Hairstyle is important to many of us because it can change our whole appearance. We can have the right haircut and color, but taking care of our hair and styling it makes us look put together.
But things get more complicated when we struggle with dehydrated, coarse hair with a tendency to breakage. This makes our hair harder to style or to keep a certain shape, and it looks lifeless and dull.
But there are many solutions to this problem, and you can find a lot of them at the drugstore! You can use moisturizing shampoos, conditioners, and styling products that make your hair look shiny and smooth. And I believe you don’t have to break the bank to achieve excellent results, and you can find many great products on a budget.
Best Drugstore Hair Products and How to Use Them
I am determined to show you that you can have complete hair care and styling routine using only drugstore products. So I’ve made a list of the best hair products you can find at your local drugstore. Some are old favorites, others I am just starting to use, but they are fantastic discoveries and well worth your attention.
So please keep reading to get a complete review on all the products you need to wash and style your hair. As a bonus, I will give you a step-by-step guide on using these hair products to add volume to shorter hair.
For more information, please watch the demonstration in the video below:
Murumuru Butter & Rose Blooming Color Shampoo by Love Beauty and Planet
Murumuru Color Shampoo is a drugstore gem when it comes to clean products; it is paraben and sulfate-free, cruelty-free, has no silicones and has no dyes. This product smells wonderful, and it feels very moisturizing, perfect for dry hair.
The ingredients list includes a lot of plant-based substances, such as rose extract, sunflower seed oil, and coconut oil, a powerful emollient for your hair. The star of the show is murumuru butter, with high oleic acid content. This helps protect your hair and makes it silky smooth.
Recommended product:
Love beauty and planet murumuru butter & rose blooming color sulfate-free shampoo
Pantene Fortifying Damage Repair With Castor Oil Sulfate-Free Conditioner
This conditioner from Pantene is one of my favorite hydrating products for my frizzy hair. The company has stepped up its game with products that are sulfate-free, paraben-free, no mineral oil or dyes.
This conditioner is very thick and moisturizes my dry and frizzy hair; after my shower, I feel like my hair is silky smooth. The product contains castor oil, a dense natural oil that has humectant and emollient properties. It also has panthenol, also known as pro-vitamin B5, that helps strengthen and protect your hair from breakage.
Apply the Pantene conditioner to the ends of your hair, avoiding the scalp, and keep it for 5-10 minutes before rinsing it clean. Your hair will be much softer and easier to comb through once you get out of the shower.
Recommended product:
Pantene fortifying damage repair with castor oil sulfate-free conditioner
John Frieda Frizz Ease Straight Fixation Styling Creme
After getting out of the shower, it is time to add some products to the hair, depending on everyone’s needs. I have very dry and frizzy hair, so my main goal is to tame it and look smooth and soft.
The first product I like to add to my damp hair is my favorite – Frizz Ease Straight Fixation Styling Creme by John Frieda. This is a heat protectant, so important when you are using any blow dryer or styling tools, but it also helps with the frizz.
I take only a little product on the palm of my hands and then evenly dispense it onto my hair. My main focus is on my front bits, where my hair tends to be more frizzy, and my ends. Although this is a hydrating product, it’s not at all heavy, so it doesn’t leave your hair greasy.
Recommended product:
John Frieda Frizz Ease Straight Fixation Styling Creme
Conair Infiniti Pro 1875 Watt Salon Dryer
I chose a hairdryer from the drugstore, and it’s called Conair Infiniti Pro1875 Watt Salon Dryer. It has great reviews and promises to dry your hair faster while also protecting it from damage using ceramic technology. The dryer also includes ionic technology, which means less frizz for your hair, making it look shinier.
The Conair Infiniti Pro has different buttons for heat and airflow, so you can customize them to suit your needs; it also has a cold-shot so that you can set in place your hairstyle at the very end of your blow-out.
I will start to use the blow-drier at my roots before styling it with a brush. This way, the hair is less wet and more manageable, so I can start giving it some shape.
Recommended product:
Conair Infiniti Pro 1875 Watt Salon Dryer
GSQ by GLAMSQUAD Ceramic Thermal Brush Extra! Extra!
For getting the perfect volume, you need a good brush and a little know-how. A shorter hair, like I have, is easier to lift because you don’t have those long hair strands that become heavy and pull it down too much. But you still need a little help to give it body and to shape your hair.
Ceramic Thermal Brush Extra! Extra! ticks all the right boxes because the ceramic material stores heat, making your hair very pliable. It has smaller synthetic bristles, and it’s great for getting volume at your roots.
