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Sometimes, it feels like every time you turn around, there’s a new beauty trend taking over. SELF is calling the next one right now: shampoo bars. Whether you want a hair care routine that’s easier to travel with (no liquids bag necessary!) or you’re trying to cut down on microplastics, swapping your bottle of shampoo for a bar is the way to go.
These shampoos use all the same good ingredients as bottled options, without the extra water, Blair Murphy-Rose, MD, FAAD, a cosmetic, medical, and surgical dermatologist at Laser & Skin Surgery Center of NY in New York, tells SELF. Instead, the water from your shower helps create that satisfying lather. Leaving out the H2O also means the bars are very concentrated, so a little will go a long way. You get the best of both worlds: A product that’s eco-friendly and will last a long time.
We gathered expert intel from dermatologists like Dr. Murphy-Rose and tested some of the best shampoo bars in the game to tell you which ones are worth adding to your everything shower—shop our favorites below.
Our top picks
- Best Overall: Kitsch Rice Water Shampoo Bar for Hair Growth
- Best for Oily Hair: Ethique Volumizing Shampoo Bar
- Best Dry Hair: Lush Honey I Washed My Hair Shampoo Bar
- Best for Flat Hair: HiBar Volumize Shampoo Bar
- Best for Sensitive Scalps: Briogeo 3-in-1 Cleansing Bar for Hair, Face + Body
- Best for Thick Hair: Lush Jumping Juniper Shampoo Bar
FAQs about shampoo bars
What should you look for in a shampoo bar?
Scan a bar’s ingredient list with your hair type in mind. These are some nice add-ins dermatologists recommend.
- Dry hair: Hydrating ingredients like glycerin and panthenol are the way to go, Mansha Sethi, MD, a board-certified dermatologist at St. Luke’s Universal Health Network in Easton, Pennsylvania, tells SELF.
- Curly hair: Look for nourishing coconut, olive, castor, or rosemary oils, Dr. Sethi says.
- Fine hair: Avoid too many oils or silicones (like dimethicone) if you have fine hair—they can weigh your hair down, Dr. Sethi says. She suggests “opting for natural conditioning agents like shea butter instead.”
No matter which hair type you have, it’s a good idea to stay away from bars formulated with parabens, silicones, ethanol, isopropyl, and synthetic fragrances. These can sap moisture out of your strands and irritate your scalp, Dr. Sethi says. Also a no-go: Harsh cleansing agents like sulfates, especially sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and sodium laureth sulfate (SLES), which can cause dryness, irritation, and frizz, she adds.
Do shampoo bars leave buildup?
Shampoo bars shouldn’t leave any residue behind on your hair. However, if you use creams, gels, or waxes that contain heavy ingredients like silicones to style your hair, then a bar made with gentle surfactants (cleansing agents) might not be able to remove buildup from those products completely, Dominique Taylor, the founder of hair care brand Consciously Curly Co, tells SELF. In that case, no need to revamp your entire routine—just use a clarifying shampoo every so often or visit a salon for a professional wash, she says.
How do you use a shampoo bar?
First, make sure to thoroughly wet your hair and the shampoo bar. Next, gently rub the bar between your hands or apply it in the direction your hair naturally flows to avoid tangles. It can also be helpful to part your hair as you go, so you can give your scalp and roots a good scrub, Dr. Sethi says.
Once you’ve spent a few minutes working the product through your hair, massage your scalp like you would with any shampoo and give it a good rinse. “Bars are highly concentrated, so you don’t have to use too much or your hair will become greasy,” Dr. Sethi says—this also applies to formulas that don’t suds up very much, she adds. When you’re done shampooing, store your bar in a soap dish that water won’t pool in to prevent bacteria from growing, Dr. Murphy-Rose says.
Shop the best shampoo bars
For shampoo commercial-ready hair, we swear by these dermatologist-approved bars.
Best Overall: Kitsch Rice Water Shampoo Bar
Kitsch
Rice Water Shampoo Bar
Pros
- Lathers well
- Fresh, clean scent
- Safe for color-treated hair
Cons
- Some Amazon reviewers say the bar breaks into smaller pieces
One 2022 SELF Healthy Beauty Award tester raved about every single aspect of this Kitsch bar: The lack of waste it creates, the ingredient list, the scent—it’s really the whole package. “I was SO surprised by the amount of lather and suds it created, and I love the clean and fresh scent it leaves in your hair,” they said. “There’s only one con to this (or any) shampoo bar…you have to be prepared with a little dish to hold it in the shower,” they added. “Truth is, it’s worth it to figure out the dish thing if [using a bar] helps protect the environment!”
I can also attest that it’s super creamy and its moisturizing ingredients definitely shine through—my hair feels super silky as I rinse it out.
Size: 3.2 oz | Other notable ingredients: Moisturizing glycerin and castor oil, hydrolyzed rice protein (linked to hair growth)
Best for Oily Hair: Ethique Volumizing Shampoo Bar
Ethique
Volumizing Shampoo Bar
Pros
- Shape makes it easy to hold
- Lathers quickly
- Rinses out easily
- Safe for color-treated hair
Cons
- People with dry hair may find it too clarifying on their hair
- Contains fragrance, which some may find irritating
It’s hard not to fall for this cute, crescent moon-shaped bar, which our tester says fit perfectly in the palm of her hand and was easy to grip—even when it was slick from scrubbing. The bar lathered up “beautifully” and faster than she expected, so she could put it down and get to massaging right away.
