The 18 Best Hair Masks for Dry Hair, According to Experts

Key ingredients: Olaplex bond-building technology

If hot tools and color treatments have done a number on your hair, you need this mask. Industry pros love it because it’s basically like CPR for dry, dull hair. The best part? You only need ten minutes with this in the shower to see (and feel) an instant difference. Well+Good’s senior beauty editor, Aimee Simeon, loves using this after she’s gone flat-iron crazy with her curls to help improve definition.

Size: 3.3 fl oz

Key ingredients: plant-based proteins, niacinamide

Fancy something fancy? Korab recommends Kèrastase’s Nutritve masque, which ingredients list is stacked with plant proteins and niacinamide for deep hydration. The more you use it, the silkier your hair will feel. We recommend combing some through and leaving it on before a blowout or silk press for a smoother, shiner finish.

Size: 6.8 fl oz

Key ingredients: shea butter, manuka honey, marfua oil

For $11, this budget-friendly mask from Shea Moisture is hard to beat. The formula is thick and full of shea-butter and manuka honey, which hydrate and shine instantly. We love this for thicker hair or curls that feel dry and limp. Just leave it on, forget it for a few minutes, and watch how much easier detangling is once you rinse it. If you want to take things a step further, sit under a hooded dryer with this mask or even let the shower steam help penetrate the ingredients.

Size: 11.5 oz

Key ingredients: olive oil, Goji berry

Korab is a fan of this hair mask from Pureology, which is a fix-it-all formula if your hair is damaged. It has olive oil and goji-berry extract, which is rich in antioxidants. Both work together to add shine to the hair while protecting it from environmental stressors.

Size: 6.7 fl oz

Key ingredients: moringa oil

On days when you really want to stick it to dry hair, an overnight mask will come in clutch. Benefits of using an overnight hair mask include: shinier hair, less breakage, quicker detangling, and less time spent contemplating your life choices in the shower. Celebrity stylist Kristen Shaw recommends keeping this one (with moringa oil for shine) nearby. You can comb it through wet hair and tie it up in a microfiber towel before bed when you need extra moisture. When you wake up, your hair will be much easier to dry and style. Plus, you won’t have to worry about it feeling heavy or greasy.

Size: 1.6 fl oz

Key ingredients: shea butter, mullein flowers, Alpha Keratin 60ku

When you look at your hair color in the mirror, and the first word that comes to mind is “blah,” it’s time to use this mask, specifically designed to make your color sparkle again. It has an impressive list of oils like shea and morninga to add shine, while rice proteins help keep your hair strong. You only need to keep it on for a few minutes to see results that almost mimic a professional gloss.

Size: 12 oz

Key ingredients: rice amino, avocado

As a curly gal with dry, color-treated hair, I can’t get enough of Briogeo’s Curl Charisma hair mask. It has a creamy blend of rice amino acids and avocado that help to rescue curls from the brink of dryness. I use it once a week and find that my curls are silkier and shinier post-wash, especially at my crown, where flyaways usually form.

Size: 8 fl oz

Key ingredients: coconut oil, meadowfoam oil, vitamin E

If you’re scalp could use a little lovin’, Shaw is a fan of this treatment mask, which should be rubbed into the scalp once or twice a week. It’s packed with ingredients that read like a who’s who of hydration: coconut oil, meadowfoam seed oil, babassu oil, and vitamin E. She also likes the La Tierra Segrada Jojoba, ($42), which she says she uses as an overnight mask, but it’s also great for the daytime.

Size: 6.8 fl oz

Key ingredients: argan oil, olive oil, avocado oil

Korab recommends a few minutes with this mask when your hair needs a reset. It has the holy trinity of oils: argan, avocado, and olive, which hydrate both above and inside of the hair shaft. Together, they act like a moisture-locking shield, ensuring that your hair remains soft, manageable, and, most importantly, moisturized without weighing it down.

Size: 8.5 fl oz

Key ingredients: biacidic bond complex, baobab extract

When my hair looks brassy, I always reach for the Davines Heart of Glass mask, which makes it as shiny as it sounds. It checks all the hydration boxes and helps balance out brassy orange undertones with its purple hue. And, true to all Davines products, it’s vegan, cruelty-free, and sustainably made.

Size: 8.7 fl oz

Key ingredients: K18 peptide

By now, you’ve probably seen K18’s leave-in mask somewhere on your TikTok or IG feeds—it’s that popular. And for good reason: it’s easy to use and it works. If you heat style your hair, a good pump of this on damp hair eliminates the use of additional products like heat sprays and extra conditioners. It smooths and adds shine and body, leaving you with glossy, voluminous hair every time. Read the full review here.

Size: 1.6 fl oz

Key ingredients: jojoba seed oil, sea buckthorn

Contributor Jamie Sanders and her 74-year-old mom swear by Amika’s Soulfood deep-conditioning mask, which is like soul food for tired, tangly hair. “I’ve completely foregone the use of conditioner ever since I started incorporating this mask into my hair routine,” Sanders writes. “I just no longer need it. I still use a leave-in conditioning spray, mainly to reduce static—but I can finger comb my strands easily after just using this mask, which has never been the case before.” Read the full review here.

Size: 8 oz

Key ingredients: henna gloss, hyaluronic acid, Veda4 bond strengthening complex

Our contributor, Dahvi Shira, says that Ranavat’s Mighty Majesty Glossing Hair Masque made her hair extremely shiny in five minutes. The secret? Transparent henna (unlike the color-depositing henna we’re most familiar with) acts as a juicy gloss suitable for all hair types.

Size: 5 oz

Key ingredients: rice water, hyaluronic Acid, and panthenol

Similarly, I cannot get enough of Ouai’s in-shower hair gloss treatment, which is great for using between color appointments. After I wash my hair, I’ll apply a dollop (a big dollop—I have thick hair) to the middle and ends of my strands and work it through until it’s coated evenly. I typically leave it on for five minutes, and when I rinse it out, my hair feels much healthier, like my split ends have been zipped up. 100/10 recommend

Size: 6 fl oz

Key ingredients: plant-proteins, niacinamide

If you aren’t a huge fan of thick textured masks, you might enjoy the feathery feel of this serum. While it can be used on top of a finished style for immediate shine, our contributor Rebecca Norris loves using it as an overnight treatment: “When I wake up and let my hair down, my hair is still slightly damp but is so beautifully frizz-free that you would have thought I had blown it out,” she writes. Read the full review here.

Size: 3.04 fl oz

Key ingredients: coconut oil, fig, shea butter

Besides the fact that this smells like a tropical vacation, we love that the formula gives a nice slip to make detangling through curls a breeze. Bonus: it comes with a scalp massager you can keep in the shower to help make your wash day routine more relaxing.

Size: 7.2 fl oz

Key ingredients: blue-green algae, mango butter, cocoa butter

Dermatologist Adeline Kikam previously shared in Well+Good’s Dear Derm series that she swears by this moisturizing mask from Camille Rose. At $20, this buttery treatment is infused with ultra-rich oils for hydration and a burst of blue-green algae for added protection against breakage. At $20 a jar, it’s an affordable choice that’s deeply nourishing, especially on natural hair. Watch the full video here. 

Size: 8 fl oz

Key ingredients: violet, bonding technology

I’m also a big fan of Not Your Mother’s Purple Toning Mask, which doubles as a neutralizing and deep conditioning mask. I slather on a generous glob of this in-between salon appointments to keep my blonde looking fresh and my curls feeling juicy. 

Size: 8 fl oz