No two curl patterns are the same, so finding your exact curly hair cocktail can require experimentation. Luckily, this list of the best curly hair products below should help you to have consistently good hair days, with the most defined, hydrated, buoyant, and healthy curls possible. And as we outline later in the article, no two curly haired people will have the same needs, so it’s good to assess your specific hair variables (strand density, curl pattern, etc) and choose accordingly. Chances are, a couple of the below products will fall nicely into your regimen.
The Best Curly Hair Products for Men, At a Glance
- The Best Curl Cream for Men: R+Co Turntable Curl Defining Crème, $36
- The Best Leave-In Curl Conditioner for Men: Scotch Porter Moisture Rich Leave-In Hair Conditioner, $12
- The Best Curl Custard for Men: Aunt Jackie’s Curl La La Defining Curl Custard, $7
- The Best Curl Balm for Men: Hairstory Hair Balm, $37
- The Best Hair Gel for Curly Hair: Reverie Hymn Hair Gel, $36
- The Best Lotion for Curly Hair: Cécred Moisture Sealing Lotion, $38
- The Best Multipurpose Leave-in Conditioner for Curly Hair: Ouidad Advanced Climate Control Leave In Conditioner, $26
- The Best Shampoo for Curly Hair Men: Sachajuan Curl Shampoo, $34
- The Best Conditioner for Curly Hair Men: Bevel Conditioner, $10
- The Best Hair Mask for Curls: IGK Intense Daily Smoothing Mask, $38
- The Best Men’s Hair Brush for Curls: Altesse Beaute Petit Repair & Shine Brush, $260
- The Best Detangling Comb for Curls: Machete No.2 Comb, $42
- The Best Blow Dryer for Curly Hair: Conair Infinitipro Blow Dryer, $40
Looking for Something Specific?
The Best Curl Cream for Men: R+Co Turntable Curl Defining Crème
Why it’s great: This curl cream shields your strands from humidity, to keep frizz at bay and to add some eye-catching shine along the way. (A medium level of shine, not greasy in the least.) They’re great in all kinds of curl definition, from waves to coils, and from short styles to lengthy ones.
The Best Leave-In Curl Conditioner for Men: Scotch Porter Moisture Rich Leave-In Hair Conditioner
Why it’s great: This biotin- and protein-powered leave-in should be in the lineup for any short-haired guy who wants a conditioning curl cream. It doubles as a barely there styler and will spare you from needing conditioner in the shower, and will keep all curl patterns brilliantly defined and soft all day. (It’s great in longer styles, too, but in shorter lengths it’s likely the only product you’ll need to keep things in order.) It also tempers scalp irritation with is use of willow bark extract, and smells heavenly.
The Best Curl Custard for Men: Aunt Jackie’s Curl La La Defining Curl Custard
Why it’s great: Definition is the name of the game here—this lightweight custard keeps things defined, buoyant, and frizz-less, no matter your wave, curl, or coil pattern. This stuff is chock full of nourishing and moisturizing properties, with shea butter and olive oil leading the charge.
The Best Curl Balm for Men: Hairstory Hair Balm
Why it’s great: Whether your ends need extra attention to prevent frizzing and fraying, or all your hair needs moisture and a humidity-shielding coat, this balm is the ticket for smoother hair days ahead, and also works as a terrific bushy beard-tamer, too.
The Best Hair Gel for Curly Hair: Reverie Hymn Hair Gel
For curly haired folks, not all hair-styling products are built to properly tame the mane. Our curly haired writer Leon Hedgepeth has spent many a dollars on finding a product that would work for his hair, and he found the answer in the form of Reverie’s Hymn hair gel. He describes the scent as a “wonderfully subtle blend of sandalwood, bergamot, vanilla, and jasmine,” that results in “defined, bouncy curls and zero flakes.” The gel is also packed with professional-grade hair care ingredients like pullulan to keep hair hydrated and amaranth peptides to give the appearance of a fuller head of hair. He does recommend you only use small amounts, at least in the beginning of styling your hair, because a little goes a long way.
The Best Lotion for Curly Hair: Cécred Moisture Sealing Lotion
You’ve heard of Cécred before. And if you haven’t? Well, you haven’t been listening. The Beyoncé-founded haircare brand makes products for all hair types, but it’s especially great for those with curly hair who haven’t been able to find haircare products that work just for their hair. We love the brand’s shampoo but if you’re looking for something to keep your strands nice and moisturized, then this lotion is the way to go. It helps to reduce frizziness and dullness, packed with collagen proteins and seed oils to give you a head of hair that’s fit for a queen.
The Best Multipurpose Leave-in Conditioner for Curly Hair: Ouidad Advanced Climate Control Leave In Conditioner
Ouidad’s leave-in conditioner is a jack of all trades, able to do more than just soften and smooth out curly hair. It also works as a heat protectant, able to soften frizz and, in emergency cases, a lightweight style product. The brand, a favorite of celebrity groomer Kim Verbeck, excels at making haircare products for curly hair, and this one in particular works well for hot and humid climates to keep hair looking as you intend it.
The Best Shampoo for Curly Hair Men: Sachajuan Curl Shampoo
Why it’s great: Swedish Sachajuan is a salon staple for good reason. In this curl shampoo (which is great for all kinds of curl and wave patterns), the label’s signature “Ocean Silk Technology” floods the hair with silk proteins and marine extracts. It’s especially great if you just use a shampoo in the shower, and reserve any conditioning efforts for a leave-in or styling cream, since it is one of the most nourishing and conditioning washes you’ll find.
