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At Allure, we’re proudly picky about hair-care formulas—especially when it comes to the best-smelling shampoos and conditioners. Because let’s be real: Standout scents shouldn’t mask subpar formulas. That’s why few things are more satisfying than discovering a cleansing, nourishing hair cocktail that lives up to its results and smells incredible.
Lucky for you, our editors sniffed through their stashes to round up shampoos and conditioners that marry top-tier efficacy (think skin- and hair-loving ingredients like hyaluronic acid, peptides, ceramides, and botanical blends) with both luxe and lightweight fragrance notes. These formulas pair performance with a sensorial, in-shower experience—getting your strands in tip-top shape. Open your mind and nose to the best of the best, and thank us later.
Our Top Picks
Frequently Asked Questions
Best Overall: RŌZ Foundation Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner Set
Why it’s worth it: Salon-level hydration meets lush, verdant fragrance in Rōz’s Foundation Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner Set. Each pump treats you to notes of vetiver, citrus, neroli, and fig, evoking an overgrown, sun-soaked garden. But this duo goes beyond the sensorial—the shampoo and conditioner also boast a nourishing botanical blend, strengthening ceramides, pea peptides, and coconut-based surfactants that cleanse without disrupting your scalp’s natural pH. Unsurprisingly, this pair snagged a 2023 Best of Beauty Award in our Clean category. Yet another reason we love it? It lathers more luxuriously than many other clean formulas—something we obviously appreciate.
“A shampoo that transports you to Big Sur? Only in my dreams—until Rōz’s Foundation made its way into my shower. It’s subtle but big on some of my favorite notes like bergamot and vetiver, but the fig and neroli make this an all-at-once relaxing and energizing sensorial experience. It doesn’t hurt that the product gently removes buildup while moisturizing my ridiculously dry curly hair.”
- Key ingredients: botanical blend, ceramides, pea peptides, coconut surfactant
- Fragrance notes: vetiver, citrus, neroli, fig
- Who it’s for: everyone
Best Floral: Oribe Serene Scalp Densifying Shampoo & Conditioner
Why it’s worth it: Oribe never fails to deliver hair care with heavenly fragrances, and the Serene Scalp Densifying Shampoo & Conditioner is no exception. Formulated with pea sprout extract, red clover extract, and a patented biomimetic peptide, this combo plumps up fine or thinning strands while gently cleansing and conditioning. The warm floral scent—courtesy of watermelon, lychee, and edelweiss flower—not only perfumes but also helps shield strands from oxidative stress. Plus, the packaging feels as fancy as the product itself.
“Three reasons I love this duo: 1. It cleanses my scalp like no other, allowing me to go over a week without rewashing it. 2. It adds crazy volume to my rather flat hair. And 3, it smells like the Oribe Signature Complex, which, if you’ve never smelled it, is a combination of watermelon, lychee and edelweiss flower—basically like an expensive hair salon.”
- Key ingredients: pea sprout extract, red clover extract, patented biomimetic peptide
- Fragrance notes: watermelon, lychee, edelweiss flower
- Who it’s for: people who want volume
Best Woody: Cecred Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner
Why it’s worth it: Cecred’s Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner is a one-two punch of rich hydration with sophisticated fragrance. Teeming with hyaluronic acid, an antioxidant-rich African oil blend, and a patented collagen complex, this stuff leaves hair visibly stronger, healthier, and softer. Oud is center-stage in this fragrance, complemented by warm musk, Australian sandalwood, jasmine, vetiver, and a touch of violet. Expect plenty of suds and easy detangling once it’s time to grab your hairbrush.
“Not only do they intensely hydrate my hair—which is long, wavy, and extra-dry—they smell so good. It smells earthy and grounding and faintly lingers, inviting compliments every time I let my hair down from its elastic.”
- Key ingredients: hyaluronic acid, antioxidant-rich African oil blend, patented collagen complex
- Fragrance notes: musk, Australian sandalwood, jasmine, vetiver, violet
- Who it’s for: people with dry hair
Best Citrusy: The Root Project Instant Pleasure Silky Hair Moisturizer
Why it’s worth it: Expanding the definition of a conditioner, The Root Project’s Instant Pleasure Silky Hair Moisturizer just gets it. Working double duty as a subtle hair perfume (feat. Calabrian bergamot and orange oil), this cuticle-sealing formula hydrates strands from the inside out, recalibrating elasticity and moisture via a blend of butters, aloe vera, and castor oil. Glutathione (an antioxidant) and cysteine (an amino acid) are also key to repairing damage and fending off the free radicals that stress out your strands. Leave it on for two to three minutes before rinsing—ideally with cool water—to get the most out of this conditioning cocktail.
“Fragrance is even better when it isn’t just for show: The Calabrian bergamot oil in this conditioner helps smooth and protect the hair cuticle while imparting a citrusy scent that makes me want to book a trip to southern Italy.”
- Key ingredients: blend of butters, aloe vera, castor oil
- Fragrance notes: Calabrian bergamot, orange oil
- Who it’s for: people with frizzy hair
Best Vanilla: Dae Signature Duo Set
Why it’s worth it: Dae’s Signature Shampoo has our hearts. This formula is shine-forward, strengthening, non-stripping, keratin production-boosting, and spectacular-smelling. The nourishing, cleansing mélange of hibiscus extract, false daisy extract, and moringa seed oil is only half the appeal—the other half is the fragrance blend featuring vanilla, citrus, and orange blossom. The matching conditioner brings the magic, too, with creaminess and frizz-calming to boot.
