In this article
My hair doesn’t need humidity or rain to become frizzy: If I don’t layer my oils and serums just so, my hair can look remarkably shrublike just one day after washing it. That’s because it’s on the drier side — and the drier your hair is, the more prone you are to flyaways, breakage, and general frizziness. But I’m not alone. All hair — particular curlier hair types — can suffer from frizz. The answer, as stylist Gregory Patterson tells me, is moisture. “Both enveloping the hair to hold the moisture in and adding it back to the hair itself — filling in the ‘gaps’ along the hair strand that would stand up and frizz.”
Anti-frizz products work in one of two ways: nourishing or styling. Nourishing products will work on quenching the dryness that causes flyaways and frizz; those products will be packed full of essential oils and nourishing, thick creams to moisturize the hair. Styling products instead create a hydrophobic, anti-humidity layer on the top of the hair to leave a smooth finish once the hair is styled (but they often also contain hydrating ingredients for the hair, too). You can choose from anti-frizz sprays, serums, oils, and masks that can be used in every stage of the styling process on both wet and dry hair. I haven’t covered any shampoos and conditioners here — I don’t think they’re as effective as other products at taming frizz (but you can read my shampoo and conditioner reporting if you’re on the hunt for one in particular).
I’ve tested many of the products below on my own frizzy hair and have also asked hair-care experts and fellow Strategist beauty writers about the products they use to keep their frizz at bay. I use a combination of products to tame my frizz — finding a routine that works for you without becoming too heavy might take some trial and error. Once you’ve found the right anti-frizz product — or combination of products — for your own hair, you can also read my guides to hair oils and masks.
Update on October 15, 2024: Updated prices and checked stock for all products.
What we’re looking for
Styling stage
There’s an anti-frizz hair product for each stage of the styling process: from oils and masks to apply before a wash to creams and sprays to use before styling and oils that will make your blowout last longer. You’ll know what suits your hair best — so I’ve mentioned below where each product sits.
Ingredients
Butters and essential oils are among the most hydrating ingredients in hair care. They’re what I’ve looked for in nourishing products, along with amino acids and keratin that strengthen hair and prevent breakage (which, you’ve guessed it, also causes frizz). In styling products, I’ve looked for smoothing ingredients for straight hair and products with a bit of grip and hold for curlier hair types. If you have frizzy or curly hair, you might think you need to avoid silicone at all costs: That’s not true. There are kinds of water-soluble silicone that are completely safe for use on the hair and can repel humidity without building up and leaving the hair crunchy. I’ve checked for those kinds of ingredients in the product list below.
Sprays
The best anti-frizz spray overall
Stage: Pre-blow-dry | Ingredients - styling: Hair-safe water-soluble silicones, glycerin
If I could use only one anti-frizz product, it would be Color Wow’s Dream Coat. My hairdresser introduced me to it last year. When she applied it liberally and blow-dried my freshly cut hair, my hair had more gloss and shine than it had ever had before. I wanted to see if I could get similar results at home, so I bought a bottle. My first few applications didn’t make much of a difference. But the key to this product is to absolutely drench your hair in the stuff. And I mean drench: Once you’ve applied a coat thorough enough to feel ridiculous, go ahead and spray on a little bit more. A lot of product, yes, but worth it — you only have to repeat the process every three to four hair washes. For me, that works out at less than once per week.
The Dream Coat is an interesting product because it’s heat-activated — if you air-dry your hair, it won’t work. (This also means it can’t be used on already dried hair.) The heat activates the spray’s hydrophobic qualities. “The advanced formula leaves your hair ultrasmooth, glossy, and glassy, with humidity-blocking technology that keeps your style intact,” says Maria Elizabeth, the founder of Salon deZen. And although you really have to douse it on, once dry, both Elizabeth and I can confirm it’s still lightweight yet long-lasting. And while I’ll top up my sleekness with a bit of oil throughout the week, before blow-drying I don’t use anything else: It doubles up as a heat protectant, too. Another reason why this is my top pick: There is also a ColorWow Dream Coat made specifically for curly hair types. Unlike the original Dream Coat, it doesn’t need heat to activate — meaning it will work on both air-dried and diffused curls.
Best less expensive anti-frizz hair spray
Stage: Pre-blow-dry | Ingredients - nourishing: Keratin and jojoba oil
Where ColorWow envelopes the hair and forms a veil against humidity, this budget-friendly spray hydrates the dry hair that would lead to frizziness. And it doesn’t need heat to work. Stylist Rogerio Cavalcante likes this option for the hydrating ingredient list. “The keratin and jojoba oil hydrates dryness that can lead to flyaways,” he says. “Hair is left smooth and frizz-free for an extended time after a blowout.” I also like that it adds heat protection to the hair and comes in a huge bottle — “so you get more bang for your buck,” adds Patterson.
Best anti-frizz hair spray for wet and dry hair
Stage: Any | Ingredients - nourishing: Aloe vera
This is another hydration-focussed option. I heard about it from our resident beauty columnist, Rio Viera-Newton, who is a fellow frizzy-hair sufferer. “I’ve talked about how helpful aloe vera can be for skin, and it honestly has an equally amazing effect on my hair,” she says. “I use this on both wet and dry hair as a moisture boost in the morning — it sinks deep into my hair, immediately gets rid of any stubborn frizzes, and never makes my hair feel sticky or heavy.” The spray also can act as a detangler on pre-combed hair.
