The Ultimate Guide to Men's Hair Styling Products in 2025

Have you ever gone to the hair product section, confused about what to buy?

There seem to be millions of products everywhere promising to give you longer hair, better shine, more control, and many other things, but you've been too heartbroken with the past results to try again.

While it can be easy to throw things into the cart, go home, and start using them, picking the right products is not easy.

This is a comprehensive guide on the best products for your hair type. You will learn the different types and uses of men's hair styling products and all the factors to consider when choosing hair products.

If you’re new to this, we’ll start with the fundamentals of men's hair styling products. 

Understanding Hair Product Types For Men

There are many products for styling men's hair, and the first challenge many men face is not knowing which to use or even being aware of what they do.

1. Pomades

Pomades offer a classic yet flexible styling option, perfect for retro and modern looks. They keep your hairstyle in place without the usual stiffness of gels. 

Who Should Use It? 

Use pomades for the wet, slicked-back look, side parts, and casual and natural-looking styles.

How To Use This Product on Men’s Hair

• First, dry your hair with a towel. 

• Then, put some of the product on your palm and gently work it through your hair, from the roots to the ends.

• Use your finger and comb through while styling your hair.

2. Clays

Clays are a creamy and thick styling product that provides good hold while adding volume to hair. They are perfect for people with thin, dense, fine, wiry, or greasy hair and can hold many styles.

Who Should Use It? 

You can use hair clays to achieve hairstyles like pompadours, messy crops, and textured quiffs.

How To Use This Product on Men’s Hair

• Clays can be applied to dry and wet hair, as long as it is not dripping wet.

• Warm a small amount between your palms and apply to your hair from the scalp to the roots, all the way to the tips. 

• You can use your finger or a comb to even out, or for a better distribution

• Work your hair to your desired style.

3. Waxes

Hair wax is another great hair styling product that adds volume to hair. This oil-based option gives dry hair a shiny look without stiffening it. It works on wet or dry hair of different types.

Who Should Use It? 

Waxes are good in a lot of hairstyles. But this is a product you want to use, especially if you have layered styles, curls, and textured waves. 

How To Use This Product on Men’s Hair

While waxes can be applied to dry and semi-wet hair, it must be clean and free of other products. 

• Warm a small quantity of wax between your palms and apply it to your hair. 

• Avoid taking in huge quantities to prevent clumping on the hair, and avoid applying to the scalp, as it can block follicles. 

• Work with a bit of wax on your hair and an increased quantity where you need the wax to hold your hair in place.

• Use smaller wax on starts or baby hairs for a neat look. Wax is best applied when you are fully clothed to avoid staining clothes.

4. Pastes

Pastes are versatile, medium-hold products with a super-thick consistency. They give a natural finish and work across multiple hair types and styles.

It is best for achieving a lot of styles, from casual to sleek and polished looks. It is pliable and easy to add texture and volume to hair. Paste products are water-based, so they are easy to wash out. 

Who Should Use It? 

Pastes work on all hair types and lengths. They are water-based, preventing hair from limpness and giving it a medium hold.

How To Use This Product on Men’s Hair

• Warm it between your palms to activate it before application.

• Unlike other products, pastes are applied from the back of the hair to the front, working from root to tip. (This prevents clumping, especially in visible areas.) 

• Massage into your hair, using your fingers to part and style the hair, and work the hair to the front.

5. Creams

Creams are lightweight conditioning products offering a natural finish and light hold, ideal for casual styles and finer hair. While hair creams are used for styling, they also hydrate and nourish the hair.

Who Should Use It? 

Creams work on all hair types. They are the go-to for everyday use and will promote hair growth and health. 

They can be easily applied. There's a hair cream for every hair type, with other good features. The best styles with a hair cream are tousled or natural because of their light hold and matte or shiny finish.

How To Use This Product on Men’s Hair

• Hair cream can be applied to wet or dry hair.

• Warm a small portion between your palms and apply to your hair from the scalp to the top. 

• This will boost the hydration, moisturization, and health of your hair. 

6. Texturizing Products

The primary purpose of texturizing products is to add volume, give it a different texture, and create whatever style you want without weighing the hair down or making it limp. 

These products come in different forms, such as creams, pastes, sprays, etc. Each is designed for a particular hair type.

Who Should Use It? 

Texturizing products are used to give a textured and fuller look. A premium texturizing product brand is Hanz de Fuko collection. 

They use a unique clay-wax hybrid to formulate products specific to different hair types. Quicksand is one of their signature products. It is a texturizing product that is part dry shampoo and part styling wax. Its high hold and matte finish give you the ultimate beachy look while absorbing excess oil and adding volume. 

How To Use This Product on Men’s Hair

Each product will have specific instructions on how to apply it, especially depending on your hair type. However, like most hair products, you must warm it between your palms and apply it from root to tip, styling it as you would with any other product. 

