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Photo: Marcus McDonald
Hair masks are a fix-all for unhappy hair. If conditioner is akin to your lightweight body lotions, hair masks are more of a body butter, explains Ash Therese, master stylist at the Bird House salon. No matter the texture or the complaint of your hair (curly and frizzy, dry and splitting, color-treated and dull), there’s a hair mask for that.
And on the topic of hair texture and hair complaints, when it comes to finding the right mask, what your hair actually needs is more important than what category your hair type falls under. As Shirley Hagel, an advanced creative stylist at Parlor Hair Salon, explains, “For me, choosing a mask isn’t so much about whether hair is thick or thin.” Instead, she’ll evaluate whether the hair is dry, damaged, or lacking in nutrients. It’s advice I heard echoed by several of the 18 hair experts I talked to for this piece — and the same advice I followed when selecting the masks to test out myself.
No matter your hair type, though, some general advice: Aim to use a mask about one to two times a week (in place of your usual conditioner), leave it on for about ten to 15 minutes, and rinse with cold water to enhance shine.
Update on September 24, 2024: Updated all product blurbs, added Typebea Hydra-Gloss treatment as the best option for fine hair, checked prices and stock for all products.
The most important thing about hair masks is the active ingredients they are formulated with. Make sure you’re giving your hair what it needs most, whether that’s oils for hydration, bond rebuilders for damage repair, or vitamins and antioxidants for health.
Like shampoo and conditioners, some hair masks are formulated with sulfates and others are not. While many hair types can tolerate sulfates, those with sensitive skin or who have hair that is damaged or color-treated should try to steer clear and opt for a sulfate-free option instead.
I’m also keeping an eye on the total ounces of hair mask you’re getting per dollar.
Ingredients: Olaplex, bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 3.3 oz.
I genuinely feel you can’t go wrong with Olaplex. To echo the advice of a previous hairdresser of mine: when in doubt, slap some Olaplex on. I’ve written extensively about its line of bond-building products. Much like their shampoo — my top pick for color-treated hair — its hair mask has the same repairing treatment. No 3, the hair mask, was my first introduction to the line: I was fresh out of university and could only afford one bottle from their range. It was the right decision for my bleach-damaged, color-treated hair, which saw an improvement after just a few uses of the hair mask (sometimes for ten minutes in the shower, sometimes to marinate it overnight). “If my clients have a color service with me, I’m sending them home with Olaplex No. 3,” Ash Fritzler, master stylist at the Bird House salon says. Fritzler, like me, says she’s seen the transformation this formula can bring to her clients with just one use a week.
My hair is fine and dry, but founder of Salon deZEN Maria Elizabeth tells me it works just as well on a variety of hair types — she calls it a versatile product she recommends to anyone with hair that feels compromised (and “even pollution exposure can compromise hair integrity,” Fritzler adds). Jessica O’Keeffe, a stylist at Hawthorne Studio explains it also works on “natural textures that tend to feel coarse or dry, and even perfectly healthy hair that is seeing a seasonal change in hair health.”
Ingredients: Moringa Seed Oil | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 6.3 oz.
I’ve also featured the Verb Ghost range before in my coverage of the best conditioners and hair oils. I’m featuring their hair mask here for many of the same reasons: it’s light, it’s at a nice mid-range price point, and it’s suitable for all kinds of hair. “This is our tried-and-true mask that works with nearly every hair texture, from straight to wavy to curly,” Stephanie Louis, founder of Stylebox Salon in Prospect Heights, tells me. As it is so light, those with finer hair types will notice an improvement much faster than those with curlier hair textures — but give it two to three months of regular use and you’ll really start to feel the benefits, advises Louis. While I’ve not tried it myself (there’s a bottle currently on its way to me), Strategist writer Dominique Pariso has used it extensively. “I was pleased to find that the mask was super-light and easy to wash out, and (after only a couple of uses) my hair was healthy-feeling and less dry,” she says. It’s a bonus to find that a mask works quickly — but the best results come with consistent use. That’s why I think those with curlier and coarser hair types would still get a lot from this option.
