Are you currently shopping for your next round of hair products? Whether you’re searching for shampoo and conditioner, hair mousse, spray detangler, pomade, or another type of hair product, it’s important that the items you choose work well with your hair type. Using a product that’s designed for a different hair type can potentially have adverse effects on your hair, and may even leave your strands feeling dehydrated, greasy, frizzy, or clumpy. Fortunately, there are numerous tips and tricks that can prepare you to navigate the hair products market and pick out the perfect items you need to address your top hair concerns. Here are four little-known pieces of advice to simplify your hair product shopping process.

1. Spend Ample Time Looking Up Both Positive and Negative Product Reviews Online

Perhaps the simplest tip for helping you to find the ideal hair products for your needs is to read or watch plenty of reviews. Reviews from real customers can give you a better sense of how a given hair care product may perform on certain hair types or textures, helping you make an informed decision when choosing the best product for your unique needs.

Make sure to dedicate plenty of time to:

• Researching Function of Beauty Reviews and other product reviews on YouTube
• Sorting written reviews by most recent or by top-rated to lowest-rated
• Asking your family and friends for personal product reviews and their experiences with certain hair products

2. Visit a Trichologist To Determine Your Precise Hair Type and Texture

If you’re unsure of your exact hair type or texture, you may want to consider booking a visit to your dermatologist or trichologist, a hair specialist who can help assess your hair and give you personalized recommendations. Your hair type likely falls into one of the following categories:

• Straight hair
• Curly hair
• Wavy hair
• Kinky hair
• Fine or thin hair
• Coarse or thick hair
• Frizzy hair

3. Experiment With New Products and Pick Your Favorites Via Trial and Error

In some cases, trial and error may be one of the best ways to identify the right products for you. You may wish to:

• Make room in your monthly beauty budget for one or two new hair products
• Use each new hair product consistently for a few days or weeks to test it out
• Take before-and-after photos or keep a journal tracking your results
• Compare the results and consider returning to the products that gave you the best hair days

4. Learn About Some of the Most Commonly Used Hair Product Industry Terms

Finally, if reading the back of the bottle tends to leave you dazed and confused, you may want to read up on common hair terminology used in the industry. Frequent terms include:

• Humectant
• Detangling
• Non-comedogenic
• Pomade and masque
• Organic or natural
• Volumizing
• Texturizing

Just like organic and vegan food products, before you head to the store or log in online to pick up your next batch of hair products, it’s worth putting in the time to understand what type of products may be best for your particular hair type. Different hair types have different needs and may require different ingredients or product textures to address adequately. Thankfully, having just a few key tricks and tips up your sleeve can make your shopping process a lot easier. Keep these four tenets in mind as you browse your top hair product options.