I am using my hairdryer again, this time holding the brush with my other hand. I am starting from the crown because this is where I want the most volume. I pull the hair upwards with my brush, then wrap the ends and finish them off in circular motions.
I then go in the lower portions, near the temples, and here I am pulling the hair downwards and out because I am trying to create a more dynamic hairstyle. This brush works great for adding volume right at your roots, not an easy thing for my flat and fine hair.
Recommended product:
GSQ by GLAMSQUAD Ceramic Thermal Brush Extra! Extra!
GSQ by GLAMSQUAD Ceramic Dual Bristle Brush Smooth Operator Smooth + Shine
I am using a different brush from the same brand to finish off the ends. This is the Ceramic Dual Bristle Brush Smooth Operator Smooth + Shine, and it has duo-fiber bristles, a combination of synthetic and natural ones. It helps smooth and add shine to your hair strands, giving your look a shiny finishing touch.
I am going over the same strands of hair as with the first brush, this time concentrating on smoothing out the ends. I mostly take the brush outwards, so the overall hairstyle has a special flare.
Recommended product:
GSQ by GLAMSQUAD Ceramic Dual Bristle Brush Smooth Operator Smooth + Shine
Garnier Fructis Style Pure Clean Finishing Paste
After getting the right note with the blow drier and the two brushes, I want to add some texture to my hair. For this purpose, I am using a pomade called Style Pure Clean Finishing Paste by Garnier Fructis.
This pomade has a moderate hold, a three-level, and it helps me get the effect I need for my hairstyle. For my short hair with lots of layers, I like a more choppy look, where the shaggy pieces are well defined.
A little goes a long way with this product, so I am taking a bit of it and applying it to my hair, concentrating on the ends. Then, I start defining my hairstyle by pulling certain strands, or scrunching the hair in different places, giving it some volume.
The pomade helps a great deal with adding more interest to this hairstyle, and it gives the hair a lot of shine. Keep playing with different strands until you’re happy with the results.
Recommended product:
Garnier Fructis Style Pure Clean Finishing Paste
L’Oreal Paris Elnett Satin Extra Strong Hold Color-Treated Hair Spray
Now that you have your hairstyle all bouncy and voluminous, you need to set it in place, so it can last until your next hair wash. I am using Elnett Satin Extra Strong Hold Hair Spray by L’Oreal Paris.
This product has rave reviews, and it promises to give a flexible hold that you can brush out. It is specially formulated for color-treated hair, and it includes UV filters, so it protects your hair from the sun.
I am taking different hair strands and giving them a little lift, then spraying the product onto them from some distance. I keep manipulating some sections until I am happy with the result. It doesn’t leave a heavy residue or that annoying feeling of stiff hair, but it sets your hairstyle in place for the day.
Recommended product:
L’Oreal Paris Elnett Satin Extra Strong Hold Color-Treated Hair Spray
Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Texturizing Dry Shampoo in Toasted Coconut
After washing your hair, it takes a bit of time to style it and set everything in place. There are a few tools, products, and a bit of skill involved, and in the end, you look stylish and put together. But how annoying is it when after 1-3, depending on your hair type, your scalp and hair get oily, and you have to start all over again?
Dry shampoo is a perfect solution for making your hairstyle last longer and avoiding that excess oil. Dry shampoos have a fine powder that sits on the scalp and absorbs the natural sebum, and you can use them to refresh your hairstyle two days after you’ve washed it; if you have very oily hair, you can prevent your hair from getting oily, if you apply the dry shampoo in the first 12 hours.
I found Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Texturizing Dry Shampoo at the drugstore, and it’s a wonderful product. It refreshes your hair while at the same time adding texture and volume. You can spray it on your scalp in different areas, work it in using your fingers, and leave it for a few minutes to absorb the oils. After that, you can brush it out and reshape your hair for a longer-lasting hairstyle.
Recommended product:
Not Your Mother’s Beach Babe Texturizing Dry Shampoo in Toasted Coconut
Get an Amazing Hairstyle With Budget-Friendly Products
We tend to think that high-end or professional brands are the only ones that give you excellent solutions for our hair. But the reality is that drugstore brands have really upped their game in the last few years. They have come up with many products that offer great results with the added benefit of being clean (meaning sulfate-free, paraben-free, and so on).
I don’t believe you have to spend a lot of money to find the best hair products. There are many gems at your local drugstore, and you just have to be patient to try some of them out to find the right ones for you. This list I’ve created in this article is the perfect starting point, so please check out the recommended products.