- Key ingredients: hibiscus extract, false daisy extract, moringa seed oil
- Fragrance notes: vanilla, citrus, orange blossom
- Who it’s for: people with color-treated hair
Best Fruity: Seen Essential Bundle
Why it’s worth it: Developed by Iris Rubin, MD, a board-certified dermatologist aiming to elevate hair care to skincare standards, Seen’s Shampoo promotes healthy, happy strands from root to tip. It’s non-comedogenic, meaning it won’t clog or irritate your scalp’s pores (yes, your scalp has pores!), and formulated with hemisqualane, an emollient silicone alternative, and bisabolol to soothe skin. While the fragrance-free shampoo is the brand’s signature, the fragranced version is an honest-to-god hidden gem. It smells like fresh, juicy apples, orange peel, and leafy greens, creating a lather that’s as delightful to sniff as it is essential to add to your routine.
Tester feedback from contributing commerce writer Annie Blackman
“I wasn’t expecting much of a scent from a dermatologist-developed brand, but man was I pleasantly surprised. I get the best of both world with this shampoo/conditioner combo (although I will say, the shampoo smells much richer than the conditioner), scalp-forward hair care, and apple-y deliciousness. It smells like a throwback to the fruity shampoo I used as a kid, but I know this stuff is better for my head and more sophisticated, which is always a plus.”
- Key ingredients: hemisqualane, bisabolol
- Fragrance notes: apple, orange peel, leafy greens
- Who it’s for: people looking for scalp-care
Best Musk: Ouai Shampoo & Conditioner Duo for Fine Hair
Why it’s worth it: You might already know and love Ouai for its fragrance-forward hair care, and if you haven’t tried its Shampoo & Conditioner Duo for Fine Hair, you’re in for an olfactory treat. Fragranced with its fan-favorite Mercer Street scent—an NYC-inspired tangle of musk, magnolia, Italian lemon, and rose—this duo treats fine, dry hair to boost volume and strength with every wash. Keratin, biotin, and nourishing chia seed oil work together in this color-safe formula. The conditioner is perfectly lightweight, making sure not to weigh down strands—super important for the fine-haired girlies among us.
Kristina Maccaro, hair colorist and founder of Love Lane Salon in Jersey City, NJ, adores the conditioner in particular, especially for those seeking volume and lift. “It enhances softness, adds body, and boosts shine—without the heavy residue most conditioners leave behind,” she says. “It’s so creamy but lightweight, and it moves easily through your hair and cleanly rinses.”
- Key ingredients: keratin, biotin, chia seed oil
- Fragrance notes: musk, magnolia, Italian lemon, rose
- Who it’s for: people with fine hair
Best Herbal: Nécessaire Rosemary Hair Duo
Why it’s worth it: At this point, Nécessaire basically needs no introduction, but we’ll give one anyway, because that’s our job. The 2024 Best of Beauty-winning Rosemary Hair Duo has our hearts for its breakage-reducing peptide and ceramide formula, plant proteins (from rice, jojoba, quinoa, potato, and pea, to be exact) married with one of the most divine scents available. Alongside rosemary, this duo serves up notes of mandarin, jasmine, and cedar, delivering a relaxing, rejuvenating shower experience that cleans your hair and calms your body. Both the shampoo and conditioner are delightfully lightweight and non-comedogenic, gentle on sensitive scalps.
Tester feedback from contributing commerce editor Deanna Pai:
“I adore the non-fragranced Shampoo and Conditioner from Nécessaire, but went for this stuff when I was shedding like crazy from postpartum hair loss. The scent was a bonus: It feels like a grounding moment in the shower, and since I don’t wear perfume, it’s my go-to scent for the day.”
- Key ingredients: ceramides, plant proteins
- Fragrance notes: rosemary, mandarin, jasmine, cedar
- Who it’s for: people with brittle, dull hair
Frequently Asked Questions
Meet the experts
How we test and review products
We always enlist a range of testers for our makeup vertical, but hair-care products and tools are another story. While there are certainly products that can be used across different hair textures, lengths, curl patterns, thicknesses, colors (natural and unnatural), and needs, hair products are often created with specific consumers in mind. Many are created in order to address a concern (dandruff, breakage, brittleness) or to work most effectively for a specific hair type (4C curls, wavy hair, gray hair). You wouldn’t want to pick up a purple shampoo that’s only been reviewed by someone with, say, auburn hair, or a diffuser that’s never been tested by anyone with curls—right?
For our review of the best-smelling shampoos and conditioners, we enlisted the help of multiple editors, writers, contributors, and hairstylists. Testers considered performance across four primary categories: efficacy, texture and experience, fragrance, and packaging. For more on what’s involved in our reporting, check out our complete reviews process and methodology page.
Our staff and testers
A beauty product is a personal purchase. You might be searching for a face cream to address persistent dryness or a new nail product to add to your Sunday self-care routine; you may simply be browsing around for the latest launches to hit the hair market. No matter what you seek or your individual needs and concerns, Allure wants to ensure that you love anything we recommend in our stories. We believe that having a diverse team of writers and editors—in addition to the wide range of outside testers and industry experts we regularly call upon—is essential to reaching that goal.
After all, can we really say a skin-care product is the “best” for people over 50 if the only testers we’ve solicited opinions from folks who have yet to hit 30? Can we honestly deem a high-end diffuser worthy of your hard-earned cash if it’s never been tested on curls? We’re proud that our staff spans a wide range of ages, skin tones, hair textures, genders, and backgrounds, which means that we are able to fairly assess any beauty product that comes into the beauty closet.
Check out more Allure editor-approved picks to treat your hair from root to tip:
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