFX+ clipper $249.99 + BaBylissPRO GoldFX+ outlining trimmer $159.99 (checked 2026-10-05) | No matching set in our records, so only the separate route can be shown. |
Prices as each maker's own product page showed them on the dates shown; some were sale or offer prices, and all may have changed since. Not a ranking and not a test of how the tools cut.
What Do the Makers' Own Prices Show?
Each row in the table above tells you something different, so take them one at a time.
Wahl: the same money, different boxes. The Cordless Barber Combo lists at $289.99 and the Magic Clip and Detailer Li at $144.99 each (checked 2026-10-05). The contents differ, though. Wahl's combo page lists 3 clipper guides and 3 trimming guides, from 1/16 in to 3/16 in, and a Stagger-Tooth Crunch clipper blade; the Magic Clip page lists 8 guides and a Stagger-Tooth blade. So the two routes cost the same at list and do not give you the same box. If the combo's contents suit you, buy it for the convenience of one box; do not buy it expecting a discount at list price.
Andis: the combo lists a step above the clipper kit. Andis lists the inCRED Lithium-Ion Cordless Clipper Kit, model CLC-4, at $59.99, and the inCRED Cordless Combo, which pairs a CLC-4 clipper with a CLT-3 trimmer, at $79.99 (both checked 2026-10-05). We do not have a price on file for the CLT-3 trimmer sold alone, so we cannot add up the separate route here, and the two boxes may differ in more than the trimmer. What the two prices do show is that adding the trimmer by buying the combo costs a modest step up over the clipper kit.
JRL: a lower set price, but different machines. JRL's page showed the FreshFade FF2020 Limited Gold Collection clipper and trimmer at $270.00 (checked 2026-10-02; the maker's page showed it sold out that day). JRL's Onyx clipper showed $195.00 (checked 2026-10-02) and the Onyx trimmer $135.00 (checked 2026-10-05). Some of these were sale or offer prices. Added together, the two Onyx tools come to more than the set, but it is a different JRL line from the Onyx pair, so this row compares two purchases, not one purchase made two ways.
BaBylissPRO: when no set is on file, you price the pair yourself. Our records hold no SilverFX+ and GoldFX+ set, so we can show only the separate route. BaBylissPRO's pages showed the SilverFX+ clipper at $249.99 and the BaBylissPRO GoldFX+ outlining trimmer at $159.99 (both checked 2026-10-05), and you pay both. That is the price of picking a specific clipper and a specific trimmer from a maker's premium range.
What Counts as a Clipper Kit, and What Counts as Separate Pieces?
The word kit covers three different purchases, and mixing them up is an easy way to get a price comparison wrong.
A clipper kit is one clipper sold with its accessories: guards, oil, a cleaning brush, and sometimes scissors, a comb, a cape or a case. Wahl's All Metal Corded Hair Clipper Kit is an example; Wahl lists it with 12 attachment guards, scissors, a styling comb, a beard brush, oil, a cleaning brush and a hard storage case. There is only one cutting tool in the box.
A clipper and trimmer set, which makers also call a combo, puts two cutting tools in one box: a clipper for length and a trimmer for edges. The Wahl Cordless Barber Combo, the Andis inCRED Cordless Combo and the StyleCraft Rebel Combo Set are all this kind of purchase.
An all-in-one kit adds a third tool, usually a shaver or a set of interchangeable heads, on top of the clipper and trimmer.
Separate pieces means buying each cutting tool on its own listing, often from different makers or different ranges, and buying the accessories you need around them.
A fair comparison sets a kit against the separate pieces that would do the same jobs. A clipper kit with one clipper is not cheaper than a clipper and trimmer set just because its price is lower: it is a smaller purchase.
How Do You Compare a Kit Price Fairly?
Five steps turn a kit's sticker price into a number you can actually compare.
1. List the jobs you need covered. Length on the sides and back is clipper work. Hairlines, temples, necklines and beard edges are trimmer work. If you shave the head or the face down to the skin, that is a third job. Write down only the jobs you will do in the next year, not the ones the box suggests.
