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Whether you have fine, thick, straight, or curly strands, a high-quality texturizing spray can make your hair look that much better when all is said and done. The reason? Texturizing spray coats strands in a lightweight mist that creates "grit" for a more lifted, long-lasting hairstyle. Think: The tousled hairstyle of your dreams.

Not all texturizing sprays are capable of creating such results, though. That’s why we set out to find the best texturizing sprays. To do so, we spent a week researching the most popular products on the market and narrowed the results down to 23 contenders for different hair types and considered formulas that were both aerosol and pump sprays. Once selected, each spray was tested on our 13 testers with varying hair lengths and types and analyzed in four key categories: ease of use, texture, volume, and the overall end look post-spritz. We also looked at the size of each product as well as the ingredients and fragrance. Each texturizing spray earned a rating of one to five in each category, and the sprays that accumulated the highest average ratings ended up on this list.

Read on for the best texturizing sprays PEOPLE tested.

Best Overall

Drybar Triple Sec 3-in-1 Finishing Spray

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use

  5/5

• Texture

  5/5

• Volume

  5/5

• Overall Look

  5/5

• This spray enhances volume, bounce, hold, and shine.

• It has a light, subtle scent.

• It's available in convenient travel-size cans.

• If sprayed too closely, it may leave a white cast on the hair.

• It’s a bit sticky until it fully dries.

The Drybar Triple Sec 3-in-1 Finishing Spray is in a league of its own. On Amazon, the texturizing spray has earned over 1,300 5-star ratings, and at Sephora, it’s amassed over 42,000 "likes." What makes this texturizing spray so lovable is its easy-to-hold can, delectable (but subtle) scent, and textured, tousled result it makes possible. Its hero ingredient is crystalline zeolite (a naturally absorbent ingredient) that absorbs excess oil while also creating a matte texture and a piece-y effect to the hair.

While we found it to feel a bit tacky when first spritzed on, this texturizing spray boosts volume and provides extra bounce to curls while enhancing shine overall. What’s more, our testers who had wavy or curled hair before testing found that after using the spray, the shape of their styles held longer. This product keeps curls or waves intact without leaving behind a crunchy or stiff feel, essentially eliminating the need for hairspray. It's available in two sizes, 4.2 ounces, and a 1.67-ounce travel-size container.

Scent: Blanc Scent | Hold: Light | Size: 4.2 oz., 1.67 oz. (travel size) | Ingredients: Crystalline zeolite

Best for Everyday

Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use

  4/5

• Texture

  4.5/5

• Volume

  5/5

• Overall Look

  5/5

• It has a great scent.

• It doesn’t leave a white cast on the hair.

• This spray provides lightweight volume, texture, and hold.

The Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray, which has over 6,000 5-star ratings on Amazon, is a must-have for celebrities like Meghan Markle. It creates a soft, touchable texture that lasts for hours, all while smelling divine. Similar to the Drybar offering we tested, it's infused with zeolites, meaning it practically doubles as a dry shampoo, absorbing oil at the root to make hair not only look fuller, but fresher, too.

We found this spray to be incredibly easy to use — just spray, shake, and go. The results were immediate and created notable lift and volume in the hair. What we found most impressive about this texturizing spray, though, is how well it works on fine hair. Rather than weighing the hair down, it provided lightweight, natural-looking volume, texture, and hold that lasted for hours on our fine-haired tester. We were also pleased to note that this product didn't leave a white cast on our hair after spraying.

The only downfall we noticed was that, given the size of the bottle, it’s heavier than other texturizing sprays we tested. Additionally, we found that the nozzle was difficult to press down at first, but once you begin spraying, it's smooth sailing. While the Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray works wonders for texture and volume, it does slightly dry out the hair after a few hours of wear — though that’s likely because it’s formulated with oil-absorbing ingredients.

Scent: Cote d’Azur | Hold: Touchable | Size: 8.5 oz. | Ingredients: Crystalline zeolite, mango extract, aloe extract

Best Volumizing

Ouai Texturizing Hair Spray

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use

  5/5

• Texture

  5/5

• Volume

  5/5

• Overall Look

  5/5

• The spray can is comfortable to hold and easy to use.

