Some very smart researchers from the University of Queensland have come one step closer to cracking the age-old question: beards… yay or nay?

According to their findings which have been published in the Royal Society Open Science journal, while single women found bearded men were more attractive and deemed more ‘masculine ‘ than men without beards, there was one caveat. Among the women who disliked men with beards, apparently this was due to a dislike of lice, fleas, ticks and other ectoparasites that may live on the skin.

Now look, lice and fleas are gross – we get that – but also, I think we can all agree that Bradley Cooper with a beard ismuchmore attractive than Bradley Cooperwithouta beard. The proof is in the pictorial pudding.

According to people on Reddit, this is what it’s like to be an ‘attractive woman’. Post continues below.

Alas, this opened a whole new can of worms. We wanted to know which celebrities were objectively better looking clean-shaven, and whose aesthetics were improved with a bit of facial hair. For example, who even knows whatGame of Thrones‘ Jason Mamoa looks likewithouta beard? Now that we know, we can certainly bet that Daenerys would not approve.

So in the name of investigative, Pulitzer-worthy journalism, we’ve sourced the best ‘before and after’ celebrity beard transformations, so you can make up your own mind.

Behold…

Bradley Cooper

Image: Getty.

Paul Rudd

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Hugh Jackman

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Ryan Reynolds

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Tom Hanks

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Jake Gyllenhaal

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Chris Pine

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Denzel Washington

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Daniel Radcliffe

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John Hamm

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Keanu Reeves

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Brad Pitt

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Idris Elba

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Johnny Depp

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Liam Hemsworth

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Chris Hemsworth

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Leonardo DiCaprio

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Donald Glover

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Steve Carell

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Jason Mamoa

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Prince Harry

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Prince William

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John Krasinski

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Zac Efron

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Tom Hiddleston

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Justin Timberlake

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Will Smith

Image: Getty.

Which celebrities do you think look the most different with and without a beard? Tell us in a comment below.

Feature images: Getty.

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