A step-by-step routine builder for straight, wavy, curly, and coily hair, matched to your porosity level.
Your hair type (straight, wavy, curly, or coily) combined with your porosity (how easily your hair absorbs and holds moisture) are the two factors that determine which products and techniques will actually work for you. Skip either one, and you’re mostly guessing. Match them together, and building a routine becomes surprisingly straightforward.
This guide covers how to identify your hair type and porosity, what each combination means for your wash-day routine, the correct order of steps, and the most common mistakes each hair type tends to make. By the end, you’ll have a personalized framework you can put into practice on your next wash day.
Porosity describes how well your hair cuticle (the outermost protective layer) opens and closes to let moisture in and out. There are three levels:
| Porosity Level | What’s Happening | What You’ll Notice |
|---|---|---|
| Low porosity | Cuticles lie flat; moisture struggles to enter | Products sit on top, hair takes forever to get wet, slow to dry |
| Medium porosity | Cuticles open and close normally | Products absorb well, styles hold, hair behaves predictably |
| High porosity | Cuticles have gaps (often from damage or chemical processing) | Soaks up water instantly but frizzes and dries out fast |
A quick way to get a rough sense of your porosity: drop a clean, product-free strand into a glass of room-temperature water. If it floats for two to three minutes before sinking, low porosity is likely. If it sinks almost immediately, that points to high porosity. It’s not a perfect test, but it lines up well with how most people’s hair actually behaves with products.
Porosity can differ between the roots and the ends, especially if you color or heat-style regularly. Your ends are usually higher porosity than your scalp area, which is why conditioning mid-lengths and ends separately from the scalp is often advised.
The widely used Andre Walker system organizes hair into four types: Type 1 (straight), Type 2 (wavy), Type 3 (curly, with defined spirals), and Type 4 (coily or tightly coiled). Each type has A, B, and C sub-categories corresponding to curl width or tightness: A is looser, C is tighter.
Your hair type tells you what your hair naturally does. Porosity tells you how to treat it. Together, they tell you what products to reach for and what techniques to use.
Use this matrix as your starting point, then read the section that matches your hair type below for more specific guidance.
| Hair Type | Low Porosity | Medium Porosity | High Porosity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Straight (1A–1C) | Lightweight liquid serums, monthly clarifying shampoo | Balanced conditioner, protein mask every 4–6 weeks | Protein-rich conditioner, leave-in on ends only |
| Wavy (2A–2C) | Water-based mousse or light gel, no heavy butters | Curl-enhancing cream or foam, standard rinse-out conditioner | Leave-in conditioner + light oil sealant after styling |
| Curly (3A–3C) | Use heat on deep conditioner to open cuticle; avoid build-up | LOC method (Liquid–Oil–Cream), weekly deep conditioning | Heavy creams, deep conditioning every wash day |
| Coily (4A–4C) | Steam treatments, lightweight water-based leave-ins | Shea butter, castor oil, protective styling | LOC or LCO method, maximum moisture retention |
Straight hair tends to distribute natural scalp oils quickly down the strand, which is why it gets greasy faster than textured types. Low-porosity straight hair especially struggles with product build-up since nothing fully absorbs. A clarifying shampoo once a month (or whenever the scalp feels congested) makes a real difference in keeping roots from going flat by midday.
For high-porosity straight hair, which is common after bleaching or repeated flat-ironing, a protein-based conditioner every two to three weeks helps rebuild what the cuticle has lost. Focus any leave-in or treatment on the ends, not the roots.
Fine and thin textures will particularly benefit from lightweight volumizing serums rather than creams. A bob length cut is another way to maximize volume because the shorter, blunt edges make the hair look thicker. Overall, to make the most of your routine, use light products, cleanse the scalp well, and build lift at the root.
The number one mistake wavy hair types make is reaching for products designed for curly or coily hair. Heavy butters and rich creams will collapse your wave pattern and make hair look stringy. Water-based gels and lightweight mousses are your best friends here, especially for 2A and 2B types. Scrunch the product into soaking-wet hair, then let it dry without touching. Once fully dry, gently break the gel cast by scrunching upward with your palms.
Low-porosity wavy hair is particularly prone to this issue because product just sits on top rather than absorbing. Keep styling light and stick to water-based formulas. High-porosity wavy hair benefits from a small amount of a sealing oil worked through the ends after styling. It helps hold moisture in as the hair dries. If you’re looking to enhance your wave pattern with a cut that works with your natural texture, layered haircuts are a natural fit for 2A–2B waves.
Type 3 curls, whether loose 3A ringlets or tight 3C corkscrews, need moisture on every single wash day, not just occasionally. The LOC method (Liquid, Oil, Cream) is the most reliable framework: start with a water-based leave-in, add an oil to seal the cuticle, then lock it all in with a curl cream.
Apply in sections, not all at once, and use the “squish to condish” technique during conditioning — flip hair forward, scoop conditioner into the palm, and press it up into the curl. This gets moisture into the inner curl, not just the surface.
Low-porosity curly hair needs to address the absorption issue first. Sitting under a hooded dryer or using a shower cap during deep conditioning helps heat open the cuticle so the treatment can actually get in. If you need style inspiration while building your routine, layered curly hairstyles can show you what well-moisturized, well-defined curls look like across different Type 3 subtypes.
Type 4 hair is the most moisture-hungry of all four types, and it’s also the most prone to breakage from over-manipulation. Wash days for 4A–4C hair work best when kept to once a week or every two weeks, with protective styling in between to minimize daily handling.
The LOC or LCO method (Liquid, Cream, Oil; swapping the last two for very high-porosity hair) is the standard framework, and it should be done in sections: working through unsectioned coily hair is one of the fastest ways to cause unnecessary breakage.
