What Even Is Hair Perfume?
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Pretty much all hair products — fromshampoosandconditionerstoheat protectants— have some sort of fragrance. But there have been some high-profile launches recently from Gisou, Rare Beauty, and Crown Affair that make it feel as though hair perfume is gaining traction. (Online fragrance platform Scentbird has seen45 percent to 50 percent growth year over yearsince 2022, so the interest is genuinely strong.)
What is hair perfume? Can any perfume be hair perfume?
You might think,I’ll just use my regular perfume on my hair, and voilà: hair perfume!But it’s not so simple.Perfumesdesigned for the skin usually rely on alcohol (ethanol, most commonly) to carry the scent of the fragrance. As you might already know, alcohol tends to be a drying ingredient, meaning the concentrations of it found in typical perfumes make them unsuitable for spritzing all over the hair. In the past, perfume lovers who did this would find themselves with quite dry and damaged hair, saysRogerio Cavalcante, master stylist and owner of the Second Floor Salon.
Hair perfumes largely forego the alcohol altogether or contain “only fatty alcohols like cetyl alcohol, which are non-drying,” says Cavalcante. Where hair perfumes do contain alcohol, the concentrations will “not be high enough to remove any hydration from your strands,” adds master coloristTiffanie Richards. Brands will often add hair-nourishing ingredients to hair perfumes so that they act as a twofer: both a scent and a hair-care product. In the popular Gisou line, for example, you’ll find shiny-hair-favorite argan oil along with hydrating honey. Those are just some of the oils and ingredients you’ll tend to find in hair perfumes, saysElisha Smith, a Balmain hair educator. She adds that, owing to these different ingredients and the fact that “hair chemistry doesn’t change the chemistry of the perfume in the way skin does,” hair perfumes often have an entirely different scent profile compared to perfumes for the body. Some hair perfumes also contain UV protectants, explainsShaun Surething, the owner of Seagull salon, making them great for the beach.
But beyond ingredients, even the mechanisms of hair perfumes are different. “Even the delivery systems have more of a mist,” explains trichologistBridgette Hill. “So what they’ve really done is taken this fragrance and this product of hair oil, minimized it, and made it into a more luxurious, almost ritualistic delivery system.”
How do I use hair perfume?
“It’s that little icing on the cake in your beauty routine,” says Hill. “The emphasis now is on a unique olfactory experience, making more of a connection to the individual self and thinking about that lingering impression.” From a more practical stance, Cavalcante tells me that he sees hair perfume as more of a product to keep on hand for specific situations, “like after leaving a restaurant or standing near a smoker, when your hair picks up unwanted smells and you need a quick refresh. Smith and Surething point out that as we approach summer, beach days and swimming mean there will naturally be more of a seasonal demand. AndZoe Papelis,New YorkMagazine’s development lead, told us recently that she likes to use hair perfume on herno-wash daysto keep her hair smelling fresh. Hair perfumes shouldn’t be irritating. But if you do suffer from a skin or scalp condition, it’s important to check the ingredients list as you would for any other product to avoid potential irritants. Cavalcante recommends looking for “phthalate-free and paraben-free formulas to keep your hair and scalp healthy.” You can also gravitate toward picks with ingredients you know your skin enjoys; Richards adds that Rare Beauty’s hair perfume contains niacinamide, for example.
Can I use hair perfume in place of regular perfume?
As hair perfumes are often less expensive than brand’s body options, I was curious if they could be used in their place. (For example, a Diptyque hair perfume is $76, versus $200-plus for a Diptyque eau de parfum.) “You 100 percent can use hair mist on the body,” says Richards. “However, the hair mist on the body will probably fade fairly quickly, as it’s created to be a lighter scent. It’s not meant to adhere to skin.”Viktoryia Kazlouskaya, a board-certified dermatologist, told me the same thing. “Hair mists are typically safe to use on the skin. Just keep in mind that mists are less concentrated than perfumes, often even less long-lasting than colognes, so the scent won’t stick around for very long.” So I imagine with the amount you’d have to spray on, it wouldn’t really save any money at all. Also, it’s worth noting that for a few skin types (like those with acne-prone skin), the “lightweight oils or silicones meant to smooth hair could feel greasy or occlusive on the skin,” explains dermatologistKristina Collins. So it’s worth sticking with your regular body mist.
Some hair perfumes to shop
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Almost everyone I spoke to mentioned Gisou. As hair perfume has typically been a luxury-brand-dominated space, at less than $50, this wildflower-honey perfume sits at a more affordable price point. It contains nourishing, shine-boosting ingredients and, crucially, smells great. “It sprays very softly and has a light, sweet floral scent that sits really nicely on hair throughout the day,” says Papelis.
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It might also be for the body, but don’t fret — the Ouai mist is vegan, paraben free, color-safe, and keratin-safe, meaning a thumbs-up to spritz on your hair. It was also personally endorsed to me by Cavalcante, Richards, and celebrity stylistMarc Ballance. The St. Barts scent is the signature Ouai-brand scent (I call it “a fancy-salon smell”), and it has citrus-floral notes of orange blossom and musk. Surething calls the Ouai range “clean, wearable scents” — a beach-day classic.
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Crown affair also captured the signature scent from across its hair-care range (including its popular leave-in conditioner) into a hair perfume, which Hill “absolutely loves.” The perfume has light, floral notes; contains meadowfoam oil (a natural heat protectant); and was also recommended by Cavalcante.
Some more luxury options …
“Classic fragrance houses like Jo Malone and Dior now offer hair mists that match their iconic perfumes. It’s a nice touch of luxury,” explains Cavalcante.
Some more affordable options …
“I think drugstore brands get looked over quite a bit in this category,” adds Richards. “Hair perfumes by brands such as Dove work great.”
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