• It adds definition and texture to hair.

• It doubles as a dry shampoo.

If your main goal is to boost texture and volume on a day-two ‘do, the Ouai Texturizing Hair Spray needs to be on your radar. The popular texturizing spray is formulated with volcanic minerals to absorb oil and mattify strands, copolymers to offer ample hold, and fruit and flower extracts to boost softness and shine.

We noticed that this spray helped those with existing natural curls to achieve a more defined look in their coils in a way that appeared healthier and bouncier. It even helped to refresh day-two hair thanks to its dry shampoo nature.

As much as we loved how the spray performed two days post-shampooing, though, our tester found that when she ran her fingers through her hair to tousle her strands, she did notice a bit of residue. As such, we think this spray is great for building volume and absorbing oil, but it’s best used with a sink nearby so that you can wash your hands post-styling.

Scent: North Bondi | Hold: Medium | Size: 1.4 oz. | Ingredients: Volcanic minerals, aloe vera leaf extract, passion flower extract, mango extract

Best Buildable

Amika Un.done Volume & Texture Spray

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use

  5/5

• Texture

  5/5

• Volume

  5/5

• Overall Look

  4.5/5

• It does not leave a stiff or sticky feel to the hair.

• It provides notable volume.

• The packaging of this product is very appealing.

You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but in the case of Amika’s Un.done Volume & Texture Spray, it’s hard not to. The adorably packaged styling spray is an instant stand-out in the appearance category — but not just for how it looks on the outside. This product makes hair look incredible, in large part thanks to sea buckthorn berry, which adds hydration and nourishes the hair, as well as zeolite and rice starch to add grit for noticeable texture.

We found that this spray can be customizable to your needs depending on how you use it. For example, if you layer the spray, the first layer gives a soft, touchable texture, but continuing to add more product will give you even more notable volume and grit without feeling stiff or sticky or getting weighed down, in a way that outperformed many of the other products we tested. We even found that you could brush your hair in between layers — something that's typically quite difficult with a texturizing spray. While we didn't experience it, some shoppers report that this spray makes their hair feel crunchy.

Finally, this spray continued to work as the days wore on — thanks to its dry shampoo nature (made possible by oil-absorbing zeolite), our tester noted that their hair still looked freshly styled even on the second (and third!) days post-shower.

Scent: Unscented | Hold: Light | Size: 5.3 oz. | Ingredients: Zeolite, rice starch, glycerin, sea buckthorn berry

Best for Curly & Coily Hair

Ceremonia Açai Style Refresher

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use

  5/5

• Texture

  5/5

• Volume

  4/5

• Overall Look

  5/5

• It refreshes hair nearly instantly.

• It also adds a bit of grit, which enhances the styling process.

• This spray makes hair feel soft, shiny, and bouncy when used with heat.

While most texturizing sprays are either a powerful, gritty mist or come out in a mist so fine you can barely tell it's there, the Ceremonia Açai Style Refresher has a formula that’s more like water than a powdery spray. As such, it moistens strands instantly so that they’re easy to reshape on days two and three post-wash while still delivering a decent amount of grit to give volume to the hair.

Our tester found that while this spray does moisten the hair, it doesn't weigh it down or make it appear "damp," but rather acts as a soft mist that brings new life to dirty strands. She even found that it gave more bounce to her kinky, coily hair.

While this spray can be used to boost dry hair, it can also be used before restyling with heat, such as with a hot air brush. As it turns out, our tester raved about the level of hold and shine she received post-curling her hair. While this isn't technically a volumizing spray, it provides what our tester called an "oomph" after you massage the product into your scalp, either with your fingers or a scalp massager. The result is a refreshed, more vibrant texture. No wonder this refreshing spray has sold out multiple times!