Serums and oils
Best anti-frizz hair serum for styling
Stage: Any | Ingredients - styling: Water soluble silicones
There are a few major differences between serums and oils. Oils penetrate deeper into the hair strands, whereas serums tend to sit on the top of the hair — that’s why you might have heard talk about serums feeling lighter on the hair. It all comes back to the smoothing versus hydrating function: Serums will smooth and add some control to the styling process, where oils will go in and actually add moisture to the strands. If you always find that an oil is weighing your hair down (say, if it’s on the thinner side), I’d recommend trying a serum like this one. It contains water-soluble silicones that form an anti-humidity barrier on the hair to tackle frizz both during blow-drying and beyond. Patterson gravitates toward it because it’s “budget-friendly, paraben-free, oil-free, and vegan” and because he’s found it gives the same great results on “both wet and dry hair of every hair type and texture.” It’s also completely oil-free — a plus for anyone with thinner hair.
Best hydrating anti-frizz hair serum
Stage: Any | Ingredients — nourishing: Amino acids, shea butter and nourishing oils
Just one look at the ingredient list on this serum will tell you how intensely hydrating it is. It has everything I look for in a dry-hair-appropriate product: restoring amino acids, hydrating shea butter, nourishing essential oils, and the added bonus of mushroom to protect against free radicals. It can be used on both wet and dry hair and even on your skin, stylist Haley Campise tells me. “For curly hair, it can be added to dry or dampened hair to reset curls,” she says. “It not only helps get rid of frizz, but it is also a treatment that actually moisturizes your hair long term. I find that the longer you use it, the less frizzy your hair will be. It also smells incredible.”
Creams and gellies
Best anti-frizz hair cream
Stage: Pre-blow-dry | Ingredients - nourishing: Shea butter, ginger root oil, coconut oil
This cream is heavy on the hydration: just what we want. It contains shea butter and coconut oil — both intensely moisturizing ingredients in skin care and hair care — as well as ginger-root oil, which has lots of fatty acids to quench thirsty hair. Creams in general are heavier products than serums, so I recommend going a little lighter on your application. But once you find the right amount for your hair (it will differ from hair type to hair type; on my thinner hair I start off with a pea-size amount and freestyle from there), you’re left with “hair looking and feeling incredibly shiny and frizz-free the entire day,” says Patterson.
Best anti-frizz hair gelly for curly hair
Stage: Pre-air dry | Ingredients - nourishing: Pro Vitamin B5, Wheat Germ Oil, Jojoba Oil
Curly hair is more porous than straight hair (meaning it has more gaps in its cuticle layer that allow moisture to pass through). Often, curly hair types will encounter frizz. To combat it, the best products will add moisture to the hair (and fill in those gaps) as well as add a little bit of hold and grip to make it easier to style the curls. For those latter two steps (the actual styling of curls), Stephanie Louis, owner of Stylebox Salon, relies on this drugstore staple. She says it’s a “holy grail of double whammies.” To use it, you smoothly apply the gel to wet hair, letting your hair air-dry before scrunching your curls into place. The Soultanicals site recommends not to touch the hair while you let it air-dry to avoid frizz. The result is perfectly set, zero-frizz curls. The jojoba oil in there hydrates, too.
Best anti-frizz hair cream for curly hair
Stage: Pre-styling | Ingredients - nourishing: Argan oil
This curl-defining cream also streamlines the styling process for curlier hair types. It’s packed full of argan oil — my favorite oil for hair care — which nourishes curls and adds the moisture that’s key to fighting frizz. Mirjam Bayoumi, who owns a namesake salon on the Upper East Side, also says it makes the process of styling curls that much simpler. “You put it on after the shower, and it’s basically wash-and-go — you can twist your curls a little bit, but that’s it,” she says. Dhiran Mistry, a stylist at David Mallett salon, says that it’s also suitable for wavy hair types, as the hold isn’t too heavy.
Masks
The best anti-frizz hair mask
Stage: Pre-wash | Ingredients - nourishing: Fiaschetto tomato extract (rich in antioxidants and vitamin C), vitamin E
Rio also likes to use a hair mask to combat frizz in more humid months and climates. “I like sitting in this mask for about an hour or two while I watch TV. Afterward, when I’ve washed it out, my hair feels soft, smooth, and light,” she says. “It’s the perfect way to get some nourishment into your locks without having your hair feel overly bouncy and big.” Hair masks are great for tackling frizz, as they can really intensely add that hydration element. This one in particular contains vitamin E, which improves hair elasticity, and vitamin C, which helps the hair produce collagen — combined, they improve the hair’s strength over time and prevent breakage.
Some other anti-frizz hair products we’ve written about:
Our experts
• Haley Campise, hairstylist
• Rogerio Cavalcante, stylist and owner of the Second Floor Salon
• Maria Elizabeth, the founder of Salon deZen
• Gregory Patterson, stylist and beauty and grooming expert
• Rio Viera-Newton, aesthetician and Strategist beauty columnist
The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
