Last Updated on November 20, 2022
Got curly or coily hair? Make sure you’re using the right shampoo on wash days!
It’s been a long time coming. From screaming and dancing as little girls trying to avoid wash day, to hoping for no sores as the shampoo turned from pink to white after a relaxer. Washing textured hair can sometimes be traumatic. Then came co-washing and we were all washing our hair with conditioner and thought our problems were solved–until the product started building up in our hair, necessitating shampoo.
Shampoo. Which to buy? The one that strips your hair and leaves it so dry that a conditioner can’t even tackle it? No. Luckily, a few geniuses came up with shampoos for black hair types 3a to 4c. Most are just as moisturizing as a co-wash, but without buildup. Except for Giovanni, all of the shampoos you see here are owned by one of us. We recommended them because they do what they promise. So, let’s begin. Depending on your needs, here are some of the best shampoos for black hair – natural or chemically-altered.
1. Moisturizing
A truly moisturizing shampoo retains moisture in the hair cuticles during washes. Hair types 3 and 4 are generally more prone to breakage, and thus, they need to be moisture-balanced. Breakage occurs for many reasons, two major culprits being dryness and dehydration. You can tell your hair is dehydrated by stretching a wet hair strand and it snaps. You can also easily tell your hair is dry from its rough texture. In both cases, you should definitely make a moisturizing shampoo a wash day staple. Water is usually the first ingredient in moisturizing shampoos. They may also contain aloe vera due to the plant being water-dense.
14 oz/ 414 mL
$22, Sephora
Adwoa Beauty Baomint Moisturizing Shampoo
Known as the spa experience of shampoos, aloe vera is the second ingredient on the list in Adwoa Beauty Baomint Moisturizing Shampoo, which means it is truly hydrating.
If you’re looking to grow your hair, this is also a good choice because it contains hair growth essential oils like peppermint, rosemary and lavender. It also contains fixed oils for hair growth like black castor oil and pumpkin seed oil. It’s gentle on your locks and can be used on both curly and coily strands.
8.4 oz/ 250 mL
$20, Sephora
BREAD Hair-Wash Gentle Milky Hair Cleanser
Okay, the smell. It’s where your bowl of Fruity Pebbles meets Fruit Loops. With the milk. It’s very reminiscent!
Now, here’s how it works. This shampoo by BREAD is highly moisturizing and has a lot of slip. The name sounds like it’s a co-wash, and it looks like a co-wash, but it has some lather added to its extreme conditioning abilities.
It gets your hair and scalp clean, but it is not a clarifying shampoo, so if you have a lot of buildup, this might not be the choice for you. It’s going to get those curls rocking though. Not only does it contain aloe vera for hydration, it also highly nourishes with argan, avocado and coconut oils.
2. Nourishing
Second on our list of best shampoos for black hair are nourishing shampoos. These cultivate our hair to make it strong. They contain ingredients that go into the root and also botanicals that penetrate the hair shaft, or coat it, to give it strength. Some strengthening ingredients are black seed oil, coconut oil, castor oil, shea butter, amla and aloe vera.
16.1 oz/ 475 mL
$19.89, Sephora
Melanin African Black Soap Reviving Shampoo
If you’re familiar with black soap, you know it’s a super cleanser that can be a bit drying. Melanin managed to turn black soap into a great clarifying shampoo that hydrates instead. It’s a thick shampoo and contains butters and oils to nourish your hair.
Also, if you have scalp issues, this will get rid of them. Not only does it contain mineral-rich, fungus-busting black soap, it also has tea tree oil, turmeric and black seed to keep dandruff and itchy scalp at bay.
13.0 oz/ 384 mL
$14.99, Amazon
TGIN Moisture Rich Shampoo
This shampoo is from TGIN’s Moist Collection. Instead of using water as its first ingredient, it uses a tea of botanicals to boost hydration and relieve dryness–even for low-porosity hair.
It contains amla oil and vitamin B5 to deal with breakage. It smooths the hair, defines most curls and you may even see less shrinkage. Make sure to shake the bottle before using, because this is a natural product.
3. Detangling
Next up is the major reason some of us have hated wash day since we were young: the detangling process being so long and painful. With supermarket shampoos, you’re also probably scheduled to lose a lot of hair during detangling too because they make the hair so brittle. Even with shampoos made for us, this can be an issue!
