The best hair products for humidity, to ward off frizz and flyways

The best hair products for humidity are like a liquid umbrella for your hair and work to shield it from moisture in the air. 

If you have frizz-prone hair, you’ll know that it’s not just rain that’s the enemy of your newly styled do and undoes all the good work of your best hairdryer and best straighteners. It’s a constant battle against humidity as you go about your day. Think forecasts of mist, the thick air of a gym changing room, saunas, steam rooms, foggy post-shower bathrooms – need we go on?

It’s not all doom, gloom and inevitable fluffiness though, and there are ways to stop the hair from reverting back to its original state. “A barrier needs to be created for hair to stop being attacked by humidity,” says pro hairdresser Michael Douglas. “This is easily done by using styling products that repel moisture and keep moisture out.” For long-lasting results, you’ll need to go beyond one hero product though, starting with things like your best shampoo and conditioner. “Identifying which hair texture you have, working on the condition, and being consistent with your haircare regime will all contribute towards eliminating frizz and flyaways,” adds Robert Eaton, Creative Director of Russell Eaton Leeds & Barnsley & President of the Fellowship for British Hairdressing.

Best hair products for humidity, as tested by our Beauty Editor

The problem I have with Oribe is that their products aren’t cheap, and every time I try one I love it so much that I don’t want to use anything else. Is it reasonable to say you can’t make your friend's birthday meal to save your money for a humidity spray? I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t considered it. 

What’s great about this is that it slots into your routine easily as an afterthought. All you need to do is spritz some of the (very expensive-smelling) mist over your finished style and it will make sure that none of that pesky humidity ruins it as you go about your day. I road-tested this in humid Miami, and during a very damp week in London during the spring, so it’s fair to say it goes the distance in all climates. 

My hair is as unreliable as your flakiest friend and will go from sleek to frizzy the moment I even look directly at a drop of rain. I have tried lots of products to tame my frizzy hair over the years, but Color Wow Dream Coat is the one I come back to time and time again. I spray it onto damp hair in sections before blow-drying and my hair is instantly smoother and shinier. 

It shows up when it counts too – holding my style in place when I’m out and about without any fluffy bits escaping around the hairline. The only downside is that it is quite heavy, and the finer-haired members of our beauty team have found it sits too heavy in their hair. So, unless your hair is on the thicker side, it might be overwhelming. What I like the most about this is that you only need to use it every three washes, which means that one bottle lasts for ages. Frizz-free and economical, what’s not to love? 

The unique selling point of Virtue haircare is its alpha keratin 60Ku®. Keratin is the protein that makes up the majority of our hair, and this clever ingredient binds to damaged areas to help restore them to their former glory. In addition to this, the Frizz Block Smoothing Spray also contains a special humidity blocker to take frizz off your list of worries, plus doubles as heat protection.

It smells divine and is lightweight enough that it doesn’t make hair feel heavy (which will appeal to anyone with fine hair) but also has enough oomph to still work its magic on thick hair like mine. It needs heat to activate it, so it only delivers if you’re going to blow-dry or straighten your hair. If you don’t, you won’t get the results and it’s likely to leave hair feeling tacky.

Living Proof is the market leader when it comes to warding off humidity.  Their latest discovery is a patented molecule called Proprietary Smoothing Technology which repels humidity and moisture in order to prevent frizz, as well as smoothing and aligning the hair fibres to make them uniform. They have three products that use this  – one that’s for fine hair, one that’s for medium hair, and one for coarse hair, which is the one I tested. 

The instructions recommend starting with two pumps, which felt quite vague, but I assume that you’d add more depending on the length and thickness of your hair. My hair is shoulder-length, and I found the two pumps to be spot on. My hair didn’t feel weighed down, and I couldn’t see the serum in it, so I think I could even apply more if my hair was really playing up. It made blow-drying a faster and generally less painful process (my hair smoothed with minimal persuasion) and it stayed polished until my next wash day. 

I don’t know about you, but my hair is always frizziest when I’m on holiday. I think it’s the combination of dehydration from sunshine, salt water, and chlorine, mixed with added humidity in the air that causes it to completely misbehave. If this sounds familiar, then this can of joy will more than earn its keep in your suitcase.

It protects heat from hair from temperatures up to 230°C (which is good for styling and for sunshine), shields from UV filters, and extends the life of your hairstyle. It might not quite replace the best heat protection sprays, but if you don't want to pack too many products on your hair (or in your case) this is a brilliant all-rounder. I used this on a wing-and-a-prayer on a morning when I’d run out of hairspray and didn’t expect much from the hold, but it held tight to my wave all day and kept frizz at bay. It's a new favourite.

Who doesn’t love Aussie? No matter how much I enjoy the chance to use fancy haircare there’s something about this drugstore brand that always keeps me coming back. I’m convinced it’s not just the smell (although the sweetness is addictive) but how well-cared-for their products always leave my hair feeling. 

This humidity spray is quite similar to the brand's heat protection spray, with a watery texture that my thirsty hair laps up. Its frizz-busting approach is less about creating a shield on your strands (like some on this list) and more about nourishing the hair in order to keep the hair cuticle smooth and sealed so moisture can’t make its way in. I found that it’s best applied to damp hair, but you could use a little as a treat for very dry hair in between washes too. 

Curly hair is more porous than naturally straight hair, which makes it a prime candidate for frizz. Oil helps to seal in moisture, but can drag down the curls. Lucky for us, this is blended into a gel, which makes the formula lighter.

