Curl world

How to Figure Out Your Curl Type

The current curl typing system may not be perfect, but it's still a solid jumping-off point for styling tips.  
Simone Ashley with 2b hair Julia Garner with 3a hair and Kiki Layne with 4c hair.
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Most people with textured hair have more than one type of pattern on their head, "so you may have a combination of, say, kinky, coily, wavy, and curly," adds François. Identifying your curl shape and pattern(s) is best determined while your hair is sopping wet.

A simple breakdown: Type 1s are straight, Type 2s are wavy, Type 3s are curly, and Type 4s are coily. Easy, right?

The sub-classifications of A to C are based on the width or diameter of your wave, curl, or coil. Type As have a wider pattern size, Type Bs medium, and Type Cs the smallest of the three. "The real beauty of identifying your hair type is that you're better at understanding how to care for your texture so you can have more versatility," explains Anthony Dickey, the curl wizard behind the Hair Rules salon and brand.

In this story:

Type 2 (Wavy)

Type 2 waves are bendable, can be fine to coarse, and have a definitive S pattern that lays closer to the head.

Type 2A
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Getty Images

Those with hair type 2A have a fine, barely-there tousled texture that's very easy to straighten. People with this texture have to be wary of using heavy styling products that can easily weigh their strands down, rendering them limp and lifeless. If you've got this hair texture, be sure the products you're looking for are formulated with a lightweight consistency.

2A waves typically lack volume at the root. Dickey recommends using an airy, water-based mousse, like the Aveda Phomollient Styling Foam, to add a bit of oomph at the base, making hair look fluffier and fuller.

Aveda Phomollient Styling Foam white foam dispenser bottle with clear cap on white background

Aveda

Aveda Phomollient Styling Foam

Function of Beauty Zero Gravity Styling Hair Mousse purple mousse bottle with white pump and clear cap on white background

Function of Beauty

Function of Beauty Zero Gravity Styling Hair Mousse

Type 2B
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Getty Images

2B hair lies flatter at the crown with defined S-shaped waves starting from the midlength. Strands are thicker in diameter than a 2A, and you'll have to put a bit more elbow grease into getting it straight.

To enhance your natural surfer-babe waves, use a texturizing mist like the Ouai Wave Spray, which is enriched with rice protein for hair that is never crunchy or stiff. The Ceremonia Guava Beach Waves Hair Texturizing Spay is another great option for moisturizing and playing up your natural waves without weighing your hair down.

Ouai Wave Spray transparent spray bottle of pale yellow wave spray with white label and cap on white background

Ouai

Ouai Wave Spray

Ceremonia Guava Beach Waves Hair Texturizing Spray brown spray bottle with lavender label and white spray cap on white background

Ceremonia

Ceremonia Guava Beach Waves Hair Texturizing Spray

Type 2C
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Michael Tullberg

2C waves are thick and more susceptible to frizz. The S-bends are well-defined and begin at the roots. In between shampoos, use a non-lathering, sulfate-free co-wash so as not to strip essential moisture from strands, like the Briogeo Curl Charisma Rice Amino + Shea Hydrating Co-Wash. This particular product was formulated to work beautifully on all curl textures.

Dickey also recommends layering a leave-in conditioner under a mousse to lock in your hair's natural wave pattern while adding hydration. We like the Verb Curl Leave In Conditioner and the Design Essentials Natural Almond & Avocado Curl Enhancing Mousse.

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As I Am

As I Am Coconut Cleansing Conditioner

Verb Curl Leave In Conditioner white bottle with orange text on white background

Verb

Verb Curl Leave In Conditioner

Design Essentials Natural Almond & Avocado Curl Enhancing Mousse green mousse bottle with dark gray label and light gray pump dispenser on white background

Design Essentials

Design Essentials Natural Almond & Avocado Curl Enhancing Mousse

Type 3 (Curly)

Type 3 curly hair can range from loose, buoyant loops to tight, springy corkscrews which have some shine.

Type 3A
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Getty Images

3A strands tend to be shiny with large, loose curls that have a diameter about the size of a piece of sidewalk chalk. Scrunch the SGX NYC Curl Power Nourishing Curl Cream (a 2019 Best of Beauty winner) into your dry hair to help emphasize the curl texture. Keep your hands (or brush or comb, for that matter) from touching your curls afterward, or you run the risk of having a halo full of frizz.

To maintain those juicy springs, simply spritz your hair with a curl refresher, like the Carol's Daughter Hair Milk Nourishing & Conditioning Refresher Spray. This formula is lightweight, defines curls, and smells amazing.

SGX NYC Curl Power Nourishing Curl Cream white tube with pink, purple, and blue underwater light reflection label on white background

SGX

SGX NYC Curl Power Nourishing Curl Cream

Carol's Daughter Hair Milk Curl Refresher Spray beige spray bottle with red stripes on it with black nozzle on white background

Carol's Daughter

Carol's Daughter Hair Milk Curl Refresher Spray

Type 3B
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Instagram / @hermusicofficial

3B types have springy ringlets with a circumference similar to that of a Sharpie marker. This texture can get dry, so look for curl gels that have humectants in them to attract moisture to strands.

