honorable mentions
Photograph: Kat Merk
R+Co Death Valley Dry Shampoo for $37: I liked the landscape label on this larger size aerosol spray, but not the overly powerful scent or lack of effectiveness.
Divi Dry Shampoo for $28: The brand is best known for its viral scalp serum, but it also makes several other hair products, including a starch-based dry shampoo. I liked that Divi’s formula was free of propellants like benzene and butane, but it left a heavy white residue that turned into flakes during blending.
Davines It’s an Invisible Dry Shampoo $40:Many people I know swear by this vanilla-and-grapefruit-scented dry shampoo. I loved the scent, but in my tests I didn’t find it to be that effective, especially given the price.
Oribe Gold Lust Dry Shampoo for $26: I’m a big fan of the heat protectant spray from Oribe’s Gold Lust line, but this powder-based spray went on so thick that I looked like I’d just finished plastering the house.
IGK First Class Charcoal Detox for $34: One of my testers praised the formula, but I and another tester thought this charcoal- and white tea-containing spray left too much of a white cast for dark hair that was difficult to blend out. However, the tinted version was included in our list.
IGK Direct Flight Style Preserving Matcha for $34: I really like the artistic packaging of this series of aerosols, but the oil-absorbing power didn’t last all day, and none of my testers (including myself) cared for the smell.
R+Co Bleu Retroactive Dry Shampoo for $52: This aerosol in a sleek aluminum bottle brightened and added shine, but at the end of the day my hair started feeling greasy again.
Foxybay Brunette Breeze Dry Shampoo for $12: Being a person with dark hair, I am always on the lookout for the best tinted dry shampoo. I appreciated the lightness of this sizable, rice starch-based spray, but despite the “brunette” claim, it felt almost sheer and didn’t absorb oil particularly well.
Heritage Lazy Day Dry Shampoo for $9:This is a great, starch-based drugstore dry shampoo that whitens and lasts up to 24 hours.
R+Co Spiritualized Dry Shampoo Mist for $32: It’s a unique liquid spray idea with suspended starch, but it had no effect on my hair on the second day, let alone the third day. However, some other testers liked it, so your mileage may vary.
Chi Vibes Wake + Fake for $20: This powder-based aerosol spray became dangerously thick and chalky, and any attempt to blend it out left my hair in flakes.
R+Co Vapor Lotion to Powder Dry Shampoo for $42: I was excited about this unique cream lotion, but I struggled to blend it into my dark hair. When I finally did, it left a weird residue that made my hair look even messier.
Amika Perk Up Dry Shampoo for $29: I love the fun bottle of this talc-free aerosol formula, but I had trouble blending it into my dark hair. When I finally looked, small pieces became visible.
Not Your Mother’s Clean Freak Original Dry Shampoo for $9: This drugstore aerosol staple became too thick, even for third-day hair.
Formula Heat Guard Dry Shampoo for $28: I loved that this dry shampoo doubled as a heat protectant agent, but it ended up being too thick and very hard to blend out.
Batiste Dry Shampoo for $8: I really like Batiste for its range of formulas and fragrances, but Suave does a comparable job at a lower price.
Dove Care Between Wash Dry Shampoo for $8: Another drugstore stalwart, this aerosol spray proved difficult to mix.
IGK Jet Lag Weightless Dry Shampoo for $34: The smell was somewhat overpowering, and it was not effective for me or my testers.
Drybar Detox Dry Shampoo for $30: I’m a big fan of Drybar, but this lightweight aerosol doesn’t absorb oil at all for me.
R+Co Skyline Dry Shampoo for $34: This was a close runner-up for Best Powder, but the pump-action applicator made a lot of mess, and it wasn’t as absorbent as other formulas.
Dry Shampoo Alternatives
Photograph: Kat Merk
Volum Volumizing Iron for $150: Although it’s intimidating to look at, this heat tool—which looks like a mix between a waffle iron and a flat iron—is one of the best chemical-free ways to add volume back to second- or third-day hair, especially shorter hairstyles. Lift up the top layer of your hair and use it for a second on the hair below; It sports a kind of teased updo that adds instant volume.
Oribe Oil Control Serene Scalp Shampoo for $52: Perhaps the easiest way to avoid the need for dry shampoo is to cut back on oil production in the first place. This shampoo is specially designed with a prebiotic to extend the time between rinses and washes. While I felt like it only gave me an extra day, it’s still a viable option for those who want to avoid dry shampoo altogether. Oribe also makes a companion Serene Scalp Dry Shampoo ($46), but its effectiveness doesn’t commensurate with the price.
Amika Rising Star Volumizing Finishing Spray for $30: If you wear your hair open and don’t like the residue left by dry shampoo when your style tends to frizz after a day or two, this lightweight spray might be worth trying. It won’t last the whole day, but I was impressed with the increased volume it gave me twice a day and the effect lasted for a few hours.
I have been using dry shampoo for over 20 years. For this guide I tested more than 25 popular, widely available formulas multiple times on my thick, long, heat-straightened black hair over the course of about four months. I use them just like I would any dry shampoo during my everyday life – after workouts, during busy work weeks, on trips. I also sought out the opinions of friends and family with different hair types and textures when I needed a second or third opinion. I focused on effectiveness (did my hair still look clean at the end of the day?); ease of application; heaviness, stickiness or presence of residue; price; how quickly and thoroughly the dry shampoo mixed; and whether the scent was mild or excessive.
Tips for Using Dry Shampoo
Dry shampoo is a great tool for enhancing your painstakingly created hairstyle and will help reduce damage by reducing the frequency with which you heat-style your hair. However, dry shampoo can only go so far.
“Dry shampoo strips the hair of natural oils and cleanses it, but it won’t remove a lot of product,” says celebrity hair stylist Garren, co-founder of hair product company R+Co. “It is best used on second or third day hair.” In other words, don’t skip showers for a week and expect dry shampoo to work miracles. Dry shampoo should also not be used for more than a few days in a row, as using it too much can cause congestion and irritation to the scalp.
Applying dry shampoo at night is another tip that many experts recommend, as it can work to absorb oil while you sleep – it’s an especially good alternative to dry shampoo that tends to thicken. Garren also suggests running a blow-dryer after applying dry shampoo to cool the hair: “If your hair is highly colored or brittle, and you’ve put too much hairspray or product in it, if you apply dry shampoo and don’t blow it out with cool air, it can sit on top of the hair surface,” he says. “This can cause hair to harden. This won’t damage the hair, but it will make it feel dry or stiff.”
What’s actually in this stuff?
There are countless dry shampoos that claim to revolutionize the dry shampoo experience, but most work the same way: absorbent starch, a carrier agent, fragrance, and, in the case of aerosol dry shampoos, a propellant. In the old days many dry shampoos contained talc as an absorbent agent, which were often contaminated with asbestos. Some dry shampoos may still list it as an ingredient, but none of the ones we recommend do.
Some companies add other natural, absorbent minerals in addition to starch, such as kaolin clay, diatomaceous earth, zeolite, charcoal powder, or even volcanic ash. I also tried some more unusual formulas like pastes, liquid sprays, and lotions, although I didn’t find the latter two to be particularly effective for my hair. For each dry shampoo we recommend, I tried to help highlight the marketing claims by listing the main functional ingredients that help absorb oil.
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