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10 Best Hair Oils For Curly Hair, Tested by a Panel of 278 Women
Testers had curl types ranging from 2a to 4c
Keen to ditch the hair straighteners and embrace your natural texture? Showing off your hair’s true, individual texture may be a beauy goal for many of us – but doing so can also be a challenge.
Daily styling, the use of heated hair tools, and even the sweat from a workout can leave your curls dry, and prone to breakage and frizz. Revive and replenish your waves, curls and kinks by introducing a hair oil into your routine.
Whatever your hair texture, we’ve narrowed down the best hair oils out there, to leave you with glossy, healthier-looking curls, that are also easier to style. According to our 278 testers, these are the winners:
- Best for minimising frizz: Garnier Ultimate Blends Coconut Oil Hair Oil for Frizzy and Curly Hair
- Best for definition: Charlotte Mensah Manketti Hair Oil
- Best for longer-lasting curls: Living Proof Curl Moisturising Shine Oil
- Best vegan hair oil: Bread Beauty Supply Hair-Oil: Everyday Gloss
- Best for hydration: John Frieda Frizz Ease Dream Curls Nourishing Crème Oil
- Best for strengthening: Kerastase Curl Manifesto Huile Sublime Repair
- Best for dry, damaged hair: Imbue Curl Worshipping Shine Oil
- Best for dry afro hair: The Wild Curl Afro Kinky Castor Hair Oil
- Best for afro hair: Bumble and Bumble Anti-Humidity Gel-Oil
- Best budget hair oil: Pantene Gold Series Intense Hydrating Hair Oil
Which hair oil is best for curly hair?
While coconut oil may have become the trending beauty fix-all in the past couple of years, there’s actually a whole world of hair oils out there, some more suited to curls than others.
Hair oils sit in two categories: moisturising or sealing. Over to our expert, Dr Sharon Wong, Consultant Dermatologist and Hair Specialist, to explain how they both work:
'Moisturising and sealing oils are very different. Moisturising oils are able to penetrate into the shaft of the hair and lock in water within the fibre, whereas sealing oils sit on the surface of the cuticle forming a film to reduce water loss from the hair fibre. Sealing oils also help to improve surface properties (eg shine, slippage, softness).'
Do you need to use both types? 'In general, the curlier the hair type the more beneficial it would be to incorporate a combination of these two types of oils in a regular hair care routine.'
WH has broken down the categories, so you can understand your ingredients list a bit easier (just look out for the below):
Moisturising oils: coconut, olive, avocado, sunflower
Sealing oils: Castor, jojoba, argan, grapeseed, shea butter
How often should you use oils in curly hair?
There is no wrong answer for this one, as this will be down to your unique hair texture and exactly how often you think your ends need a much-needed boost.
Those with tighter curls will find they need a little more help in the hydration department than those with looser waves, which may mean you’re picking up an oil every other day or so.
However, those with finer, more wavy lengths will find this a little too much, and may be better off using it only on freshly washed, damp ends, to avoid hair looking greasy.
As Dr Wong explains:
'The most common explanation as to why curly and afro hair textures are more prone to dryness, is that the spiral configuration of the hair fibre in these hair types means that it is more difficult for natural oils (sebum) produced by the scalp to work its way down the hair shaft from roots to tips. This process is far easier with straight hair types.'
How we test
Our 278 testers – with curl types ranging from 2a to 4c – tried out 20 hair oils, to see whether they successfully helped define and smooth their natural hair texture.
They assessed the curl definition, softness, shininess and the ability to reduce frizz, without leaving hair looking greasy and weighed down.
In the Women’s Health lab, we used our Dia-Stron equipment that measures the smoothness of hair switches that had been treated with hair oil.
Pantene Gold Series Intense Hydrating Hair Oil
Forget the price. This oil outperformed much more expensive treatments, making it a bargain if ever there was one.
Infused with argan oil, all our testers agreed it left curls more defined, smoother and hydrated, reducing frizz and flyaways, while 92% said it added bounce and shine. It’s so good in fact, you wouldn’t believe it’s under £10.