Try Mielle Organics Honey & Ginger Styling Gel. This gel contains glycerin, which is great at hydrating the hair. The Curls Goddess Botanical Gel is another hydrating gel that defines curls without drying out the hair.

A word of advice: "Apply when [your hair is] wet so you'll get definition without frizz," Dickey advises.

Mielle Organics Honey & Ginger Styling Gel bottle of light tan curl styling gel with hot pink label and black pump cap on white background

Mielle Organics

Mielle Organics Honey & Ginger Styling Gel

Curls Goddess Botanical Gel clear bottle with orange and turquoise label and black cap on white background

Curls

Curls Goddess Botanical Gel

Type 3C

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Getty Images

3C curls are tight corkscrews that range in circumference from a straw to a pencil. Strands are densely packed together, giving way to lots of natural volume. Frizziness is common with this type; if that's not a look you're into, use a sulfate-free, creamy cleanser, like the Oyin Handmade Ginger Mint Co-Wash, that won't dry out your hair even more.

Dickey also favors layering a mousse (such as the Best of Beauty-winning Rucker Roots Texture Styling Mousse) over a styling cream (like the Eden BodyWorks Coconut Shea Curl Defining Creme) when the hair is sopping wet to allow curls to clump together and dry faster. "Your co-wash reveals your curl pattern, while your styling product captures [it]," explains Dickey.

Oyin Handmade Ginger Mint Co-Wash white pump bottle with light blue label on white background

Oyin Handmade

Oyin Handmade Ginger Mint Co-Wash

Rucker Roots Texture Styling Mousse white mousse bottle with brown and bronze label on white background

Rucker Roots

Rucker Roots Texture Styling Mousse

Eden BodyWorks Coconut Shea Curl Defining Creme white jar with blue gray lid on white background

Eden BodyWorks

Eden BodyWorks Coconut Shea Curl Defining Creme

Type 4 (Coily)

Coily hair, commonly referred to as Afro-textured or kinky hair, is naturally very dry and spongy in texture and can be soft and fine or coarse and wiry. Strands form very tight, small curls of zig-zags right from the scalp and are prone to major shrinkage.

Type 4A
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Instagram / @Theestallion

People with hair type 4A have dense springy, S-patterned coils that are about the same circumference as a crochet needle. If this sounds like you, look to Yara Shahidi and Megan Thee Stallion's texture here for reference. If you're a fan of wash-and-gos, styling should be done more frequently to keep this coily texture popping with soft, pliable strands.

A curl cream with a leave-in moisturizer is a must for adding more moisture to daily wash-and-go styling. The Hair Rules Kinky Curling Cream with the Hair Rules Nourishment Leave In Moisturizer is Dickey's go-to cocktail combo. The combination of both products will help define your curls without leaving them hard or crunchy. Use a diffuser to dry your curls for even more fluff and volume.

Hair Rules Kinky Curling Cream white bottle with blue dot design on white background

Hair Rules

Hair Rules Kinky Curling Cream

Hair Rules Nourishment Leave In Moisturizer white bottle with multicolor dot and spiral design on white background

Hair Rules

Hair Rules Nourishment Leave-In Moisturizer

Type 4B
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Getty Images

4B strands are densely packed and can bend in sharp angles like the letter Z. "I love that it can be shaped in many different ways," says François. "One of my favorite products for all kinks, coils, curls, and waves is my Mist Nourishing Water which is a fantastic primer before styling in a non-aerosol spray; a little goes a long way and hair looks instantly hydrated."

On the other hand, Dickey prefers styling creams, like the Crème of Nature Coconut Milk Curl Hydrating Curling Cream, for this hair type because they are thicker and are great for palm-rolling or shingling, two types of product distribution methods that stretch out coils and clump them for greater texture definition and elongation.

Vernon François Mist Nourishing Water turquoise bottle with large white spray nozzle on white background

Vernon François

Vernon François Mist Nourishing Water

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Maui Moisture

Creme of Nature Hydrating Curling Cream

Type 4C
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Getty Images

4C textures are similar to 4B textures, but the tightly coiled strands are more fragile and have a very tight zig-zag pattern that is sometimes indiscernible to the eye. This hair type experiences the greatest amount of shrinkage — about 75 percent or more — than the other textures. If you are a 4C, take your style cues from Kiki Layne. "I love that [this texture] is so versatile," says François.

Since shrinkage and dryness are major concerns for this type, use a liberal amount of leave-in moisturizer, such as the SheaMoisture Red Palm Oil & Cocoa Butter Curl Stretch Pudding to max the length of those strands. Castor oil is also a great hydrator and sealant for this very dry texture; we like the SheaMoisture 100% Pure Jamaican Black Castor Oil.

Bread Beauty Supply Hair-Cream lavender jar on white background

Bread Beauty

Bread Beauty Supply Hair-Cream

Christophe Robin Regenerating Serum with Prickly Pear Oil mini white bottle with coral pump cap on white background

Christophe Robin

Christophe Robin Regenerating Serum with Prickly Pear Oil

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