What is Hair Porosity?

Hair porosity refers to your hair's ability to absorb and retain moisture. It's determined by the condition of your hair's cuticle layer—the outermost protective layer of each strand. Understanding your hair porosity is essential for choosing the right products and treatments that will enhance your unique hair type's health and beauty and save you money and disappointment from buying products that sound great, but won't work for you.

Two Types of Hair Porosity

Low Porosity Hair

Low porosity hair has tightly closed cuticles that resist moisture absorption. Water and products tend to sit on top of the hair rather than being absorbed. This hair type takes longer to get wet and longer to dry. If you go to bed or put your hair up after showering and hours later it's still damp? Major clue. Low porosity hair is prone to product buildup because a) it's absorption-challenged to begin with and b) most hair care contains (fantastic!) ingredients that are just too heavy, dense, and occlusive for that compacted cuticle layer. Low porosity hair can feel dry and damaged even right after using premium hair treatments, because the product just slides right off (or worse, weighs heavy sitting on the surface). Low porosity strands benefit from lightweight, water-based products. Heat is a must during deep conditioning treatments to help open up those cuticles and allow for absorption.
 

High Porosity Hair

High porosity hair has gaps and holes in the cuticle layer. Moisture rushes in easily but escapes just as fast, leaving hair perpetually thirsty. This hair type gets wet almost instantly then dries surprisingly fast. High porosity hair is often the result of heat, chemical or environmental stress, but some people are born with it. It's prone to frizz, tangles are constant, and colour fades annoyingly quickly. The goal with high porosity hair is to fill in those gaps and seal the cuticle. This hair type thrives on heavier, richer formulas of butters and oils that create a protective barrier. "Lock in moisture" are the magic words. Proteins patch those cuticle gaps and strengthen the hair shaft. Always finish your hair routine with a sealing oil to trap all that rich goodness inside.

How to Determine Your Hair Porosity

You can try these simple at-home tests to discover your hair's porosity level, but you'll likely find your gut-instinct and dawning realization of "It suddenly all makes sense" is the best guide of all. 

The Float Test

Take a clean strand of hair and place it in a glass of room temperature water. Wait 2-4 minutes and observe:

• Floats: Low porosity
• Sinks: High porosity

The Shower Test

Pay attention to how your hair behaves when you first step into the shower with clean, dry hair:

• Gets soaking wet in under a minute without touching it: High porosity
• Takes several minutes even with manipulation, water beads up or seems to "reject" the water: Low porosity

The Slip and Slide Test

Take a strand of hair and slide your fingers up the shaft from the ends toward your scalp:

• Feels smooth: Low porosity (cuticles are flat and closed)
• Feels bumpy or rough: High porosity (cuticles are raised or damaged)

The Spray Bottle Test

Spray a section of dry, clean hair with water and watch what happens:

• Water beads up and sits on top: Low porosity
• Water absorbs immediately: High porosity

The Drying Time Test

Pay attention to how long your hair takes to air dry after washing:

• Takes a very long time (several hours): Low porosity
• Dries very quickly: High porosity

Low porosity hair should avoid or use sparingly the following ingredients:

Heavy Oils & Butters sit on top and cause buildup

• Coconut oil
• Shea butter
• Cocoa butter
• Castor oil

Heavy Proteins are a challenge to absorb these and can make hair feel stiff/straw-like:

• Hydrolyzed wheat protein
• Hydrolyzed keratin
• Silk protein
• Collagen 

Silicones (especially non-water-soluble ones) create a coating that blocks moisture:

• Dimethicone
• Cyclomethicone
• Amodimethicone

Thick Emollients are too occlusive:

• Mineral oil
• Petrolatum/petroleum jelly

What low porosity SHOULD look for instead:

• Lightweight oils: argan, grapeseed, jojoba, sweet almond
• Water-based products
• Humectants: glycerin, aloe vera, honey
• Light proteins: amino acids, silk amino acids (in small amounts)
• Heat to help products penetrate

For high porosity hair, it's less about avoiding ingredients and more about seeking out the RIGHT ones:

Heavy oils & butters (the opposite of low porosity!):

• Coconut oil, shea butter, cocoa butter, castor oil
• These seal and protect

Proteins (in moderation):

• Hydrolyzed keratin, wheat protein, silk protein
• Help fill cuticle gaps and strengthen

Humectants:

• Glycerin, aloe vera, honey
• Draw moisture in

Emollients & sealants:

• Dimethicone and other silicones (help seal moisture in)
• Oils as final step to lock everything in

The key: Layer products - humectants first, then proteins/conditioners, then seal with oils/butters

Shopping for Your Hair Porosity at LUX Beauty

We break through aisle overwhelm and make it easy! Now that you understand your hair's construction, use our porosity filters to shop products formulated for how your hair absorbs. No more guessing, no more product graveyard under your sink.