Boost volume and bounce with the 8 best shampoos for fine hair – tried and tested by our experts
Our fine-haired experts have voted these the best formulas for adding body, bounce and weightless shine to strands
A summary of this article: Our beauty team tested a selection of shampoos designed to suit fine hair to assess how well they cleaned, boosted volume and improved softness and shine. Our overall favourite is the KEVIN.MURPHY PLUMPING.WASH Densifying Shampoo, which boosted volume and offered a superior clean. Also scoring highly was Living Proof's Full Shampoo, which delivers a really deep clean to clear build-up that weighs down strands, while one fine-haired tester felt she could even skip conditioner after using Kérastase's Densifique Bain Densité Shampoo.
Fine and thinning hair types can come with an abundance of hair concerns, from quick greasiness to stubborn flatness and, in the case of thinning hair, sparse strands. All this makes finding the best shampoo for fine or thinning hair, which will cleanse away all residue without stripping the hair or weighing it down, all the more important.
Turning to the best hair thickening products to boost the volume and density of your strands might feel like the most logical move when you're looking to optimise your haircare – and there are definitely formulas that'll add "oomph" to your strands in this way. But a good routine starts in the shower, namely with an effective shampoo tailored to the needs of your fine, flat or thinning hair.
There are, of course, many factors that can contribute to fine and thinning hair, from age and genetics to hormones and our health – which topical shampoos won't affect. But the right shampoo, alongside one of the best conditioners for fine hair, can help with bounciness, banish oiliness and improve our scalp's condition, which creates the right environment for optimal hair health and growth. And after years of experience as beauty journalists, plus much testing, we've refined a list of the 9 best shampoos for fine hair at various budgets. Here are our detailed reviews...
Best shampoo for fine hair deals
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The best shampoo for fine hair and thinning hair
RRP: £31 for 250ml | Key ingredients: Amino acids, aloe vera leaf, shea butter
Reviewed by: Aoife Hanna
With nourishing shea butter and Aloe vera leaf extract, this shampoo made my hair feel super silky and instantly thicker and more volumised. The formula is surprisingly feather-light and formed a lovely lather, which made my hair and scalp feel squeaky clean – plus, it smells truly delicious.
Though this shampoo isn't particularly budget-friendly, I loved its instant lifting effect it had on my hair. Even while it was wet our hair felt thicker and, after testing it both before air drying and blasting hair with the best hair dryer for fine hair, the results were incredible. My scalp and hair still felt fresh as a daisy the morning after I used it, while my strands felt like they had a whole lot more bounce, volume, density and thickness. It really does deliver on its plumping promises.
Pros
- Cleanses deeply
- Adds noticeable volume
- Nourishing ingredients
Cons
- Quite expensive for the size
RRP: £9 for 500ml | Key ingredients: Peptides, glycerin
Reviewed by: Fiona McKim
L'Oréal Paris' Elvive range can always be relied on to do interesting things at a budget price. This particular shampoo is part of the new Collagen + Lifter collection, designed to boost volume and thickness in fine or thinning hair. It does this by deeply clarifying roots, so they don't get weighed down, and by including peptides, a skincare ingredient that essentially tells cells to behave like they're younger, revving up the scalp to boost healthy growth.
That's more of a long-game effect that I have to trust is working. But in the meantime, this shampoo creates a beautiful lather and leaves my strands feeling fresh as a daisy, soft and weightless. A blow-dry with root lift lasted longer as a result, and I liked the matching conditioner's strange, springy feel. This texture is because the formula contains fibres to bulk the hair up, and my fine strands did feel heftier after using both together. Great results for the price.
Pros
- High-tech formula
- Skincare benefits for the scalp
- Reasonably priced
Cons
- Fragrance won't appeal to all
RRP: £28.25 for 250ml | Key ingredients: Stemoxydine®, hyaluronic acid, gluco-peptide and ceramides
Reviewed by: Aoife Hanna
Kérastase's Densifique Bain Densité shampoo is an ultra-nourishing formula that I found really locked moisture into my hair, thanks to the lightweight-yet-nourishing power of hyaluronic acid. It cleansed brilliantly and left hair with a great amount of lift.
