How Often Should You Wash Your Hair? 4 Hair Types Answered

If you find yourself Googling ‘how to wash your hair’ or ‘how often should I wash my hair?’, don’t feel silly: these are perfectly acceptable questions that most of us have dwelled upon at least once in our lifetime. But are there actually set rules that we should be following with regards to our hair care routine? The short answer: no.

Although on average, people wash their hair every 3-6 days, there is no hard and fast rule as to how often you should do this. Ultimately, you should cleanse your hair as much as you need or want to: it’s completely down to personal preference.

Still looking for more expert advice on how often to wash hair? You’re in luck, because we’ve put together a set of flexible guidelines (dependent on different hair types) which will provide you with information on how long you should leave between washes. Just read on to find your recommended routine!

How often should you wash your hair?

How often do you wash your hair?

Afro or curly hair types

Questioning’ how often should I wash natural hair?’ Generally, afro or very curly hair is washed on average once a week. This is because the natural hair oils produced by the scalp are not able to easily travel all the way down the hair shaft because of the twists and turns of the curls. Washing afro or curly hair too often (like washing hair every day, for instance) could actually harm your tresses, making it more prone to breakage.

Plus, if you prefer to straighten your curly hair, then less frequent cleansing could work in your favour. It will save you a considerable amount of time that you would have otherwise lost to heated styling!

Editor’s tip: Enriched with pure drops of botanical oils, including African Macadamia Oil, the Dove Advanced Hair Series Pure Care Dry Oil Shampoo and Conditioner is perfect for giving you nourished soft and shiny hair.

Thick or heavy hair types

how often should you wash your hair: woman with thick curly hair

Source: Unsplash

If you have thick hair – or simply lots of it – you can hang on a few more days in between washes. A good frequency is twice a week – but up it to three if you feel you need it.

Thin or straight hair types

Thin hair is normally washed every day to remove sebum that can weigh the hair down. Unlike afro or curly hair, thin, straight hair allows oil and sebum to spread quicker. This is due to the shape of the strands. Although some natural hair oils are good for your scalp, build-up of sebum can make thin hair look greasy, and limp. So, you can opt to cleanse your hair more frequently if you wish to. Don’t want to wash every day? Try a good dry shampoo in between washes to keep hair looking and feeling fresh.

Regular gym users

How many times should you wash your hair if you’re a regular gym-goer? If you’re a fitness fanatic, you’ll probably find that you sweat a lot during your workouts. If this is the case, you should wash your hair relatively frequently to help remove any residues of sweat which is salty and damaging to your delicate tresses.

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