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16 Best Shampoos for Fine Hair That Add Weightless Volume and Shine

Get that va-va-voom.

The Best Shampoos for Fine Hair

Byrdie / Alli Waataja

TL; DR

Our favorite shampoo for fine hair is Living Proof Full Shampoo. This silicone-free, sulfate-free formula gently cleanses to remove oil and product buildup, then adds body without leaving behind a residue. For a more affordable option, consider L'Oréal EverPure Sulfate-Free Moisture Shampoo, which rivals luxury brands and adds shine and body to thin hair without sulfates or paraben.


To achieve volume and take your hair to serious heights, a good thickening shampoo is a must. According to celebrity hairstylist Anthony Nader, the best formulas for fine or thin hair gently cleanse to remove product buildup, plump the hair shaft, and leave strands full of body without added weight.

Ideally, your shampoo should contain volumizing and fortifying ingredients, like biotin (vitamin B7), vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid), keratin, peptides, and thickening polymers. You may also want to look for a silicone- and sulfate-free formula to avoid buildup or over-drying, but that's more a matter of preference.

With the advice and recommendations of expert hairstylists like Nader in mind, we conducted hours of research on the best shampoos for fine hair, evaluating each based on volume-boosting properties, nourishing ingredients, intended hair type, application, effectiveness, weight, feel, scent, and overall value. We also tested a few ourselves to see how they perform on thin hair over time. Here are the ones that will give your hair the oomph you're looking for.

What We Like
  • Adds body and volume with peptides

  • Sulfate- and silicone-free

  • Pleasant, floral scent

What to Consider
  • Not ideal for skipping washes

Key Ingredients: Peptides, amino acids, marine algae, phyantriol | Hair Type: Fine, thin | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Floral, fresh | Size: 2–32 ounces

Living Proof makes our favorite hair wash for the fine-haired set. Full Shampoo contains the brand's proprietary cleansing complex rich in fortifying amino acids, while peptides plump your strands to create a more voluminous mane.

This sulfate-free formula is great for a deep cleanse to remove oil, grease, and product buildup, leaving you with clean, hydrated hair ready for styling. It's also silicone-free, so you won't have to worry about residue. Oh, and the fresh floral scent will elevate your showering experience. Just a heads up, it might not be ideal if you don't wash your hair every day, as some have noted flat or somewhat greasy hair when they skipped a wash–though this is pretty common for thin hair.

What We Like
  • Hair feels soft and clean

  • Gives limp hair a boost with ginger extract

  • 100% recyclable pump bottle

What to Consider
  • Can be a bit drying for drier hair types

Key Ingredients: Coconut oil, ginger root extract, glycerin, and vitamin E | Hair Type: Fine, thin, damaged | Sulfate-Free: Yes | | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Floral | Size: 12 ounces

This cutely packaged offering from New Zealand-born Monday Haircare is everything we want in a fine-hair shampoo at an affordable price point. The volumizing formula claims to add body and shine to limp hair with ginger extract, vitamin E, and coconut oil without drying it out or weighing it down. We also appreciate the handy pump bottle, which you can recycle once it runs out. It can be a bit drying on those with dry hair, so we recommend following up with a deep conditioning mask on the ends of your hair.

What We Like
  • Boosts shine and protects color-treated hair

  • Minimizes flyaways and static

  • Stimulates scalp with refreshing rosemary

What to Consider
  • Can be a little drying

  • Contains silicones which can weigh down hair

Key Ingredients: Rosemary botanicals | Hair Type: Fine, dry, color-treated | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: No | Scent: Original | Size: 8.5–23 ounces

Those with colored-treated hair may already know a sulfate-free formula is often a smart choice as it doesn't strip the hair. This shampoo from L'Oréal checks that box and then some. Aside from preserving color, preventing dullness, and adding shine, it offers a deep yet nourishing clean. The result? Hair that's glossy, bouncy, and full.

One of our editors used it regularly for years and says it absolutely worked to keep her hair color vibrant for longer, and still lathers despite being sulfate-free. It's good enough to rival most of the luxury options out there, in our opinion, we just suggest using it only a few times a week since it can be a bit drying.

