This Is How Often You Need A Haircut Based on Your Style and Texture
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Mauricio Santana1/11If You Have Tight, Coarse Curls
12 weeks
"For curlier or kinkier textures, the general rule of thumb is quarterly haircuts," says hairstylist Anthony Dickey. "That's about the time it takes to get single-strand knots or split ends." If you want to preserve or grow out your length, ask your hairstylist to remove a quarter inch or less at each visit — that will ensure there's always more growth than the amount you're cutting.
JP Yim2/11If You Have Virgin Hair
12 weeks
Another great thing about being a young person? Their unprocessed hair is basically the healthiest it will ever be. If your hair has never been colored and you haven't yet exposed it to the rigors of frequent hot-tool usage (and you're in your early 20s), you can go up to three months between trims without any risk of looking frayed, says hairstylist Nathaniel Hawkins.
PYMCA3/11If You Have Long Hair That's Wavy Or Straight
8 to 12 weeks
If you treat your long, uniform-length hair like your skin — moisturizing with masks, minimizing heat damage — you can wait 8 to 12 weeks until your next cut. The style doesn't have a specific shape that requires frequent maintenance, and if it's properly cared for your hair shouldn't split or break too quickly.
Francois Nel4/11If You Have Fine Or Medium Curls
8 to 12 weeks
Because many people with curls tend to be vigilant about keeping their hair hydrated, it's usually healthy, says Hawkins. Two or three months is a safe break between cuts. Those with spirals on the finer side should keep the rotation closer to eight weeks, though. Too much length can make thin curls look stringy and stretched.
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Cedric Ribeiro5/11If You Have Long Layers
6 to 8 weeks
Ironically, this is the only category hairstylists actually suggest for the prevailing six- to eight-week rule. It's long enough to let your hair grow for length and short enough to keep face-framing pieces in place.
Edward Berthelot6/11If You Have Lots of Different Layers
6 weeks
Week one: Layers have a textured, piecey look. Week four: Layers have a lived-in, sexy-rough look. Week eight: Layers have a wonky and ragged look. Heavily cut styles with lots of layers require six weeks to keep the lengths fresh.
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Mireya Acierto7/11If You Have a Bob Or Lob
6 weeks
"Clean, sharp lines grow out nicely, so geometric or A-line bobs without any nape graduation can go six weeks," says Hawkins. "Those cuts also don't tend to have layers in the crown that will lose their fullness."
Edward Berthelot8/11If You Have Fine Hair That's Wavy Or Straight
4 to 6 weeks
Fine hair can be a fickle pain in the ass. You can go weeks with it looking pretty damn swell, and then you wake up one morning and it's a sad, limp head of meh. "The challenge with fine hair is the need to constantly reshape it without cutting too much off," says Hawkins, who advises waiting at least four but no more than six weeks to keep it in check.
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Kirstin Sinclair9/11If You Have Short Hair
Kirstin Sinclair10/11If You Have Damaged Hair
4 weeks
The bad news is there's no way to undo damage from chemical processing, coloring, or heat styling. The good news is regular monthly cuts will gradually phase out the busted hair while still allowing enough time for healthy roots to grow in.
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Christian Vierig11/11If You Have Bangs
2 weeks
If your bangs are more of the side-swept, wispy variety, you can probably stretch out your trims a little longer. But strong, blunt, heavy, straight: If any of these words describe your fringe, a quick pruning every other week will keep the look tight.