“What I liked most was how easily it rinsed out,” she says. “I had a very full head of shampoo in my fairly long hair, and it rinsed out quickly and with no residue left behind.”
If you like the squeaky-clean feel of a clarifying shampoo, our tester thinks you’ll adore how refreshed your hair feels after using this. It uses sodium coco sulfate and sodium cocoyl isethionate, two gentler cleansing agents derived from coconut oil, to wash product buildup away in minutes.
Size: 3.9 oz | Other notable ingredients: Biotin (a vitamin that encourages keratin production in hair and nails), hair growth-stimulating caffeine
Best for Dry Hair: Lush Honey I Washed My Hair Shampoo Bar
Lush Cosmetics
Honey I Washed My Hair Shampoo Bar
Pros
- Moisturizes and softens hair
- Light, sweet scent
- Easy to hold
Cons
- Contains fragrance, which some may find irritating
Whether you have dry hair that needs some TLC or curls that could always use some more hydration, your hair will appreciate the boost of moisture it gets from this luscious bar (heh). “A little bit goes a long way and it has great slip—it makes it super easy to work into my curly hair,” our tester says. “The lather is creamy and just enough to feel effective. My hair feels clean and soft; not even a little squeaky or stripped.”
The bar’s key ingredient—and the star behind its hydrating powers—is honey, which draws moisture into your strands. “A lot of other shampoo bars will either be a little too drying, or they don’t make me feel clean enough and I need to keep going back to it for more product,” our tester says. “This wasn’t an issue here, and I feel like this bar will last even longer than others I’ve tried.”
Size: 1.9 oz | Other notable ingredients: Sodium coco sulfate, shine-inducing bergamot oil
Best for Flat Hair: HiBar Volumize Shampoo Bar
HiBar
Volumize Shampoo Bar
Pros
- Lathers easily
- Great for oily roots
- Easy to hold
- Safe for color-treated hair
Cons
- Contains fragrance, which some may find irritating
After switching to shampoo bars a few years ago and feeling underwhelmed by the options available, SELF’s commerce director finally found one that gives the satisfying lather she was after and some extra body. “This shampoo is meant to be volumizing, and I can attest that my hair feels fluffy and light after using it,” she says. “My hair gets greasy really quickly, so I usually choose clarifying shampoos that won’t weigh my hair down. HiBar really did the trick—my hair felt clean and bouncy, like there wasn’t any residue dragging it down.”
Size: 3.2 oz | Other notable ingredients: Sodium cocoyl isethionate, moisturizing panthenol, hydrolyzed rice protein
Best for Sensitive Scalps: Briogeo 3-in-1 Cleansing Bar
Briogeo
3-in-1 Cleansing Bar for Hair, Face + Body
Pros
- Lathers quickly
- Can be used on hair, face, and body
- Contains soothing ingredients
Cons
- Not ideal for very thick or oily hair
Full transparency: While this bar wasn’t quite enough to get our tester’s oily hair clean, we think it’s a great option for people with sensitive scalps. “It would work well for anyone who is seeking a gentle rinse between more heavy duty shampoos,” our tester says. “I’ve always gravitated away from shampoo bars because of the hassle of waiting to reach enough of a lather to wash my hair,” she adds. “But this foams up surprisingly quickly.”
Briogeo’s formula can even be used as a face and body wash—it has skin-friendly ingredients like soothing colloidal oatmeal and hydrating panthenol, which our tester liked. “This would be amazing for traveling,” she says. “You can pack one little bar for all these purposes, and you don’t need to worry about fitting it in your liquids bag!”
Size: 3.7 oz | Other notable ingredients: Sodium cocoyl isethionate, hydrating glycerin, conditioning shea butter, soothing green tea and aloe vera
Best for Thick Hair: Lush Jumping Juniper Shampoo Bar
Lush Cosmetics
Jumping Juniper Shampoo Bar
Pros
- Deeply cleanses hair
- Lathers well
- Refreshing scent
Cons
- Contains fragrance, which some may find irritating
If you’re under the impression that you need a liquid shampoo to coat your entire head, this Lush bar will happily prove you wrong. “As someone with thick hair, I don’t tend to reach for shampoo bars because I feel like my hair requires a lot of product to thoroughly cleanse away all debris and build-up. However, I was surprised at how one to two minutes of manipulating this bar got me a great lather on the scalp,” our tester says.
“I love a good squeaky-clean cleanse on my hair, since I use a lot of products and I tend to accumulate a lot of build-up pretty quickly,” she adds. “I’m definitely impressed with this so far.”
Size: 1.9 oz | Other notable ingredients: Sodium coco sulfate, moisturizing almond oil
Related:
- 11 Shampoos That’ll Make Thin Hair Feel Stronger and Fuller
- The Best Deep Conditioners for Showing Your Hair Some TLC
- Yes, You Should Be Using Heat Protectant—Here Are 10 Hairstylist Favorites
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