Say you’re looking to improve the look and feel of your hair: Going down the rabbit hole of finding the best hair mask will do you well. While the name might conjure scents of that DIY elixir someone you know whipped up in their kitchen (see avocado and olive oil for damage or coconut oil and yogurt for dryness), there are plenty of effective hair treatments you can pick up at your local Sephora or drugstore, making it easier than ever to achieve your dream mane. Ahead, a look at the 17 best hair masks of 2024 according to celebrity hairstylists and Vogue editors.
Our Top Picks
- Best Overall: Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Hair Mask, $39
- Best for Dry Hair: Amika Soulfood Nourishing Hair Mask, $32
- Best for Damage: K18 Leave-In Molecular Repair Hair Mask, $75
- Best for Curly Hair: Pattern Transition Mask, $25
- Best for Fine Hair: Ouai Treatment Mask for Fine and Medium Hair, $38
- Best for Split Ends: Christophe Robin Regenerating Mask With Prickly Pear Oil, $69
- Best for Scalp: Nutrafol Build-Up Blocker Scalp Exfoliating Hair Mask, $49
In This Story
- What is a hair mask?
- How should you select the best hair mask for your hair type?
- How often should someone use a hair mask?
- What Ingredients to Look for in a Hair Mask
- Meet the Experts
Best Overall: Briogeo Don’t Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Hair Mask
- Why We Love It: Briogeo’s Don’t Despair, Repair! mask is one of those formulas that, once you start using, you find yourself hooked on. Celebrity hairstylist Bridget Brager describes it as “a great deep-conditioning mask that works to lock in moisture and improve shine.” Free of sulfates, silicones, and parabens, this seeks to repair signs of damage across all hair types and textures. Rosehip oil, algae extract, almond oil, and biotin are the stars here, which come together to promote stronger, shinier tresses. Plus, it has a great smell.
- Key Ingredients: Rosehip oil, algae extract, almond oil, biotin, avocado oil, hydrolyzed corn and soy protein
- Best for: Damage, dryness, dullness
- Size: 2 oz, 8 oz, 12 oz, 32 oz
Best Quick Treatment: Dove 10-in-1 Bond Strength Serum Mask
- Why We Love It: Dove’s new 10-in-1 Bond Strength Serum Mask proves that achieving the hair of your dreams doesn’t have to take a while, or break the bank. Ringing in at just $11 for a sizable amount of treatment, this mask works to improve 10 hair concerns (think: detangling, reduced split ends, boost shine, and prevent future hair damage) in just 60 seconds. Not to mention, it's full of nourishing ingredients like peptides and proteins to leave hair bouncy and luscious as ever.
- Key Ingredients: Bio-Protein Care (hydrolyzed soy, pea, and vegetable protein), peptides, glycerin, coconut oil
- Best for: Split ends, breakage, detangling, dullness, dryness
- Size: 9.2 fl oz
Best for Dry Hair: Amika Soulfood Nourishing Hair Mask
- Why We Love It: Dry, brittle strands don’t stand a chance against Amika’s Soulfood Nourishing Hair Mask. Not only is it whipped into a rich cream, but it also features a host of moisturizing salves like jojoba-seed oil and sea buckthorn to deliver all the vitamins and nutrients your strands crave.
- Key Ingredients: Jojoba-seed oil, sea buckthorn
- Best for: Dryness
- Size: 3.3 oz, 8 oz, 16 oz
Best for Damage: K18 Leave-In Molecular Repair Hair Mask
- Why We Love It: One of 2023’s top trending products on TikTok, the K18 hair mask is a social media find that proves just as effective IRL. A leading bond-repair treatment, this uses the brand’s biotech-developed peptide to reconnect hair’s broken bonds as a result of bleaching, color, chemical treatments, and heat. Aesthetically, this leaves hair stronger, smoother, and bouncier. What’s more, the mask works in just four minutes.
- Key Ingredients: K18Peptide, hydrolyzed wheat protein and wheat starch
- Best for: Damage, breakage, frizz, color-treated hair
- Size: 0.5 oz, 1.7 oz
Best Nourishing: Moroccanoil Intense Hydrating Hair Mask
Moroccanoil
Intense Hydrating Hair Mask
- Why We Love It: “One of my favorites is Moroccan Oil Intense Hydrating Mask, infused with nourishing hair-loving ingredients that leave strands stronger and shining with each use,” details celebrity hairstylist Dimitris Giannetos, the pro behind Amal Clooney’s luscious mane. “The smell is great too, with scents of coconut and avocado oil.” Aside from moisturizing agents (think argan oil, glycerin, and linseed extract), the formula features behentrimonium chloride to limit frizz.
- Key Ingredients: Argan oil, behentrimonium chloride, glycerin, linseed extract
- Best for: Dryness, breakage, dullness
- Size: 1 oz, 2.5 oz, 8.5 oz
Best Overnight Hair Mask: Bumble and bumble While You Sleep Damage Repair Masque
- Why We Love It: Sometimes, you don’t want to do the whole “waste time in the shower while my hair mask works” dance—you’d rather have the product work while you sleep. If that’s where your mind is at, give this one a try. Powered by evening primrose, Bumble and bumble’s repair mask is formulated to smooth split ends and reverse signs of damage overnight. Come morning, just shampoo, condition, and go on your way—with healthier-looking hair in tow.
