8 Best Gray Hair Treatments to Soften Your Silver

Editor's tip: This product contains sesame, so steer clear if you're allergic.

Key ingredients: Meta-9, glycerin, caffeine, biotin | Fragrance-free: yes | Who it's best for: people early in the aging-hair process

Best for Slowing Grays: Vegamour Gro-Ageless Hair Serum

Why it's worth it: Vegamour's Gro-Ageless Hair Serum is a good pick for people with a moderate level of grays, looking to stave or subdue off new sections of silver. The brand performed a consumer study that found 64% of participants saw less gray hair in about three months' worth of new growth. Still, the brand explains that the longer your hair has been gray, the harder it will be to make a change.

Editor's tip: One bottle comes out to 30 days of consistent use, so set up a subscription through Vegamour's site if you're so inclined.

Key ingredients: caffeine, peptides, glycoproteins, vitamin B | Fragrance-free: no | Who it's best for: people with moderate graying

Best for Thinning Hair: Living Proof Scalp Care Density Serum

Why it's worth it: Experiencing density loss? Grays? Shedding? Don't worry—it's a normal part of aging hair, and Living Proof's Scalp Care Density Serum wants to help make things a little easier. With two to three dropper-fulls of serum, the no-rinse formula aims to thicken and boost hair shine while curbing premature graying. With daily use, you can expect to see results at around 90 days. The hardworking ingredients at play? Pea sprout extract to protect the scalp throughout the hair growth cycle, Amaranth peptides to stretch the diameter of individual hair fibers, and a special blend of antioxidants and amino acids to minimize the look of gray hair.

Editor's tip: This serum is safe to use on extensions.

Key ingredients: Amaranth peptides, zinc, glycerin, pea sprout extract, licorice root extract | Fragrance-free: no | Who it's best for: people looking for fuller hair, people with premature graying

Best Naturally-Derived Formula: Leonor Greyl Paris Serum Energisant

Why it's worth it: While the Leonor Greyl Paris Serum Energisant doesn't treat gray hair outright, it works to support the hair health concerns that often accompany the growth of grays. In this case? Thinning. The formula uses 99% natural ingredients (and no alcohol) like green tea, Indian gooseberry, maca extract, and rosemary extract to boost scalp and hair health, bulb-first. It's a good fit for people who want to slow hair loss or promote future density. It also adds shine and smoothness to strands, which is always a plus.

Editor's tip: For best results, massage the product into your scalp for a full minute.

Key ingredients: green tea, rosemary extract, maca extract, | Fragrance-free: no | Who it's best for: people with thinning hair

Best for Brittleness: L'Oréal Paris Elvive 8 Second Wonder Water Lamellar Hair Treatment

Why it's worth it: There's fast and then there's L'Oréal Paris Elvive 8 Second Wonder Water Lamellar Hair Treatment fast. It takes eight seconds for the treatment to kick into gear, yielding silkier, shinier, healthier-looking hair and working on all textures and curl patterns. Apply it to wet hair two to three times a week post-shampoo and condition it as normal. It won't erase grays but will help with all the other aging hair pitfalls.

"My hair has stayed shiny and soft for four or five days after a single application," wrote associate features editor Dianna Mazzone Singh in her 2020 review of the Best of Beauty winner. "The best way I can describe the overall effect is to say that it gives my hair that fresh-from-the-salon feeling. You know, the one that helps you justify spending $40 or more on a blowout."

Editor's tip: If you have medium-textured or fine hair, use one dose. If you have thick or curly hair, use two to three doses, and if your hair is extra long, throw in one more dose than you otherwise would.

Key ingredients: wheat protein, vitamin E, amino acids | Fragrance-free: no | Who it's best for: everyone

Best Shampoo for Graying Hair: Oribe Silverati Shampoo

Why it's worth it: We stan anything Oribe, and the Silverati Shampoo is no exception. The formula is specially designed for white and grey strands to boost vibrancy and honor the beauty of aging hair. It also improves elasticity and defends against free radicals using hair-loving ingredients like lychee, watermelon, and edelweiss flower. This shampoo is also distinctly non-drying, a key feature of treating mature hair. Plus, it smells really freaking good.

Editor's tip: Get the full treatment by pairing the shampoo with the Oribe Silverati Conditioner.

Key ingredients: vitamin B5, glycerin, rice extract, lychee extract, titanium dioxide | Fragrance-free: no | Who it's best for: people with white hair

Best Shampoo & Hair Mask Set: Kérastase Aging Hair Shampoo & Masque

Why it's worth it: The power couple you didn't know you needed, Kérastase's Aging Hair Shampoo & Hair Mask Duo Set is here to tackle the brittleness and dryness often associated with gray and aging hair. The formula incorporates nourishing hyaluronic acid and vitamin E to hydrate and protect from aggressors that can negatively impact your delicate scalp and strands. Start with a good old-fashioned shampoo lather and follow with the masque, applying it onto the scalp all the way to the ends of the hair, let it sit for five minutes, and then rinse.

Editor's tip: You can use the masque after every wash in place of a conditioner.

