17 Best Volumizing Shampoos In 2023

Looking at photos of celebrities or shampoo commercials can invoke a certain feeling of hair envy. While their tresses are bouncing with sky-high volume, yours might be better described as lackluster and flat. You’re not alone, as most of us have hair that could do with a hit of a pick-me-up. 

In order to give our hair that extra oomph we desire, we often turn to products that promise “sky high volume” and “beautiful body.” However, finding something that actually works is a minefield. Who hasn’t had the unfortunate experience of using something promised to be revolutionary, only for your hair to look exactly the same as it did before? 

No longer will you have to tread through this minefield of products in an attempt to liven up your hair. We have carefully and painstakingly compiled the 17 best volumizing shampoos in 2023 to provide you with options you can trust to transform your tresses and create the sky-high volume you’ve always longed for.

Now, on with the list!

1. Blu Atlas Classic Shampoo

Not only does Blu Atlas’ invigorating and strengthening shampoo leave hair feeling deeply cleansed, but it also does so in a way that provides hair with sky high volume that will revolutionize the way your hair looks. Even better, this product comes from a brand that is known for its commitment to using natural ingredients, as well as being vegan and cruelty-free. 

Did we mention that it has even been formulated by a group of dermatologists to be the perfect solution for your scalp, a move that certainly pays off in terms of the end result. For big-bodied hair that has more volume than a loudspeaker, this is the perfect option for any hair type.

As this clean product is preservative-free, paraben-free, synthetic dye-free, and phthalate-free, it instead can achieve results using premium ingredients from natural origins, such as plants, fruits and minerals. This product contains volumizing wonder ingredient saw palmetto, which not only improves hair volume and hydrates the scalp to make hair looks fuller, but is able to actually make hair more full in the long term by countering DHT, a hormone responsible for hair loss. 

Add in antioxidant and vitamin-rich jojoba oil and aloe barbadensis leaf, which are able to penetrate deep into the hair shaft to bring hardcore nourishment, and this is the perfect product to bring your stressed-out strands back to life while boosting volume.

2. Davines Volu Shampoo

Davines Volu Shampoo is a great option for anyone with fine, delicate hair that needs a plumping boost. Using natural active ingredients such as caprauna turnip extract, this product gently lifts hair off the scalp by injecting volume into the roots. Free from parabens and sulfates, this product's formula is rich in minerals, such as phosphorus, iron, calcium, and vitamins A, B and C. 

We found that using this light and foamy product immediately gave our hair body and volume, leaving behind zero residue and making the hair soft and shiny. If you want to, you can even skip the conditioner, as this shampoo’s formula detangles the ends of your hair. Add in that it’s created with 100% clean energy, and is made from zero-impact recyclable packaging, and this clearly belongs on our list of the 17 Best Volumizing Shampoos in 2023.

3. JVN Embody Daily Volumizing Shampoo

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Coming from Queer Eye’s fan favorite “fab five” member Johnathan Van Ness, JVN’s Embody Daily Volumizing Shampoo is perhaps the one product that can help quell your hair envy and transform your tresses into something akin to the perfect voluminous head of hair that belongs to the brand's founder. This clean thickening shampoo clarifies and volumizes the hair, leaving it with body, bounce and shine. 

The translucent gel shampoo creates a thick and foamy lather that deeply cleanses your hair and scalp without overdrying, stripping or leaving any residue. This vegan and cruelty-free shampoo is perfect for anyone who shampoos often or has color-treated hair, as despite being both clarifying and stimulating it is still gentle enough to use daily. It also has an aromatic scent which builds upon a base of sandalwood and amber by adding accent notes of jasmine, cassis and bergamot.

This product is clinically proven to work, as when tested hair density improved by 9%, and 93% of people surveyed felt like their hair was thicker and they noticed less of it falling out. Using all clean ingredients without any silicones or sulfates, Embody Daily Volumizing Shampoo enhances thickness and fullness without harming the hair. Hemisqualane smooths, strengthens and moisturizes, while caffeine stimulates the hair follicles to encourage growth, and aloe leaf juice hydrates the hair and soothes the scalp. 

4. Oribe Shampoo for Magnificent Volume

Oribe Shampoo for Magnificent Volume works wonders for anyone whose hair needs a little largesse. In this sulfate-free shampoo, body-building polymers are responsible for uplifting the hair to give it volume and thickness, while luxury botanicals will leave your hair feeling fuller and stronger. This shampoo is perfect for volumizing as it adds weightless moisture while plumping the hair shaft, leaving your hair looking full of body and volume. 

We even love the smell of this shampoo—a unique côte d’azur scent that makes you feel like you are truly getting a luxury experience. With only five reviews below four stars and an average rating of 4.7, it’s clear that we are not alone in identifying this product as one of the best volume shampoos on the market in 2023.