Before and After LOreal EverPure Moisture Shampoo

BYRDIE / ASHLEY RUBELL

Read Full Review: Olaplex’s Bond Maintenance Shampoo Is Like a Reset Button for Your Hair 

What We Like
  • Lathers amazingly well and smells amazing

  • Repairs broken bonds in hair follicles

  • Works well on all hair types

What to Consider
  • Works best when paired with other Olaplex products

  • No large size available

Key Ingredients: Bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate | Hair Type: All | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Sweet citrus | Size: 3.3–8.5 ounces

Touchable, softer hair? Sign us up. Olaplex's No.4 Bond Shampoo is part of a multiple-step system to repair and revitalize damaged, brittle strands, leaving them stronger and healthier. This means more manageable hair, fewer split ends, and gorgeous locks. It's great for thinning hair, as it helps mend broken bonds and encourage healthy growth, but we find it works well on all hair types. It even seems to help color last longer. We're also big fans of the sweet, citrusy scent. We just wish it came in larger sizes, but we've noticed a little does go a long way with this shampoo.

Olaplex No. 4 Bond Maintenance Shampoo Before And After

Byrdie / Loren Savini

What We Like
  • Strengthening formula with Vitamin B7

  • Leaves hair feeling full and soft

  • Sulfate- and paraben-free

What to Consider
  • Thickening results aren't dramatic

Key Ingredients: Collagen, biotin, hydrolyzed wheat protein | Hair Type: Fine, dry, thinning | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: No | Scent: Floral | Size: 13 ounces

It's tough to find a volumizing shampoo that also hydrates the hair, as added moisture often weighs it down. That's why we're enamored with this unicorn formula from OGX. Instead of coating the hair, it penetrates the hair shaft with vitamin B7 and hydrolyzed wheat protein, bringing it back to life and making it full and plump from the inside out. You'll be left with subtle thickness and an all-around soft feel, but the results aren't super noticeable.

What We Like
  • Strengthens and nourishes with biotin and Vitamin B5

  • Boosts shine

  • Makes hair look and feel fuller

What to Consider
  • Scent too perfume-y for some

Key Ingredients: Vitamin B5, coconut oil, biotin, saw palmetto berry extract | Hair Type: Fine, thin | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Dark Waves | Size: 2–33.8 ounces

If you want big, bouncy, old Hollywood blowout hair, this product is for you. R+Co's Dallas Shampoo is infused with biotin, vitamin B5, and saw palmetto and claims to add touchable volume and serious shine. It's also one of those rare formulas that seem to create volume while still nourishing the hair, so it's ideal if you're dealing with damage or dryness.

Combining citrus and woody notes with a hint of spice, the brand describes the Dark Waves fragrance as a "warm, romantic scent." We're all about it, but if you're sensitive to fragrance in cosmetics, you may want to skip this one.

What We Like
  • Helps absorb excess oil

  • Rich, paste to foam consistency

  • Adds volume with unique clay formula

What to Consider
  • Contains sulfates

Key Ingredients: Rassoul clay, rose extracts | Hair Type: Fine, thin | Sulfate-Free: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Rose | Size: 2.5–8.4 ounces

This cleansing treatment is a game-changer for limp, oily strands, thanks to rassoul clay, which has cleansing and purifying effects. It's thick upon application but emulsifies well with water and, in turn, creates a beautiful, frothy lather that removes grease and leaves airy volume in its wake. We appreciate that it can help preserve color too.

It's an intense shampooing experience that's a bit unconventional, but if you've tried traditional formulas to no avail, the volumizing paste could be exactly what you're looking for. You massage it into your roots while your hair is wet, then let it sit for two minutes before washing it out. We just wish it came in a more convenient container since it's sometimes tricky to unscrew a lid in the shower.

What We Like
  • Helps repair damage with various proteins

  • Polymer blend leaves hair feeling thicker

  • Sulfate-free

What to Consider
  • Doesn't lather well

Key Ingredients: Lupine protein, saw palmetto extract | Hair Type: Fine, thin | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Côte d'Azur | Size: 8.5 ounces

Yes, Oribe is undoubtedly expensive, but it always makes for a supremely luxurious hair-washing experience. The brand's Magnificent Volume iteration is all kinds of wonderful: super frothy and really light with a box, container, and fragrance reminiscent of designer perfume (bergamot with jasmine and sandalwood).

Instead of sulfates, it contains body-building polymers to plump up the hair shaft and create weightless, bouncy volume. It also contains vegetable and lupin proteins to strengthen hair and repair damage. We love that it's paraben- and sulfate-free, but wish it lathered better.

What We Like
  • Removes buildup on scalp

  • Dissolves grease and dirt

  • Infuses hair with nutrients and moisture

What to Consider
  • Not ideal for daily use

Key Ingredients: Himalayan pink salt, moringa oil, rosehip oil | Hair Type: All | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Herbal | Size: 0.8–6.7 ounces

It's a good idea to use a scalp scrub every few weeks to really cleanse your scalp and hair of buildup and oil (which can feel itchy and make hair look dull). That's where this Goop G.Tox comes in. Think of it as a whipped, exfoliating, scrub-style hair wash you can call on whenever you need to get rid of a week's worth of dry shampoo.

