The Active Edit

10 Best Leave-In Conditioners You Need To Try This Season

written by: Kristen - Beauty Editorpublished on 7 Dec, 2023

Dry, damaged hair is a nuisance. Whether you love using hot styling tools or crave new hair colours every few months, dry and brittle hair is an inevitability for most of us. Simply conditioning it every day or two isn’t enough; our hair craves deep treatment hair conditioners that we can only achieve with a leave-in conditioner that lasts even after your hair dries. Not only do leave-in conditioners help hydrate dry locks throughout the day, but they also can help detangle, style, and add gorgeous shine to your hair. They’re also fantastic at multitasking: the right leave-in conditioner can also protect your hair and colour from damaging UV rays and from styling heat, without weighing it down or giving it a crunchy texture. 

Overall, the best leave-in conditioner will essentially make your hair look even more fabulous than it already does, without adding much at all to your morning routine. We know your time is valuable, so we've rounded up our hit list of the best tried and tested leave-in conditioner hair care products to bring your hair back from the brink. With the ravages of heat styling, colouring, styling products and UV we all know how our hair can fall victim to breakage, damage and split ends. These top 10 best leave-in conditioners are sure to put the shine, strength and resilience back into your strands to optimise hair health.

1) Paul Mitchell Clean Beauty Repair Leave-In Treatment

Here’s a leave-in conditioner you can really feel good about. The clean and green formulation is free from animal cruelty, gluten, parabens and sulfate whilst being vegan and colour safe. This is the leave-in conditioner you want when you’re seeking a low-tox and more natural hair care product to leave your hair soft, shiny and more manageable. The superior detangling formula contains pea protein and amaranth extract to expertly repair damaged hair whilst strengthening weakened and fragile strands with renewed resilience.

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2) Redken Acidic Bonding Concentrate Leave-in Treatment

This popular Redken product sells out again and again for good reason - it works! This is like an ambulance in a tube for fragile, damaged and processed hair of all lengths and textures. Boasting a highly concentrated formula to deeply repair traumatised strands, this superior leave-in conditioning treatment harnesses citric acid to reinforce weakened bonds whilst preventing further hair damage. Furthermore, this gem adds shine, provides heat protection, tames frizz and even visibly reduces hair breakage by up to 56% so all you are left with is healthy and restrengthened hair.

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3) KMS Moist Repair Leave-In Conditioner

Dry hair doesn’t feel great. Sometimes, all you need is an extra boost of moisture that your hair conditioner didn’t quite provide. The KMS Moist Repair leave-in Conditioner isn’t complicated: just spray throughout your hair to lock in moisture all day long, while also making it super easy to comb through. It’s super lightweight so won’t weigh your style down and dries to an invisible finish. The best part is your hair continues to reap the benefits even after it dries.

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4) evo Happy Campers Wearable Treatment

Even if you use sunscreen in your skincare regimen religiously, you could be forgetting something. Your hair is just as susceptible to damaging UV rays, and colour-treated hair can immediately start fading or discolouring the second the sun hits your strands. A leave-in conditioner like this evo leave-in moisturiser helps block the sun’s rays (because otherwise, hat hair, right?) so your fresh colour stays gorgeous for more than a couple weeks. Not only that, but this hair treatment product come styling product protects your hair from heat and frizz so you can create effortless beachy waves. The leave-in moisturiser also gives you a dose of much needed hydration for fragile locks that are prone to breakage.

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5) Paul Mitchell Full Circle Leave-In Treatment

Shout out to all our curly hair sisters and brothers that battle frizz on the daily. The Paul Mitchell Full Circle Leave-In Treatment will help keep your hair soft and shiny as it effortlessly detangles and defines curls without a battle. This creamy yet lightweight formula won’t weigh your hair down as it ramps up hydration, combats knots and replenishes curls, all whilst protecting you hair from future damage.
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6) LABEL.M Diamond Dust Nourishing Leave-In Conditioner

In a refreshingly simple bottle that looks trendy and minimalistic, the LABEL.M leave-in conditioner is the best leave-in conditioner for replicating salon results. This luxuriously deep hydrating formula smells divine with coconut and rose, whilst microfine diamonds bring brilliance and shine back to your lengths. With the additional bonus of Enviroshield technology, your hair is expertly protected from heat styling damage, humidity and UV. This is a totally wearable leave-in treatment that allows you the freedom to style your hair as you desire.

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7) Matrix Biolage HydraSource Daily Leave-In Tonic

Help moisturise dry, brittle and colour treated hair with this high-performance leave-in conditioner from Matrix. Ideal for daily use and weightless to keep your styler fresh, this instant moisture quenching mist ramps up shine and helps to protect hair from damage. Enriched with super hydrating aloe vera which also soothes the scalp, this detagling spritz is a must have hair care staple particularly for fine to medium and colour treated hair types. Simply mist onto damp hair, comb through and go… it’s that easy!

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8) BondiBoost Conditioning Tangle Therapy

When you want to keep it nice and natural, look no further than the BondiBoost Conditioning Tangle Therapy. This clean beauty hair care staple is simply perfect for kids and adults alike as the detangling formula allows you to glide through knots and snags with ease. The lightweight mist efficiently protects your hair from damage whilst native Australian botanicals nourish and condition to maintain softness.

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9) evo Day Of Grace Pre-Style Primer 

evo prides itself on being a product for all hair types and people, and the evo Day Of Grace Pre-Style Primer is a great example of this. It’s a lightweight option for people who don’t want to weigh down fine hair with a heavy product, but it’s effective enough for thick, unruly hair too. Evo keeps it simple with their spray: simply spray it evenly all over hair prior to styling for smooth, detangled hair that repairs and conditions your locks as you go about your day. And did we mention this formula offers UV and heat protection whilst taming frizz? That’s right, it multitasks like a pro to deliver your best hair day yet. 

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10) Paul Mitchell Lavender Mint Conditioning Leave-In Spray

A seriously addictive spray that will have you spraying it just to smell it again, the Paul Mitchell Lavender Mint Conditioning Leave-In Spray is a brilliant blend of tea tree oil, lavender, and spearmint. This refreshing leave-in conditioner is a great daily treatment that replenishes moisture, soothes dehydrated hair, and reinvigorates with mint for an energising start to your day. Use this spray liberally on your ends daily to rescue fried hair and deep condition coarse and unruly hair.

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You already know that shampoo alone isn’t enough to take care of your mane. But for many women and men alike, shampoo and conditioner still isn’t enough to give them manageable, healthy locks. Best leave-in conditioners are little bottles of magic for your hair: they protect, detangle, smooth, style, and so much more. Every hair type, length, and colour can benefit from a leave-in conditioner – you just have to find the right one. The best leave-in conditioner for your hair may take a little experimenting to find, but it’s so worth it. Find your perfect match a little bit easier thanks to our guide to the best leave-in conditioners out there and make bad hair days history. Who knew a spray bottle could do all that?