5. FEKKAI Full Blown Volume Shampoo

Another product free from any additives like silicones, sulfates, phthalates or parabens, shampoo from celebrity hairstylist Frederic Fekkai’s brand definitely provides the full-blown volume the name suggests. It’s a perfect option for fine, flat hair that needs an injection of oomph. And because it is vegan, cruelty-free and recyclable you can get this boost completely guilt-free.

What we really love about Full Blown Volume Shampoo is that every ingredient plays a part in ensuring your hair gets twice the volume without twice the chemicals. French oak extract is an antioxidant that provides protection and strength to bring your hair vitality and avoid hair loss. Rosemary leaf stimulates the  hair follicles and encourages circulation of blood flow, which in turn strengthens the hair. 

Zeolite absorbs excess sebum and neutralizes odor to leave your hair not only full of volume but also squeaky clean. Plant-derived extracts stop the hair from fading or turning brassy protecting against the sun's harsh rays. Finally, green coconut water is a unique ingredient that plumps up the hair strands with hydration, making it appear thick and voluminous. When you consider all these incredible ingredients, it’s no surprise that FEKKAI’s Full Blown Volume shampoo delivers results.

6. Christophe Robin Volume Shampoo Paste

This root-lifting clay-to-foam shampoo is the perfect product to leave your hair feeling thicker and more voluminous. Although thick on application, Christophe Robin’s innovative Volume Shampoo Paste emulsifies well, transforming into a beautifully frothy foam that boosts lift and gives the roots body, while simultaneously making your hair look lustrous and more dense. 

Exfoliating sugar crystals work in tandem with pure rassoul Moroccan volcanic clay to cleanse the hair, leaving it naturally volumized and invigorated. A cruelty-free product that preserves rather than strips color, this shampoo paste is perfect for giving hair volume while eliminating grease, leaving hair manageable yet full of body.

7. Herbal Essences Blue Ginger and Micellar Water Shampoo

This drugstore brand’s shampoo is ideal for adding volume to your hair without removing much volume from your wallet. Using a blend of real botanicals endorsed by the Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, this product removes impurities and oils, gently cleansing and revitalizing limp, flat hair. Free from parabens, silicones and colorants, this cruelty-free and vegan shampoo is also pH balanced, safe for color-treated hair, and is made up of ingredients from 90% natural origins. 

The blue ginger from which the shampoo gets its name is something of a wonder ingredient, as it is a rich source of iron, sodium and vitamins A and C which help prevent hair loss and make the hair appear radiant and voluminous. Overall, this is a refreshing product that cleanses the hair well and leaves it with a unique scent of ginger combined with floral gardens and clean musk.

8. Pureology Pure Volume Shampoo

Pureology’s lightweight formula brings texture, lift and volume to previously flat or limp hair with its Pure Volume Shampoo. Its 100% vegan and zero sulfate formula removes any excess oil, residue or buildup, adding movement and body to hair rather than weighing it down. Wheat protein adds volume, while eucalyptus leaf supports hair follicles, encouraging growth. 

We also can’t forget the amazing combination of wild rose, grapefruit, and cedarwood that all combine to create an incredible aromatherapy experience unlike any other. With a patented antifade complex, Pure Volume Shampoo will help you get your hair to its peak, both in terms of height and health.

9. Living Proof Full Shampoo

Formulated using a blend of surface friction-reducing slip modifiers, this volumizing shampoo removes residue, oil and buildup to create natural fullness and body without using any silicones, harsh sulfates or animal products. Living Proof’s proprietary amino acid cleansing complex deeply cleanses the hair without stripping important natural oils from it, resulting in hair that stays cleaner for longer. 

Meanwhile, amaranth peptides plump the hair fibers in order to create bouncier, fuller-looking hair. We love Living Proof’s Full Shampoo, as do reviewers and magazines alike; the product has been praised for its life-changing effects on all hair types. We love the light citrus scent, and the fact that the packaging is recyclable due to the brand's recycling program.

10. Virtue Full Shampoo

Virtue’s super lightweight Full Shampoo cleanses and thickens the hair, swelling lackluster strands to bring your hair volume and body. This product is made using the one-of-a-kind human-identical Alpha Keratin 60ku protein that is easily absorbed into the hair shaft, which binds directly to damaged areas to repair the hair and leave your strands nourished long after the product has washed off. 

Free from parabens, sulfates, phthalates, and synthetic colors,, this gluten-free, cruelty-free and vegan shampoo is full of natural ingredients that build health and hair volume from the inside out. Vitamin-rich pink pomelo combines with shine and strength-boosting keratin, while hydrolyzed quinoa enhances color, shine, and moisture retention. Full Shampoo works wonders at dissolving excess oil, lifting the roots and plumping each strand to give limp hair volume, density, and long-lasting body.