The formula is packed full of Himalayan pink salt (which works as a physical exfoliant), moringa oil, and rosehip oil (which restores hair with nutrients and oil). It can be worked right into the scalp to dissolve grease, remove product buildup, and add serious volume. As far as that "clean hair feeling" goes, this shampoo can't be beat. It can be somewhat intense on the scalp though so we suggest using just once a week.

What We Like
  • Adds volume with silk amino acids

  • Lightweight hydration with shea butter

  • Safe on color-treated hair, and provides heat protection

What to Consider
  • Not ideal for those with very oily scalps

Key Ingredients: Shea butter, silk amino acids | Hair Type: Dry, curly, damaged, color-treated, chemically processed | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Floral | Size: 8 ounces

Silk amino acids and shea butter help make The Doux's Sucka Free Moisturizing Shampoo ultra-hydrating without weighing down thin hair. These ingredients also provide excellent heat protection for those who use hot tools on the regular and are safe for color-treated, keratin-treated, and chemically processed hair. While any hair can benefit from the formula, it's particularly good for softening and detangling curls. It's worth noting that it might not provide a deep enough cleanse for those with very oily scalps.

Best for Color-Treated Hair

Ouai Fine Hair Shampoo

Ouai Fine Hair Shampoo
PHOTO:

 Amazon

What We Like
  • Encourages healthy growth with biotin

  • Strengthening with keratin

  • Prevents dullness and fading

What to Consider
  • Scent too strong for some

  • Not ideal for every-other-day washing

Key Ingredients: Biotin, chia seed oil, hydrolyzed keratin | Hair Type: Fine, thin | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Mercer Street | Size: 10–32 ounces

Finding a good color-safe shampoo can be tricky, but the clean, sulfate-free formulation inside Ouai's Fine Hair Shampoo will bring your color and hair back to life (or at least prevent it from getting more washed out). Containing biotin and keratin, it does everything from hydrate to strengthen to encourage new growth. We think it's a perfect match for fine-haired folks, but this shampoo works well for all hair types in need of some color protection and revitalizing.

This shampoo boasts the brand's Mercer Street fragrance. It's a delightful scent with a musky citrus base and subtle floral notes which we love but it may be too much for some.

Read Full Review: This Ouai Fine Hair Shampoo and Conditioner is My Secret to Healthy-Looking Hair

What We Like
  • Promotes healthy scalp

  • Hyaluronic acid adds moisture that won't weight down hair

  • Hair feels noticeably stronger

What to Consider
  • Contains sulfates; can be drying

Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, ceramides, gluco-peptide | Hair Type: Fine, thinning, damaged | Sulfate-Free: No | Cruelty-Free: No | Scent: Bergamot and pink mint | Size: 8.5–16.9 ounces

Say goodbye to hair loss and welcome stronger strands with this powerful formula. All the nourishing ingredients, such as hyaluronic acid and ceramides, help with an itchy, flaky scalp while decreasing hair fallout. These moisturizing, strengthening goods are what your hair needs to stay healthier over time. And this is one shampoo that actually delivers noticeable results. Just note it does contain sulfates which can strip hair and be drying, so we suggest using it sparingly.

What We Like
  • Suitable for color-treated hair

  • Lightweight consistency that still adds volume

  • Increases shine

What to Consider
  • Contains silicones; may create buildup

Key Ingredients: Glycerin, salicylic acid | Hair Type: Curly, wavy, textured, color-treated | Sulfate-Free: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Fruity, floral, spice | Size: 13.5–33.8 ounces

Even curls suffer from thinning, which is why it is vital to invest in a quality shampoo that improves volume, boosts curl definition, and supports scalp health, like this one from Biolage. The formula adds weightless shine and volume, helping enhance your coils or waves without weighing them down. Volume Bloom Shampoo contains silicones, which not everyone is a fan of, but they can give curly hair the needed "slip" for detangling. We do wish it didn't contain sulfates, which can be stripping.

What We Like
  • Prevents color fading and dullness

  • Protects from UV rays and heat damage

  • Adds fullness and body

What to Consider
  • Should be left on for three minutes

Key Ingredients: Keratin, argan oil, glycerin | Hair Type: Color-treated, chemically processed, fine, medium | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Fresh | Size: 8 ounces

If you're working with chemically processed hair—whether from a Brazilian blowout, a straightening treatment, or bleach—you need a shampoo that'll gently cleanse without drying or stripping. This one from Madison Reed goes above and beyond, preventing fading and dullness, safeguarding strands from sun and heat damage, and adding fullness and body. It's also made from clean ingredients and is cruelty-free. For best results, the brand recommends leaving it on for three minutes before rinsing.

