7 Best Hair Masks, Tested and Reviewed (2025)

I put my hair through the wringer on a regular basis. Naturally, it’s honey-colored, but every few months I bleach it to death and coat it in neon-pink hair dye. I wear it up too often. I pelt it with styling products. I rinse it in hard water and subject it to all sorts of environmental torment. I’m no stranger to hair treatments, and I’ve spent the last few months testing them out to find the very best options on the internet.

A hair mask is basically a more intensive version of your typical daily conditioner. If you wash your hair frequently, conditioner will probably get the job done. But if you’re like me and you wash twice per week, a heavy-duty hair mask can help replenish moisture and nutrients more intensively than a lighter-weight conditioner. Hair masks can also come in handy if your hair is going through a tough time (like in drier winter months or post-lightening), or if you want specifically targeted treatments (like bond repair or toning). Depending on your age, you might remember seeing magazine articles calling for a homemade hair mask that had some version of egg whites, honey, avocado, mayonnaise, or olive oil. These masks below will get you targeted treatments for shine or moisture without using up all your sandwich ingredients.

Somewhat confusingly, hair masks and deep conditioners are not necessarily the same thing, though they are closely related. A deep conditioner is a hair mask, but a hair mask is not necessarily a deep conditioner. And their effectiveness will vary based on how often you wash, how long you use them for, your hair type, and any color treatments or processes your hair has gone through. If your hair is dry or curly, look for keywords like “hydrating” or “moisture repleneshing.” If your hair is very fine, look for keywords like “lightweight” or “daily use.” These can help clue you in on what might be best—as can the recommendations below.

Be sure to check out our related buying guides, including the Best Diffusers for Curly Hair, the Best Hair Straighteners, and the Best Dry Shampoos.

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How We Tested and What’s Up Next

I followed the instructions on each mask exactly, and if a range of instructions was offered (such as letting the mask sit for a range of time, or using it under a plastic cap for better absorption), I tested each method. I used each mask at least three times over the course of at least one week. I didn’t follow the masks with conditioner unless instructed to or specifically noted otherwise. We have several more masks to test, including protein masks, toning masks, bond repair systems, and more, so stay tuned for updates.

I have thick, long, curly, mixed-race hair ranging from curl type 2A to 3A. It’s low-porosity and usually dry and damaged. I have hard water in my home, and I very rarely heat-style it.

Editor Kat Merck has thick, long, dark hair that she heat-straightens on a daily basis.

Common Ingredients, Keywords, and Terms

You might see some or all of these words buzzing around the hair mask scene. Here’s a bit of insight into what they mean.

Sulfates: Sulfates are cleansing agents that are usually found in shampoos and conditioners. They can be drying if used too much, so if you have dry hair, you might want to avoid them.

Color-safe: Color-safe isn’t a regulated term, but it usually indicates that a product is free of intensive cleansing agents that might fade your hair. I’ve had some color-safe products strip my hair color and others that didn’t pull any pigment out. If you have colored hair, I recommend doing a patch test on a small section near the back of your head before slathering a product all over it.

Alcohols: Short-chain alcohols like propanol, ethanol, and isopropyl alcohol evaporate quickly, which can make your hair dry out. Fatty alcohols like stearyl alcohol can actually moisturize the hair. Not all alcohols are created equally. A product being alcohol-free doesn’t necessarily mean that it will be more moisturizing.

Silicones: Silicones coat the hair shaft to make it smoother and shinier. But if they aren’t water-soluble, they can build up over time, leading to duller and drier hair. Ultimately, whether you use silicones comes down to personal preference. I try to avoid them, but I also use a deep-cleansing shampoo once a month or so that’s full of sulfates to “reset” my hair and get rid of any lingering buildup from any of the products that I use.

Active ingredients: Most masks list their “active ingredients” (and I’ve broken key ingredients down further in the non-exhaustive lists in the tables under my recommendations). These can be things like oils, butters, plant extracts, and keratin. Certain ingredients do not promise certain results. For example, my hair loves some products with shea butter and really hates it in other products. Ingredients can give you an idea of what the mask is trying to achieve, but the best way of figuring it out is just to try it. It can also be helpful to look at reviews from other people with hair types similar to yours.

Many hair masks contain hydrolyzed protein for strength and elasticity, including some of our picks below. Scientifically, there’s no evidence behind “protein overload,” but sometimes people using protein-rich products report experiencing dullness, limpness, and brittleness that has become associated with using too much protein in your hair care. The good folks at the Haircare Science subreddit have a few theories here, including that proteins don’t stick to hair very well (so protein-heavy products may be less conditioning). Other people theorize that ”protein overload” is actually just product buildup. In any case, if you’re using a protein-rich product and you’re not happy with your hair, you might just need to follow it with a more intensive conditioning treatment. It’s not that the protein is bad, it’s that the rest of the product isn’t good enough. And as anyone with hair knows, sometimes nailing the right routine can be trial and error. I usually follow protein-rich treatments with a treatment that doesn’t contain protein because my hair gets buildup easily. Don’t be afraid of using protein!