11. Aveda Pure Abundance Volumizing Shampoo

Aveda’s volume-boosting shampoo is perfect for making fine, wispy hair look and feel more abundant. Pure Abundance Volumizing Shampoo is 100% vegan and cruelty-free, using natural ingredients to leave hair both looking and feeling more abundant. Coconut-derived surfactants create a luxurious lather that eliminates oil residue and buildup without stripping the hair. 

Acacia gum is a perfect way of filling out thinner hair to give it body and volume, while kaolin clay cleanses and provides weightless nourishment that will make your hair more healthy in the long term. After using this shampoo, your hair will be left with more body and volume, and will even be so soft that if you want to you could skip the conditioner.

12. OGX Thick and Full + Biotin and Collagen Volumizing Shampoo

This budget-friendly drugstore brand’s volumizing shampoo is an effective option for anyone who wants to achieve volume on a budget. Just one use of OGX  Thick and Full + Biotin and Collagen Volumizing Shampoo will thicken and texturize any hair type. Even the skinniest strands will be transformed into full and abundant tresses. Strategically infused with collagen, biotin and hydrolyzed wheat protein, this sulfate-free shampoo is the perfect way to achieve thicker, fuller and healthier-looking hair. 

We love how this shampoo can give life to hair that was flat and uninspired, and the reviews agree with us. Everyone is raving about this product— it feels much more expensive than its price point, and does everything that OGX says it will on the bottle. With that kind of feedback, it's no wonder this is one of the 17 best volumizing shampoos in 2023.

13. OUAI Fine Hair Shampoo

The description of this volumizing shampoo developed for fine hair describes how it turns the volume all the OUAI up, and although this is a bit corny, we can’t deny that it’s also accurate. This color-safe product uses biotin, chia seed oil and hydrolyzed keratin to strengthen, nourish, hydrate and thicken, leaving hair clean, bouncy and lustrous. 

Designed to deeply cleanse hair, OUAI’s Fine Hair Shampoo works wonders at getting rid of oil and anything else weighing down the hair to boost volume and body. It’s no wonder Sydney Sweeney, star of the hit TV series Euphoria, Gen Z icon and a fellow member of the fine hair club, loves this shampoo, which comes in fully recyclable packaging,

14. Rahua Voluminous Shampoo

This award-winning shampoo is the perfect option for anyone who subscribes to the clean beauty movement but also wants to create next-level volume and body in their locks. Rahua Voluminous Shampoo delivers this volume and body while simultaneously clarifying, strengthening, and nourishing the hair. Rahua oil, rich in omega 9, is a wonder ingredient that strengthens hair from the inside out, preventing breakage and adding volume.

As well as its namesake Rahua oil, this completely organic shampoo is made from a variety of natural ingredients that enhance the hair. Green tea antioxidants, citrus juices, and lemongrass, all combine to remove buildup and oil, as well as reduce future oil production. 

We can’t forget about the lavender and eucalyptus extracts that give this product a spa-like smell, creating an aromatherapy experience that soothes not just the hair, but also the mind. This is the perfect product for anyone with fine and oily hair, and ensures that temporary volume doesn't come at the cost of long-term hair health.

15. Kevin Murphy Plumping Wash

This densifying shampoo designed for thinning hair is one of the best products for bringing your hair effortless volume, shine, and softness. Plumping your hair in all the right places without weighing it down, Kevin Murphy Plumping Wash is the perfect product to add to the haircare routine for anyone whose limp locks need a little more wow factor. 

Formulated to leave hair strengthened and reinvigorated from root to tip, this shampoo uses a combination of stimulating ginger root and nettle, healing nutrient-rich rice bran and amino acids, luster-restoring natural conditioning agent aloe vera leaf, nourishing bamboo extract, and anti aging acai berry extract. This perfectly formulated combination stimulates scalp circulation and helps maintain the integrity of the hair while delivering volume, softness, and shine. Overall, this sulfate-free, paraben-free, and cruelty-free product is the perfect way to transform thin or aging hair into stronger strands that look fuller and more alive.

16. Philip B. Botanicals Weightless Volumizing Shampoo

Philip B. Botanicals created  the perfect shampoo to give your hair a thorough but gentle deep clean that breaks down dirt while imbuing the hair with volume. Free from parabens and phthalates, this vegan and cruelty-free product is color and keratin-treatment safe, making it a versatile option for anyone who needs to add a little lift to their locks. 