Ingredients: Prickly pear seed oil | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 8.4 oz.
Although it’s had a little makeover, this is the same Christophe Robin mask that we’ve written about on The Strategist dozens of times. Dianna Cohen, founder of hair-care line Crown Affair, says that it’s her “favorite hair mask of all time” as it’s “the most universal hydrating mask.” Cohen means universal in the sense that it’s suitable for all hair types (the only thing you’ll need to fine-tune is how much you use; fine hair only needs a pea-size amount, whereas thicker hair will need more.) It’s definitely a pricier mask, but Cohen says that ingredients like vitamin E-rich prickly pear seed oil means the price tag is entirely justified. Vitamin E restores the protein and keratin of your hair, which in turn makes it shinier and silkier without clogging your scalp or causing buildup, explains Cohen (she notes that masks can often cause buildup if you use them too close to your scalp). She leaves the mask on for about 15 minutes and then rinses it out with cold water. If you want to truly luxuriate in your hair mask, Cohen told us the ingredients in the Christophe Robin mask take well to heat — apply it under a shower cap and then put a hot towel on top.
Ingredients: Shea butter, Moroccan clay | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 12 oz.
This is the cheapest mask on this list (less than $10), but it’s packed with my favorite heavy-duty hydrating ingredient: shea butter. It also contains Moroccan clay, which helps to clean the hair of impurities and build-up. Myleik Teele, who has tested thousands of products as the founder of CURLBOX, a subscription service for curly hair products, says it “can go toe-to-toe” with any other high-priced mask when it comes to performance because of how moisturizing it is. Teele recommends it for curly hair types, but it has a solid moisturizing profile of ingredients, meaning it’s suitable for anyone with extremely dry hair. It’s also heat activated, so if you have access to a hooded dryer at home, now would be the time to use it — but if you don’t, the shower-cap-plus-hot-towel method will work too.
Ingredients: Argan oil, shea butter, biomimetic ceramide decreases hair damage to stop ends from | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 4 oz.
If you have fine hair that’s also dry, you face an issue: Many of the same ingredients that will quench the dryness can leave your hair looking and feeling weighed down. That was an issue Strategist senior editor Ailbhe Malone was running into: “I have dry, fine hair — and not a lot of it — so while my hair likes the moisture a mask gives, it often looks limp afterwards.” She was happy to find, then, that this mask from Rita Ora’s hair care range is among the best she’s ever used. “Unlike the Christophe Robin or Bleach London masks I’ve used, it’s nourishing and makes my hair shiny, but not coated,” she says. “You don’t even need to leave it in for that long — I’ve had great results with just three minutes in the shower.” The ingredients list also get a big thumbs up from me: Argan oil and shea butter will hydrate both your hair and scalp, while the ceramide strengthens ends prone-to-breakage.
Ingredients: K18Peptide | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 1.7 oz.
Like Olaplex, K18 is another bond building product. It was once available only in salons, but since launching to consumers, it has become massively popular. So much so that it’s an item that Strategist writers Pariso, Tembe Denton-Hurst, and Strategist beauty columnist Rio Viera-Newton swear by. “Basically, K18 works by delivering a patented amino-acid chain to the inner structure of your hair, replacing missing amino acids and regenerating the bond to repair your hair,” explains Rio, who says that after using it every other week, she noticed “a big difference in the texture, softness, and general health” of her bleached hair. I’m currently in the process of testing this mask, and am keen to see how it shapes up against my Olaplex.
Ingredients: Almond and buriti oil | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 8 oz.
If you’re looking to nurture your color-treated hair but also add some intensity (and longevity) to the color, I suggest Christophe Robin. Rio says it will “give your hair a color boost that’s as close to salon color as you can humanly get from home.” As well as depositing color — it has shades for coppery reds and chestnut brunettes — it also contains plenty of quenching ingredients for your color-treated hair. “Magical color-fixing properties aside, it’s one of the most wonderfully hydrating hair masks I’ve ever used,” she says.
