Best Picks: Every Buyer's Guide

7 picks ranked

Best Minoxidil for Men

Every product here contains 5% minoxidil, the only topical hair regrowth drug the FDA has approved for men. What separates them is the vehicle, the irritation risk, and what you pay per month for the next decade.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Growth Products for Men

Male pattern hair loss has two treatments with strong evidence and a long tail of add-ons with weaker support. We picked the best product in each category and ranked them in the order you should actually spend your money.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Growth Products for Women

Female hair thinning has more possible causes than male pattern loss, and only one over-the-counter drug approved to treat it. We picked the best product in each category and ranked them by what the evidence says they can do.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Growth Vitamins

Hair growth vitamins are one of the most heavily marketed products in beauty, and one of the least understood. The ones worth buying either correct a measured deficiency or have at least some placebo-controlled evidence behind them.

6 picks ranked

Best Saw Palmetto for Hair Loss

Saw palmetto has more real evidence for hair than almost anything else in the supplement aisle. It is also clearly weaker than finasteride. Buying the right extract at the right dose is the difference between giving it a fair trial and wasting six months.

7 picks ranked

Best Postpartum Hair Loss Products

Postpartum hair loss looks alarming but is almost always temporary. The right products will not speed up the calendar, but they can make thinning less obvious, cut breakage and keep you away from treatments that are not suitable while breastfeeding.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Growth Serum

Drug-free scalp serums can make hair look fuller and support a healthier scalp, but none of them is an FDA-approved regrowth treatment. Here is which ones are worth the money, and when you should be buying minoxidil instead.

6 picks ranked

Best Hair Growth Oil

Oils are excellent at protecting hair from breakage and pleasant for scalp massage, but the evidence that any oil regrows hair is thin. Here is how to pick one that suits your hair, and what to expect from it.

6 picks ranked

Best Rosemary Oil for Hair Growth

Rosemary oil's reputation rests on one small trial against 2% minoxidil. It is a promising, low-cost experiment, not a proven treatment. Here is how to choose a pure oil or a ready-made blend, and how to use it safely.

7 picks ranked

Best Laser Cap for Hair Growth

Low-level light therapy has real, if modest, clinical support for pattern hair loss, and several home devices are FDA-cleared. But they cost hundreds to thousands of dollars, so the right choice depends on your hair loss, your routine and how you will actually use it.

6 picks ranked

Best Derma Roller for Hair Growth

Scalp microneedling has some of the most encouraging add-on evidence in hair loss, mainly when combined with minoxidil. The tool matters less than the needle length, the hygiene and the timing. Here is what to buy and how to do it right.

7 picks ranked

Best Minoxidil for Women

Minoxidil is the only topical drug the FDA has approved to regrow hair in women. It comes in two women's forms, a 2% solution used twice a day and a 5% foam used once, and the choice between them matters more than the brand on the box.

7 picks ranked

Best Ketoconazole Shampoo

Ketoconazole is a proven dandruff fighter with a small but intriguing body of evidence for hair loss. Over the counter, one brand dominates, so the smarter questions are which size to buy, how to use it, and what to rotate it with.

6 picks ranked

Best DHT Blocker Shampoo

Plenty of shampoos promise to block DHT, the hormone behind pattern hair loss. Only one common shampoo ingredient has meaningful human evidence for hair loss, and it is not the one most labels advertise.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Growth Shampoo

A shampoo cannot regrow hair by itself, but the right one keeps your scalp healthy, reduces breakage and fits around treatments that do work. Here is how the best-selling growth shampoos compare.

6 picks ranked

Best Collagen for Hair Growth

Collagen is a convenient source of protein, and protein matters for hair. But the evidence that collagen supplements grow hair is thin. Here is how to choose a good one, and how to set honest expectations.

7 picks ranked

Best Scalp Massager

A good scalp massager costs less than a coffee, feels great, and helps you clean your scalp properly. Whether it grows hair is a much smaller question than the marketing suggests, and the honest answer shapes which one you should buy.

7 picks ranked

Best Conditioner for Thinning Hair

Thin hair needs conditioner more than most, because fine strands break easily, but the wrong one flattens it against the scalp. These lightweight, volumizing conditioners protect fragile hair while keeping it full.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Fibers for Thinning Hair

Hair fibers are the closest thing to an instant fix for thinning hair. They do not grow anything, but a well-matched fiber, applied properly and locked in place, can make scalp show-through disappear for the whole day.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Thickening Products

Thickening stylers will not grow a single hair, but the right mousse, cream or root spray can make fine or thinning hair look noticeably fuller from the moment you blow-dry it. The trick is matching the product to your hair and using it properly.

