In this Native shampoo and conditioner review, I’ll give my unadulterated thoughts on how these Native products have impacted my hair.
Don’t get it twisted, this is a basic user review. We’ll get into my likes and dislikes about the product and some high-level info on the ingredients list.
And for reference, I’ve used Native shampoo and conditioner for about 4 months now.
Native Shampoo Review – Pros
I like that Native shampoo only has 10 ingredients listed with a ‘what it means’ definition next to each item on the list.
The directions on the back of the bottle to ‘Lather, Sing, Rinse, Repeat’ speak to the desire to put forth an ethos of simplicity. I like how the bottle has simple branding with cucumber-green wording against a white background.
Native shampoo leaves my hair feeling clean without being stripped. My hair has been squeaky clean after using other shampoos, but I never get that feeling with Native. While Native shampoo doesn’t lather and sud up a ton, it is still easy to massage through my hair during a wash.
I like that it doesn’t have any silicone, sulfate, and/or parabens in the formula. The cucumber & mint shampoo fragrance is last on the ingredients list and is a barely-there scent, which I love. We’ve all come across an overly coconut-smelling hair product, am I right?
Does the Native volumizing shampoo add volume? As someone with very fine hair, I can report that I do feel a small sense of volume after a wash. Nothing crazy, but my hair doesn’t lay as flat against my head, which is saying a lot for me.
Native Shampoo Review – Cons
There aren’t many things that I don’t like about Native shampoo and conditioner.
The main issue I have with the ingredients is the fact that the formula includes fragrance. Adding fragrance is known to aggravate some skin types and those with sensitive scalps. So the fact that you can barely smell the fragrance feels pointless to even include it in the formula. Not to mention that it feels very contrary to the simple ingredients and clean beauty ethos of the brand.
The second issue I have is likely a personal problem. My hair starts to feel and appear greasy pretty fast after a wash. Usually by the middle of day two, my hair is looking ripe for another shower. This may very well be my hair type, but I will say that with other shampoos I feel like I could at least get past day two without looking like a grease ball.
Take this with a grain of salt since this is just a high-level note on the product. I’m still happily using Native shampoo and conditioner all these months later.
Native Conditioner Review – Pros and Cons
Native conditioner is a buttery smooth formula that is easy to apply and rinse. I don’t find the formula to be as heavy as some other conditioners that I’ve used. While I would say that my hair gets the right amount of conditioning (whatever that really means), I would say other shampoos make my hair a little softer.
The cons are the same with the shampoo, the fragrance is so unnoticeable, that it seems like you could have easily left it out.
Native Shampoo Ingredients
Now to a high-level review of the ingredients. Native Shampoo ranks 4 based on the EWG rating.
This is a pretty good rating, with 3 of the 10 ingredients listed as barely yellow and 1 ingredient rated red. The red rating is for the fragrance, which is an endocrine disruptor and potentially toxic, per this NIH article.
Ingredients include:
- Water
- Lauramidopropyl Betaine – Cleanser derived from plant oils
- EWG score: 1 – 4, may cause slight allergies, depending on the volume of use
- Developed from coconut oil
- Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate – Cleanser derived from plant oils
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- Developed from coconut oil
- Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate – Cleanser derived from plant oils
- EWG score: 1 – 3, safe to use
- Synthetic skin conditioning agent
- Sodium Citrate – Food grade salt for pH balance
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- Developed from citrus. Used to balance product pH
- Citric Acid – Food grade acid for pH balance
- EWG score: 1 – 2, safe to use
- Used to adjust acidity
- Sodium Benzoate – Food grade salt
- EWG score: 1 – 3
- Food grade preservative
- Fragrance – Cucumber & Mint
- It is unclear if this is a synthetic fragrance
- Fragrances are not recommended in skin and hair products
- Sodium Salicylate – Sodium salt
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- Salt derivative
- Polyquaternium-10 – Hair detangler derived from cellulose
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- A synthetic polymeric
Native Conditioner Ingredients
Native conditioner has an overall EWG rating of 3. This score is very good, with only 2 of the 10 ingredients ranking yellow and the fragrance ranking red, just like the Native Shampoo.
- Water
- Cetyl Alcohol – Hair conditioner derived from plant oils
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- Basic alcohol
- Behenamidopropyl Dimethylamine – Hair conditioner derived from plant oils
- EWG score: 2 – 5
- An amidoamine, which is a fatty acid
- Stearyl Alcohol – Hair conditioner derived from plant oils
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- A compound produced from stearic acid, a naturally occurring fatty acid
- Citric Acid – Food grade acid for pH balance
- EWG score: 1 – 2, safe to use
- An acid used to adjust acidity
- Glutamic Acid – Amino acid
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- Naturally occurring amino acid
- Sodium Benzoate – Food grade salt
- EWG score: 1 – 3
- Preservative commonly used in foods and cosmetics
- Caprylyl Glycol – Skin moisturizer
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- Skin conditioning agent with antimicrobial activity
- 1, 2-Hexanediol – Skin Moisturizer
- EWG score: 1, safe to use
- Data limited.
- Fragrance – Cucumber & Mint
- EWG score: 8
- Fragrance mixes have been associated with allergies, dermatitis, respiratory distress, and potential reproductive system effects
The one note on the 1, 2-Hexanediol ingredient that I found in an Illuminate Labs article cited a study listing it as ‘likely toxic’ to humans.
For a more in-depth review of the ingredients, please check out my friends at Illuminate Labs. (Actually, they aren’t my friends at all. They have no idea who I am, but their article is top-ranked for a reason).
Native Shampoo and Conditioner Review – Price Point
The Native shampoo and conditioner bottles are rather large at 16.5 ounces per bottle. At a price point of $10 per bottle, this is expensive per ounce compared to the Great Value brands and even a brand like Treseme. I’d say the price point is worth it for how long the bottles last.
