Hair product scanner
Check the ingredients in your conditioner, mask or hair serum.
See which silicones, conditioning agents, oils and scent ingredients a hair product uses, what each one does, and what official sources say about it.
How to check a label
- Copy the list from the pack or product page and paste it into the checker.
- Look for the conditioning agents near the top of a conditioner: fatty alcohols and cationic conditioners do most of the softening.
- Spot the silicones: names containing METHICONE, SILOXANE or DIMETHICONOL. The checker groups them for you.
- Check the summary for anything an official source flags, and for the names it does not know.
Conditioners are built differently from shampoo
A conditioner rarely contains a strong cleanser. Its first names are usually water, a fatty alcohol such as Cetearyl Alcohol, which thickens it and is not the drying kind of alcohol, and a cationic conditioner such as Behentrimonium Chloride, which clings to hair and reduces static.
Leave-in serums and oils often lead with silicones such as Cyclopentasiloxane or Dimethicone, which give slip and shine. Whether you want them is a preference; the checker shows them so you can decide.
What the checker flags on hair products
Cationic conditioners and preservatives often carry an EU rule, such as a maximum concentration or a limit to rinse-off products, and fragrance allergens must be named on EU labels above a threshold. Each flag names its regulation entry and links to it. Some cyclic silicones are restricted under EU chemicals law too.
A flag describes a rule, not this product: the label does not say how much is in it.
Names you will often see
Roles are each ingredient's main function, as the EU's CosIng database lists it and the app ranks it for haircare.
Cetearyl Alcohol
Softens and smooths. A fatty alcohol, a waxy ingredient made from plant oils. It is a blend of cetyl and stearyl alcohols.
Read the article 8 sourcesBehentrimonium Chloride
Conditions and detangles hair. A quaternary ammonium salt, a type of ingredient with a long fatty chain and a positive charge that is drawn to hair.
Learn moreCetrimonium Chloride
Reduces static. An ingredient made in a lab, from the family of quaternary ammonium salts, which carry a positive electrical charge.
Learn moreAmodimethicone
Conditions and detangles hair. A silicone polymer made in a lab, with added groups that help it attach to hair. It is one of the silicones.
Read the article 8 sourcesDimethicone
Softens and smooths. A silicone, one of a family of smooth, slippery ingredients made in a lab.
Read the article 8 sourcesCyclopentasiloxane
Conditions and detangles hair. A silicone, one of a family of smooth, slippery ingredients made in a lab. It is a light liquid that evaporates from the skin.
Learn moreDimethiconol
Helps attract water. A silicone, one of a family of smooth, slippery ingredients made in a lab.
Learn morePanthenol
Conditions and detangles hair. A form of vitamin B5, usually made in a lab.
Read the article 4 sourcesHydrolyzed Keratin
Conditions and detangles hair. Keratin, the protein that makes up hair and nails, broken into smaller pieces. It comes from animal sources.
Learn moreArgania Spinosa Kernel Oil
Softens and smooths. An oil pressed from the kernels of the argan tree, which grows in Morocco.
Learn moreQuestions
How can I tell if a hair product has silicones?
Look for names containing METHICONE (Dimethicone, Amodimethicone), SILOXANE (Cyclopentasiloxane) or DIMETHICONOL. The checker marks every one with the Silicones group so you do not have to read for them.
Is "alcohol" in a conditioner drying?
Usually not. Cetearyl, cetyl and stearyl alcohol are fatty alcohols that thicken and soften. The drying kind is ethanol, printed as Alcohol or Alcohol Denat., which the checker puts in its own Drying alcohol group.
Can I check a hair product without typing the list?
With the iPhone app you photograph the label and it reads the list for you. On this site you can paste a list copied from a shop's product page.
Guides
Check another kind of product
For iPhone
Skip the copying. Scan the label.
The app reads the ingredient list straight from the pack with your camera, explains every name the same way, and puts your own watchlist first. Your scans stay on your phone.
Download on the App Store