7 picks ranked

Best Shampoo for Thinning Hair

The right shampoo will not regrow hair, but it can make thinning hair look and feel noticeably fuller from the first wash. These are the thickening and volumizing shampoos worth buying, matched to hair type.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Care Products for Women

Most women do not need a twelve-step routine. They need a gentle shampoo, a conditioner that suits their hair, one repair step, and protection from heat. These are the products we would build that routine around.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Products for Curly Hair

Curly hair needs more moisture, gentler cleansing and a product that holds the curl pattern without turning it stiff. These are the curl creams, gels, leave-ins and co-washes worth buying, matched to the curls they suit.

7 picks ranked

Best Black Hair Care Products

Type 4 and relaxed hair grows like any other hair. What holds length back is dryness and breakage. These are the leave-ins, butters, stylers and treatments that do the most to keep the length you grow.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Treatment for Damaged Hair

Bleach, color and heat break hair from the inside; dryness and friction rough it up from the outside. The right treatment depends on which kind of damage you have. These are the bond builders and masks worth buying for each.

7 picks ranked

Best Scalp Scrub

A good scalp scrub clears product buildup, excess oil and dead skin that shampoo leaves behind. It will not regrow hair, and the wrong one can irritate. These are the physical and chemical scalp exfoliants worth using, and who should skip them.

7 picks ranked

Best Heat Protectant Spray

A heat protectant cannot make a 450°F iron harmless, but it measurably reduces the damage that turns fine or thinning hair into broken, frizzy ends. Here is what to buy for your hair type and how to use it so it actually works.

7 picks ranked

Best Dry Shampoo

Dry shampoo is a brilliant way to stretch a blowout and add lift to fine roots. It is also easy to overuse. Here are the formulas worth buying, what the aerosol recalls actually covered, and how to use dry shampoo without neglecting your scalp.

7 picks ranked

Best Silk Pillowcase for Hair

A silk pillowcase will not regrow hair or stop shedding. What it can do is reduce the friction that tangles, frizzes and breaks fragile hair while you sleep. Here is how to buy one that is worth the money, and when cheaper satin does the job.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Dryer

A good dryer protects your hair by getting the job done quickly at a moderate temperature. We ranked seven on airflow, heat control, weight and value, with extra weight on how kind they are to fine, fragile or thinning hair.

7 picks ranked

Best Flat Iron

A flat iron presses hot plates directly onto your hair, which makes it the most damaging tool most people own. The right one gets you straight in a single pass at the lowest temperature that works. We ranked seven on exactly that.

7 picks ranked

Best Curling Iron

The best curling iron gives you curls that hold at a moderate temperature, so you are not cranking the heat to make fine hair cooperate. We ranked seven irons and wands on heat control, barrel size, ease of use and value.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Dryer Brush

A hair dryer brush dries and styles in one step, which can mean less total heat than a dryer followed by a flat iron. We ranked seven, from the budget Revlon One-Step to multi-stylers like the Shark FlexStyle and Dyson Airwrap, on volume, heat control and value.

6 picks ranked

Best Hair Products for Men

Most men's hair care comes down to two products: a styler that suits your hair and haircut, and a wash routine that keeps it from looking greasy or flat. These are the picks that do each job best.

7 picks ranked

Best Shampoo for Men

Men's shampoos are mostly marketed on fragrance and packaging, but what actually matters is whether a formula suits an oily, dry or flaky scalp and how often you wash. These are the everyday shampoos that get it right.

7 picks ranked

Best Hair Clippers

A good clipper pays for itself in a few skipped barber visits. The right one depends on whether you are keeping a simple buzz, cutting someone else's hair, or going short because your hair is thinning.

7 picks ranked

Best Beard Trimmer

A good beard trimmer does two jobs: hold an even length across your face and give you clean edges without irritating the skin. Here is what to buy for stubble, a growing beard, or a long one.

6 picks ranked

Best Beard Growth Oil

Beard oil makes a beard softer, less itchy and better looking, which can make it look fuller. It does not make new hair grow. Here is what to buy, and what to try if real growth is the goal.

6 picks ranked

Best Eyelash Growth Serum

The lash serums that work best tend to borrow from glaucoma drugs. That is why they can lengthen lashes, and why they can also darken eyelids and, rarely, eye color. Here is how to choose carefully.

7 picks ranked

Best Eyebrow Growth Serum

The brow serums with the most visible results usually rely on prostaglandin analogs, the same drug family as prescription lash treatments. That brings real side effects. Here is how to choose with your eyes open.