There's an eco-friendly alternative to your plastic bottle shampoos that's attracting some major buzz: bar shampoo. And just like their plastic-bottled counterparts, bar shampoos are formulated to suit different hair types and scalp concerns. Thin or fine hair types are particularly great candidates for bar shampoo because typically, they wash their hair more often — so why not find a hair-washing solution that cuts down on the constant repurchasing of plastic bottles? Assuming that's something you're interested in, scroll on for a complete breakdown of the best bar shampoos for fine hair.
Like with any other hair-care product, choosing the right bar shampoo comes down to determining your primary hair goals. If you're looking to add volume, hair-boosting ingredients to keep an eye out include pro-vitamin B5 and even sea salt, which can add fullness and texture to hair. Fine hair that seems to get greasy in a matter of hours (thanks in part to things like product buildup that can actually come from ingredients like silicones which are commonly found in liquid shampoos), is another common concern. In this case, you'll want to look for ingredients like activated charcoal or kaolin clay, which work to absorb excess oil and remove buildup on the scalp.
The three best bar shampoos on this list, ahead, tackle all the aforementioned concerns and more — so keep scrolling to find your perfect match.
1Best Shampoo Bar To Add Volume
Ethique's line of bar shampoos is a shopper-favorite on Amazon, with eight different formulas that have earned it over 1,000 five-star reviews. The Ethique Sweet & Spicy Shampoo Bar was created to add body and lift to fine hair. Magnesium sulfate (or epsom salt) is the secret ingredient for creating fullness here, which also helps add texture (or, as the brand puts it, "oomph"). To keep hair conditioned, Ethique added coconut oil and cocoa butter into their bar formula. The bar shampoo is vegan and cruelty-free, and the packaging is completely plastic-free and compostable — the brand even boasts that their bars have prevented over 5 million plastic shampoo bottles from ending up in landfills since its founding in 2012.
"There is NO residue or buildup, which was my biggest worry with a bar," reported one reviewer. Another wrote, "Leaves my baby fine hair full of volume and easy to style!"
2Best Shampoo Bar For Fine, Oily Hair
To prevent buildup from weighing your hair down and to banish grease as it starts to appear, there's this Voodoo Black Bamboo Charcoal Shampoo Bar from Australian brand Beauty and the Bees. As its name suggests, the shampoo uses activated bamboo charcoal to remove impurities from the scalp and hair while helping to absorb excess oil. Coconut and olive oils keep hair moisturized, while Tasmanian seaweed extract, leatherwood beeswax and honey, and a blend of essential oils round out the botanical formula. Additionally, it's free of common irritants like sulfates and synthetic fragrance, making it a great choice for anyone with a sensitive scalp. Just keep in mind that because the formula contains beeswax and honey, it's not vegan-friendly.
"I have fine, thin, oily hair that typically needs to be washed daily. The bamboo charcoal shampoo bar is the best shampoo product I have ever used! My hair is soft, shiny, has body and I can even go a day between washes now," raved one happy customer.
3Best Shampoo For Fine Hair & An Irritated Scalp
Another great bar shampoo for sensitive scalps, whether your hair is dry, oily, or somewhere in between, The Yellow Bird Shampoo Bar will help restore your scalp's health while still delivering a deep clean. Not only is the vegan and cruelty-free bar shampoo free from synthetic ingredients like silicones, sulfates, fragrance, parabens, and dyes, but it's formulated with castor oil and rosemary essential oil, which can help prevent and relieve conditions like dryness and itching. To gently remove buildup that can further irritate the scalp (and weigh your hair down), the brand included kaolin clay, in the formula. To round things out, jojoba oil, coconut oil, and argan oil are included in the mix, too.
One reviewer, who described their hair as fine and oily with a sensitive scalp, commented, "Relieved my itchy bumpy scalp [...] My scalp feels clean and my thin hair has started to fill in. I'm so relieved and thankful to have found this shampoo bar. I rarely give reviews but had to in this case considering how successful this bar has been in treating my itchy inflamed scalp."
Bustle may receive a portion of sales from products purchased from this article, which was created independently of Bustle's editorial and sales departments.
