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As a curly girl with fine hair, I'm always looking for more moisture and volume. And when conditioners just can't cut it, I set my sights on deeply conditioning hair masks. Not only can they hydrate your strands, they can also make them feel softer, stronger, and more protected. If you're also looking to deliver these results for your own hair, then you need one stat. However, the best hair masks are made of the ingredients that are suited for your hair type and concern. So, if you have straight hair, coily hair, color-treated hair, blonde hair, dry hair, damaged hair, and more, I've broken down the best hair masks for everyone.
What Is a Hair Mask?
Similar to face masks, hair masks are nourishing, hydrating, and strengthening deep conditioning treatments for your hair. But what sets them apart from your traditional conditioners, is that their ingredients are usually more concentrated and the mask is left on your hair for a longer period of time. And, the benefits depend on your hair and the ingredients in the mask.
What's the Best Hair Mask for My Hair Type?
The hair mask that you ultimately choose depends on your type of hair and what you want the results to be. Curlier hair is typically dry, so those with coils or dry hair need thick, hydrating masks with ingredients like ceramides or coconut water. If your hair is more fine, look out for lighter weight masks that might add volume, possibly with caffeine in them.
So keep on scrolling for the hair mask that best suits your hair type and concern. You won't believe the results.
The Top 3 Hair Masks for Every Hair Type
amika Soulfood Nourishing Hair Mask
The amika Soulfood hair mask is a favorite among E! editors (and their brothers). It's packed with rich vitamins and antioxidants to hydrate and soften your hair, and the brand refers to the mask as a "cool drink of water for your hair." Ideal for all hair types and textures, it can leave your strands shiny for days.
Briogeo Don't Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Hair Mask
Prevent future damage and strengthen your strands today with the Briogeo hair mask. Formulated with 97% naturally derived ingredients (like rosehip oil, B vitamins, and algae extract), it's ideal for all hair textures and types, especially those with dry, brittle strands.
K18 Biomimetic Hairscience Leave-In Molecular Repair Hair Mask
This hair mask promises to reverse damage in just minutes, while restoring softness and elasticity to your strands. The mask is infused with the brand's patented K18Peptide, which is formulated to re-connect broken keratin chains in your hair, to improve hair's strength and bounce. Any kind of hair texture and type can use this mask for lasting results.
The Best Budget Hair Mask
SheaMoisture Intensive Hydration Hair Masque
Hair masks don't have to be pricey. Score this hydrating hair mask for under $12 and the shea butter and manuka honey will moisturize and condition your strands. It also comes with over 11,000 5-star reviews on Amazon, leaving one fan to report that it's a "true hair miracle!
The Best Hair Mask for Dry Hair
REDKEN Bonding Hair Mask for Dry, Damaged Hair Repair
Don't put up with dry strands for one more day. This lightweight mask repairs, detangles, and moisturizes while leaving your hair soft.
The Best Hair Mask for Damaged Hair
Kérastase Resistance Strengthening Hair Mask for Extremely Damaged Hair
If your hair is damaged by treatments, the weather, or just daily wear and tear, this strengthening hair mask is for you. Ideal for all hair textures and medium to thick hair, it includes wheat protein to smooth and repair bounce and gluco-peptides to permeate and strengthen your strands.
The Best Hair Mask for Nourishing Your Strands
Moroccanoil Intense Hydrating Hair Mask
Backed by over 11,000 5-star Amazon reviews, this hair mask is designed to hydrate and condition your hair. Ideal for medium to thick strands, it features a blend of argan oil and other ingredients formulated for deep nourishment of your locks. One user noted, "I can't live without this mask. I only use it a few times a week and leaves my hair super soft and hydrated. It has a nice coconut smell like most Moroccan oil products."
The Best Hair Mask for Fine Hair
OUAI Treatment Mask for Fine and Medium Hair
This Ouai mask is designed for those with fine to medium hair. Loaded with shea butter, panthenol, and hydrolyzed keratin, it will strengthen strands, provide moisture, and leave your locks shiny. Best of all, it has a light floral scent that hundreds of reviewers love.
The Best Hair Mask for Coils
PATTERN by Tracee Ellis Ross Transition Mask
Coily hair needs extra moisture, which is why this nutrient-dense mask is a solid pick. Plus, there's white tea to prevent hair fall and manuka honey to moisturize and keep strands strong.
The Best Hair Mask for Waves
adwoa beauty Blue Tansy Reparative Mask
Fight breakage, frizz, split ends, and damage with the adwoa reparative mask. It softens strands with mango butter, removes scalp impurities with Moroccan lava clay, and promotes hair growth with hydrolyzed quinoa. Reviewers love the mask's thick texture and light floral scent.
