Face Form Finder

Hair Types Chart

Start with the pattern your hair makes when it dries in its ordinary state. These are common beauty-industry and consumer labels, not a clinical classification or an official standard.

Hair typeHow to recognise itCommon features to noticeGeneral care practice, not a product rule
Type 1: straight
1A–1C		Hair dries without a repeating S-shape, ringlet, or coil through most of its length.It may lie close to the head or have more body depending on strand thickness and density; the A–C labels are informal ways people describe that variation.Use your scalp and ends as separate observations. Keep the routine light enough for your own roots, while conditioning the parts that feel dry or catch.
Type 2: wavy
2A–2C		Hair makes a visible loose or stronger S-pattern, often with a straighter-looking root area.The wave may appear more clearly in some sections than others and can change when brushed, slept on, or exposed to humidity.Try handling the hair gently after washing and notice whether dry brushing pulls apart the pattern you prefer. That is a general styling practice, not a requirement for every wave.
Type 3: curly
3A–3C		Hair repeatedly forms loops, ringlets, or spring-like curves rather than only an open S.Different curl sizes can occur on one head, and the visible shape can change between wet and dry hair.Detangle with care when there is slip from water or conditioner if dry detangling makes your own hair snag. Keep the amount of handling guided by your result, not by a type label.
Type 4: coily
4A–4C		Hair forms very tight coils, bends, or compact zig-zag-like turns; a stretched section can look much longer than its dry shape.Pattern, density, shrinkage, and tangling can vary sharply from one zone to another, so one small sample is not enough to describe the whole head.Work in manageable sections and observe where your hair catches or dries first. Reducing rough, dry manipulation is a general practice, not a rule that replaces your own routine.
Mixed patternMore than one pattern is consistently present: for example, a wavier crown with curlier lower sections, or looser front pieces with tighter areas elsewhere.Mixed pattern is common. It does not mean you have identified your hair incorrectly or need to force every area into one label.Record the areas separately and let their response guide your routine. A single product or one universal method is not guaranteed to suit every zone.

How to identify your own pattern

  1. Look after an ordinary wash, with your hair dry and without heat styling that changes the pattern.
  2. Check at least three areas: the front or hairline, crown, and lower back or nape. Do not decide from one strand.
  3. Write down the repeated shape you see in each area: no repeating bend, an S-pattern, loops, or very tight coils and bends.
  4. Notice what changes from wet to dry, and whether brushing changes the pattern. Those observations are more useful than trying to make every strand fit one sublabel.
  5. If the areas keep giving different answers, call it mixed pattern and plan by zone rather than forcing a single type.

Where this classification stops

Type 1 through Type 4, including the A–C sublabels, are industry and consumer naming conventions. They are not a clinical diagnosis and this page does not present them as an authority-issued standard.

There is no authority-backed rule on this page that makes one label the only correct answer, and there is no basis for claiming that one type must use a particular product. Pattern is only one observation: scalp condition, strand thickness, density, colour treatment, heat use, and your preferred finish can matter separately.

Continue with the right site tool

Hair type and face shape answer different questions. Use the links below for length, face-shape, or styling decisions rather than turning a pattern label into a haircut rule.