It turns out that living that Dry Shampoo life is the best life.

Gone are the days of washing my hair every.single.day. Yes, I was one of those girls for the past 32 years of life…I never understood people who didn’t use shampoo and conditioner on their hair every 24 hours. HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE? AREN’T YOU A GREASE BALL? DON’T YOU FEEL DIRTY? Fortunately, I’ve now realized that there is a tremendous amount of joy that comes with knowing you don’t have to blow dry, straighten and/or curl, use a ton of product, etc etc every 24 hours. Morning free time, you’re my new best friend. Since starting my journey on this dry shampoo life, I’ve been trying a few different ones to find the exact one that I would deem “the best of the best”. Some smell awesome, some smell awful, some absorb the grease like it’s their job [funny, because it is] while others I became confused if I thought I sprayed but actually didn’t because HI, all of my grease is still there. All of this leads me to the point of today’s post – because not only myself, but the entire LIY team is also team #nowash we thought it would be fun to combine our heads of hair and determine which dry shampoo takes the cake in our eyes [or on our scalps, whatever]. Today, we’re bringing you those results.

The Dry Shampoo Lineup [what products we tested]:

1. Oribe Gold Lust
2. Amika Perk Up
3. Drybar Detox Scented
4. Batiste Hint of Color- Blonde // Batiste Hint of Color -Brunette
5. Not Your Mothers Clean Freak
6. Living proof Perfect Hair Day
7. Moroccanoil Light Tones // Moroccanoil Dark Tones

How We Tested

The process was simple really. We each tried every type of dry shampoo over a month period of time. Typically, we all used our dry shampoo on day 2 or 3 hair. As we used it, we took notes and rated it how each individual dry shampoo worked in these categories:

• Scent
• Oil Absorption
• Residue
• Longevity

Team Member Hair Types

To help you get the most out of this comparison, we thought it would be helpful to give you an idea of how each team member describes her hair.

• Erin: Thick, Coarse, Dry
• Becca: Lots of very fine hair, Wavy, Oily
• Steph: Thick, Coarse, Wavy/Curly, Dry
• Hannah: Thick, Smooth
• Cassidy: Thick, Lightweight, Short, Straight, Oily
• Claire: Thick, Smooth, Oily
• Lauren: Thick, Smooth

Tips and Tricks

There are a few little handy tips we found along the way when it comes to using dry shampoo. For starters, use the product BEFORE you need it. Shake it well and spray directly on the root and along your hairline [or wherever your oiliest spots are]. Follow the bottle directions for how far to hold the spray away as you are using it. Allow it to absorb first and then use your hands or a brush to work it in. As a side note: you can use a dry shampoo as a texturizer if you need a little added grit on your freshly washed hair. I personally use my dry shampoo on day 2, you may not need to use it until 3 or 4. It’s all a personal grease [or lack thereof] preference. When showering, if trying to avoid getting your hair getting wet, we recommend using a shower cap [see first photo for some beautiful inspiration ;)] Amazon has some great options that will do the trick and have you lookin’ oh so fly! 

The Results

Oribe Gold Lust  $44 // Favorite of Erin + Becca + Claire + Cassidy
Oribe was the overall team favorite! All of our team members that have oily hair reported good oil absorption with this product and would use it again. Here’s a few words about the product and why we loved it!

• “Yumm, I love the smell!” – Erin
• “This has by-far been the best when it comes to oil absorption for me! I also loved the smell and didn’t notice much of a residue.” – Claire
• “It went on really well and left no visual residue!” – Cassidy

Moroccanoil Light Tones / Moroccanoil Dark Tones $26
Moroccanoil rated slightly above average across the board. Several team members mentioned visible residue when sprayed that did brush out with some effort. It seems like this is an overall okay, not outstanding, option regardless of your hair type.

• I’m a huge fan of MoraccanOil products, but I was disappointed in the dry shampoo to say the least. The smell is AMAZING, but it didn’t do much for oil control. For the cost, I expected more.” – Claire

Batiste Hint of Color- Blonde / Batiste Hint of Color -Brunette $9
Batiste seemed to work best for team members that have fine hair. A few team members with more coarse hair commented on the heaviness of their hair after using the product. If you are looking for a budget friendly product [bonus if you want something color specific!] and have fine textured hair, this may be a good option to try!

• “While this one does leave a residue, it doesn’t bother me as much since it is tinted the color of my hair. It does dull my hair slightly, but other than that, better than many with the white residue. And the oil absorption is great in my opinion!” – Becca

Amika Perk Up $25 // Favorite of Hannah
Amika was a bit of a mixed review for us. One thing it definitely has going for it is the most AMAZING scent – A perfect average of 5! Unfortunately what it has in scent it lacks in oil absorption and longevity for most team members. While we still love Amika products, this one just isn’t quite a win for all of us. Hannah loved Amika Perk Up, giving it a 4.5 – her highest rating!

• “The smell of this was amazing and it lasted to the next day! I was really surprised at how well this did! My hair was incredibly soft after using it, it smelled good and it did a good job absorbing the oil. My hair didn’t feel heavy either!” – Hannah

Drybar Detox Scented $23 // Favorite of Steph + Lauren
Another mixed review for team LIY! What we agreed on – this was not a good smell [think grandma on steroids]! However, if you can get over the immediate scent [or all day scent for some team members – everyone’s hair absorbs scents differently!] the product worked pretty well all around! Here are a few words about it:

• “Does not smell good, but the best for my texture of hair – I gave it a 5 in Oil Absorption, Residue and Longevity! One of the few products that did not dull my hair!” – Steph
• “I was extremely pleased with how long this dry shampoo lasted on day 2, and adding a little on day 3, it continued to impress me. For a product that allows you to save time getting ready each day, well worth the money.” – Lauren

Not Your Mothers Clean Freak $5
Not Your Mothers received pretty low ratings for Residue from all team members, and several reported feeling oily by the end of the day. If you’re looking for a cheaper product to buy you a couple of extra hours of not washing it would be okay, but we don’t recommend it for gaining an extra 1-2 days between washes.

• “This product is good for an extra half day of wear, but it didn’t last a full day before my hair looked like it needed more dry shampoo or to be washed. If you only needed a few extra hours, this would be a good, affordable choice, but if you’re looking for a full day, I’d look for something else.” – Lauren 

Living Proof Perfect Hair Day $23
Living Proof was another product that received several reports of heaviness, however team members with coarse hair gave good ratings on Oil Absorption. One thing the team strongly agreed on was the floral smell – Living.proof had a team average of 1.8 on Smell! If you have coarse hair and don’t mind a S-T-R-O-N-G floral scent, this may be a good option for you to try.

• “All together, I did not like this dry shampoo. The smell was overpowering and not pleasant and after applying my roots felt very heavy and there was still residue. Throughout the day my scalp was itchy and my hair felt like it had not been washed in a week.” – Hannah

And there is our lineup friends! We’d love to hear what dry shampoos you have tried and love! Did your list match with ours? Is there a hidden gem we need to add to our list? Cheers to day 2, 3, 4, 12 [who’s counting] hair! If you’d like to try one we recommended – easily shop below!