The Best Hair Mask for Curls
Maria Nila Coils & Curls Finishing Hair Mask
Define your curls while nourishing and detangling them with the Maria Nila finishing hair mask. It features a blend of shea butter, jojoba oil, aloe vera, and vitamin E to leave a frizz free shine.
The Best Hair Mask for Breakage
Oribe Hair Alchemy Strengthening Mask
If breakage is preventing your hair from growing length, then this Oribe mask is a great choice. It features rich shea butter for moisture, castor seed oil for shine, and a blend of chia seed and plant-based proteins to reduce breaks and encourage new growth. This shopper raved, "I love how this product makes my hair feel. This is the best hair mask I've used so far. My hair is much more manageable and shiny after each use!"
The Best Hair Mask for Split Ends
Christophe Robin Regenerating Mask
Reduce split ends and protect damaged hair with this regenerating hair mask. It includes nourishing prickly pear oil to moisturize strands and inula extract to revive your strand's pigment. One fan reported, "My hair was so brittle and dry but after two uses my hair is so shiny and hydrated."
The Best Drugstore Hair Mask
It's a 10 Miracle Deep Conditioner Plus Keratin
Even your drugstore has hair masks that condition and boost your strands. This hair mask features strengthening keratin and the brand promises smooth, shiny locks in just five to 10 minutes.
The Best Hair Mask for Blonde Hair
Kérastase Blond Absolu Strengthening Hair Mask for Very Damaged Blonde Hair
Do blondes have more fun? Well, they might with this strengthening hair mask that's designed for lighter locks. Infused with with hyaluronic acid, it can soften blonde hair damaged from lightening treatments, while preventing split ends and breakage.
The Best Hair Mask for Exfoliating Your Scalp
Nutrafol Build-Up Blocker Scalp Exfoliating Hair Mask
Maintain your scalp's microbiome and remove impurities with this scalp mask. With fruit acids and jojoba esters for exfoliation, and antioxidant-rich Australian wild berries for hydration, this mask can fight oil, flaky scalps so healthy hair can thrive.
The Best Bond Repairing Hair Mask
Olaplex The Ultimate Repair Kit
The Olaplex repair kit contains everything you need to rebuild your hair's bonds and strengthen its strands. What are bonds exactly? Well, they hold together your hair's protein and keratins, and give locks their stability and shape. When they're are broken, hair can look dry and damaged. So, this two-step system is designed to restore healthy hair and repair those bonds.
The Best Hair Mask for Straight Hair
Function of Beauty PRO Bond Repair Custom Conditioner Mask for Straight, Damaged Hair
Whether your straight hair is fine, medium, or thick, this conditioning mask is for you. While the acids from hydrolyzed quinoa and mokate oil make strands shiny and manageable, it also features a bonding complex to reduce breakage. The concentrated formula smells like fresh flowers and the brand promises more resilient hair after just five washes.
The Best Hair Mask for Color-Treated Hair
L'Oréal Professionnel Vitamino Color Care Hair Mask
Packed with antioxidant-rich resveratrol, this hair mask is designed to preserve hair color. Plus, it can enhance the vibrancy of your hair's hue, while boosting softness and shine.
How Often Should You Use a Hair Mask?
Consult the instructions included with your mask, but it's usually good to use a hair mask once or twice a week. You don't want to overdo it and get overly oily or brittle strands.
What Ingredients Should You Look for in a Hair Mask?
Hair masks have a lot of ingredients to go through, but here are some of the top items you should look for on the label:
- For Dryness: Botanical extracts and natural oils like mafura oil, coconut oil, or almond oil, plus shea butter can help to enrich dry hair.
- For Damage: Avoid drying alcohols, keep an eye out for coconut oil, ceramides, jojoba oil, avocado oil, and castor oil to help repair the hair, along with any bond-building products.
- For Breakage: Masks with keratin, collagen, biotin, or rosemary oil will help safeguard against further damage.
- For Oiliness: To help regulate the oils on your scalp, look for tea tree oil, apple cider vinegar, peppermint, or lemon.
- For Fine Hair: Add some volume by using a shampoo or conditioner with biotin, proteins, or caffeine. These ingredients can help stimulate new hair growth.
- For Frizz: Natural oils like jojoba, avocado, or coconut can smooth strands and reduce frizz at the ends.
- For Curls, Coils & Waves: Curls need a nourishing mask, so shea butter, natural oils (like coconut oil, argan oil) and hyaluronic acid can help. Also, check that the mask is sulfate-free so it doesn't dry out your strands.
- For Blonde Hair: Consider a mask infused with hyaluronic acid to strengthen and soften blonde strands that may have been affected by lightening treatments.
- For Color-Treated Hair: You don't want the color to fade, so something sulfate-free will provide a gentle cleanse.
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