Ingredients: Australian kakadu plum and starflower oil | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 12 oz.
Since its launch two years ago, Bread has instantly become a favorite of “lazy naturals,” people with curly hair who want a simplified, low-maintenance approach to hair care, says Strategist beauty writer Tembe Denton-Hurst. The hair mask — also a favorite of our friends over at the Cut — is chock-full of Australian kakadu plum and starflower oil, both of which add shine and moisture to curls. (Also, if you’ve jumped straight to the curly-hair section, let me direct you above to the African Pride Moisture Miracle which is a great option for curly-to-coarse hair types.)
Ingredients: Avocado and coconut oils | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 6 oz.
As I mentioned before, it can be tricky to find hydrating ingredients that aren’t too heavy. But this hair mask has them; it contains avocado oil and coconut oil, both hydrating, both much lighter than ingredients like shea butter. “Faster than you can say ‘Rumpelstiltskin,’ this heavenly-scented hair mask spins strawlike hair into gold,” says Strategist contributor Cheryl Kramer Kaye. “I reach for it nearly every time I’m in the shower, and it hasn’t weighed my fairly fine curls down yet.”
Ingredients: Euterpe oleracea fruit extract, Myrciaria dubia fruit extract | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 8 oz.
Mirjam Bayoumi, whose namesake Upper East Side salon is known for its hair-coloring services, says that her own thick and wavy hair has damaged ends. To combat some of the damage, she uses Brazilian Blowout’s mask, which she recommends to anyone with coarse hair because it has a moisturizing formula that helps with detangling. Its ingredient list contains extracts known for being vitamin rich and possessing antioxidant properties. This is how it’s able to condition coarse hair types down to the cuticle with a boost of hydration and nourishment that will keep frizziness at bay. As far as the application goes, just as Cohen suggested with the Christophe Robin mask, Bayoumi says the Brazilian Blowout does well with heat.
Ingredients: Elastin, castor seed oil, olive oil, and glycerin | Sulfate-free: Yes | Size: 5.07 oz.
“Because my hair is so fine, finding a mask that’s deeply nourishing but not greasy or heavy is always a challenge, but I think after years of searching, I’ve finally found one that works,” says Pariso. Her hero product is the Philip Kingsley Elasticizer, which is formulated with a combination of elastin, castor seed and olive oils, and glycerin. “While I’m typically skeptical of products that promise immediate results, I can’t deny that I was shocked by how incredibly soft, shiny, and detangled my hair was after just one treatment. And unlike with other brands, my hair didn’t feel heavy or greasy at all afterward.”
Actress Jessica Chastain uses the mask (not as directed, she points out) multiple times a week to keep her hair hydrated and shiny. “Being a redhead, I have very sensitive skin and hair and I need to constantly hydrate myself,” she says. “I’ll put it on the ends of my hair, twist my hair up into a topknot, and go to sleep like that with wet hair. I never rinse it out; I just keep it in my hair overnight. It’s a natural way of keeping frizz at bay as well.”
•Mirjam Bayoumi, founder of Mirjam Bayoumi Salon
•Michelle Cleveland, hairstylist
•Dianna Cohen, founder of hair-care line Crown Affair
•Mark DeBolt, co-owner of Mark Ryan Salon
•Tembe Denton-Hurst, Strategist beauty writer
•Maria Elizabeth, founder of Salon deZEN
•Ash Therese, master stylist at the Bird House salon
•Shirley Hagel, advanced creative stylist at Parlor Hair Salon
•Cheryl Kramer Kaye, Strategist contributor
•Stephanie Louis, founder of Stylebox Salon
• Ailbhe Malone, Strategist senior editor
•Dhiran Mistry, hair stylist
•Jessica O’Keeffe, stylist at Hawthorne Studio
•Dominique Pariso, Strategist writer
•Danielle Priano, stylist
•Myleik Teele, founder of CURLBOX
•Rio Viera-Newton, Strategist contributor
Additional reporting by Hilary Reid and Jenna Milliner-Waddell.
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