- Key Ingredients: Evening primrose, camellia oleifera seed oil, castor oil
- Best for: Split ends, breakage
- Size: 6.4 oz
Best for Fine Hair: Ouai Treatment Mask for Fine and Medium Hair
- Why We Love It: Ask someone with fine hair what their hair mask of choice is, and they’ll probably proclaim a penchant for this Ouai treatment. What makes it perfect for fine-to-medium strands is that it smooths, hydrates, and alleviates damage without weighing hair down. A quarter-size dollop applied from ends to roots is all you need.
- Key Ingredients: Hydrolyzed keratin, panthenol, shea butter, coconut water, ginger-root extract
- Best for: Fine hair, dryness
- Size: 8 oz
Best for Coily Hair: Adwoa Beauty Blue Tansy Reparative Mask
- Why We Love It: Curly and coily hair types require careful care to keep strands in tip-top shape. Aside from maintaining optimal moisture levels, one must ensure hair is properly detangled to prevent frizz and breakage. Luckily, this Adwoa Beauty mask tackles all these concerns with Moroccan laval clay, blue-tansy-flower oil, and spirulina extract, to name just a few of its restorative, strengthening, and conditioning ingredients.
- Key Ingredients: Moroccan lava clay, blue-tansy-flower oil, spirulina extract, glycerine, baobab-seed oil, shea butter, castor-seed oil
- Best for: Curly and coily hair, dryness, breakage
- Size: 16 oz
Best for All Hair Types: Vegamour HYDR-8 Deep Moisture Repair Mask
- Why We Love It: Vegamour, one of the brands leading the hair growth charge, delivers a deeply nourishing hair mask that’s a worthwhile addition to anyone's regimen. Whether you’re tackling hair loss or not, all hair can come to appreciate this elixir’s blend of Karmatin (a vegan silk bonder, dubbed by Vegamour as a keratin alternative), milk thistle, marula and moringa seed oils, which come together to instantly moisturize dry, thirsty hair and strengthen over time. Plus, it boasts frizz smoothing and vibrancy benefits allowing hair to look as if you just stepped out of a salon after each use.
- Key Ingredients: Karmatin, milk thistle, marula and moringa seed oils, amino acids
- Best for: Dryness, frizz, dullness
- Size: 5 oz
Best for Breakage: Oribe Hair Alchemy Strengthening Masque
- Why We Love It: Anyone seeking to promote longer hair will have to address fragile, brittle strands. Remember: You want to stave off breakage as much as possible! In any case, one foolproof salve is Oribe’s strengthening masque, which utilizes strenghteners like edelweiss flower, chia seed, and plant-based protein to reinfornce the cuticle and protect against environmental stressors.
- Key Ingredients: Watermelon, lychee, edelweiss, plant-based protein, chia seed, bio-fermented bamboo, castor-seed oil, yacón-root juice, green tea, plant polysaccharides, shea butter
- Best for: Breakage, split ends, fragile hair
- Size: 5 oz
Best for Split Ends: Christophe Robin Regenerating Mask With Prickly Pear Oil
- Why We Love It: “I’m convinced it’s the only reason my hair grew so lusciously during COVID,” Sofia Richie spilled over TikTok, detailing the secrets behind her signature slicked-back bun. Lead by the restorative properties of prickly pear oil, this rich mask helps restore the hair shaft, improve split ends, and achieve overall healthier hair.
- Key Ingredients: Prickly pear oil, vitamin F, glycerin, ceramides
- Best for: Split ends, breakage, damage
- Size: 2.5 oz, 8.44 oz
Best for Curly Hair: Pattern Transition Mask
- Why We Love It: Testing Pattern’s Transition Mask was truly love at first try. Whipped into a rich gel that resembles honey, the mask pairs manuka honey with white tea for a nourishing salve designed to boost moisture levels, prevent shedding, and restore curls to their full potential.
- Key Ingredients: Manuka honey, white tea, castor oil, cellulose
- Best for: Curly and coily hair
- Size: 15 oz
Best Drugstore Buy: Shea Moisture Manuka Honey & Mafura Oil Intensive Hydration Hair Masque
- Why We Love It: Consider Shea Moisture’s Intensive Hydration Hair Masque a beauty-cabinet staple. Led by botanical oils and the healing properties of honey, this mask provides hair with much-needed moisture while smoothing and strengthening processed, damaged, and color-treated hair types.
- Key Ingredients: Shea butter, honey, mafura oil, baobab oil, coconut oil, mafura-seed butter, soybean oil
- Best for: Dryness, dullness, frizz, damage
- Size: 12 oz
Best for Blonde Hair: Kérastase Blond Absolu Strengthening Hair Mask
- Why We Love It: In maintaining color-treated hair, experts recommend avoiding sulfates and prioritizing nourishing formulas and weekly hair masks to prevent damage and dullness. For the blondes reading this, look no further than the Kérastase Blond Absolu Masque Cicaextreme Hair Mask, designed to reduce breakage of lightened, bleached, and highlighted tresses.
- Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, edelweiss flower
- Best for: Blonde hair
- Size: 6.8 oz
Best Do-It-All Mask: Andrew Fitzsimons Virgin Repair Restructuring Hair Mask
- Why We Love It: For deep conditioning and strengthening, Fitzsimons turns to his Virgin Repair Restructuring Mask. The lightweight cream provides excellent slip to each strand (aiding detangling!), leaving hair soft, shiny, and strong.
- Key Ingredients: Bonding technology, ceramides, glycerin
- Best for: Dryness, detangling, damage
- Size: 7.6 oz
Best for Scalp: Nutrafol Build-Up Blocker Scalp Exfoliating Hair Mask
- Why We Love It: A healthy scalp is an essential precursor to healthy hair, so give yours some TLC with this Nutrafol mask. Through a physician-formulated blend of AHAs, jojoba esters, and Australian wild berries, this gently removes product buildup and limits excess scalp oils to soothe and nourish your scalp after each use.
- Key Ingredients: AHA fruit acids, jojoba esters, Australian wild berries, glycerin
- Best for: Scalp health, dryness, flakiness, oiliness
- Size: 4 fl oz
Best Bond Repair: Epres Bond Repair Treatment Starter Kit
- Why We Love It: “Epres is a bond-repair technology that leaves the hair stronger, shiny, and healthier, similar to a traditional mask without the heaviness or fear of buildup or overuse,” Leake explains. “It allows me to still push the envelope as a colorist without affecting the processing time and while protecting the integrity of my guests’ hair.” The brand’s 100% vegan Bond Repair Treatment can be used overnight to repair chenical, mechanical, and environmental damage, even once rinsed out.
- Key Ingredients: Diethylhexyl maleate, oleyl alcohol, denatured alcohol, etearamidopropyl dimethylamine
- Best for: Bond repair, damage
- Size: 5.07 oz
Best Custom: Function of Beauty Bond Repair Custom Conditioner Mask
- Why We Love It: Part of the draw of DIY hair masking is that it cocktails ingredients targeted to your specific hair needs. But what if you could have that done for you? Enter Function of Beauty’s conditioner mask. First, choose the collection based on your hair type—straight, wavy, curly, or coily—then choose up to three concentrates formulated to treat targeted concerns. For example, those with blonde hair might select The Blonde Hero to neutralize brass tones, while someone with flat hair might appreciate The Lift Legend for added volume.
- Key Ingredients: Varies by hair collection: straight hair (mokate oil, glutamic acid from hydrolyzed quinoa), wavy hair (lysine from rice amino acids, manketti-seed oil), curly hair (alanine, virgin poppy-seed oil), coily hair (murumuru butter, aspartic acid from poly-aspartate)
- Best for: All hair types
- Size: 7 oz
What is a hair mask?
Think of a hair mask as a supercharged deep conditioner, designed for application post-shampoo and left on the hair for roughly 15 minutes then rinsed out. “A hair mask is an intense hydrating conditioner that is focused on providing moisture and nourishment to ultimately aid in improving and repairing not only the lengths of your hair but your scalp too,” explains hairstylist Bridget Brager.
Hairstylist to the stars Andrew Fitzsimons agrees, noting the truly endless benefits of using them: “They add hydration to your hair, help to prevent breakage and split ends, improve scalp health, and even, in some cases, help stimulate hair growth.” Then there’s bond repair. “While traditional hair masks are great for targeting dry brittle strands, bond repair is the new modern deep-conditioning treatment everyone’s talking about!” notes celebrity hairstylist Bradley Leake. (In our roundup of the best bond-repair treatments, we found that the difference between bond repair and other hair care solutions is that the former focuses on actually rebuilding the broken bonds rather than masking the problem.)
“Another benefit of a mask is that you can maximize your time by applying the mask, getting out of the shower to save water, and getting an errand done before needing to rinse it out,” says hairstylist Christin Brown. “Multitasking is the name of the game.”
How should you select the best hair mask for your hair type?
That being said, the hair mask you choose depends both on your desired results and hair type, or as Fitzsimons puts it, your hair’s natural state. “Look for thicker, hydrating masks with ingredients such as ceramides or coconut water for dry or curlier hair types, and opt for lighter weight volumizing options with ingredients such as caffeine for thinner hair types,” he says. If you’re not sure, Leake recommends asking your trusted hairstylist.
How often should someone use a hair mask?
“Depending on your hair needs and the concerns you want to address, I recommend using a hair mask once or twice a week,” Fitzsimons says. “Using a hair mask too frequently can do more harm than good to the hair, causing excess product buildup, which can make the hair feel oily or brittle.”
What Ingredients to Look for in a Hair Mask
As you can tell, there are many great hair masks to choose from, so you’ll likely want a bit of guidance on what ingredients are most effective for your hair type. So we asked our team of experts to weigh in.
