Some of us spend hundreds of dollars on hair extensions and thickening hair products to fake the look of fuller locks, but only those with naturally thick hair know it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. All those extra strands and their weight require some major upkeep (not to mention double the hair ties), which can have us spending hours in front of the mirror figuring out what to do with it.
Much like other hair types, improving the look and feel of your thick mane often starts in the shower, which is why we’ve created this guide on our best shampoo for thick hair. Keep scrolling to handpick the right one for your wash day routine.
Deep Clean Dry Shampoo
A high-performance dry shampoo that absorbs excess oil on up to day 4 hair.
How often should you wash your hair if it's thick?
When hair is thick, stylists often advise not to wash hair every day as it can dry strands out and make them less manageable. Washing your hair about every three days is ideal since it gives the hair a chance to build up its natural oils.
Can’t stand seeing greasy roots in-between wash days? Invest in a dry shampoo, like Redken Deep Clean Dry Shampoo. Spray it where your hair looks and feels oiliest, holding the can four to six inches away from your hair. Massage it into your roots and finish by brushing it through your locks. Remember that when your hair looks and feels greasy from root to tip, it's likely time for a wash.
What is the best shampoo for thick and frizzy hair?
Thick hair tends to be coarse and dry. The best shampoo for thick hair will be infused with moisturizing, hydrating, and softening ingredients while enhancing shine and fending off frizz. If your hair errs towards the super dry end of the spectrum, it may be worth looking out for sulfate-free formulas, which won’t further strip strands of natural oils.
Not sure where to start? Here are 18 of our best thick hair shampoo offerings to line your shower shelves with.
Our 18 Best Shampoos for Thick Hair
Frizz Dismiss Smoothing Sulfate-Free Shampoo
A smoothing, shine-boosting shampoo for frizzy hair.
Redken Frizz Dismiss Smoothing Sulfate-Free Shampoo
Everybody deals with frizz, but thick strands can go from slightly frizzy to a hot mess in no time. Outsmart it with Redken’s Frizz Dismiss Smoothing Sulfate-Free Shampoo. It features a gentle, sodium chloride and sulfate-free formula to tame frizzy hair, increase smoothness and enhance shine.
Acidic Bonding Concentrate Sulfate Free Shampoo for Damaged Hair
All-in-one concentrated shampoo for damaged hair
Redken Acidic Bonding Concentrate Sulfate Free Shampoo
The best way to ensure every day is a good hair day is to make sure your hair looks and feels as beautiful as possible. Powered by an acidic formula and a high level of bonding ingredients, Redken’s Acidic Bonding Concentrate Sulfate Free Shampoo helps to intensely condition, repair strength, and recreate weakened bonds on all types and textures of damaged hair.
If your thick locks are extremely damaged, consider pre-treating the shampoo with the line’s Intensive Treatment to reduce tension on already-weakened strands.
All Soft Mega Moisturizing Conditioner for Severely Dry Hair
A mega moisturizing conditioner for severely coarse, dry hair.
Redken All Soft Mega Shampoo
If your thick mane is drier than a desert, it’s time to switch up your hair care routine. Begin by swapping out your regular shampoo for one that will leave your strands touchably soft.
Redken’s All Soft Mega Shampoo is infused with a superfood mix of sacha inchi extract, aloe vera, and cactus extract and Redken’s exclusive RCT Protein Complex to treat hair from the root, to the core, to the tip.
Cleansing Oil Shampoo
A silicone-free, paraben-free shampoo that softens but doesn'tweigh hair down.
Shu Uemura Art Of Hair Cleansing Oil Shampoo
If you have thick, coarse hair, you already know your mane is a bit extra—so you’ll need extra hydration to keep it soft and manageable. Shu Uemura Art Of Hair’s Cleansing Oil Shampoo deeply cleanses to remove impurities and buildup while rejuvenating dry hair and scalp with moisture.
Gentle Radiance Deep Cleanser
A lightweight, clarifying shampoo for all hair types.
Shu Uemura Art of Hair Gentle Radiance Deep Cleanser
Suitable for all hair types, Shu Uemura Art of Hair’s brand-new Gentle Radiance Deep Cleanser is a lightweight, clarifying shampoo that works quickly to remove dirt, oil, and product buildup to leave hair softer and shinier.
