Best-Rated Hairspray

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Spray, set, go: Schwarzkopf holds up as best-rated brand for hairspray

Mean girl Gretchen Wieners’ hair was so big because it was full of secrets… and probably of hairspray too. Either way, she earned an A+ in setting the standards for great hair. But in reality (and without movie magic), a can of hairspray can sometimes cause hairy problems, such as making your luscious locks crispier than fried chicken, stiff as hay, or just a downright flop.

To make sure that you can whip your hair back and forth without putting the fun ‘on hold’, we surveyed more than 500 Aussies for their feedback on the hairspray(s) they purchased and used in the last six months. Respondents scored brands on effectiveness, consistency, scent, packaging design, value for money and overall satisfaction. Brands that received at least 30 responses are rated and compared above.

In our first-ever hairspray review, Schwarzkopf gave a slick performance and achieved five stars in a whopping five out of six research categories ─ including overall satisfaction.

Best Hairspray Brands

Here are the best brands of hairspray in Australia, as rated by consumers in Canstar Blue’s inaugural review:

1. Schwarzkopf
2. Pantene
3. TRESemmé
4. L’Oréal
5. Garnier

Schwarzkopf brushed up best with the only five-star review for overall satisfaction, before earning bonus full marks for effectiveness, consistency, packaging design and value for money. Pantene and TRESemmé trailed slightly behind on four stars for overall satisfaction, while L’Oréal and Garnier ended on three stars.

However, it’s worth mentioning that Pantene and TRESemmé briefly stole the spotlight when judged on scent, scoring five stars, with TRESemmé also getting the same result for packaging design.

About the Winner ─ Schwarzkopf

Schwarzkopf is a global hair expert, supplying the world with its increasingly popular hair care, hair styling and hair colour ranges. As part of its arsenal, the brand sells a wide variety of hairsprays to meet all your hairy needs ─ whether it’s adding volume, setting hair while still maintaining movement, or forming curls. Some products include:

• Schwarzkopf 2 Sexy Hairspray
• Schwarzkopf Taft Traditional Taft Flexible Hairspray
• Schwarzkopf Push Up Volume Hairspray
• Schwarzkopf Strong Styling Non-Aerosol Hairspray

Schwarzkopf topped our ratings with five-star reviews for effectiveness, consistency, packaging design, value for money and overall satisfaction. It got four stars for scent.

What does hairspray do to your hair?

Hairspray is a staple hairstyling product that’s mainly designed to keep your hairstyle, whether it’s an updo or down hairstyle, in place. It also works like magic to tame frizz and flyaway strands and adds shine to the hair. Basically, hairspray ensures the hairstyle you’ve worked hard to create sits in place all day and night (or for as long as possible).

Keep in mind that using an excessive amount of hairspray can cause your hair to become too stiff, or create a build-up of product that can end up weighing your hair down and make it much more difficult to work with, especially if you’re using a strong-hold hairspray.

Which type of hairspray should I use?

There are various types of hairsprays and ‘strengths’ to choose from, each designed to do something different. These include:

• Texture hairspray: adds volume and texture without weighing your hair down.
• Volumising hairspray: is applied to the roots to add volume and help make your hair look full and thick.
• Shaping hairspray: offers a light and flexible hold, so that you can still brush or comb through your hair to style it the way you want.
• Finishing hairspray: used at the end as the ‘final touch’. Unlike shaping spray, it provides a strong-hold to set the hairdo in place as well as add shine.
• Thermal hairspray: protects against the heat from hair tools such as hair straighteners and hair dryers.

What makes the best hairspray ultimately depends on what hairstyle you’re trying to achieve, as well as your hair type (i.e. curly, straight, etc). In fact, nearly a quarter of people we surveyed (28%) said they typically buy something specific to their hair type. Our survey also found most people prefer a hairspray with a strong or extra strong (37%), followed by medium hold (18%), light or flexible hold (9%) and volumising (9%). Plus, while almost half (46%) of those we surveyed stick to the same brand, a fifth (20%) simply opt for whichever is the cheapest.

Typically, a product with a flexible hold is ideal because it gives you a little more wiggle room and still allows you to shape your hair how you want it with tools like a comb or brush. Meanwhile, hairspray with a strong hold tends to help your hair stay in place for longer, but that makes it less forgiving if you make a mistake.

About the author of this page

This report was written by Canstar Blue’s home & lifestyle journalist, Tahnee-Jae Lopez-Vito. She’s an expert on household appliances, grooming products and all things grocery and shopping. In addition to translating our expert research into consumer-friendly ratings reports, Tahnee spends her time helping consumers make better-informed purchase decisions on all manner of consumer goods and services, while highlighting the best deals and anything you need to be aware of.

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