How often should you wash your hair? Is every day too much? Is once a week not enough? I think we can all agree that every person’s hair is different… which means there’s no one-size-fits-all. In this post, I’ll help you figure out the routine best suited to YOUR hair, to keep it happy and healthy!

People say: You should never shampoo your hair.

Or… you should only wash your hair, at most, once a week…. or else you will ruin your hair!

Ladies often come to me, unhappy with their routine, some wanting to wash their hair more often, but worrying they will damage their hair if they do. Can you wash your hair every day or every couple days and still have healthy hair?

Let me tell you: There is no one size fits all with how often you should wash your hair.

Important side note: when I say “wash” your hair… I personally believe this includes washing AND conditioning (at least for most people). Because even fine hair needs some level of hydration/moisturizing.

When to Wash Your Hair

Wash (and condition) your hair as often as YOUR hair and scalp needs it. And how often is that?

Well, it depends on your hair type! As well as on your moisture cycle. Let’s talk about hair type first…

Who should shampoo daily? Who can go longer between washes?

The more fine or low porosity (absorbent) your hair is, the faster it accumulates build-up. More frequent washing usually doesn’t dry out this hair type too much.

While the more high porosity (absorbent) your hair is, the faster it dries out. More frequent washing is a no-no and leads to dry, dry, dry hair.

And actually, many of us have a combination of hair characteristics that seem contradictory because they need different things!

For example, consider my hair. It’s both fine and high porosity. So, it’s sensitive to build-up but gets dried out quickly. So for me, washing every two or three days (as well as conditioning and using lighter-weight styling products… very important) is the sweet spot to keep my hair looking good but not drying out from excessive washing.

On the other hand, low porosity hair (not that absorbent) doesn’t lose its moisture that quickly, so this hair can last five to seven days (or longer) before needing to be washed and re-conditioned.

If you aren’t sure what your hair type is, here’s how to figure it out, or watch the video below:

How to Know When to Wash Your Hair

Your moisture cycle is the length of time YOUR hair and scalp can go before feeling dry or feeling greasy, at which point, it needs to be washed and/or re-moisturized (not necessarily both, but could be both) so it looks and feels good again.

How do you know what your moisture cycle is? Ask yourself two questions.

1. When does your hair feel dry or greasy?

How long does that take? Also pay attention to if your moisture cycle changes seasonally or when going from a humid to dry climate and vice versa. Adjust how often you wash/condition your hair accordingly.

2. When does your hair lose its shine?

Shiny hair is hydrated hair. As it dries out, it gets less shiny. Now, not everyone has shiny hair to begin with, so this clue doesn’t work for everyone. Nor does it apply if you just put heavy oils on top of your hair. I’m talking about the actual shine on properly hydrated hair. I bet if you start paying attention to this, like I recently have, you’ll notice that your hair is shinier on wash (and condition) day… and less shiny when it’s time to reset with a wash day.

What to Do Between Washes

To keep your hair healthy and happy between washes, here are my best tips.

• Refresh your curls if they need a little pick-me-up after a day or two.
• If your hair is especially dry, you can condition it every day, even non-wash days. One easy way to do this is put a little conditioner in a spray bottle, so you’re moisturizing while you dampen or mist your hair to refresh the style.
• If you need to brush your hair, use a wide-tooth comb or brush specifically for curly hair to detangle while your hair is wet to prevent damage and tearing.
• Sleep on a silk pillowcase and/or use a silk bonnet. Here’s the silk pillowcase I use and love and you can get 15% OFF when you use the code WARDEE at checkout!
• Use a silk scrunchie if wearing your hair up instead of a plain elastic hair band.

So what’s the bottom line for all this? Quit listening to other people’s rules and wash/condition your hair as often as YOU feel it needs it to look and feel its best.

Need Help?

If you need help finding the right non-toxic products for your hair type and issues or advice on hair care that works for YOU, go here.

God bless you and goodbye!