Leave-in hair conditioners: 10 of the best

There are necessary beauty products and then there are those that are nice to have. The new wave of leave-in conditioners falls under the former. They started out as the thing you lazily put in your hair post shampoo because you didn’t have time to wait for a proper conditioner to do its job. Back then, leave-in conditioners were the poor relatives. Nowadays, they have as much merit as their wash-out cousins. Essentially, leave-in conditioners hydrate the hair to make up for the fact that shampoos can be stripping. A conditioner of any sort infuses lost moisture back into hair, but they also offer much more. For anyone with dry and brittle hair, it is a godsend. They also detangle, fight frizz, work as a pre-shampoo treatment and provide an excellent protective layer against heat and harsh climates. Pattern and Trepadora in particular are perfect for curly and coily hair. Ouai works well on finer hair textures, and Olaplex is a game changer for everyone – especially if you have coloured/chemically processed hair. So, I hear you ask, “Can’t we just leave a regular conditioner in?” Well, no. Unless it’s been formulated to be left in, it will increase build-up and leave you with crunchy hair. No one needs that.

1. Virtue Purifying Leave-In Conditioner £30, cultbeauty.co.uk
2. Babassu Quench Leave-In Curl Primer £27, trepadora.com
3. Olaplex No 6 Bond Smoother £26, spacenk.com
4. Aveda Nutriplenish Leave-In Conditioner £29.50, aveda.co.uk
5. Davines OI All In One Milk £24.50, uk.davines.com
6. Sol de Janeiro Brazilian Joia Milky Leave-In Conditioner £28, spacenk.com
7. Briogeo Superfoods Avocado and Kiwi Mega Moisture 3-in-1 Leave-In Spray £22.50, cultbeauty.co.uk
8. Ouai Leave-In Conditioner £24, theouai.co.uk
9. Living Proof No Frizz Leave-In Conditioner £22, livingproof.co.uk
10. Pattern Beauty by Tracee Ellis Ross Leave-In Conditioner £25, boots.com

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