However, some brands have added the same ingredients that make co-washes and curl definers so slippery right into our shampoo. This is a truly revolutionary move because now, many of us can detangle quickly while the shampoo is still in our hair.
12 oz/ 365g
$12.99, Amazon
Design Essentials Almond and Avocado Shampoo
This shampoo by Design Essentials nourishes the hair and helps to detangle. It doesn’t weigh the hair down, lathers exceptionally well, and a little goes a long way.
This shampoo is perfect for types 3 and 4 hair and reviewers say you can detangle better with this, rather than waiting for the conditioning phase. Plus, the price is a steal!
4. Hair Growth
We couldn’t write about shampoos for black hair without including a shampoo for hair growth. We love hair and we all want a lot of it—except perhaps those who have too much. The rest of us want it to grow long and thick. So what do we need? Peppermint, rosemary and lavender essential oils. Coming right up.
12 oz/ 355 mL
$15, Amazon
Mielle Organics Rosemary Mint Strengthening Shampoo
Like Adwoa Beauty Baomint Shampoo, Mielle Organics Rosemary Mint is designed to grow more hair. An additional benefit is that this shampoo contains biotin, so it fights hair loss as well. It’s a rich, velvety-feeling shampoo that detangles and leaves you with silky-feeling hair. The coconut oil in this formula really boosts the lather! Although gentle, it cleans well, so there’s no need to wash your hair twice.
5. pH Balancing
This factor is sometimes overlooked, but being pH balanced is what helps the hair cuticle to lay flat. This increases shine and curl definition. It also decreases breakage, because when the cuticle layer is sticking up, one hair attaches to another like magnets, making detangling difficult and replete with breakage.
9.8 oz/ 289.8 mL
$20, Sephora
Pattern Hydration Shampoo by Tracee Ellis Ross
The secret to frizz-free curls is a closed hair cuticle. Pattern Hydration Shampoo is pH balanced, so that the little roof-shingles that coat each hair’s surface lay down flat. This makes your curls look shiny and bouncy. It glides through your hair while cleansing the ins and outs of the bends, leaving coarse hair silky smooth. It’s built for frizz-free locks and moisturized hair and scalp.
6. Clarifying
Sometimes, we go overboard and need to get all the gunk from mousse, curl definers and gel out of our hair. When the buildup hardens, it can be difficult to remove, especially if you live in an area with hard water buildup going into your hair too. Unfortunately, textured hair can’t handle stripping. So, here are some gentler versions.
8 oz/ 236 mL
$13, Amazon
Come Clean by Kinky Curly
Kinky Curly is one of the first brands by us for us. If you support them, you support part of the incredible innovation that has gone into caring for black hair over the years. This shampoo is a mild but very effective clarifying shampoo that contains phytic acid to counter the effects of hard water buildup.
8 oz/ 250 mL
$8.99, Amazon
Giovanni 50:50 Balanced Clarifying-Hydrating Shampoo
In case your buildup is out of hand, but you still don’t want to strip your hair, try Giovanni 50:50. From a reputable, salon-type brand, this shampoo is clarifying but great for curl definition at the same time. It’s well-formulated with a long list of botanicals that includes aloe vera, coltsfoot and nettle to strengthen your hair.
So, which shampoo best meets your needs?
As you may have noticed, all of these shampoos have multiple benefits. Therefore, the chart below should help you decide much clearly which is best for you. Enjoy these new generation shampoos for black hair types 3a to 4c. And because most of these products are made by people of African descent, you can feel good too about where you’re spending your money.
Moisturizing | Nourishing | Detangling | Hair Growth | pH Balancing | Clarifying | |
Adwoa Beauty Baomint Moisturizing Shampoo | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
BREAD Hair-Wash Gentle Milky Hair Cleanser | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
Melanin African Black Soap Reviving Shampoo | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
TGIN Moisture Rich Shampoo | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
Design Essentials Almond and Avocado Shampoo | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
Mielle Organics Rosemary Mint Strengthening Shampoo | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |||
Pattern Hydration Shampoo by Tracee Ellis Ross | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ||
Come Clean by Kinky Curl | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
Giovanni 50:50 Balanced Clarifying-Hydrating Shampoo | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |