I have always been picky about the hair products I use. It’s got to have the right feel and scent, and now the right ingredients. On my journey to find the best zero waste hair care products, I have discovered that it’s not as complicated as I thought it would be. Numerous companies are putting sustainability at the forefront of their operations, so eco-friendly hair care products are not hard to come by. Now it’s more of a matter of narrowing down the choices.

Refer to the Clean Beauty page for tips on how to choose sustainable, non-toxic beauty and hygiene products.

My favorite zero waste hair care brands

Zero waste hair care products

Natural shampoo & conditioner

Go Green: Shampoo bars or plastic-free bottles

Did you know that 80% of shampoo’s content is plain old water? That’s a lot of water used for production by a $31 billion industry. The weight and volume creates need for containers (usually plastic) and more carbon emissions from transportation of these goods.

The aforementioned hair care brands have some amazing traditional shampoos, and they make washing your hair as good for the planet as it can be as far as liquid shampoo goes. But for the absolute greenest option, try out a shampoo and conditioner bar. They are small, lightweight, and can easily be found plastic-free, in minimal to no packaging. There are a TON of excellent choices out there, and many primarily focus on shampoo and conditioner bars alone.

First, local soap makers are plentiful. If you can find one near you that makes a shampoo you like, go with that. Buying locally-made products is always best, providing they are made with sustainable, ethical, and non-toxic ingredients and practices.

Shampoo bar brands

As I’ve scoured the internet, these are the most mentioned and highly-rated shampoo bar brands I have come across.

How well does a shampoo bar work? I was skeptical, and at first it does feel strange to be rubbing a bar of soap on your hair. I have pretty thick hair that requires a lot of liquid shampoo, and I was surprised to find the bar worked pretty well. However, I recently chopped off over a foot of hair, and I’m not sure if I would say the same if I had tried it when it was long. Even with shorter hair, it took longer than I would like to get the lather throughout my hair and scalp. I would be cautious with colored hair, at least fashion colors. My daughter tried it out on her blue highlights and it faded them pretty seriously with just one wash.

The jury is still out on zero waste hair conditioner for me. I’ve only tried two brands so far and I don’t feel like a bar is capable of conditioning as deeply as I would like, at least with my hair thickness.

My favorite zero waste liquid shampoo

If shampoo and conditioner bars just aren’t going to work for you, you can find regular liquid product options packaged in aluminum bottles or recycled plastic from all the companies listed above.

• My current favorite is Plaine Products shampoo and conditioner. The shampoo lathers well and leaves my hair feeling clean, and the conditioner is thick and my hair feels so soft afterward. They have two scent choices, as well as an unscented option. I really like that you can send back your empty bottles for reuse, and frankly I love all that this company is doing.
• Captain Blankenship is also a great shampoo in an aluminum bottle. The scent wasn’t for me, but my husband didn’t mind it.
• Hand in Hand is a very affordable brand I recently discovered but have yet to try; their lotions are fantastic though.

Natural dry shampoo

• Fat and the Moon Lavender & Cocoa Dry Shampoo is organic, vegan, and highly-rated. It comes in an aluminum shaker for which you can purchase refills in compostable packaging. Also available at Zero Waste Store.

• The Earthling Co. Dry Shampoo is vegan, cruelty-free, and comes in both light and dark shades. Packaging is made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper.

• Captain Blankenship Dry Shampoo also comes in a dark formulation for darker hair shades.

• EcoRoots Dry Shampoo comes in a glass jar with a metal lid.

Shower cap

Go Green: Reusable shower cap

• This vegan, cruelty-free EcoTools shower cap is lined with organic cotton.
  • Also available on Amazon.
• Kitsch has a variety of adorable shower caps made from recycled polyester.
  • Also available on Grove

Recycling shower caps

Plastic caps can go with your plastic film recycling; I would removed the elastic band first and throw in the trash.

Non-toxic hair dye

Go Green: Avoid harmful chemicals

There are some chemicals in hair dyes that have been linked to cancer, namely aromatic amines. Avoid products that contain p-phenylenediamine, para-phenylenediamine, 4-aminoaniline; 1,4-benzenediamine; p-diaminobenzene;1,4-diaminobenzene; 1,4-phenylene diamine. Formaldehyde is the other main ingredient to watch out for. Read this article by Made Safe to learn more.

• Arctic Fox is vegan and cruelty-free with a great selection of fashion colors. My daughter has used this non-toxic hair color on her hair and liked it. It’s easy to use and results in vibrant color.
• Radico is a vegan, Made Safe certified brand.
• Byrdie and The Honest Consumer have great lists of more safe hair dyes.

How to recycle hair color tubes

Schwartzkopf hair color packaging can be recycled via Terracycle’s free mail-in program. Terracycle also has a Saloncycle program, with different options for recycling hair color tubes and more. Glo Recycling is another option. You can put just about any salon waste like used foils, gloves, product, combs, and more in their mixed waste box.

Eco-friendly hair styling products

The broad selections from Aveda, Amika, and JVN probably have everything you need for styling or treating your hair, but there are many other great eco-friendly products beyond those. Below is a sampling of some other great zero waste hair care products.