Products for this type should be genuinely rich — shea butter-based creams, castor oil, and thick leave-in conditioners are staples for good reason. Sealing in moisture after every wash day and keeping the hair in low-manipulation styles between washes is the key to retaining length over time. Easy protective hairstyles for natural hair are worth bookmarking as a companion resource. Protective styling and a solid wash-day routine work together, not independently.
Regardless of hair type, the order of steps on wash day matters more than most people realize. Products applied at the wrong stage or in the wrong sequence can undo everything that came before.
Step 1 — Pre-poo (optional but worth it): Apply a light oil or conditioner to dry hair before shampooing. This protects strands from friction during washing, especially useful for Type 3–4 hair or very high-porosity hair.
Step 2 — Shampoo the scalp: Choose a formula that matches your scalp’s needs: clarifying for build-up and oily roots, moisturizing for dry or sensitive scalps. Focus on the scalp, not the lengths. Let the suds rinse down the rest of the hair on their own.
Step 3 — Condition the mid-lengths and ends: Apply rinse-out conditioner from the ears down, not the roots. Let it sit for three to five minutes at minimum — longer if you’re using a deep conditioning treatment. For low-porosity hair, apply heat (a warm towel, a steam cap) to help absorption.
Step 4 — Apply styling products to wet hair: Leave-ins, curl creams, gels, and mousses all work better on soaking-wet hair. Don’t wait until hair is damp, as water in the hair is what helps the product distribute and absorb.
Step 5 — Dry and seal: Air-dry or diffuse depending on your hair type. For high-porosity hair, a cold-water rinse before drying helps close the cuticle slightly. Finish with a light oil on the ends only — not roots, and not on low-porosity hair that doesn’t need a sealant.
Most stylists recommend applying protein treatments before your regular conditioner, not instead of it. Protein rebuilds the cuticle structure; a conditioner that follows smooths and softens it. Doing both in the right order gives you the benefit of each without the stiffness protein alone can leave behind.
Even with the right products, a few consistent habits can undermine an otherwise solid routine. These are the most common ones per hair type.
Regular moisturizing shampoos don’t fully remove silicones and waxy ingredients that build up over time. On straight hair, that build-up shows as flat, heavy roots and dull mid-lengths. One clarifying wash per month (or after heavy product weeks) resets the scalp and keeps hair looking lighter and more voluminous.
The single most common mistake for wavy types. Even a few minutes of towel-drying before applying stylers is enough to disrupt the curl pattern. Products need water to activate and spread evenly through each strand. Apply everything while hair is genuinely soaking wet, straight from the shower.
Applying conditioner to unsectioned curly hair means the outer layer gets most of it while the inner hair stays dry. Work in four to six sections. Clip each one out of the way after conditioning so that every strand actually gets covered. This is what separates a mediocre conditioning from one that makes a visible difference.
More wash days for coily hair usually means more breakage, not better results. High-manipulation washing without protective handling in between is one of the main causes of length retention issues for 4A–4C types. Most trichologists recommend washing once a week, and many 4C types feel their best with wash days every 7 to 10 days. A co-wash or diluted scalp rinse can extend freshness between full wash days without the full shampooing manipulation.
To help you navigate your routine, here are the top questions that tend to come up.
The most reliable indicators are behavioral. Low-porosity hair takes a long time to get wet in the shower even under running water; products tend to sit on top in beads, and hair stays wet for a long time after washing. High-porosity hair soaks up water almost immediately, feels dry or frizzy very quickly after styling, and often looks fluffy or undefined once it dries, even with products applied.
Often yes. The scalp produces oil naturally, which travels down the strand, so roots are almost always less dry than ends. Most routines benefit from a lighter or clarifying shampoo at the roots and a heavier conditioner focused on the ends, which tend to be older, drier, and more damaged than the rest of the hair.
It depends on your type and porosity. Type 3–4 hair generally benefits from weekly deep conditioning, especially if it’s high porosity. Straight and wavy hair usually only needs a deep treatment monthly or after color or heat processing. Doing it too often can leave fine hair limp and weighed down.
Yes, and it’s more common than people expect. Hormonal shifts during pregnancy, menopause, or puberty can alter the curl pattern. Porosity is more likely to change from external factors — coloring, bleaching, and repeated heat styling all raise porosity. Some people also notice texture changes with age, stress, or after starting or stopping certain medications.
LOC stands for Liquid, Oil, Cream. You apply a water-based leave-in first, then a light oil to seal the cuticle, then a curl cream to lock everything in. It’s best for curly and coily hair, particularly high-porosity types that lose moisture quickly. Straight and wavy hair usually doesn’t need all three layers. Too much product will weigh the hair down rather than help it.
For most hair types, yes. Daily shampooing strips the scalp of natural oils and can lead to dryness, irritation, and breakage over time. Straight hair is the most wash-friendly, but even Type 1 hair usually does better with washing every two to three days. For Type 3–4 hair, once a week or less is a better baseline. Between washes, a dry shampoo at the roots or a co-wash can extend freshness without the full manipulation of a shampoo wash.
Building a hair care routine gets a lot easier once you stop following generic advice and start working with your actual hair type and porosity. Those two factors determine how often to wash, what products will absorb versus sit on top, and what techniques are worth your time. Whether your hair is fine and straight or thick and coily, the same principle applies: match the routine to the hair, not the other way around.
If you’re rethinking your look, our virtual try-on lets you compare variations of the same haircut, take a personalized style quiz, and build a tailored HairHunts hair care routine, all in one app. Try it here.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional trichological or dermatological advice. If you are experiencing significant hair loss, scalp pain, or sudden changes in hair texture, consult a licensed dermatologist or trichologist.