Key specifications
Size: 100ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Damaged, dry hair
Garnier Ultimate Blends Coconut Hair Oil for Frizzy Hair
Softly does it. Blending coconut oil and cocoa butter, this rich vegan formula aims to keep hair soft and sleek for up to 72 hours. Nourishing and taming, it managed to minimise frizz and flyaways for 92% of our panel, while leaving all of our testers with noticeably softer tresses.
Key specifications
Size: 150ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Dry, damaged, frizzy hair
Charlotte Mensah Manketti Hair Oil
Award-winning British afro stylist, Charlotte Mensah created this taming oil to instantly improve hair’s appearance.
Made from a blend of organic, sustainably sourced manketti nut and ximenia oils, our testers raved about the finish it gave their curls, with 93% saying it added noticeable definition, softness, and hydration. Adding shine for 79%, it also smoothed ends, without leaving hair looking greasy; a common pitfall.
Key specifications
Size: 100ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Afro, dry, colour-treated, damaged, frizzy hair
Living Proof Curl Moisturising Shine Oil
Make your style last until wash day, with Living Proof’s lightweight elixir, formulated to add shine, while improving hair health.
Absorbing quickly, its blend of five oils kept 80% of testers' curls in formation for longer, adding greater definition. Imparting notable hydration, 93% also saw an improvement in smoothness and softness too.
Key specifications
Size: 50ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Colour-treated, frizzy hair
Suitable for use on everything from cornrows to twisted braids, this vegan, vitamin C-rich oil is designed to leave 3c to 4a hair hydrated, glossy, and softened, minus any greasiness.
Made with kakadu plums – said to contain over 50 times more vitamin C than an orange – 86% of our testers found their hair softer and smoother, while 91% said it was easier to style.
Key specifications
Size: 100ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Afro hair
John Frieda Frizz Ease Dream Curls Curl Nourishing Crème Oil
Extensive styling can leave curls dry, damaged, and prone to breakage. Hydrate hair with this hybrid cream and oil formula, designed to quickly deliver moisture to your tresses.
Offering the instant absorption of a cream, with the nourishment of an oil, all of our panel found it hydrated curls, yet washed out easily, making it ideal for use on wet or dry hair.
Key specifications
Size: 100ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Damaged, dry, frizzy hair
Kerastase Curl Manifesto Huile Sublime Repair
Detangling knots, and strengthening strands, this oil blends manuka honey and ceramides to nourish curly and coily hair.
A favourite amongst our testers, it left 86% with softer, smoother, more hydrated lengths, with over half seeing some added bounce to their curls. Great for those with coloured hair, it also improved vibrancy for all of our panel.
Key specifications
Size: 50ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Damaged, dry, colour-treated hair
Imbue Curl Worshipping Shine Oil
Because it can be difficult for natural oils to reach all the way down to the end of curly hair, it can need a helping hand when it comes to adding moisture.
Plant-powered, with avocado and grapeseed, our testers found this formula helped rehydrate hair, without suffocating or weighing it down. Keeping flyaways in check, it also boosted shine, and smoothed damaged ends, while half of our testers noticed less breakages after use.
Key specifications
Size: 100ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Afro, dry, damaged, frizzy hair
Add and lock in moisture with this treatment designed specifically for type 4 hair. Fatty acids and thick texture oils, including castor and apricot, restore protein loss, and add hydration.
Our panel loved its lightweight feel, which left hair softer and more smooth for 79% of testers. Everyone with dyed hair reported their colour appeared more vibrant after use.
Key specifications
Size: 50ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Afro, damaged, dry, fine hair
Bumble and bumble Curl Anti-Humidity Gel-Oil
Anyone with curls knows that humidity is the enemy of a good hair day. Combining a blend of oils and butters, as well as controlling frizz, this oil contains UV protection to help shield hair from the damaging effects of the sun.
A favourite amongst our testers with afro hair, this upped hydration levels and softness for 92% of our panel, leaving hair easier to style, while 83% reported that it helped improve definition and bounce.
Key specifications
Size: 150ml
Paraben free: Yes
Suitable for: Afro, damaged, dry, frizzy hair
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