Scent: Subtle | Hold: Light | Size: 6.7 oz. | Ingredients: Aloe vera leaf juice, açai extract, avocado oil 

Best for Strong Hold

Moroccanoil Dry Texture Spray

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use

  5/5

• Texture

  4/5

• Volume

  5/5

• Overall Look

  4.5/5

If you’re a fan of the classic Moroccanoil scent, you’ll swoon over this dry texture spray, which provides strands with not only a boost of texture and volume but heavenly fragrance, too. Beloved by 32,000 Sephora shoppers, this texturizing spray is particularly popular because it can easily be used on dry hair to lift and refresh a style or to prep hair before styling.

We found that the force of the spray was quite strong and offered immediate volumizing prowess as well as a strong hold not unlike that you'd get from a hairspray. It’s worth noting, though, that the results of this texturizing spray vary based on proximity. The closer you spray it, the more likely it will create a firm-hold effect. When you spray it from six inches or so away, you can easily achieve a more touchable hold that feels notably less sticky and dries quickly. We also noticed that this spray was overall a bit drying, similar to the Oribe Dry Texture Spray — so take the "dry" nomenclature at face value.

Scent: Floral | Hold: Firm | Size: 5.4 oz. | Ingredients: Argan oil, zeolite, hydrolyzed wheat protein

Best Lightweight

R+Co Balloon Dry Volume Spray

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use

  4.5/5

• Texture

  5/5

• Volume

  5/5

• Overall Look

  5/5

• It instantly boosts volume and hair texture.

• It works well with both straight and curly hair.

• It makes the hair soft and shiny.

There’s so much to love about the R+Co Balloon Dry Volume Spray. For starters, it's compatible with all hair types. Additionally, it’s designed to absorb excess moisture in the hair, which is often responsible for weighing hair down. As a result, we found that just a few spritzes of this spray instantly perked up our strands — like blowing air into a balloon (hence the name).

This spray works equally well with straight or curly hair. What's interesting to note is that the more we styled, the better this product got. As we continued with curling and spraying the hair, more volume appeared without crunch or weight — just a soft-to-the-touch finish and even added shine. Plus, it smells fresh in a way that isn't overpowering.

The only downfall of this incredible texturizing spray is its nozzle, which other shoppers agree is tricky to maneuver — like the Oribe spray, it's a bit difficult to push down at first, but after the first spray, it becomes easier with use.

Scent: Warm Romantic | Hold: Flexible | Size: 5 oz. | Ingredients: Silica, zeolite, calendula, mica

Things to Consider When Buying Texturizing Spray

Hold

Depending on the texturizing spray at hand, the level of hold you may experience (meaning how well it keeps your style intact) varies. While some texturizing sprays nearly mimic hairspray, many only offer light-to-medium hold. That said, if your goal is to swap out your hairspray for a texturizing spray, you’ll want to look for formulas with the highest hold, like the Moroccanoil Dry Texture Spray. If, on the other hand, you want super touchable yet slightly textured hair, a light-hold texturizing spray, like our best overall pick, Drybar Triple Sec 3-in-1 Finishing Spray, or a light-to-medium hold spray may be best.

Hair Type

Texturizing sprays come in a few forms. Where most are matte, others offer a touch of shine; where many focus on adding texture and grit, plenty of others boost volume, too. Keeping this in mind, you’ll want to consider your hair type. If you have thick hair, you may not feel like extra volume is necessary. If you have oily hair, you'll want to reach for a formula that contains zeolite (which absorbs excess oil). If you have fine hair, you’ll want to prioritize volumizing formulas (though something that won't weigh hair down, like Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray). All in all, read through the benefits of each product on this list and contemplate how they align with your hair type. All of these factors will help you find the best texturizing spray specifically for you.

Size

Another thing to be mindful of when shopping for texturizing spray is the size of the can or bottle. Chances are, you’ll fall in love with the results a texturizing spray can achieve, so you’ll want to be aware of options that come in multiple sizes. While we showcased full-size bottles for the sake of this researched round-up, many of the options are sold in miniature, travel-sized options, too.

