Shampoo Bars: Are They Good for Your Hair?

Switching to plastic-free should be as easy as possible. Here’s our handy guide to explore the benefits, hidden features, and everything in between that make a shampoo bar a great choice for a low-impact lifestyle, compared with liquid shampoos. 

Are Solid Shampoo Bars Good for Hair?

Thanks to their natural origin ingredients, plastic-free shampoo bars lather up beautifully and are perfect for every hair cleanse. With a range of natural origin aromas to choose from, each with its own unique benefit, you’ll find one to suit your hair type. Most modern formulations of shampoo bars are pH-balanced and provide gentle, cleansing washes for your hair. Unlike many old-fashioned solid soaps that can leave your hair feeling dry and brittle, modern shampoo bars are much more moisturising and will hydrate your strands just as well as liquid shampoos. 

They’re perfect for everyday use thanks to their travel-friendly size and concentrated formula. They’re also available in fragrance-free options, perfect if you have a sensitive scalp (or just prefer the unscented option!). 

Do Shampoo Bars Improve Hair Health?

Our shampoo bars contain no sulfates, parabens or silicones. They’re designed to moisturise your hair and cleanse your scalp with mild surfactants (the stuff that makes your shampoo bar lather!). Plus, because they’re zero waste, there's no pesky plastic that often comes from common liquid shampoos, reducing plastic waste in your bathroom – definitely a good thing.

While no shampoo directly “improves” hair health, using a well-formulated bar can help maintain balanced, clean hair, which supports stronger-looking, more nourished strands and reduced frizz over time. Plus, without the added nasty synthetics, you don’t have to worry about them harming your hair health or scalp microbiome. 

Do Shampoo Bars Work Well for All Hair Types?

• Oily hair, fine hair or straight hair - Lavender and Geranium is a particularly good combo for oily hair types. Ours contains two essential oils. Lavender oil, known to be relaxing and geranium oil, known to be soothing. These will help cleanse your hair without stripping it of the natural oils that are important for healthy hair growth. 

• Curly hair (including coily or textured hair) - Moisturising shea butter and argan oil are both known to increase shine and reduce frizz. Luckily for fans of the Curly Girl Method, our Shea and Argan shampoo bar contains both of these. So, you can care for your curls the zero-waste way. Running your hands through with the suds from your shampoo bar is also great for detangling your strands. 

• Dry, brittle or damaged hair - Our coconut oil and shea butter shampoo bars are perfect for dry hair. Ours contains coconut essential oil, known to help hydrate and condition and organic shea butter, known to be moisturising. 

• Colour-treated or chemically processed hair - Shampoo bars can work very well for synthetically coloured, bleached, or otherwise treated hair, often performing better than common liquid shampoos because they typically lack harsh sulfates (so no waxy residue!). Just be sure to patch test first.

• Sensitive scalps - Choosing the right formulations is key with a sensitive scalp. Shampoo bars are often a great choice because they don’t leave build-ups of harsh chemicals like some liquid shampoos do, leading to less scalp sensitivity. 

Are Shampoo Bars Better Than Liquid Shampoo?

Thanks to their simplified ingredients list compared to regular shampoos, they’re a much less impactful option for your haircare routine. Even with 99% biodegradable ingredients, we’re constantly looking for ways to improve our shampoo bars. 

We do still make shampoo bottles for our liquid formulas, but the plastic we use had a life before it became a bottle. Plus, it’s widely recyclable. Like all our products, our solid shampoo bars are cruelty-free and contain only the best natural oils. We’d hate to choose between our invigorating liquid shampoos and our zero-waste shampoo bars, but shampoo bars are a great low-impact option for a more sustainable bathroom routine.

What Is the Healthiest Way to Shampoo Your Hair With a Bar?

The best shampoo bars will lather up quickly using warm water, meaning less time spent tugging your hair or rinsing it with water. 

The key is proper application — allow time for the lather to build in your warm shower and rinse with water thoroughly. Once you find the right bar for your hair type (but give it some time, it can be a process finding a shampoo bar that works for your hair type), you can expect the same clean, refreshed feeling.

Start by massaging the product into your scalp and then work it through your hair, trying to avoid the ends. Avoid overwashing and make sure to rinse thoroughly – your hair will thank you for it. Follow up your hair wash with a solid conditioner, depending on your hair type. This will add back the nutrients and hydration that you might have lost from shampooing - don’t worry, though, it’s all replaceable. 

How Often Should I Use a Shampoo Bar?

The general rule here is to use a shampoo bar just as often as you would normally wash your hair. If you suffer from scalp dryness, a maximum of twice a week should do to avoid any extra scalp irritation. Between washes, store your shampoo bar back in its box or invest in a soap dish to keep it dry between uses (this tip applies to conditioner bars as well; it’ll make them last longer). 

When you first start shampooing with a solid bar, you may notice your hair becomes dry or a little more brittle after the first wash (which is normal). But trust us, stick with it, and you’ll start to soon reap the benefits of washing the natural way!

Do Shampoo Bars Provide the Same Benefits as Liquid Shampoos?

Absolutely! Especially with the added benefit of having a lower impact on the natural world thanks to their zero-waste Nature. Their concentrated formulations mean that the cleansing ability of shampoo bars is equivalent (sometimes better) than liquid alternatives. 

The trick with a shampoo bar is to wet your bar, wet your hair, then rub it into your scalp with gentle circular motions to lather it up. Remember that sometimes it takes a while for the lather to happen. But it will happen. If you’ve got super long strands, apply the bar directly to the lengths as well. Then rinse as normal and enjoy that squeaky clean feeling. Conditioning works much the same way, just with a little more focus on the length of your strands, making sure to work the product right to the tips for maximum benefit.

Talk to the Experts: How Faith in Nature Can Help

Our first solid soap bar was made by Rivka Rose back in 1974! A shampoo bar isn’t much different. With three shampoo bars to choose from, each with essential oils and deeply hydrating natural-origin ingredients, you’re so close to reinvigorating your haircare routine and making a positive step towards improving your bathroom sustainability. Grab a bar and get lathering! 

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