It's also one of the few shampoos for fine hair I tested that left me feeling like she could skip conditioner – which may be a plus to those with particularly oily hair like mine. The only issue I could potentially see arising from the use of this product is its perfume, which some may find overpowering or not to their taste. Other than that, it's pretty great.
Pros
- Boosts volume after one wash
- Nourishing; tester felt she could use without conditioner
Cons
- Intense scent won't be to all preferences
Reviewed by: Aoife Hanna
RRP: £29 for 236ml | Key ingredients: Amino cleansing complex, peptides, marine algae polysaccharide
Living Proof's volume-boosting formulas always rank highly on lists of the best hair styling products and haircare buys – and with good reason (several, actually). As well as smelling great, they pack a punch, too; the Full Shampoo is a great example of why this brand's products are worth the investment, in my opinion. Yes, it is more expensive, but a little goes a long way so it lasts well.
This particular formula has a consistency that's almost gel-like, which cleansed our tester's fine hair gently but effectively. More than that, it smells lovely and fresh, leaving my hair feeling smooth and not at all weighed down – though do note it's recommended for use alongside the matching conditioner for the best results.
Pros
- Smells great with a fresh fragrance
- Gentle, gel-like consistency
- Refillable bottle
Cons
- Not particularly affordable for the size
RRP: £29 for 250ml | Key ingredients: Keratin, copolymers, cellulose
Reviewed by: Aoife Hanna, Fiona McKim
Creators of some of the industry's best scalp treatments and the iconic Elasticizer mask, this trichologist-founded brand knows a lot about hair. Though this shampoo contains sulphates, which can leave be stripping and leave hair feeling brittle in high concentrations, we didn't find this to be the case here. This is in part down to ingredients like keratin and natural cellulose; the latter helps to plump the surface of each strand to give it a more luscious, bouncy and shiny appearance.
Our Beauty Channel Editor, Fiona McKim, is also a fan of this gentle formula: "This ultra-refreshing shampoo really deep-cleanses my hair and scalp, but doesn’t leave it feeling tight or overly stripped, which is not unexpected from such a respected trichological brand," she says. "It leaves my fine, prone-to-lankness hair with a noticeable shine and sprightliness about it after drying, too."
Pros
- Volumising formula
- Smells great
- Trichologist-founded brand
Cons
- Formula contains sulphates, which some prefer to avoid
Reviewed by: Aoife Hanna
RRP: £40 for 250ml | Key ingredients: Rassoul mineral clay, baobab leaf and rose extracts
This paste contains fine sugar crystals that gently exfoliate, while rassoul clay and centifolia rosewater work to detoxify and nourish both the scalp and hair. It has a fairly unusual texture and appearance, but when I emulsified it in my hands with a little water it foamed up nicely. All that clay absorbed excess oil well and gave my hair a lovely volume boost, too.
This product also smells heavenly and thoroughly cleansed my scalp, leaving it feeling as clean and healthy as can be. However, I definitely needed to use conditioner afterwards, particularly as my bleached hair has dry ends; the cleansing powers are intense here. Here, I stayed loyal to the brand and used the Christophe Robin Delicate Volumising conditioner, which left my hair silky smooth but not at all weighed down.
Pros
- Exfoliating formula
- Foams well
- Provides an intense clean
Cons
- Not the best fit for dry hair
RRP: £39 for 250ml | Key ingredients: K18PEPTIDE™
Reviewed by: Aoife Hanna
Shout out to our fellow greasy-haired beauty fans who load up on the best dry shampoos for oily hair. While our beauty editor's K18 review is a deep dive the brand's hero hair mask, the deep-cleansing Peptide Prep Detox shampoo is a lesser-known buy from the brand – but it's a real godsend.