Ingredients

When you’re looking for the right texturizing spray, consider the ingredients as well as your hair type. If your hair is generally oily, you should look for a texturizing spray that contains ingredients like zeolite and volcanic minerals that add volume and remove excess oil, like the Amika Un.done Volume & Texture Spray. Those with dry, damaged, or color-treated hair should focus on ingredients like argan oil and avocado oil that nourish and hydrate the hair.

Fragrance

Since hair texturizing spray is a product that you’ll use close to your face, you’ll want to make sure that the scent is one you like and that it doesn’t compete with any other fragrance you’re wearing. Some products have a light scent, while others have a distinct and strong fragrance. Check the scent of any product you’re considering to make sure it’s something you like and don’t find offensive.

How We Tested

• Product Selection: We researched the most popular texturizing sprays the market has to offer, including sprays that aren’t necessarily marketed under the name. In doing so, we found 23 hairstyling products to put to the test.
• Testing Process: To see how each texturizing spray measured up, we had each tester spray a product onto the right side of their natural hair texture, as well as after creating curls. The testers were to hold the can 6 to 8 inches from their hair to avoid concentrating the product too much and causing a sticky effect. They were to also spray the product onto their roots to measure how well it lifts the hair.
• Styling Process: The testers were then asked to curl their hair with a curling iron before spritzing the texturizing spray again to measure how well it held the curls.
• Results: We then rated each texturizing spray from one to five for ease of use, texture, volume, and the overall end look post-spritz. The sprays that earned the highest average ratings made this list.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What does a texturizing spray do?

  Texturizing spray does exactly what the name implies: it adds texture and grit to soft, clean hair, celebrity hairstylist Eddie Cook says. He notes that it also works to give additional hold to curly or wavy styles. Though, as we found in our testing, many products, especially those marketed as also being a dry shampoo or "refresher" can be used on dirty hair to give new life to oily, flat strands.

• Is texturizing spray the same as hairspray?

  While texturizing spray can provide light-to-medium hold to hairstyles, you shouldn't nix hairspray entirely if your hair requires a firm hold. “Hairspray tends to be tacky or sticky so it holds, and often leaves a shiny cast, too,” Cook says. Meanwhile, texturizing sprays tend to have a matte finish and work to generate volume more so than preserve your hairstyle.

• What does texturizing spray do for fine hair?

  Celebrity hairstylists strongly suggest using texturizing spray if you have fine hair. “It gives the hair a less slippery, soft feel,” explains celebrity hairstylist Marwa Bashir. The pro also notes that it's great for fine hair that wants a tousled look. For best results, Bashir says to spritz texturizing spray into strands after air-drying or blow-drying hair.

  
  In addition to creating a more tousled look, Cook says that texturizing spray is the key to achieving touchable hold on fine hair types, meaning if your hair has a hard time holding a curl, texturizing spray will certainly help.

Why Trust PEOPLE?

Rebecca Norris has a decade's worth of experience working in beauty editorial. To curate this list of the best texturizing sprays, she tapped two celebrity hairstylists and used notes from our PEOPLE testers, who looked at how the products worked with natural hair texture as well as curled hair. The experts she consulted included celebrity hairstylists Eddie Cook and Marwa Bashir.

• Eddie Cook is a celebrity hair stylist based in Los Angeles.
• Marwa Bashir is a Nashville-based celebrity hairstylist.
  

What Is PEOPLE Tested?

We created the PEOPLE Tested seal of approval to help you find the very best products for your life. We use our unique methodology to test products in three labs across the country and with our network of home testers to determine their effectiveness, durability, ease of use, and so much more. Based on the results, we rate and recommend products so you can find the right one for your needs.

But we don’t stop there: We also regularly re-review the categories in which we’ve awarded the PEOPLE Tested seal of approval — because the best product of today might not be the best of tomorrow. And by the way, companies can never buy our recommendation: Their products must earn it, fair and square.

In short, PEOPLE Tested provides recommendations you can trust — every day, every purchase.

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