The Best Shampoo for Men with Thinning Hair In 2020

you’ve got a bunch of options for treating and preventing hair loss, but having the right shampoo at the ready is essential. Regardless of how you decide to address a receding hairline (if you do anything at all), one of the best defenses is a proper hair care regimen of shampoo and conditioner.

Before we go any further, it should be noted that here at GQ, we are, for the most part, shampoo skeptics. The fact is that most men grossly overwash their hair. This is counterproductive for most guys. But sometimes you’ve got to audit your priorities and choose accordingly, and if you need voluminous, fuller hair, then perhaps you should shampoo daily. (We suggest aiming for every 2 or 3 days, though, and using a conditioner every day.)

So, which cleanser will serve you best? We tested a ton of them so that we could answer that question. We like them for different reasons: Some of the best shampoos for thinning hair stimulate circulation and use ingredients like antioxidants and biotin to promote healthy growth while removing buildup, some block hair-suffocating DHT, and some are adept at adding volume to the fine hair you’ve already got. So, stop scratching your head on the matter and peruse this list—surely one of them is best for your particular case.

See also:Do Hair Growth Supplements Actually Work for Hair Loss?

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The Most Restorative Shampoo for Thinning Hair

Evolis' uses some obscure hair-restoring active ingredients: great burnet flower, swertia chirayita, and Japanese rose. These three, when combined with amino acids and keratin, help restore hair to a fuller, vibrant state. The result is thicker, healthy hair—both immediately and for the many months ahead.

The Best Thickening Shampoo for Thin or Thinning Hair

A longtime GQ favorite, available from Amazon, this volume-building shampoo works its powers opposite of most: While many washes parch the hair and leave it plumped but dried out, this one hydrates and nourishes with Sachajuan's proprietary "Ocean Silk" blend that gives hair body, movement, and healthy shine.

The Best Shampoo to Give Your Hair Some Volume

Run those hands through your hair after using Sisley Paris' volumizing shampoo, and you might mistake your head for an expensive fur coat. This shampoo gives limp, lifeless hair an instant lift.

The Best Shampoo Alternative/Co-Wash

If you're shampoo-averse (because it compromises your hair quality and stylability), then you may want to try co-washing, which is when you rely on conditioner to flush away grime and excess oil. It works wonders, especially with a product like Modern Mammals' everyday rinse. It almost straddles the line between shampoo and conditioner, though it is definitely more the latter. It delivers a hydrating rinse that won't compromise your thinning hair's health, and will instead preserve its buoyancy while also promoting a healthy, habitable scalp. Best of all, you can use it daily.

The Best Everyday Thickening Shampoo for Thinning Hair

Brickell's gentle wash is specifically engineered for hydration—and thus for daily use. It's packed with aloe, tea tree oil, vitamins E and B5, and peppermint. That last ingredient stimulates circulation in the scalp, too, so it encourages hair growth. It'll leave your hair looking fuller, and not dried out like a standard shampoo.

The Best Vitamin-Rich Infusion for Thinning Hair

If you've got thinning hair, keep an eye out for Vitamin B whenever you're perusing ingredient lists. This family of vitamins is known for its hair-strengthening powers, and Klorane’s shampoo employs a roster of them: B5 hydrates and fortifies the hair shaft, B6 minimizes sebum production, and B8 stimulates circulation and nutrient delivery.

The Best Shampoo for Scalp Stimulation

Caffeine wakes up your scalp, too: It’s pumped into Davines’ shampoo, and boosts circulation to the scalp and into each hair follicle. This increases nutrient delivery to each strand, and in turn strengthens hair as it grows. The gradual effect is that it slows future loss, and prevents breakage along any of the strands.

The Best Shampoo for Curly, Thinning Hair

If you have curly hair, you know different hair types call for specific products. While it's packed with biotin to fortify thin hair and promote growth, Briogeo's shampoo, available from Sephora, also lifts hair without parching it. This is music to the ears of anyone with curly hair, because it promises bouncy, full, lively curls, even if your hair isn't as full as it used to be. (With argan oil and other hydrating ingredients, this one makes it look fuller, too.)

The Best Shampoo for Busting DHT

We love Hims’ lineup of hair-growth products, and its shampoo is a great supplement to any aggressive regrowth regimen. This one targets DHT—the hormonal byproduct that leads to hair loss, or so our dermatologist tells us. By reducing the synthesis of DHT, the shampoo then reduces the rate of hair loss. A nice perk is its lovely peppermint and tea tree scent.

The Best Dry Shampoo for Men

OK, so it's not a shampoo. And technically it’s not even a dry shampoo, but Oribe's grease-absorbing spray sure acts like one. It does wonders to soak up excess grease while thickening and volumizing hair. Better yet, it gives a healthy shine—not oily, just lustrous—to add definition to second-day hair.

3 More Shampoos We Love for Thinning Hair

My friend with thinning, curly hair swears by this stuff. It's aptly named, he says, in that it gives him manageable but buoyant curls every single day he uses it. Perfect.

R+Co's sulfate-free strengthening shampoo boosts volume, delivers a subtle shine, and shields hair from environmental damage (like heat, UV rays, salt, and chlorine). It also fortifies and strengthens hair with an extra kick from biotin.

With vitamins like biotin (B7), C, E, and B5, Peter Thomas Roth’s volume shampoo stimulates hair growth and gives your scalp a hydrating, nourishing scrubdown.