When I tested this shampoo it clarified all excess oil, product residue and sebum and cleansed amazingly intensely without stripping our scalp and hair of moisture – remarkably, it didn't affect its colour, either. As a clarifying formula, the brand recommends using it once a week to help prevent your hair from becoming too dry. However, if you experience a lot of build-up more regularly you may want to try using it more frequently. Regardless, this is the best deep cleansing product I've ever used.
Pros
- Suitable for coloured hair
- Reduces protein loss while washing
- Nourishes while deep cleaning
Cons
- Expensive
- Not designed for daily use
RRP: £46 for 236ml | Key ingredients: Aloe leaf juice, evening primrose oil
Reviewed by: Aoife Hanna
If you're drawn to "clean beauty", or like to shop sulphate-free shampoos and eco-friendly beauty products, I think you'll love the way Hairstory's New Wash cleans and conditions the scalp and hair. At first, it felt a little unusual to us as it's got quite a thick consistency, almost like conditioner, so I had some concerns that it might weigh my hair down initially.
Washing this product out took slightly longer – Hairstory suggests using its Massaging Scalp Brush, which was also a sensorial treat. There are no harsh cleansing agents and it smells lovely and clean, with a subtle, baby powder-like scent. My hair was left with boosted volume and body, both when I blow-dried it and after air drying. There wasn't a hint of oiliness in my scalp until the evening of day two after washing – which is a first for me.
Pros
- No harsh surfactants
- Clean, comforting scent
- Thick consistency has conditioning benefits
Cons
- Expensive for its size
How we tested the best shampoo for fine hair and thinning hair
A selection of the shampoos tested for this guide
Though our team has used their fair share of the best hair products for very fine hair, we also tested several shampoos that we hadn't tried previously to ensure this guide was as well-researched and extensive as possible. To write a detailed and refined guide to the very best options, we made sure to test dozens of products at varying price points.
Our in-house experts then tested each formula over several washes, using them with and without conditioner to understand how they made our hair look, feel and behave post-wash. We also looked closely at packaging, how much of the formula we needed to cleanse our entire scalp and head of hair and how well the results lasted until the next wash.
As for whether expensive shampoo is better, we honestly believe that if you have thin hair and can spend a little extra on your haircare products, it's an investment you won't regret. Pricier shampoos sometimes stretch further, therefore lasting longer, plus can be gentler on strands.
How to choose the best shampoo for fine hair and thinning hair
When shopping for a shampoo to suit fine and thinning hair, as well as my own first-person insights, the following factors are all important to help decide if a formula is a good fit.
- Cleansing: It's important for your chosen product to cleanse well enough to help remove any build-up on the scalp. As an excess of grease can show more easily on fine hair, so deeply clarifying and removing build-up is an important part of your haircare routine.
- Consistency: Anything with large quantities of rich oils, butters or with a generally heavier consistency is a huge no-no for very thin and/or fine hair. These will likely weigh down strands and may leave build-up on the scalp, which can even impact healthy hair growth.
- Formula: What's not in your shampoo is almost as important as what it does contain. Ingredients like protein, vitamin B5 and lactic & hyaluronic acids can all benefit fine hair. However, silicones can weigh hair down when they build up over time (clarifying shampoo helps here). Sulphates can give a very thorough cleanse but can also strip more moisture from weaker strands; a sulphate-free shampoo may be a better fit if you experience this.
What ingredients help to boost fine hair and thinning hair?
A good first step in improving a routine for fine hair is looking at haircare ingredients. "Specific ingredients, like caffeine, are linked to hair growth and can provide invigorating effects," says Tyler Moore, expert stylist at Live True London. "Lighter moisturising ingredients, like aloe vera and hyaluronic acid, can [also] provide hydration without weighing your hair down."
