May we count your visit with Google Analytics? It uses cookies and sends visit data to Google. You can change this any time under Cookie choices. Privacy
TheWashDay editorial · Updated · From the makers’ own pages · How we compare
If you diffuse or blow-dry, a heat protectant goes on first, and the question that sorts these seven is when. Five go on damp hair on wash day, before you diffuse or blow-dry; Curlsmith’s Curlshield Cream goes on dry hair; TRESemmé’s spray does either. Six of the seven name a limit, 446°F or 450°F; Mielle names none.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. It never changes which products we list or their order. How this site is funded.
Apply a dime- to quarter-sized amount to damp hair, focusing on mid-lengths to ends.
Goes on before heat: a diffuser, a blow-dryer or a curling iron
Travel 2 oz / Full 4 oz
Up to 450°F, says the maker · On damp hair · Fragrance listed · Protein: Hydrolyzed Corn Protein*, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein*, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein* · No silicone named
Goes on before heat: a diffuser, a blow-dryer or a curling iron
4 fl oz: $5.00 ($1.25/fl oz), marked down from $9.99
No temperature limit given · On wet hair · Fragrance listed · Protein: Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein · Silicone: Amodimethicone, Peg-12 Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethiconol
Heat protectants whose makers publish a full ingredient list and directions, from the makers’ own US pages. We haven’t used or tested them, and commissions never change the list or its order.
Damp hair before you diffuse, or dry hair before a hot tool
On wash day the protectant goes on damp hair with your other products, and its maker decides the order: Curlsmith puts Miracle Shield after the leave-in and before the styler; Bouclème says before or after stylers; OLAPLEX says first.
On a dry-hair day, before a curling iron or a refresh with heat, you need one its maker allows on dry hair: Curlshield Cream, or TRESemmé’s spray.
Curlsmith Miracle Shield (2 or 8 oz) and Bouclème Curl Defence Spray (200 mL) both name diffusing in their directions, and so does OLAPLEX Nº.9, a serum OLAPLEX calls water-activated, for damp or wet hair only, with no hold.
Briogeo’s Farewell Frizz crème is a dime- to quarter-sized amount on damp hair, mid-lengths to ends, combed through before you blow-dry. Mielle’s Mongongo Oil spray is combed through clean, wet hair after shampooing; Mielle gives no temperature for it.
Curlsmith’s Curlshield Cream starts on dry hair: one pump between your palms, smoothed on section by section, then a heated tool or nothing more; Curlsmith says it also gives definition when left in without heat.
TRESemmé’s Protecting Heat Styling Spray goes on damp hair before heat styling or on dry hair before a curling or flat iron. Its own page shows no price; it is sold through other stores.
The 450°F (or Bouclème’s 446°F) is the highest heat each maker says its product protects against. It is the maker’s claim, not a test we ran. For the heat of your own dryer, follow its manual.
Two oils also name heat protection: OLAPLEX Nº.7 up to 450°F, and Bouclème Revive 5 for a dryer or diffuser on low to medium heat, with no number.
We haven’t used these protectants; we compare what their makers publish. This isn’t a ranking. Briogeo’s crème showed as out of stock on its own store the day we read it.
Questions before your next wash
Do I need a heat protectant if I diffuse?
If you diffuse with heat, a product its maker labels as a heat protectant is how you have one on. Curlsmith, Bouclème and OLAPLEX name diffusing in their directions. Air-drying uses no heat.
Can a heat protectant go on before my gel?
Yes, if its maker puts it there: Curlsmith Miracle Shield goes after the leave-in and before the styler, and Bouclème’s spray goes before or after stylers.
Is a leave-in conditioner a heat protectant?
Only if its maker says it protects from heat. Check the label of the one you use.