2. Price each tool you need on its own. Use the same source for every price, ideally the maker's own page or the one store you will actually buy from, on the same day. Mixing a list price from one place with a sale price from another makes either route look better than it is.
3. Add the accessories you would otherwise buy. The table below lists the usual ones. A clipper-only listing can look cheap until you add the trimmer, its guards and the cleaning kit that a set already includes.
4. Subtract what you already own. A trimmer you like, a set of guards that fits, blade oil in the cabinet: every one of these lowers the cost of the separate route and does nothing for the kit.
5. Compare the two totals, then look at the gap. A gap of a few dollars is not a reason to choose either way. Choose on fit instead: the tool you would rather hold, the runtime you need, and whether you want everything to arrive in one box.
The NOVAH Pro Clipper + Trimmer set is available on Amazon.
Check price on Amazon| Add this to a clipper-only price | Why it changes the comparison | Question to ask before you buy |
|---|---|---|
| A trimmer | The second cutting tool is the biggest single difference between a clipper and a set | Do I already own a trimmer I like? |
| Trimmer guards | Guards are shaped for a particular blade; do not assume another maker's will fit | Does the trimmer I would buy alone come with guards? |
| Clipper guards in the sizes you use | A clipper with few guards can mean buying a second guard set | Does the box cover every length I cut? |
| Blade oil and a cleaning brush | Small items, but needed for every tool, every cut | Are they in the box, or a separate order? |
| A charging stand or dock | Optional, but some sets include one and single tools may not | Will I want one, and is it included? |
| Extras: case, cape, scissors, comb | Only worth counting if you would buy them anyway | Would I pay for this on its own? |
Count an item only if you need it and do not already own it. Anything you would never buy alone adds nothing to a kit's value for you.
When Do Separate Pieces Cost Less?
Buying separately wins on cost in four common situations.
You already own a trimmer you like. This is the biggest one. A clipper and trimmer set charges you for a second trimmer you will put in a drawer. Buy the clipper alone and the whole price of the set's trimmer stays in your pocket.
You want a premium tool for one job and a basic one for the other. Plenty of people care a lot about the clipper and very little about the trimmer, or the other way round. A set fixes both tools at one level. Separate pieces let you spend where it matters to you.
The kit is padded with things you will not use. Scissors, capes, combs and travel cases add pieces to a box and a line to its name. If you already have them, or will never use them, they are a cost with no value to you.
You plan to upgrade one tool later. If you expect to replace the clipper in a year and keep the trimmer, buying the trimmer you want now, on its own, avoids paying for a set twice.
One caution on the separate route: do not assume accessories move between brands. Guards are shaped for a particular blade, and chargers and stands are made for particular tools. Before you count on reusing a guard or charger you already own, check that its maker lists it as compatible with your exact model; if it does not, budget for the new tool's own.
When Does a Kit Cost Less?
A kit comes out ahead on cost in three situations, and on convenience in a fourth.
You are starting from nothing. If you own no clipper, no trimmer and no guards, every piece in a well matched set is something you would have bought anyway. That is the situation where a set's price is most likely to beat the separate total, because there is nothing to subtract.
The set includes accessories you would otherwise pay for. Guards for both tools, oil, a brush and a charging stand all cost money on their own. When a set includes them and you need them, count them at what they would cost you separately.
The set is on sale and the pieces are not. Retail prices move independently. A set that lists at the same price as its two pieces, as Wahl's does, can still be the cheaper route on a given day if the store has cut the set and not the singles. This is why the step that matters most is checking both prices on the day you buy.
You are buying a gift. This one is about convenience rather than cost. One box with both tools is a complete present, and the person opening it does not need to know which trimmer goes with which clipper.
What Costs Come After the Purchase?
The sticker price is only the first cost of any clipper. Four running costs follow, and they apply whether you buy a kit or separate pieces.
Blades. Clipper and trimmer blades dull with use and can chip if dropped. Before you buy, check that the maker sells a replacement blade for the exact model, because a tool you cannot re-blade has to be replaced whole when its blade is done.
