U.S. prestige and mass hair care grew by 9% and 3%, respectively, in 2024, per Circana*. Kline & Co. data, on the other hand, tags premium hair care sales growth in 2024 at 6%, relatively consistent with recent years, but a significant drop compared to the 23% spike seen in 2021, a signal that the pandemic-era boom has receded fully.
Mass brands dominate hair category sales, but while close to 70% of consumers say price is important, just 16% say they only buy mass brands, per Circana.
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U.S. prestige and mass hair care grew by 9% and 3%, respectively, in 2024, per Circana*. Kline & Co. data, on the other hand, tags premium hair care sales growth in 2024 at 6%, relatively consistent with recent years, but a significant drop compared to the 23% spike seen in 2021, a signal that the pandemic-era boom has receded fully.
Top-growing Hair Care Categories
Mass brands dominate hair category sales, but while close to 70% of consumers say price is important, just 16% say they only buy mass brands, per Circana.
On the prestige end of the sector, all hair segments grew, with styling and treatment categories seeing double-digit increases. The scalp care trend continued to gain traction, growing at twice the rate of the overall category.
This scalp revolution is evident in the popularity of brands like Nizoral, an anti-dandruff brand flagged by Spate and Google data. The two firms also unearthed rising interest in treatments like red light scalp therapy and head and scalp spas, as well as curiosity about trichologists, or scalp experts.
The treatment growth also showed up in Spate/Google data, including the prominence of the “hair Botox” deep conditioning routine.
According to Spate and Google, consumers are seeking hair wellness solutions, similar to the longevity concepts favored in skin care. This includes: Hair Botox deep conditioning routines, high-frequency combs for hair loss and damage, and hair vitamins.
2024’s Top Hair Care Sellers
The top five hair brands in dollar volume sales in 2024 were all mass: L’Oreal Paris, Pantene Pro V, Garnier, Head & Shoulders, and Tresemme. Top masstige brands included Redken and Biolage; the top masstige launch of 2024 in terms of dollar volume sales was Eva NYC’s Freshen Up Invisible Dry Shampoo. The top prestige brands included Olaplex, Moroccanoil, Pureology, Amika and Color Wow. That said, the top hair launch item of 2024 in dollar volume sales in the prestige space belonged to Living Proof, the Scalp Care Density Serum.
Hair Care’s Channel-blur Revolution
In a recent presentation, “Behind the Growth: How Premium Hair Care Brands Are Shaping Their Channel Strategies,” Kline + Co. outlined the category blur facing the hair care channel.
According to the firm, from 2019 to 2024, the salon back bar and take-home segments of hair care sales declined by 7.5 and 8.5 points, respectively. Meanwhile, brick-and-mortar retail saw a modest gain of 0.3 points, and ecommerce experienced a significant surge, growing by 15.6 points. In fact, ecommerce has been a growth leader in the hair space every year since 2019.
Pro and pro-inspired hair care is increasingly going mainstream. Salon-grade brands now make up about 10% of Target's hair assortment, while Sephora offers more than 1,000 products from professional and salon brands.
Brands with some of the best positive net sentiment among consumers are R+Co, Amika, Color Wow and IGK, among others. All have robust strategies across direct-to-consumer, consumer retail and professional channels.
Beyond channel diversity, growth in hair care is also driven by brand popularity and new launches that address leading claims like scalp care, smoothing and frizz control, as well as popular formats like dry shampoos.
Kline + Co. recommends brands embrace blurred distribution channels, which is driven by shoppers’ demands for convenience.
Hair Care’s Feel-good Opportunity
According to Circana, more than 50% of consumers ages 35-54 style their hair every time they wash. A key driver of this behavior is the fact that hair styling boosts confidence in this cohort. In fact, three of the top 10 most cited confidence boosters are hair related, including good hair days and new hairstyles, as well as successful covering of gray hairs.
*This report is based on insights derived from CEW’s State of the Industry: Global Trend Report 2025 (among other sources), which covered key industry trends for 2025 with insights from top experts:
- Sarah Jindal (Mintel): 3 key consumer trends for 2025.
- Leslie Ann Hall (Iced Media): Strategies for future-proofing social shopping success.
- Tara James Taylor (NielsenIQ): Must-know global trends.
- Joëlle Grünberg (McKinsey & Company): Luxury and retail growth insights and their impact on beauty.
- Yarden Horwitz & Sam Mintz (Google & Spate): Gen Z's influence on beauty trends.
- Larissa Jensen (Circana): Year-in-review report on beauty industry performance.