Key ingredients: hyaluronic acid, abyssine, vitamin E | Fragrance-free: no | Who it's best for: anyone with brittle, dull, or hair loss

Best for Maintaining Color Vibrancy: Hey Hair Root Revival Advanced Anti-Gray Hair Serum

Why it's worth it: The proprietary blend behind Hey Hair's Root Revival Advanced Anti-Gray Hair Serum is a cocktail of 1% Darkenyl (a follicle-protecting antioxidant), 2% Greyverse (a peptide that stimulates the hair bulbs), and 2% Capixyl (a follicle-enlarger), to supporting aging and graying hair. Whether you're looking to prevent or reduce grays or boost color vibrancy, the formula takes a couple of months to kick in before results appear, so be patient. Keep an eye out for results though, which, according to a study by the brand, looks like a 30% gray reduction in three months.

Editor's tip: Root Revival is also safe on color-treated hair as well as natural hair.

Key ingredients: Darkenyl, Greyverse, Capixyl, biotin, green tea extract | Fragrance-free: yes | Who it's best for: people with moderate graying

Frequently Asked Questions

The development of gray hair is a normal part of aging, caused by the slowing of the body's melanin production. "Melanocytes in the hair follicle produce pigment during the growth phase of the hair," Daniel Belkin, MD, a board-certified dermatologist at the Laser & Skin Surgery Center of New York, previously told Allure. "They transfer these packets of pigment into the cells that ultimately become the hair shaft." With hair growth over time, however, the melanocytes produce less and less pigment, leading to grays. "One day they decide not to show up for work anymore— consider it retirement," adds Mona Gohara, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in Hamden, Connecticut.

According to the Department of Dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital, the first gray hairs typically pop up between the ages of 34 and 44, but that doesn't mean they can't appear earlier. Genetic predisposition to grays may be at play, but you may have heard stress is a leading cause of early graying.

"It is unclear whether emotional stress is truly associated with graying of the hair," Joshua Zeichner, MD, a board-certified dermatologist director of cosmetic and clinical research at the Mount Sinai Department of Dermatology in New York City, previously explained to Allure. "We know that stress can have physical effects, interfering with wound healing and promoting inflammation. We don't know how significant of an impact it has on hair color, but I would not be surprised if one day a definite association is found." Hadley King, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in New York City, previously explained that lifestyle elements like anemia, smoking, low vitamin B, untreated thyroid illness, and poor nutrition can also contribute to premature graying.

Color-reversing gray hair treatments are most likely to be effective the earlier you begin using them and are thought to work best on grays related to stress. Ralf Paus, MD, a board-certified dermatologist at the University of Miami, participated in a 2021 gray-reversing related study, about which he told Scientific American, "…there is a window of opportunity during which graying is probably much more reversible than had been thought for a long time."

Still, dermatologists and trichologists have yet to perfect the treatment and its delivery into follicles, and the jury is out on efficacy. "If you're applying something topically, like in a shampoo, it's much harder than you think for that to penetrate through to the skin, right down to the root of the hair, where it needs to be," James O'Sullivan, PhD, a postdoctoral research associate in developmental biology and cell metabolism, previously told Allure. "So there's a bit of a dilemma about delivery and how to get stuff all the way down there." Rebecca Marcus, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in Dallas, Texas, added, "The depth of penetration depends on the molecular size and weight of the active ingredient."

That being said, until science slam-dunks gray hair reversal, Dr. Gohara explains, the only surefire way to eradicate grays 100% is with hair dye.

Your choice of gray hair treatment depends on the concerns you're looking to address and the level of gray or white hair you currently have. In any case, because dry hair and gray hair can go hand in hand, a product that moisturizes hair from roots to ends is essential, colorist Jax Williard previously told Allure. "Gray hair tends to be more on the dry side which happens generally as we age and our body starts to lose moisture, that's why we recommend using highly moisturizing conditioners and styling products to help prevent dryness and dull, frizzy texture," added New York City-based hair colorist Clara Purvis. "Additionally, regular oil treatments and hair masks are great ways to increase moisture."

Dr. Gohara reminds readers to focus on prevention rather than reversal. “Choose a treatment knowing that you may get slowing of gray coming in at the roots, but nothing that will permanently get rid of those grays,” she explains.

• Daniel Belkin, MD, a board-certified dermatologist at the Laser & Skin Surgery Center of New York
• Joshua Zeichner, MD, a board-certified dermatologist director of cosmetic and clinical research at the Mount Sinai Department of Dermatology in New York
• Department of Dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital
• Hadley King, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in New York City,
• Ralf Paus, MD, a board-certified dermatologist at the University of Miami
• James O'Sullivan, PhD, a postdoctoral research associate in developmental biology and cell
• Rebecca Marcus, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in Dallas metabolism
• Jax Williard, a hair colorist
• Clara Purvis, a hair colorist based in New York City
• Mona Gohara, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in Hamden, Connecticut.

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 gray hair treatments, we enlisted the help of multiple editors, writers, contributors, dermatologists, researchers, and hair colorists—who all have experience with treating gray hair. 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.

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.

Read more hair stories:

• The 'Mob' Is the Cut That Hairstylists Think Everyone Over 50 Should Consider
• The Really Gross Reason You Shouldn't Go To Bed With Wet Hair
• 14 Shampoos for Minimizing Brassiness in Gray Hair

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