It’s a bit sticky (which I think you need with a curl product to hold spirals into place) and a little goes a long way. I smoothed it into damp hair, gave it a little scrunch, and left it to dry. Instead of expanding into fluffy territory, my curls stayed completely under control. They felt soft and shiny – more bouncy, and less bushy. 

Trying to ease off the heat? Being prone to frizz makes it harder to kick the habit, as nothing smooths hair quite like your best hairdryer brush or best straighteners for thick hair – but this will help to bridge the gap. 

I tend to leave my hair in its natural state when I’m working from home to give it a little bit of a break, so I’ll wash it before I go to bed and leave it to dry overnight. The only problem is that my hair is so thick that it takes around two working days to dry. By the morning the front and ends are dry, but there’s still a damp no-mans land around the middle. The good news is that by the time it finally dried (around lunchtime) this had smoothed my hair so effectively that it stayed perfectly sleek in a ponytail – even after getting caught out without a brolly when out and about. 

Frizz is more common in dehydrated hair as the thirsty strands reach out into the atmosphere in search of moisture. It’s no surprise then that my hair is frizziest when it’s feeling frazzled from being over-washed and over-styled. Enter the It’s A 10 Miracle Blow Dry H20 Shield. 

It’s a fine but mighty mist that locks out humidity, which meant I could get my hair to look far more convincingly smooth and healthy than it actually is. It does offer extra help on that front too, with ingredients including panthenol and sunflower seed extract to soften and moisturise hair like mine that’s very much in need of a break. Just a few spritzes are enough to make a real difference. 

I started using this anti-humidity spray absolutely years ago in an attempt to stop my hair from pinging out of the style I’d spent hours wrestling it into the minute I walked into a warm, busy bar. It’s been an off-and-on relationship since then, but whenever I come back I’m always reminded of how glossy it leaves my hair looking. 

The frizz protection isn’t entirely impermeable, but it definitely reduces the amount that my hair steps out of line. Although the mist is fine, there is an oiliness to the formula which thick, curly, and dry hair will enjoy. If your hair is fine, I’d recommend spraying from a good distance away and using sparingly, to begin with – you can always add more throughout the day if you think your hair can handle it. 

How we tested the best hair products for humidity 

To make things as difficult as possible for our best hair products for humidity, we tested them during a seriously wet month. Our naturally curly-haired Beauty Editor judged each product based on whether or not it stopped her hair from turning into a big fuzzy ball of frizz after stepping outside on a damp day. To bring you a round-up reliable enough to risk leaving your umbrella at home, we ensured that each product ticked the following boxes: 

• Kept frizz at bay: It sounds obvious, but if those fluffy hairs are still making their way in, then the product didn’t make the list. 
• Didn’t weigh the hair down: As they’re mostly designed with thick hair in mind, some of the best hair products for humidity can be very heavy. Ideally, a lack of frizz won’t come at the cost of hair that sits slicked to your head. 
• Helped hold hairstyles for longer: There’s little more frustrating than creating a bouncy blow dry with your best curling irons or mastering how to use the Dyson Airwrap, only to find that it falls to nothing when you step outside the house. A good humidity product will stop moisture from getting in and ruining your style. 

Why does hair get frizzy in humidity?

“When you style your hair you essentially heat it up and remove all the moisture,” explains pro hairdresser Michael Douglas. “Inside the hair strands, there are sulphur bonds. These break down in water, and reform when the water is removed. So, once the hair has dried and been styled (with straighteners, curling tongs, or your hairdryer) then those bonds will reform at that point.

“If any moisture gets into the hair, there is a breakdown of those bonds, and the hair starts to go back to its original un-styled structure,” continues Douglas. “So if your hair is naturally curvy or wavy, this is when it will start to go frizzy. If your hair is naturally very straight, it tends not to make a massive difference.”

“Hair types that are most prone to being affected by humidity tend to be hair that is naturally unruly anyway, such as wavy or curly hair, as these textures have got a lot of sensitivity to them and are therefore more porous,” explains Robert Eaton, Creative Director of Russell Eaton Leeds & Barnsley & President of the Fellowship for British Hairdressing. “Hair that is heavily damaged, where the cuticle scales are already quite worn and torn in areas, is also prone to being dry and frizzy.”

How to choose the best hair product for humidity

Torn between a few of the best hair products for humidity? Here’s how to decide which is right for you:

• Consider your hair type and texture. “If you’ve got naturally frizzy or porous hair, or naturally wavy hair that can be quite difficult to tame or control, then my advice is to invest in a smoothing cream which is best applied to your hair before you blow-dry,” advises Eaton. “The weight in the cream helps to control fly-away hairs, and then I would always perfect afterward with a lightweight oil to lock in shine and moisture.” 
• Weigh up the price. Is your hair occasionally frizzy, but not really often enough to worry too much about it? Start with a cheaper hair product for humidity – maybe something travel-sized you can take on humid holidays. You can always upgrade to a pricier product if your hair becomes frizzier over time. 
• Think about your routine. Never remember to apply a product before blow-drying? A heat-activated humidity spray will just gather dust in your drawer. Pick a product you’re likely to use.
• Multi-task where you can. If you don’t want to apply a cocktail of different hair products, try and find a humidity solution that does more than just block water. Maybe it has added heat protection, or nourishes hair too.