Top trichologist Ricardo Vila Nova adds that many volumising products on the market contain polymers, which help to build density and texture. But when it comes to rebuilding and strengthening the internal bonds of the hair, he says: "I always suggest products with protein or lactic acid if we’re dealing with fine, dry hair."
While a shampoo optimised for thin hair is helpful, healthy growth also comes from within, says Lauren Marr, artistic colourist at Gielly Green. She suggests a healthy diet that is "high in proteins, leafy greens and vitamins to naturally increase hair volume."
What ingredients should you avoid with fine hair and thinning hair?
As for what to avoid on fine and thinning hair, "Avoid deep-cleansing shampoos containing salicylic acid as [this] may tangle the hair," Vila Nova advises. Moore also recommends steering clear of ingredients such as oils and butter. "These can work well in hair masks and oil treatments, but in daily use shampoos and conditioners, these will weigh your hair down and cause it to become oilier faster," he says. "These include coconut oil and argan oil."
Some people find that sulphates aren't a good match for their delicate hair or cleanse too harshly. "They strip the hair of its natural oils, which can make your hair dry and [result in] flyaways," Marr says. "This can also cause scalp irritation."
What's the best way to shampoo and condition fine hair and thinning hair?
While washing, Vila Nova explains you should distribute the shampoo evenly on the scalp and massage "thoroughly yet gently so as not to tangle [the] middle lengths and ends" of your hair.
Scalp massage is not only a nice self care step, but is also thought to increase blood flow, which can benefit your hair's overall health and support healthy growth as a result. The best way to do this is with your fingertips and apply gentle pressure on your scalp, moving them in small circles. You could also try a dedicated scalp massager tool if you prefer.
Moore also notes the importance of temperature and that it's best to wash with lukewarm water to avoid damage and breakage. "Wet your hair thoroughly before applying shampoo to ensure the hair shaft [or] follicles will be open enough to absorb the product and also to create a good lather," he says. "After one-to-two minutes, rinse your hair thoroughly with lukewarm water."
How often should you wash fine hair and thinning hair?
The answer to the age-old "how often should you wash your hair" question is... it depends. It really depends on your hair type and texture, scalp condition – very oil-prone or dry – and your lifestyle and routine. "There's no set rule on how often one should wash the hair, but fine hair usually requires more frequent washing to help build structure and volume," Vila Nova says.
"Those with finer hair might find their hair getting oiler quicker due to product build-up," Moore adds. "Products can weigh down fine hair, causing it to look greasy faster, even if you are prone to a drier scalp. Oil build-up will also look heavier on finer hair, meaning you might need to wash every one to three days depending on your personal preference." In other words, there's a bit of trial and error involved to learn what your hair and scalp need, and what suits them best.
Our expert panel
Aoife Hanna is a journalist and writer with bylines at Bustle, Metro and HuffPost – and as someone with very fine hair that gets greasy quickly, knows what makes a good formula for her thinner-textured strands. This made her an ideal main tester for this guide; almost all of the products tested and featured here were trialled on her hair.
Fiona McKim has been part of the woman&home beauty team for more than a decade. During that time her work has included interviewing countless experts, reporting from backstage at Fashion Week and judging the woman&home Beauty Awards. As someone with naturally fine hair can go flat, she also contributed some testing insights and reviews to this guide.
Tyler Moore is an experienced hair stylist working for Live True Salons in London. Here, he's shared some of his industry expertise on choosing and using shampoo formulas that suit fine and thinning hair types.
Ricardo Vila Nova is a trichologist and former biochemist. Known around the world as "the hair whisperer", he has clinics in London, Portugal and Bahrain and is the only trichologist who uses DNA profiling. He's shared some insights into shampoo for fine and thinning hair as part of this guide.
Lauren Marr is an experienced colourist based at London's Gielly Green salons. As well as colour, she also specialises in hair extensions, and has shared some of her expertise on choosing shampoo for fine and thinning hair.