Guards. Guards crack and go missing. Losing the one size you use most is common enough that it is worth knowing whether the maker sells guards singly or only as a full set.
Batteries and charging. A cordless tool's battery is a wearing part. Check whether the maker lists a replacement battery, and how the tool charges: a standard USB-C cable is easy to replace; a proprietary stand or plug is not.
Cleaning and oil. A blade that is brushed out and oiled after each cut stays sharp longer and runs cooler. A small bottle of blade oil and a stiff brush cost little and protect everything else you paid for.
Running costs depend on the tools you choose, not on whether they came in one box. Every cutting tool needs blade care, and every cordless one has a battery to look after, whichever way you bought it.
Where Does the NOVAH Set Fit in This Math?
NOVAH writes this blog and sells the NOVAH Pro Clipper + Trimmer, and the buttons on this page open NOVAH's own Amazon listing. Read this section with that in mind. We are not going to tell you what it costs against any set above, because prices move and we do not print our own; check today's price on Amazon.
What we can tell you is how it fits the five steps. It is a clipper and trimmer set: two cordless cutting tools for two different jobs.
The Pro Clipper does the length. It runs a brushless motor at 6,000 RPM standard and 6,500 RPM turbo in an all-metal housing, weighs 0.75 lb (12 oz), and has an LED display on the back that shows charge, speed and lock state. It comes with 6 guards from 1.5 to 13 mm. A brushless motor has no carbon brushes inside to wear down, which is one less wearing part on the running-cost list above.
The Pro Trimmer does the edges. It can be zero-gapped for a closer line, has a battery display, and comes with 4 guards of its own, 1.5, 3, 4.5 and 6 mm. That matters for step 3: the trimmer's guards are in the box, not an extra purchase.
Both tools list 5+ hours on standard speed per charge. The set carries a 1-year warranty, 2 years on the motor, and holds 4.5 stars from 12,000+ Amazon reviews.
The honest limit, in the language of this article: if you already own a trimmer you like, part of what you pay for in this set is a tool you will not use. NOVAH also sells the Pro Clipper and the Pro Trimmer on their own, and in that case price a clipper alone, ours or another maker's, against the set before you buy. The longest clipper guard is also 13 mm, so anything you want to leave longer on top needs scissors or clipper over comb work.
So Which Should You Buy, a Kit or Separate Pieces?
Decide in this order and the answer usually falls out on its own.
First, what do you already own? A good trimmer, a good clipper, or nothing at all. This one question decides more than any price tag, because it removes whole tools from the separate route.
Second, which jobs will you do? Length only, length and edges, or length, edges and shaving. Buy for those jobs and nothing else.
Third, compare like with like on the same day. Use the maker's own page or one store for every price, add the accessories each route leaves out, and look at the gap. If it is a few dollars, ignore it and choose on fit.
The table below sums up which route tends to cost less in each situation.
| Your situation | Route that tends to cost less | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You own nothing yet and want length and edges | Clipper + trimmer set | Every piece in the box is one you would buy anyway |
| You already own a trimmer you like | Clipper bought alone | A set charges you for a second trimmer |
| You care a lot about one tool and little about the other | Separate pieces | You can spend more on one tool and less on the other |
| The kit is mostly extras you will not use | Separate pieces | Padding adds pieces, not value |
| The set is on sale and the singles are not | Whichever is lower that day | List prices can match while store prices do not |
| You are buying a gift | Clipper + trimmer set | One complete box, no matching of parts |
A rule of thumb, not a guarantee. Check both routes on the day you buy.
1 cent
The gap between Wahl's list price for its Cordless Barber Combo ($289.99) and the Magic Clip plus Cordless Detailer Li bought one at a time ($144.99 each), all checked 2026-10-05 on Wahl's own site. The boxes hold different guides.
Before you pay for a kit, check
- Every cutting tool in the box is one you will use
- You have priced the same tools bought alone, from the same source, on the same day
- You have added the guards, oil and brush the separate route would need
- You have subtracted the tools and accessories you already own
- The maker sells replacement blades and guards for each tool
⚠️ A kit saves money by not making you buy twice, not by a magic discount. If a set's tools match what you need and you own none of them, it is a sensible buy. If you already own half of it, buy the half you are missing.