Silk Bloom Strengthening Shampoo
A hair strengthening shampoo for damaged hair.
Shu Uemura Art of Hair Silk Bloom Restorative Shampoo
Constant styling, heat tools, and chemical services can wreak havoc on your locks. Attempting to rehab your thick, damaged hair? Pick up Shu Uemura Art of Hair’s Silk Bloom Restorative Shampoo.
Scalp Care Shampoo
An anti-dandruff shampoo for dry scalps.
Mizani Scalp Care Shampoo
Your thick locks may do a good job of hiding your dandruff, but why hide dandruff when you can manage it with Mizani’s Scalp Care Shampoo? The cleanser is formulated with pyrithione zinc, peppermint oil, and cucumber extract to help eliminate the recurrence of scalp flaking, scaling, and itching associated with dandruff.
Mizani Moisture Fusion Clarifying Shampoo
To get to the root of grease on a plentiful mane, you’ll want a powerhouse shampoo that cuts through it all. In that case, pick up Mizani’s Moisture Fusion Clarifying Shampoo. Made with charcoal and a coconut-derived clarifier, this shampoo will give hair a thorough cleanse but won’t strip the strands of moisture or shine—plus, it’s suitable for all curl types and textures.
Hydrate Shampoo
A deeply hydrating, color-preserving shampoo for normal to thick dry, color-treated hair.
Pureology Hydrate Shampoo
Pureology’s Hydrate Shampoo is ideal for anyone with medium to thick dry hair that's also been color-treated. It intensely moisturizes your strands, while the brand's AntiFade Complex ensures your hue remains vibrant. What more could you want out of a thick hair shampoo?
A Curl Can Dream Shampoo for Curly and Coily Hair
Silicone-free deep cleansing shampoo for curly and coily hair to remove build up with preserving your curl pattern
Matrix A Curl Can Dream Shampoo For Curly And Coily Hair
Show your thick ringlets some discipline with Matrix A Curl Can Dream Shampoo For Curly And Coily Hair. It’ll deeply cleanse your hair while preserving your curl pattern so you never have to sacrifice cleanliness over curl definition again.
Total Results Mega Sleek Frizz Control Shampoo
A smoothing shampoo that provides frizz control.
Matrix Mega Sleek Frizz Control Shampoo
Thick hair benefits from hydrating products, like Matrix Total Results Mega Sleek Shampoo, to keep it manageable and shiny. It’s formulated with shea butter to help control rebellious, unruly hair and manage frizz against humidity.
Ultra Hydra Source Shampoo
An intensely hydrating shampoo for very dry, coarse hair.
Biolage Professional Ultra Hydra Source Shampoo
While the words ‘dry, coarse, and thick’ may seem like a recipe for a hair disaster, Biolage Professional’s Ultra Hydra Source Shampoo can save the day. This shampoo mimics how the hydrating aloe plant retains water, helping to optimize the moisture balance in parched hair so it’s more hydrated and manageable.
Bain Riche Chroma Respect Sulfate-Free Shampoo
Rich sulfate-free shampoo with lactic acid for medium to thick damaged, color-treated hair.
Kérastase Bain Riche Chroma Respect Sulfate-Free Shampoo
Medium to thick, damaged hair requires a richer, more intense lather, like Kérastase’s Bain Riche Chroma Respect Sulfate-Free Shampoo. This sulfate-free shampoo features breakthrough technology that infuses centella asiatica, a flowering plant with soothing and recovering properties, with lactic acid to help gently exfoliate and seal the hair’s surface.
Serie Expert Curl Expression Anti-Build Up Cleansing Shampoo
Gentle cleansing shampoo that removes buildup and impurities on curls and coils.
L’Oréal Professionnel Serie Expert Curl Expression Anti-Build Up Cleansing Shampoo
Everyone wants their hair to feel squeaky clean after wash day. However, missing a spot or two with thick, curly hair can be easy. Ensure your luscious ringlets feel clean after every wash with a formula like L’Oréal Professionnel Serie Expert Curl Expression Anti-Build Up Cleansing Shampoo, which gently removes excess product buildup without stripping hair of natural oils.