Weightless Volumizing Shampoo is formulated with technically advanced micellar molecules that efficiently destroy dirt and debris and lift away oil and product buildup, leaving hair squeaky clean without stripping it of beneficial natural oils and moisture. It also creates weightless moisture that gives the hair body using an expert blend of botanical agents, such as rosemary, sunflower, and aloe. Finally, this ideal shampoo for daily use has a happy, uplifting magnolia scent that will elevate your shower experience.

17. Kenra Professional Volumizing Shampoo

The numbers are there to back up Kenra Volumizing Shampoo, loved by celebrity hairstylist Glenn Ellis. Not only does it increase hair volume by 30%, but it also extends lift from stylers by up to 155%. Using a pH balancing system, this product is able to lift hair at the root as well as encourage supple growth. 

Not only will it give your hair body and fullness, but it also deep cleans the hair before rinsing out completely, leaving your hair feeling free from any oil or buildup, and making it far easier to comb through. We love the pH-balancing system in this shampoo that protects hair and encourages growth, while preventing the damage that harsher products may cause. One reviewer describes using this product as almost as good as going to the salon, and we can’t help but agree.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is volumizing shampoo?

As the name suggests, it is a shampoo that gives your hair the illusion of having extra volume. It’s an optimal way of adding body and fullness to thin or flat hair,  giving hair more bounce and movement. 

Volumizing shampoos typically work by lifting hair roots and cleansing buildup to give your hair the illusion of thickness. If you find your hairstyles aren’t working  due to a lack of hair quantity then a volumizing shampoo may be the best way to change up your everyday hair game.

What should I look for in a volumizing shampoo?

Trying to figure out which products actually do what they say on their labels is definitely a challenge, but a closer look at the ingredients will certainly give you a hint. Look for ingredients that stimulate circulation like essential oils or plump up fine strands essential fats and vitamins. You also want to avoid super-hydrating conditioners and oils, as these can weigh down the hair. Instead, opt for shampoos that contain ingredients that deeply (but gently) cleanse the hair, as half of the hair’s volume comes from removing excess oil and dead skin cells to lighten the hair. 

Although which ingredients do what may not be clear from the side of the bottle, by googling the main ingredients a brand advertises in their product, you will begin to get an idea. Alternatively, just go for any of the options on this list and you will be set. 

Is volumizing shampoo just for fine hair?

A common myth is that volumizing shampoos only work on fine hair. This is not true—although fine hair types see the most drastic results, any hair type in need of volume can use volumizing shampoo for a bit of lift. However, if you have dry, curly, or coarse hair that needs moisture, volumizing shampoos may be lacking in terms of hydration, nourishment, smoothing, or taming.

What are some ingredients I should avoid?

Some shampoos are better than others when it comes to looking after your hair. While some shampoos with harsh ingredients may initially give your hair an extra boost, over time they can damage your hair. This is particularly bad as it can make the hair appear flat and lifeless, defeating the purpose of using volumizing shampoo in the first place. 

Furthermore, some ingredients don’t just harm the hair but also your health, such as sodium lauryl sulfate, which has been found to not only irritate the scalp but is actually known to be a carcinogen. Other ingredients found in some shampoos that can be harmful to both your hair and health include silicones, phthalates, formaldehyde,  petroleum, triclosan, mineral oil, sulfates, parabens, micro-beads, PEGs,  DEA, TEA, synthetic fragrances, and dyes. We recommend that you avoid products with these ingredients, or at least see them as a cause for concern to research further before using them on your scalp.

How often should I wash my hair per week?

This is a difficult question, and depending on who you ask you can get quite different answers—there is no blanket recommendation. The general consensus is that washing your hair too often can strip natural oils and cause hair to become brittle, as well as lead to an irritated scalp. 

As hair is most vulnerable when wet, shampooing too often can even lead to the cuticle becoming damaged, leading to fuller-looking hair and more split ends. If you have very dry hair then it is important to leave time between washes, and people with thick, dry, curly hair can even go several weeks between washing. 

If you have oily hair, things become a bit more difficult. While washing too often can lead to hair becoming damaged, waiting too long between washes can lead to oily-looking hair and oil buildup that causes dandruff. Some people with oily hair may be able to resolve the problem by “training” their hair to produce less oil by getting into a routine of washing it less often, although this definitely takes a while for your hair to adjust if it is initially quite greasy. 

Others may find this doesn’t work for them, and should just try to avoid washing every day, but every second day may be a good compromise. A volumizing shampoo is a smart option for people with oily flat hair, to help prevent their hair from looking like it needs to be washed less than 24 hours after the last shampoo. This is because the shampoo cleanses away buildup and lifts the roots to counteract the oily, flat appearance your hair may have on day two or three after a wash.