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Should You Use Coconut Oil on Curly Hair?

Unlock the benefits of coconut oil for hair.
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Should You Use Coconut Oil on Curly Hair?
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By Marsha B. ·

How often is coconut oil referred to as the end-all, fix-all to your problems? The natural oil is known for having numerous health benefits. Beyond revitalizing your skin and hair, it is a superfood with strong medicinal properties. Despite the benefits of coconut oil for curls, the magical oil has also proven to be damaging to others, depending on the texture and porosity of your hair. Some people wonder if coconut oil is good for curly hair. In other words, there are pros and cons to incorporating coconut oil into your regimen.

Pro: Coconut oil can encourage hair growth and thickness

Should You Use Coconut Oil on Curly Hair?
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Coconut oil can hydrate, nourish, and clean the scalp by removing buildup. Applying a small amount after your wash day allows the oil to penetrate the hair shaft, seeping deeply into the follicles. This strengthens the hair as a whole, promoting growth, fullness, and density. Sounds great, right? If your hair type is on the drier, coarse side, it will do the exact opposite.

Con: Coconut oil can promote protein buildup

Although coconut oil cleanses the scalp, it can also cause a protein buildup by restricting moisture on dry or coarse hair. This will block the needed moisture and cause your strands to dry out. The end result? Split ends and hair breakage.

Pro: Coconut oil can tame your curls

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If you have frizzy hair, adding a little coconut oil will surely tame your curls. Applying a small amount before you unravel your twist-out will reduce unruly strands. Depending on your hair’s porosity, it can keep your curls under control.

Con: Too much Coconut oil can be bad for your hair

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coconut oil is not the best for low porosity hair #curlyhair #curlyhaircare #fyp

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Typically, naturals never follow the “dime size” instructions on the back of a conditioner bottle. The truth is, we use the old-fashioned guestimate—trial and error—regarding how much of a product will suffice for our hair. In the case of coconut oil, oversaturating your hair is counterproductive. Because it is a heavier oil, it will weigh down your curls if you use too much.

WANT TO UNDERSTAND YOUR TEXTURE TYPE?
To understand all there is to know about your curl pattern, porosity, density, reliable curly hair products and the best hairstyles for you, take the NaturallyCurly Texture Typing Quiz right now!
Caring for curls, coils, and waves can seem overwhelming!

You’ve probably tried several techniques and products and been discouraged by the results. That’s because each head of hair has unique characteristics that influence your curls’ behavior: the shape and size of the hair follicle, hair strand thickness and length, and even its relationship to moisture.

Let’s get started!

Do any of these apply to you?
I’ve used heat tools such as a blow dryer or a flat iron in the past 3 months.
I’m currently transitioning to my natural texture.
Neither apply to me
Do you have locs?

Locs are an intentional matting and tangling of the hair to create rope-like structures. Hair is not combed during the locing process which allows hair that would normally shed to remain among your strands wrapping around each other to form a new texture.

Yes
No

Whether your locs are based on curls, coils, or waves, they still need special care and specific maintenance regimens related to your texture type. To build the best loc care and maintenance, consider the state of your curls before you loc’d them when taking this quiz. That way, you’ll be able to get the best results at the end of the quiz, helping you select the best products and ingredients for your texture type.

CURL PATTERN

Learning the specifics of your curl pattern will help you understand what styling techniques and products work best for your unique set of strands. You’ll also love our NaturallyCurly content that specifically addresses your curl needs!

Here at NaturallyCurly, we embrace wavy, curly, and coily patterns by treating each set of curls with equal amounts of care, curl love, and respect.

Which of the following options best describes your hair?
Wavy
Curly
Coily
CURL TYPE

Learning the specifics of your curl pattern will help you understand what styling techniques and products work best for your unique set of strands. You’ll also love our NaturallyCurly content that specifically addresses your curl needs!

Here at NaturallyCurly, we embrace wavy, curly, and coily patterns by treating each set of curls with equal amounts of care, curl love, and respect.

Which of the following options best describes your hair?
S-shaped hair that sticks close to the head; very easy to handle; easily straightened
S-shaped hair that sticks close to the head; a little resistant to styling; it has a tendency to frizz
thicker, more coarse wavy hair that has a few more actual curls, as opposed to just waves; tends to be more resistant to styling and will frizz easily
Which of the following options best describes your hair?
Curls show a definite ringlet pattern; curls are well-defined and springy with the circumference size of sidewalk-chalk
Curls are well-defined and springy with the circumference size of a Sharpie; curls can range from bouncy ringlets to tight corkscrews
Curls are voluminous, tight corkscrews with the circumference size of a pencil; curls can be either kinky or very tightly curled, with lots of strands densely packed
Which of the following options best describes your hair?
Curls are tightly coiled and springy; when stretched or even un-stretched, has the circumference size of a crochet needle or smaller
Similar to 4a and when stretched or even un-stretched, has the circumference size of the spring in an ink pen
Very similar to 4b except that the curls coil tighter at the root/scalp; hair doesn’t spring or move much unless manipulated such as a braid-out or twist-out
POROSITY

Porosity is the ability of your hair to absorb and retain moisture. Knowing your porosity is just as important as knowing your curl type. Porosity ranges from low to high, depending on the condition of the cuticle.

Is your hair color-treated or do you use heat tools more than once a week?
Yes
No
DENSITY

Often confused with hair thickness, hair density measures the amount of hair you have on your head, and the proximity of the follicles to each other.

How long does it take your hair to dry with no product added?
It takes a long time to dry, hours and possibly days
It takes 1-2 hours
It drys quickly, in a matter of minutes
Part your hair down the middle. Now without forcing the two sides apart, how much of your scalp can you see?
I have no problem seeing my scalp.
I can see some of my scalp.
I can see very little of my scalp if I can see it at all.
WIDTH

The width or diameter of your strands affects the amount of volume you have as well as your hair’s overall strength, durability and ability to retain length.

Take a single strand between your fingers, close your eyes and then roll it between your fingers. What best describes your strand?
I don’t feel the strand at all between my fingers.
I can feel the strand between my fingers, and the strand is slender, pliable.
I can feel the strand between my fingers, and the strand is durable and hard to ignore.
LENGTH

Length is not really a texture type category, but from Big Chop to hip length, the length of your hair can affect your curl pattern, shrinkage and styling techniques.

How long is your hair?
Very short (i.e. close crop, fade, TWA)
Chin length
Shoulder length
Past your shoulders
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Before you succumb to the coconut oil craze, you must know your hair porosity.

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  • Dry or coarse hair will reject coconut oil, possibly resulting in brittleness and/or breakage.
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  • Fine or medium hair will absorb it, increasing growth and density.

If you find the superfood doing more damage than good, use it for its other benefits like healthy skin, teeth, and diet. If you need a hair oil substitute, peppermint, jojoba, argan, and castor oil are great options. We’ve compiled a list of our favorite coconut oil products below so you can start shopping now.

What has your experience been with coconut oil? Has it restored or destroyed your hair?