Serie Expert Curl Expression Intense Moisturizing Shampoo
Sulfate-free intensive moisturizing shampoo for curly and coily hair types.
L’Oréal Professionnel Serie Expert Curl Expression Intense Moisturizing Shampoo
Another trusty sulfate-free thick hair shampoo is L’Oréal Professionnel’s Serie Expert Curl Expression Intense Moisturizing Shampoo. This moisture-packed shampoo treats delicate curls and coils to gentle cleansing and hydration while safeguarding hair’s natural oils to keep curls in their best shape yet.
Serie Expert Metal Detox Shampoo
A sulfate-free anti-metal cleansing shampoo that revitalizes color-treated hair.
L’Oréal Professionnel Serie Expert Metal Detox Shampoo
Can’t figure out why your thick locks look dull and drab? Hard water may be to blame, but L’Oréal Professionnel Serie Expert Metal Detox Shampoo can make that a thing of the past. This sulfate-free shampoo detoxifies the hair from metals, resulting in intact color vibrancy that doesn’t miss out on shine.
Serie Expert Liss Unlimited Shampoo
A smoothing shampoo for unmanageable, frizzy hair.
L’Oréal Professionnel Liss Unlimited Shampoo
Hoping to make your thick, unruly mane look as smooth as possible? Begin your styling routine with L’Oréal Professionnel’s Liss Unlimited Shampoo, an intense smoothing and nourishing shampoo formulated with pro-keratin and oils of kukui and evening primrose.
Inforcer Anti-Breakage Shampoo
A hair strengthening shampoo to protect hair prone to breakage.
L’Oréal Professionnel Inforcer Anti-Breakage Shampoo
Your hair is thick, but that doesn’t automatically mean it’s healthy. If your hair begins to break off more than usual, switch out your regular shampoo for a strengthening formula. L’Oréal Professionnel’s Inforcer Anti-Breakage Shampoo has a strengthening formula infused with vitamin B6 and biotin for instant and long-term breakage reduction.
Complete your wash day routine by shopping for more salon-grade products on Hair.com.
Deep Clean Dry Shampoo
A high-performance dry shampoo that absorbs excess oil on up to day 4 hair.
Frizz Dismiss Smoothing Sulfate-Free Shampoo
A smoothing, shine-boosting shampoo for frizzy hair.
Acidic Bonding Concentrate Sulfate Free Shampoo for Damaged Hair
All-in-one concentrated shampoo for damaged hair
All Soft Mega Moisturizing Conditioner for Severely Dry Hair
A mega moisturizing conditioner for severely coarse, dry hair.
Cleansing Oil Shampoo
A silicone-free, paraben-free shampoo that softens but doesn'tweigh hair down.
Gentle Radiance Deep Cleanser
A lightweight, clarifying shampoo for all hair types.
Silk Bloom Strengthening Shampoo
A hair strengthening shampoo for damaged hair.
Scalp Care Shampoo
An anti-dandruff shampoo for dry scalps.
Hydrate Shampoo
A deeply hydrating, color-preserving shampoo for normal to thick dry, color-treated hair.
A Curl Can Dream Shampoo for Curly and Coily Hair
Silicone-free deep cleansing shampoo for curly and coily hair to remove build up with preserving your curl pattern
Total Results Mega Sleek Frizz Control Shampoo
A smoothing shampoo that provides frizz control.
Ultra Hydra Source Shampoo
An intensely hydrating shampoo for very dry, coarse hair.
Bain Riche Chroma Respect Sulfate-Free Shampoo
Rich sulfate-free shampoo with lactic acid for medium to thick damaged, color-treated hair.
Serie Expert Curl Expression Anti-Build Up Cleansing Shampoo
Gentle cleansing shampoo that removes buildup and impurities on curls and coils.
Serie Expert Curl Expression Intense Moisturizing Shampoo
Sulfate-free intensive moisturizing shampoo for curly and coily hair types.
Serie Expert Metal Detox Shampoo
A sulfate-free anti-metal cleansing shampoo that revitalizes color-treated hair.
Serie Expert Liss Unlimited Shampoo
A smoothing shampoo for unmanageable, frizzy hair.
Inforcer Anti-Breakage Shampoo
A hair strengthening shampoo to protect hair prone to breakage.