The Best Conditioner for Curly Hair Men: Bevel Conditioner
Why it’s great: Bevel’s multitasking conditioner is great for the guy with little time on his hands, who needs to get his daily strand nourishment over the course of a couple minutes mid-shower. However, it can also be used as a conditioning hair mask, if you let it set for 10-15 minutes before rinsing clean. Not to mention, it’s extremely cost-effective, so stock up and get your mileage every day.
The Best Hair Mask for Curls: IGK Intense Daily Smoothing Mask
Why it’s great: A generous concentration of plant butters and oils gives your cuticles the smoothing, shielding benefits to thwart frizz for as many as four days. It’s also a supreme strand detangler, in addition to being a miracle worker on the driest, frizziest, breakage-prone and coarse strands imaginable. Use it weekly for a thorough reset, or any day as a leave-in if you need some extended nourishment and protection.
The Best Men’s Hair Brush for Curls: Altesse Beaute Petit Repair & Shine Brush
Why it’s great: With more than a century of lore, Altesse is arguably one of the best brushmakers on the planet, and their entire roster of brushes offers something for every type of hair density or curl. This sturdy board-bristle, olive wood paddle brush is perfect for curls and coarse strands, in particular, and is the smaller of two curly haired options (making it doubly perfect for travel). It’s great in shorter beards, too—but if your beard gets long enough, switch to one without a paddle to avoid tugging.
The Best Detangling Comb for Curls: Machete No.2 Wide-Tooth Comb
Why it’s great: This wide-tooth comb isn’t just great at detangling hair without breakage and tugging, but it also looks so cool in your dopp kit or on your bathroom sink ledge. It’s one of many colors and styles from Machete—they’ve got a ton of great brush and comb options for all kinds of lengths, curl patterns, or lack thereof.
The Best Blow Dryer for Curly Hair: Conair Infinitipro Blow Dryer
Why it’s great: Any blow dryer you use on curly hair should have a diffuser to evenly distribute the heat throughout your curls as opposed to over-targeting or fast-blasting the strands. This controlled and spread-out heat will help curly hair dry with minimal damage and frizzing—and the combined ionic and ceramic technologies deployed in Conair’s blow dryer will also expedite the process while mitigating cuticle strain.
How Hair Texture Determines the Products You Use
One way to better find curly hair products for yourself is to identify your specific hair type. This is probably something your barber or stylist can discern with a quick glance—especially if your hair is medium or long. This simple system identifies the wave/curl/kink/coil pattern in your hair (or, for straight hair, the lack thereof).
Andre Walker was Oprah’s hair stylist in the ’90s, and he developed the following hair-typing classification, in order to sell his hair care products to the masses. Walker made things simple for everyone by suggesting that everyone falls in line somewhere on the below spectrum of hair types, from 1a-4c.
“Identifying your hair type is like a GPS towards ‘healthy hair euphoria,’” says Darius Davie, men’s hairdresser and the voice behind Groom Guy Agency. “It can be helpful when applying products at home, and how you communicate your needs to a barber or stylist.” And while many of the above curl products are universal-use, you can instead choose to hone in on your curl pattern and target products that are specifically beneficial to your needs.
Ranging from thin straight hair to coarse straight hair, the Type 1s don’t hold a curl very well.
1a: Hair is fine and straight, usually oily, often limp.
1b: Hair has average thickness, and cooperates with most straight-hair products and styles.
1c: Hair is coarse and uncooperative. Poofs easily with short styles, and needs severe layering/texturizing with medium/longer lengths.
Hair doesn’t fully curl, and ranges from “nearly straight but versatile” to “kinky but cooperative.” (Sounds like me in college!)
2a: Waves are loose—more texturizing than wavy—a step above straight, plus very cooperative and versatile.
2b: Waves are more evident, albeit slightly more fussy when it comes to styling. Hair is prone to poofing and frizzing.
2c: Waves are bigger and wider, teetering on kinky zigzags. They frizz easily.
Hair curls over, a clear graduation above wavy texture.
3a: Curls are looser, thus fuller and voluminous. Hair frizzes easily.
3b: Hair curls more frequently along the shaft, so the result is less volume, though they loosen easily with moisture.
3c: Curls are extremely tight, bordering on coily. They are likely softer to the touch than the next level, 4a.
Type 4: Coiled and Kinky Hair
Between zigzags and coils, there are two types of kinks here.
4a: A wiry, O-shaped coil with slight distance between each curl. Sometimes called “soft kinky.”
4b: Taut zigzags, similar to 2c waves but much finer and more frequent kink pattern.
4c: Coils are so hard and prominent that the kink pattern practically disappears. It’s the curliest curl, even beyond 4a.
The Key to Curly Hair Care
You probably know what general type of hair you have: You can usually look at it and tell whether it is straight, wavy, curly, kinky, or coiled. But remember that your curls are just one variable to factor into your hair care regimen, notes Dickey, “The Texture Guru” and founder of Hair Rules Salon in NYC, LA, and Atlanta. Your curls can also be fine, thick, or coarse, not to mention they could be progressively thinning or extremely full. Length plays a big factor, too—and on top of all that, environmental factors including humidity or dry air, as well as your scalp’s oil levels and hair porosity, can all factor into the variables you need to address with a routine.
Don’t let all of that feel overwhelming. Start with some universal curly hair products that work with your needs and the curl pattern/strand density, then start tweaking the regimen as you see fit. Above all, it’s most important to build a routine in the first place, then you can start perfecting it.