What We Like
  • Mild formula gently cleanses with botanical oils

  • Removes buildup and oil with micellar water

  • Leaves hair bouncy and lush

What to Consider
  • Scent is too strong for some

Key Ingredients: Botanical extracts, micellar water | Hair Type: All | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Magnolia | Size: 2–32 ounces

Though some experts suggest lathering up every other day to prevent over-drying, we know lots of folks just prefer to shampoo their hair every day. This mild formula from Philip B leans on micellar water and botanical extracts to oh-so-gently wash away buildup, residues, and grease. It also adds lightweight volume, leaving you with a lush, bouncy mop. We love that it's part of a whole line of products that all claim to infuse hair with weightless volume.

What We Like
  • Patented plumping complex

  • Leaves hair soft but won't weigh down strands

  • Sustainable packaging

What to Consider
  • Doesn't create rich later

Key Ingredients: Redensyl® complex, rice protein, vegetable protein | Hair Type: Fine, flat, limp, thinning | Sulfate-Free: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Scent: Sweet vanilla citrus | Size: 9.2–33.8 ounces

Lightweight products are crucial for thin hair, as too much moisture or oil content can weigh it down and make it look flat or limp. That's one thing we love about Amika's 3D Shampoo. Its weightless consistency gently cleanses while plumping each strand from root to tip with a patented plumping complex. After rinsing, drying, and styling, you can count on hair that feels softer and looks fuller. We also love that it comes in sustainable packaging—you can get refill bags with a smaller carbon footprint rather than a new bottle each time you need a product replenishment.

What to Consider When Buying Shampoo for Fine Hair

  • Volume-Boosting Ingredients: According to Nader, there are quite a few ingredients you can look for if you've got fine hair and want to work in some volume. He suggests a formula with vitamin B5, polymers, biotin, or hyaluronic acid, as well as botanicals like ginseng and ginger.
  • Ingredients You Might Want to Exclude: What's left out of the formula is just as important as the ingredients list. While not a hard-and-fast rule, silicones (like dimethicone) can sometimes contribute to buildup, so if you have fine hair, it might be worth avoiding them. Other ingredients to avoid include sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), which can be drying, and various oils, which can weigh down your strands.
  • Scent: Shampoos are, more often than not, super scented. While we love a perfume-like fragrance that makes strands smell incredible, not everyone can handle it. Fragrances can also irritate the scalp, which could make it hard for already-thin hair to grow. If you have a sensitive scalp or know you're sensitive to fragrances in general, opt for an unscented option.
FAQ
  • What types of ingredients should you look for in a fine-hair shampoo?

    A shampoo for fine hair should contain volumizing ingredients instead of heavier ones like silicone or oils that may weigh it down. Shampoos that also provide strengthening elements will help prevent further thinning and breakage. Nader says to look for formulas containing biotin, vitamin B5, polymers, and hyaluronic acid. There are also caffeine shampoos that promote and stimulate hair growth.

  • How often should you wash fine hair?

    You may only want to wash fine hair every other day since daily washing can dry it out. However, waiting longer than every second day could lead to product buildup or oiliness that weighs hair down, making it look flat or greasy. Try different shampooing schedules to see what works best for you.

Why Trust Byrdie

Byrdie contributor Emily Algar has very fine hair and has personally tried most of the products featured here. Before narrowing her search, she considered dozens of shampoos, researched peer-reviewed journals, and consulted third-party reviews. This story was updated by Theresa Holland, a freelance commerce writer, editor, and product reviewer specializing in haircare, skincare, and makeup.

  • Anthony Nader is a celebrity hairstylist and the owner of Raw Hair, a high-end hair salon in Sydney, Australia.
Edited by Ally Hirschlag
Article Sources
Byrdie takes every opportunity to use high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial guidelines to learn more about how we keep our content accurate, reliable and trustworthy.
  1. Mahajan, Apoorva. (2016). Advancements in polymers used in hair care: a review. International Journal of Research in Cosmetic Science. 6. 6-16.

  2. Williams LB, Haydel SE. Evaluation of the medicinal use of clay minerals as antibacterial agents. Int Geol Rev. 2010;52(7/8):745-770. doi:10.1080/00206811003679737

  3. Gavazzoni Dias MF. Hair cosmetics: an overview. Int J Trichology. 2015;7(1):2-15. doi:10.4103/0974-7753.153450

  4. Pastor-Nieto, MA., Gatica-Ortega, ME. Ubiquity, Hazardous Effects, and Risk Assessment of Fragrances in Consumer Products. Curr Treat Options Allergy 8, 21–41 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40521-020-0027

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