How Often Should You Be Washing Your Hair? ...

Vanessa

After chains like Bloโ€จ and Drybar started popping up years ago, the number of new dry shampoos on the market has dramatically increased. "What started as a smart way to stretch your blowout has turned into a major timeโ€จ and money saver... and made dirty hair socially permissible," says Nunzio Saviano, an NYC hair salon owner. The oil absorbers in dry shampoo make unwashed hair look fresh and create texture and volume... but how often should you go between washes?

First, let's talk about the benefits of skipping a wash! We've all been told that daily washing is the root of bad-hair days, which is true. "Most detergents strip your scalp and hair of their natural oils, leaving them dry," says Michael Gordon, founder of NYC hair studio, Hairstory. That's why unwashed hair tends to looks better; The oils will make your hair glossy and less frizzy.

Going a day or two without washing your hair is totally okay. But going on days? "If you're piling on productsโ€” and not cleansing regularlyโ€”the scalp can become imbalanced," says Liz Phillips, a trichologist from NYC's Philip Kingsley Clinic. That means itching, flaking, and even shedding! Not cool.

How do you know what's going to work best for you? Listen to your scalp! If you begin to feel any sensitivity or see an increase in itching, flaking and/or shedding, it's time to wash your hair.

Feedback Junction

Where Thoughts and Opinions Converge

Well I can go without washing for like 4 days before it even starts to become greasy or smells bad ๐Ÿ˜

I wash my hair everyday, but with a mild shampoo. As its advised it can be washed everyday

I hate washing my hair because it takes too long to blow dry. The new dry shampoos are great. It makes my thin hair look much fuller. I tend to wash my hair with regular shampoos on Sunday night & Wednesday night. If I'm going out Saturday, then I'll wash it then too.

I wash my hair every single day. Apply shampoo only to roots, rinse, then conditioner to the bottom half and it works really well for me. I honestly can not shower and not wash my hair. I love the fact that my hair smells good ALL the time because I wash it every day. Nothing beats clean hair!

My hair gets greasy after approx. 13-16 hours, therefore I wash my hair everyday.๐Ÿ˜‹

I USED TO wash my hair daily, but, after all the reading I did on how washing your hair everyday does more harm than good! I have long thick hair and it does look better on the 2nd day! It's all in your mind.

I shampoo my hair every second day, and on other days i just give it a rinse. If i go until 3 days without washing then it really feels like it needs it!

I have thicker hair so i usually wash my hair every other day and it works pretty well for me! Also my hair tends to look better on the second day. When I used to wash my hair everyday it was frizzy and had much more breakage

I wash my hair everyday, but literally just massage the shampoo on my scalp for like 10 seconds, and not the ends everyday. Only wash the ends every 3rd day, since I have blond highlights. So far so good.

I like my hair shiny - greasy is not glossy ! And let's talk about the fooshty smell of dirty hair - gads ! Nothing feels better than clean hair