7. Sea Salt Sprays

Sea salt sprays create a beach-inspired texture with minimal effort for relaxed, tousled styles. They are great for adding volume and fixing hair to that perfect beach wave. It works on all hair lengths and types and dries without sticky residue. 

Who Should Use It?

These sprays work on any hair type and length, so apply them according to the product's instructions.

How To Use This Product on Men’s Hair

• Shake the bottle and spray from the middle to the tip of your hair. 

• It can be either slightly wet or damp. 

• Work your fingers through it for a tousled look, and for more volume, use an air diffuser or a dryer.

Matching Products to Hair Types: Here’s How To Find Your Perfect Match

Even the right products on the wrong hair will not give you the results you are looking for. Different hair types require different styling products. To put things in perspective, here’s a table showing the best hair products for various men’s hair types. 

Let’s now look into these types in more detail.

 

 

Fine/Thinning Hair

If you have fine or thinning hair, stick to light creams, sea salt sprays, and pastes. These products will add volume to your hair and give it a matte look while feeling lightweight.

You need products that will give you a matte look because they absorb light instead of reflecting it. This will easily create the illusion of volume and make it look less flat. 

Aside from the matte look, creams, pastes, and some sea salt sprays give your hair more grit at the roots, building volume and making it more responsive to styling. “Oh my! This is an answered prayer for most guys.”

WHAT TO AVOID:

• Avoid using heavy pomades and waxes. They will make your hair look greasy and flat. 

• They will also weigh your hair and reflect light in the thinning areas, making it look limp and sparse.

Thick Hair

If you are thick-headed, the best products to use are clays, waxes, pastes, and texturizing products with a firm hold. Thick hair might seem like the ideal and perfect type of hair because it is puffy and voluminous, but it comes with its own unique challenges.

People with thick hair spend a lot of time styling it. Sometimes, it can be hard to control and dry very quickly. You want to focus on products with a matte finish, which will give your hair wonderful texture and shape. This allows you to create defined styles that would stay in place.

WHAT TO AVOID: 

Avoid light creams or conditioners, heavy oils, and wet-look pomades. They lack enough hold, can weigh down hair, and lead to product buildup.

Curly/Textured Hair

Curly or textured hair is not just about hydrating and styling your hair. It's also about enhancing the natural oils that come with it, defining them correctly, and controlling them.

That’s why the best hair products for curly hair are creams, pastes, and textured creams or sprays. These products would help to add moisture and softness to your coils, especially loose curls. 

They would offer light to medium hold, which is great for natural finishes and defines the texture without making them too stiff or crunchy. Another good product is leave-in conditioner. Add this before styling for moisture, hydration, and pre-style curls.

WHAT TO AVOID: 

Since the priority is defining your coils and keeping your hair  moisturized, you want to stay away from: 

• Heavy gels and wax that would weigh down your coils, making them stiff, greasy, and even losing shape.

• Alcohol-heavy sprays and slick pomades that will dry out or kill your coils. 

Straight Hair

Straight hair lacks volume, and people with straight hair suffer from the issue of quick product buildup.  There's also the problem of flyaways and static. When you couple this with its slippery nature, it makes it difficult to hold styles in place.

The best products to use for straight hair are sea salt sprays, textured clays or powders, and light pastes. These will easily add volume and texture to the hair. For sleek styles, you can use light creams or pomades that help smooth the hair and control flyaways by giving it a little shine.

WHAT TO AVOID: 

• Avoid heavy gels, waxes, oils, or pomades that give your hair a wet look. 

While they may seem to keep your hair in place, they will weigh it down, lead to product buildup, and make it very greasy and limp.

Receding Hairlines/Balding Patterns

Hair loss is not a respecter of age, and it's a pervasive experience for men. You can work around it, starting with the right products. Texturizing powders or clays, lightweight paste, scalp treatment, or hair stimulating shampoo are the best products for receding or thinning hairlines.

While the first two will give more volume and help style your hair around thinner areas, the last two will stimulate growth and improve your scalp health to prevent further loss.

WHAT TO AVOID: 

Generally, you want to avoid hair products that make your hair limp, weigh it down, and make it look sparse. Such products include 

• High-shine pomades or gels

• Heavy creams or oils

• Sticky wax. 

All these products will clump at your thinning hairline, making your hair very greasy and shiny. They will also draw more attention to the receding or thinning areas. 

Wrapping Up

Knowing that you're leaving the house looking like a king and nothing will mess up your hair is one of the best feelings ever. This feeling comes when you use the right products to style your hair.

At MASC, we believe it is a constant work in progress. That’s why we stock a variety of only high-quality men's grooming products and offer personalized recommendations.