Best Hair Mask for Grey Hair

The best hair mask for grey hair comes down to what your greys are doing: turning yellow, feeling dry and wiry, or both. Most grey hair needs one of two masks, a toning mask or a moisture mask, and plenty of people keep one of each. Here's how to tell which you need, how to use it, and what to pair it with.

Toning mask or moisture mask?

A toning mask carries a violet or blue pigment. Violet sits opposite yellow on the colour wheel, so it cancels the yellow cast that grey and white hair picks up from sun, heat styling, hard water and smoke. Reach for one when your silver starts looking creamy or dull rather than bright.

A moisture mask has no pigment. Its job is to soften, add slip and make hair easier to brush and style. Grey strands often feel drier and stiffer than the hair they replaced, so this is the mask to use every week.

If your grey isn't yellowing, skip the toning mask. There's nothing for the pigment to fix, and a plain moisture mask does the job. To see both types side by side, shop all hair masks and narrow it down by what your hair needs.

How to use a toning mask without going lilac

• Apply to clean, towel-dried hair, not soaking wet. Extra water thins the pigment and the result comes out patchy.
• Start with a short time. White and very light grey hair takes pigment fast, and you can always leave it longer next wash.
• Rinse with cool to lukewarm water.
• Use it once a week, or when the yellow comes back. Most people don't need it every wash.

If you do end up with a lilac tint, a wash or two with your regular shampoo usually brings it back.

When dryness is the bigger problem

Wiry greys that stick up and won't sit flat are usually dry, not damaged. A rich moisture mask once or twice a week, from mid-lengths to ends, is the place to start. If dryness is your main worry, the best hair mask for dry hair covers heavier options. If it's more about flyaways and halo frizz, see our best hair mask for frizzy hair.

Colouring over your greys?

If you colour over grey, your shopping changes. Toning masks are made for natural grey and white hair, and on dyed hair the pigment can shift your shade. Look at the best hair mask for coloured hair instead. Growing out your colour? Keep the toning mask on the natural grey regrowth and treat the coloured lengths as coloured hair.

Build the routine around the mask

A mask is a once or twice a week step, so the products you use every wash matter just as much. Start with a gentle wash from our best shampoo for grey hair range. On the washes between masks, a conditioner does the everyday softening, and our best conditioner for grey hair picks are a good place to start.

One thing to watch: toning products stack. A purple shampoo, a purple conditioner and a toning mask all in the same week is usually more pigment than grey hair needs. Pick one toning step, and let the rest of your routine focus on moisture.

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