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6 clarifying shampoos that'll help you hit refresh on your hair

Give your lacklustre locks a new lease on life

By Emma Allcock

Content Producer / July 12 2024

Ever get the feeling that your shampoo just isn't working? While your first instinct is to blame the shampoo itself, it's actually the rest of your haircare kit that may be the dullness-causing culprit.

You see, your regular shampoo does a great job of cleaning away everyday products, dirt and oils, but sometimes it needs to call upon a friend that has a little more oomph. So while the issue is not your current shampoo's fault exactly, swapping in another option every few washes is still the answer.

Not just any option, though; this is a problem that specifically calls for a clarifying shampoo. Think of your clarifying shampoo as the exfoliant to your cleanser, or the mask to your moisturiser. They work harder and deeper than your normal shampoo (removing stubborn excess build-up as well as other hair-dulling elements like pollution, hard water and daily grime) but they can be too much for everyday use.

Overuse one and you might strip your hair of its natural oils, leaving your tresses dry and unbalanced. Use it on occasion, however, and you'll be blessed with that just-stepped-out-of-a-salon, refreshed hair feeling on the regular. We’ll take the latter, thanks.

Keen to join the clarifying club? Here are the deep-cleansing shampoos we rate...

2024's Top 3 Clarifying Shampoos

JSHealth Purifying Vitamin Shampoo Cleanse + Revive, $34.99, JSHealth
Kérastase Specifique Balancing Shampoo, $57, Adore Beauty
ELEVEN Australia Deep Clean Shampoo, $28.95, Adore Beauty

JSHealth Purifying Vitamin Shampoo Cleanse + Revive

From $34.99 at JSHealth

This deeply cleansing shampoo helps to simultaneously purify strands and revitalise hair. The formula utilises a restorative JSH Miracle Hair Complex™ to address scalp and hair health, protect from heat damage, and repair hair. The result? Soft, shiny, strong, hydrated, frizz and tangle-free hair.

Key features:

Enriched with a vegan keratin
Scented with an aromatic Frankincense scent
Back with JSHealth Miracle Hair Complex of seven nourishing vitamins

Available at:

$34.99 from JSHealth
$34.99 from Adore Beauty
$28.99 (usually $34.99) from Chemist Warehouse

Kérastase Specifique Balancing Shampoo

From $57 at Adore Beauty

Give your scalp a solid clean with this hard-working balancing shampoo. Gentle on hair but serious on the scalp, it skips the stripping, harsh cleansing agents used in conventional clarifying shampoos in favour of balancing botanicals that help to regulate the production of sebum in the scalp.

Key features:

Works to regulate sebum overproduction
Enriched with rebalancing vitamin B6
Helps hair fibre to regain softness

Available at:

$57 from Adore Beauty
$57 from Kérastase
$57 from Oz Hair and Beauty

ELEVEN Australia Deep Clean Shampoo

From $28.95 at Adore Beauty

If you want to hit 'restore factory settings' on your hair, reach for this baby. This vegan-friendly pick goes the extra mile when cleansing, removing even the most stubborn of product build-up. Yet it’s surprisingly gentle and safe, even for use on coloured hair. It removes excess oil, sweat and even leftover styling products.

Key features:

Safe for coloured hair
Suitable for all hair types
Detoxifying without stripping

Available at:

$28.95 from Adore Beauty
$28.95 from Oz Hair and Beauty
$25.15 from Catwalk

Kevin Murphy Maxi Wash Detox Shampoo

From $46.95 at Adore Beauty

Rebalance hair and ditch residue while also lifting iffy tones from your blonde with this grapefruit extract and tea tree oil combo. Don't stress about irritating your scalp by 'over-cleaning', either; this guy's specifically designed to soothe it.

Key features:

pH balanced at 6-6.6
Gently exfoliates with natural AHAs (papaya, grapefruit, and citrus)
Simultaneously stimulates and detoxifies

Available at:

$46.95 from Adore Beauty
$46.95 from Oz Hair and Beauty
$36 from Kevin Murphy

IGK First Class Charcoal Detox Clarifying Shampoo

From $45 at Sephora

There's a reason congestion lives in fear of charcoal; it sends it packing real fast. This detoxifying buy is designed specifically to aid oily hair types and scalps, balancing grease and banishing build-up in a single soothing, refreshing hit.

Key features:

Formulated with scalp soothing witch hazel and tea tree oil
Works to absorb excess oils
Antioxidant-rich formula

Available at:

$45 from Sephora

Aveda Rosemary Mint Purifying Shampoo

From $30 at Adore Beauty

With certified organic rosemary, peppermint, and spearmint, this shampoo smells so good, you’ll never want to use anything else. Plus, with clarifying micelles and white vinegar, your hair and scalp will love it too. The 98 per cent naturally derived formula is vegan-friendly and cruelty-free, and contains no silicones, phthalates, parabens, synthetic fragrances, or mineral oil.

Key features:

Invigorating aroma
Cruelty-free
Formulated with micelles and white vinegar for gentle purification

Available at:

$30 from Adore Beauty
$30 from Aveda
$30 from Oz Hair and Beauty

How often should you use a clarifying shampoo?

Ohh my goodness, we love this question. In the journey to totally squeaky clean, ultra-fresh strands, implementing a clarifying shampoo is a total must! Who else is going to get in deep and remove all that build up? But because clarifying shampoos are that bit stronger at cleansing your strands, it’s best to keep their use to a once a week basis. Of course that is, unless you’re laying on the hair products thick on the daily basis, then we’d say twice a week is the max.

Main image credit:@sydney_sweeney

Need a dry shampoo instead? Here are the freshening formulas we love...

Emma Allcock

Emma Allcock began her career in the world of fashion and beauty in 2015, interning for various PR fashion houses. Naturally her love for style soon extended to beauty, and Emma landed firmly in the beauty and wellness world thanks to an internship-turned-role at local Australian fragrance brand Maison Blanche. One thing that remained consistent whether unpacking accessories or creating social content? Her commitment to an always-perfect manicure. Luckily, she’s since turned her talents to helping her readers achieve the same, writing about all things beauty and wellness. Emma is now a Content Producer for BEAUTYcrew, with her words and recommendations also appearing across beautyheaven. Emma loves the process of diving deep into the world of testing (and writing) about everything from haircare to fragrance. When she’s not slathering her skin in something new, she’s going for an early morning stroll to catch a stunning sunrise (coffee in hand, of course), because life’s all about that wellness balance after all.