Whether your hair type is coily, curly, wavy, straight, or somewhere in between—your strands are beautiful. But, being able to answer the question: What is my hair type? is invaluable for not only styling your tresses with ease but for maintaining optimal hair health. With so many hair types, comparing yours against a hair type chart (like the one you’ll see below) can be helpful in getting healthy hair and picking out the best hair products—like a hydrating mask for curly or coily hair, a dry shampoo for thin, straight hair, or a sea salt spray for wavy hair—the list goes on.
Spoiler alert: There are lots of different types of hair. Luckily, there’s a pretty standard hair typing system “that shows hair classifications ranging from straight all the way to kinky-coily hair,” explains Sabrina Ahmed, Garnier’s curly hair stylist. Also important: “Most people do not fit perfectly into one particular type, and may find that they have different textures in different parts of their scalp,” notes Janiene Luke, M.D., board-certified dermatologist in Loma Linda, California. You may identify perfectly with one strand on a hair type chart, or you might see various curls and waves that look like the ones on your head, and either is completely normal.
Ahead, learn about hair types, how to determine yours, and how to care for your tresses—including the best products for the job.
The four types of hair
The major hair and curl typing classification was originally devised by hairstylist Andre Walker, explains Dr. Luke. The system is divided into four major categories:
Type 1: straight
Type 2: wavy
Type 3: curly
Type 4: coily
There are additional subcategories (A, B, and C) for each hair type, based on more subtle variations in texture—making for a total of 12 different hair types. Whether it seems super simple or completely confusing (maybe even a little bit of both) we have you covered with everything you need to know to identify and care for your hair type below.
Hair type chart
How do I figure out my hair type?
Figuring out your hair type mostly comes down to examining your own strands in addition to descriptions and examples of the various hair types and subtypes. There’s no one-size-fits-all test or trick to determine which one (or two, or three!) of the twelve hair types sprout from your scalp, but with the help of our experts, you’ll be a lot closer to figuring it out.
In addition to combing through examples of the different hair types and comparing them to your own, Ahmed recommends examining your hair in freshly washed and completely dry states. “Once water is dried from the hair, it is less weighed down,” Ahmed explains, leading to a more accurate picture of your unique hair pattern. “For example, someone may have wavy hair and once fully dried, it can turn into tighter coiled curls due to shrinkage, therefore making it a completely different subtype.”
Let’s get started. Take a close look at your hair and the descriptions of every hair type, below:
Type 1: straight hair
Straight hair is hair with very little to no texture. Depending on the subtype, it can also be very difficult to add texture to the hair, as well. These hair types are prone to getting dirtier and oiler more quickly than other hair types, according to Shelley Gregory, hair stylist and colorist at Atelier Salon in Las Vegas. Because it can often get weighed down more easily, more lightweight hair care and hair styling products are a type 1’s best friend.
Type 1a
Straight and fine
Type 1b
Straight with a little more volume and body
Type 1c
Bone straight, curl resistant hair
Type 2: wavy hair
Wavy hair is similar to straight (type 1) hair in that it isn’t curly and it tends to get weighed down more easily by dirt, oil, and styling products than hair types 3 and 4, Gregory explains. However, it has more body, volume, and texture than straight hair. If you see little to no pin-straight strands in your dry, clean hair, or any sort of curls, you likely fall somewhere into type 2.
Type 2a
Hair with a loose, wavy “S” shaped pattern
Type 2b
Hair with a more defined, wavy “S” shaped pattern
Type 2c
Hair with wider waves
Type 2a
Type 3: curly hair
If you see actual, defined curls (think: bounce-back like a spring) as opposed to looser “S” shaped waves, you’ve got curly, type 3 hair. Strand health is super important with type 3 (and type 4) hair, because “curly and coily hair requires more maintenance than straight hair,” Ahmed explains. Hydrating, moisturizing products are key—along with a clarifying shampoo to eliminate build-up, and a Denman brush and tangle tee*zer to effectively brush through and define curls.
Type 3a
Hair with loose curls—there is now a definite curl pattern and no longer just waves
Type 3b
Hair with curls that begin to get tighter
Type 3c
Hair with curls that are very tightly curled—corkscrew curls
Type 3c
Type 4: Coily hair
Coily hair is the more tight and defined sister of curly hair and features a range of “kinky-coily” patterns. Like type 3 hair, according to Ahmed, type 4 is prone to dryness and requires a focus on hair health and moisture. Ahmed again recommends clarifying treatments and tools like Denman brushes and tangle tee*zers, in addition to ultra-moisturizing products and styling gels.
Type 4a
Hair with “kinky-coily” curls that are defined with an “O”-shaped pattern or coil
Type 4b
Hair with “kinky-coily” curls with a “Z”-shaped pattern or coil
Type 4c
Hair with “kinky-coily” curls that are tightly coiled with a very tight “O”-shaped pattern.
Type 4a
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Shannen Zitz
Assistant Editor
Shannen Zitz is an Assistant Editor at Prevention, where she covers all things lifestyle, wellness, beauty, and relationships. Previously the Editorial Assistant at Prevention, she graduated from the State University of New York at Cortland with a bachelor's degree in English. If she’s not reading or writing, you can probably find her frequenting the skincare and makeup forums on Reddit or hogging the squat rack at the gym.
