What is My Hair Porosity?
Updated: Nov 23, 2022
Hair porosity is the hair's ability to absorb and retain moisture.
Hair porosity is generally genetic but can be altered over time by things such as chemicals and heat.
Knowing your hair porosity is important because certain ingredients work better for certain hair porosities. Knowing your hair porosity lets you understand exactly what your hair needs for optimal nourishment, shine, hydration, and care.
How do I know what my hair porosity is?
A hair test is the most accurate way to determine your hair porosity.
Step 1: Clean your hair with our Clarifying Shampoo. Do not apply any conditioner or products after your hair has been cleaned.
Step 2: Allow your hair to dry naturally, do not add any products or heat (do not add styling products or conditioners, do not blow dry, straight iron or curl your hair). Once your hair dries naturally, pull a strand of hair out and place it in the glass of water.
If your strand of hair floats at the top, you have low-porosity hair.
If it sits in the middle of the glass, you have medium-porosity hair.
If it sinks to the bottom, you have high-porosity hair.
Great, I know my hair porosity, now what?
If you have low-porosity hair, your hair is water-resistant, making it difficult for your hair to absorb water and moisture. Low-porosity hair feels and looks dry, it tangles easily and it also takes longer to wash and dry. If you have low-porosity hair look for ingredients like aloe vera, almond oil, grapeseed oil, argan oil, jojoba oil and baobab oil.
Take the guesswork out of hair care and shop our low-porosity hair care set which includes a FREE product and FREE domestic shipping!
If you have medium-porosity hair, your hair is easy to style and holds a style well. It takes color well, looks healthy and shiny, gets wet easily and doesn't take long to dry. If you have medium-porosity hair, look for products with ingredients such as argan oil, macadamia oil, avocado oil, sweet almond oil, grapeseed oil, keratin protein and silk protein.
Don't have time to read ingredient lists? Shop our medium-porosity hair care set which includes a FREE product and FREE domestic shipping!
If you have high-porosity hair, you might notice that your hair absorbs water and moisture easily but does not retain it. It breaks and tangles easily, and it dried fast and frizzy. If you have high-porosity hair, look for products with oils and butters, such as coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, avocado butter and mango butter.
Looking for an easy hair care routine for high-porosity hair? Shop our high-porosity hair care set which includes a FREE product and FREE domestic shipping!