When I had sleepovers growing up, my friends and I would always create DIY hair masks using coconut oil and egg yolks, all because a bunch of YouTube videos told us to. You would not believe the looks of horror that crossed my mother’s face when she saw a bunch of 12-year-olds slathering this homemade, messy-as-hell concoction all over our heads. Jokes on my mom, though, because our hair always felt super soft and looked ultra-shiny afterward. That's because coconut oil is the GOAT for smooth, moisturized hair.
Take a peek at the ingredients in your favorite shampoo, leave-in conditioner, or hair oil and you’ll probably find coconut oil listed. Not only has coconut oil become a common element in many hair products, you can even put it straight on your hair for a serious shine boost. But before you just glob it onto your hair like I did as a kid, it’s best to learn exactly what it does for your hair. Don’t worry, we’ve got all the deets on coconut oil below, including where it comes from, how it restores hair, the best way to use it, and what coconut oils you need to stock in your shower.
What is coconut oil?
Coconut oil is the oil extracted from a coconut that can be used on skin and hair, usually to help seal in moisture. However, not all coconut oil is the same. Dermatologist Ryan Turner, MD, mentions that coconut oil comes in three different forms: Fractionated, hydrogenated, or virgin. “Fractionated and hydrogenated oils have been processed further to keep it in solid form or liquid form, respectively, while virgin is its purest form,” he explains. Virgin coconut oil goes from solid to liquid depending on the temperature.
Try these coconut oils for hair:
Viva Naturals Extra Virgin Organic Coconut Oil
Handcraft Blends Fractionated Coconut Oil
Okay 100% Coconut Oil for Hair and Skin
Regardless of the type, all coconut oil has major moisturizing benefits for your hair—which we’ll get into below.
Benefits of coconut oil for hair:
Coconut oil has some pretty amazing benefits for your hair, according to hairstylist Jerome Lordet. “It’s moisturizing for dry hair, can reduce frizz, and add shine,” he explains. “Regular use on damaged hair can also improve its health over time,” he adds, because coconut oil coats your hair to help reduce water loss. But beyond giving you glass-like shine and super soft strands, celebrity hairstylist Marc Ballance also mentions that coconut oil can address an array of scalp concerns, too, including dandruff.
Coconut oil can potentially help soothe your scalp, because along with being rich in fatty acids (aka super moisturizers), it's antimicrobial, meaning it can kill bacteria, viruses, and fungi, Dr. Turner explains.
Is coconut oil good for your hair?
Yes, coconut oil can be good for your hair, based on the above benefits. But you’ll want to take your hair type, goals, and concerns into consideration before simply slathering coconut oil all over your strands. “Coconut oil is quite heavy, so thick, coarser hair textures will really benefit most from it,” says Dr. Turner. “It may be too rich for those with fine or thin hair—and it can be very challenging to wash out," he adds.
If your hair is seriously dry and brittle from hot tools or chemical processing, coconut oil can help restore health and shine. Plus, it’s totally safe to use straight up pure coconut oil on your strands. “Hair oiling is a time-honored practice and has been done for centuries all over the world, including Africa and South Asia,” says Dr. Turner. He recommends those with coarse, brittle, or thick hair to use coconut oil once or twice a week as a restorative mask. Just make sure not to overuse it—too much can start to weigh hair down and make hair look greasy.
There are also tons of hair products formulated with coconut oil (and other hair-restoring heroes) that can seriously moisturize your v-dry hair strands. These options can be used on all hair types, but our experts especially recommend them for those with finer hair over using virgin coconut oil:
Coconut oil hair products experts loooove:
Crown Affair The Ritual Shampoo
Lordet loves this shampoo from Crown Affair for a rejuvenating cleanse that will leave your hair feeling silky soft and bouncy. It's formulated with a unique coconut surfactant system that naturally cleanses your hair without stripping it of essential moisture.
Kiehl's Amino Acid Conditioner
For an extra moisture boost that won't weigh down your strands, Ballance recommends this conditioner. With a slew of moisturizers—including coconut oil, jojoba oil, and amino acids—he says this can be used daily (aka you won't risk weighing your hair down!).
oribe Oribe Run-Through Detangling Primer, 5.9 oz
To tackle stubborn knots and protect your hair from future damage, Ballance suggests this priming detangler, which is made with nourishing coconut oil to help provide slip and shine.
Is it okay to leave coconut oil in your hair?
Yes, it's okay to leave coconut oil in your hair, but you don’t want to leave it on, like, forever, babes. Lordet recommends using it as a pre-wash treatment mask and either leaving it on for one to two hours or overnight depending on your hair texture. (The coarser and curlier your hair is, the longer you can let it sit.) Wash it out in the morning for softer, shinier hair. Remember that because coconut oil is heavy, a little goes a long way. You’ll really only need to run a quarter-sized dollop through your strands to experience the nourishing goodness.
What is the best oil for hair?
There are plenty of oils that can help restore dry, damaged hair—from coconut and argan oil to castor oil and rosemary oils. Lordet says there’s not one oil that can be labeled the best of the best, though. “It all depends on what results you’re after,” he explains. However, if your main goal is to revive brittle, chemically-processed hair, he mentions that coconut oil is the most restorative, as it reaches deep into each individual strand to enhance moisture.
Ope! Just more coconut oil hair products we're obsessed with:
Kopari Organic Coconut Melt
OGX Nourishing + Coconut Milk Anti-Breakage Serum
Briogeo Farewell Frizz Rosehip, Argan & Coconut Hair Oil
Final thoughts:
If you’re in dire need of a moisture boost, coconut oil can work like magic to moisturize your strands and make them shiny. It's loaded with fatty acids that help smooth your hair, adding hella softness, plus those fatty acids seriously protect and nourish your scalp if you're into hair oiling. And pretty much every hair type can benefit from it; however, consider your hair type, since it can be quite heavy for fine hair. Best of all, though? It smells like a legit tropical vacation.
Meet the experts
- Ryan Turner, MD, is a board-certified dermatologist at his own practice in New York, NY and co-founder of TRNR Skin.
- Jerome Lordet is a professional hairstylist and owner of Jerome Lordet Salon in NYC.
- Marc Ballance is a celebrity hairstylist and creative director of Ballance Hair.
Why trust Cosmopolitan?
Mary Honkus is a contributor for Cosmopolitan with six years of experience researching, writing, and editing beauty stories, including reviewing the top noncomedogenic sunscreens and finding the most spot-on Baccarat Rouge 540 dupes. She is an authority in all beauty categories, especially hair care. For this story, she interviewed three skin and hair experts to learn more about coconut oil and how it can benefit your hair.
Mary Honkus is a freelance writer who covers beauty, home, fashion, health, and wellness (just call her a jack of all trades!). She has held staff roles at Real Simple, People, and InStyle, and her bylines can be found in numerous other publications. When she's not testing the latest and greatest products, she can be found chilling on her Hell's Kitchen rooftop, checking out NYC's hottest new restaurants, or recording her podcast Good Trouble NYC. Follow her on Instagram.