Gel

• Plaine Products Styling Gel
• SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Defining Styling Gel or Coconut & Hibiscus Edge Gel 

Hair spray

• Captain Blankenship Sea Salt Spray
• Earth Harbor Beach Waves Ocean Hair Spray

Mousse

• SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Frizz-Free Curl Mousse
  • Also available on Amazon

Pomade

• Public Goods Wax Pomade
• Badger Balm Pomade

Recycling hair care product packaging

Recycle empty aluminum and plastic bottles as accepted in your curbside bin, as well as paperboard boxes. Recycle glass jars and bottles as able in your area. Note that plastic pumps cannot go into your recycling since they contain a metal coil. See more about recycling beauty containers here.

Eco-friendly hair tools

Go Green: Biodegradable materials

Eco-friendly combs

Wide-tooth combs

• Kitsch wide-tooth comb made with recycled materials.
• Zero Waste Store wide-tooth comb made from sandalwood.
• Redecker oiled olive wood afro comb.
• f.e.t.e. wide tooth bamboo comb

Fine-tooth comb

• Redecker beechwood comb

Can combs be recycled?

Plastic combs cannot be recycled. Those made from natural materials can be composted.

Eco-friendly hairbrushes

Can you recycle a hair brush?

Plastic brushes are not recyclable. Brushes made from natural materials can be composted.

It’s probably not something that you’ve ever thought about, but hair can be composted. So when you clean your brush out, you can put the hair into the compost bin. If you happen to be a hairstylist/barber, you can actually order a box from Terracycle to collect the hair you sweep off the salon floor and they will compost it for you. You can also donate hair (and fur) to an organization like Matter of Trust, who uses it to make mats that soak up oil and other petrochemicals from waterways.

Hair Hot Tools

i.e. blow dryers, flat irons, curling irons

How to recycle hair dryers & other hair tools

If still in working condition, donate. Otherwise, Best Buy will accept hair dryers, straighteners, and curling irons for recycling. Drop off in store. You can also recycle through Terracycle’s free program.

If you use InStyler products, you can send in your old products to be recycling and receive a 35% discount on future purchases.

Hair Ties & Accessories

As already mentioned, Kitsch has all the hair accessories you need—clips made from recycled plastic or metal, hair ties and bows, and more. They also make very popular shampoo bars.

I am very impressed with the quality of the items I have purchased for myself and my daughter. Here are the items I can personally attest to:

• Open shape claw clip
• Rose gold mini claw clip
• Enamel snap clips
• Heatless hair curler in satin and 6 pack heatless curling rollers.

Check out more super cute hair accessories from this women-owned company.

Terra Ties is a small company that makes biodegradeable hair ties made with natural rubber extracted from rubber trees and organic cotton. They are colored with natural dyes and packaged in 100% recycled materials.

Reuse hair ties

Repurpose hair ties as household elastics, ties for plant stakes, elastics for electronic cords and more.

Are hair ties recyclable?

Hair ties and other plastic accessories cannot be recycled. Those made from cotton and natural rubber could be composted if cut into very small pieces. Take broken metal clips to a scrap recycler.

Zero waste shaving

Go Green: Shaving soap or plastic-free shaving cream

Eco-Friendly shaving cream

• Dr. Bronner’s Shaving Soap
• Eos Shave Cream
• Lush Shaving Cream
• Aveda men pure-formance shave cream

Are shaving cream cans recyclable?

Empty steel shaving cans are recyclable in your curbside bin. Plastic tubes may be depending on your local recycler.

Zero waste shaving soap

I’m actually quite surprised that I like using a shaving soap as much as a cream or gel. They are easy to find from any local soap company, or there’s plenty to try if there aren’t any near you. Any of the aforementioned shampoo bar brands will have a shaving soap option. The two I’ve used and really like are EcoRoots Organic Shaving Soap and Ethique 2-in-1 Shampoo and Shaving Bar.

Sustainable razors

Go Green: Reusable non-plastic razors

Stop using plastic single-use razors and get yourself a reusable one with blade refills. There is a large price range, from hundreds of dollars for a nice, fancy safety razor down to the grocery store brands.

Standard razors

If safety razors aren’t your thing, there are other sustainable razor options.

• The Leaf Razor is a triple blade razor that was rated ‘best overall razor’ by Treehugger. It is a little on the pricey side, but the rave reviews are many. They also have a single blade razor they recommend for the face.

• The Bulldog Original Bamboo Razor is a solid, economical choice.

• Preserve’s Shave 5 Razor System is a 5 blade razor made from recycled plastic.
  • Also available on Grove

If you do need a disposable razor option, Schick Intuition Bamboo has a bamboo handle and its blades contain 75% recycled steel. The handle does feel quite flimsy but it gets the job done.

For more options, check out ZeroWasteStore and EarthHero.

Recycling razor blades

Metal safety razors and blades can be recycled with a scrap metal recycler. Gillette has a free mail-in program with Terracycle that accepts ALL brand of razors, cartridges, and packaging for recycling.