NOVAH Pro Clipper + Trimmer
★ 4.5 stars from 12,000+ Amazon reviews
A cordless clipper for the bulk of the cut and a trimmer for lineups, edging and detail work, sold together as one set.
Check price on AmazonFrequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to buy a clipper and trimmer set or buy them separately?
It depends on the maker and the day. On Wahl's own site the Cordless Barber Combo lists at $289.99 and the two machines it pairs list at $144.99 each (checked 2026-10-05), so at list price there is no saving, though the boxes hold different guides. A set saves money only when its price is below the total for the tools and accessories you still need.
Do I need a trimmer if I have a clipper?
You need one if you want sharp hairlines, temples, necklines or beard edges. A clipper is built for removing length across the sides and back; a trimmer has a narrower blade for drawing edges. If you only ever buzz your hair to one length, a clipper alone can be enough.
Do clipper guards fit other brands?
Do not assume they do. Guards are shaped to clip onto a particular blade, and a guard that does not seat properly can slip during a cut. Check that the guard's maker lists it as compatible with your exact clipper model before you rely on it.
What should a clipper kit include?
At minimum, a clipper, guards covering the lengths you cut, blade oil and a cleaning brush. A clipper and trimmer set adds a trimmer and its own guards. Scissors, capes, combs and cases are extras: worth having only if you would use them.
When is buying separately the better choice?
When you already own a tool you like, when you want to spend more on one tool than the other, or when a kit is padded with extras you will not use. In each case the separate route avoids paying for something you do not need.
Sources
- Wahl Professional, 5 Star Cordless Barber Combo (3025397) product page, https://www.wahlpro.com/shop/cordless-barber-combo-3025397 (list price checked 2026-10-05)
- Wahl Professional, 5 Star Cord/Cordless Magic Clip (08148) product page, https://www.wahlpro.com/shop/cordcordless-magic-clip-08148 (list price checked 2026-10-05)
- Wahl, 5 Star Cordless Detailer Li (08171) product page, https://wahlusa.com/shop/cordless-detailer-li-08171 (list price checked 2026-10-05)
- Wahl, All Metal Corded Hair Clipper Kit product page, https://wahlusa.com/shop/all-metal-corded-hair-clipper-kit-3000097 (read 2026-10-05)
- Andis, inCRED Cordless Combo product page, https://andis.com/shop/detail/561506/ (list price checked 2026-10-05)
- Andis, inCRED Lithium-Ion Cordless Clipper Kit product page, https://andis.com/shop/detail/40000/inCRED-Lithium-Ion-Cordless-Clipper-Kit (list price checked 2026-10-05)
- JRL, FreshFade FF2020 Limited Gold Collection product page, https://www.jrlusa.com/products/ff2020-limited-gold-collection (read 2026-10-02)
- JRL, Onyx Professional Cordless Hair Clipper product page, https://www.jrlusa.com/products/onyx-professional-cordless-hair-clipper-1 (read 2026-10-02)
- JRL, Onyx Professional Cordless Hair Trimmer product page, https://www.jrlusa.com/products/onyx-professional-cordless-hair-trimmer (read 2026-10-05)
- BaBylissPRO, SilverFX+ All-Metal Lithium Clipper (FX870NS) product page, https://www.babylisspro.com/silverfx-clipper/FX870NS.html (list price checked 2026-10-05)
- BaBylissPRO, GoldFX+ All-Metal Lithium Outlining Trimmer (FX787NG) product page, https://www.babylisspro.com/goldfx-outlining-trimmer/FX787NG.html (list price checked 2026-10-05)
- NOVAH Pro Clipper + Trimmer (Matte Black) product page, https://novahpro.com/products/novah-professional-barber-hair-clippers-trimmers
Related Reading
NOVAH Grooming publishes this guide and sells the products mentioned in it, both here and on Amazon. Links to Amazon go to our own listings and are tagged so we can see which guides help people. Prices and availability are current as of publication and may change.
