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Side by side

18.21 Man Made Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste vs Cantu Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream

85% function match · 11 of the 13 functions we compared match Formula overlap 30%. 18.21 Man Made Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste and Cantu Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream share 3 ingredients among each other's most prominent.

Based on your consultation

Which of these fits your hair?

We check your pattern, moisture need, scalp, fragrance tolerance, weight sensitivity and more against each formula — and say which one lines up.

Your profile at a glance

  • Your answers appear here
  • Your answers appear here
  • Your answers appear here
  • Your answers appear here

When each one is the right call

What each formula is built for, from its own ingredient list.

  • Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste — dry, thirsty hair
  • Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream — curly-method routines

Side by side

Every trait, aligned

One row per trait, read from each product’s own ingredient list and record. A dash means we have not researched that field for that product — it is not a “no”.

Trait
18.21 Man Made Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste — 2 oz container 18.21 Man Made

Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste

  • Styler
  • Salon
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
Cantu Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream — 10 oz container Cantu

Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream

  • Styler
  • Drugstore
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
Price, size & price per ounce
$26 2 oz · $13.00/oz
about $7 10 oz · $0.70/oz

Compared at different sizes — 10 oz against 2 oz. Per-ounce prices favour the larger bottle.

Value / price positioning
Priced above most pastes $$$$$ Salon tier · costs more than 86% of the 92 pastes we’ve priced
Lower cost than most curl creams $$$$$ Drugstore tier · costs less than 89% of the 107 curl creams we’ve priced
Best for hair types
Curly–Coily A heavy formula: coarse, curlier strands carry it without flattening. Your hair
Wavy–Coily Co-washes, curl creams, and gels are built around wave and curl. Your hair
Moisture level Same
Moderate Humectants in the working part of the formula. Your hair
High Humectants near the top — water-binding is a headline mechanism here. Your hair
Hold system Same
High Synthetic hold polymers — the firmest of the hold systems. Your hair
High Synthetic hold polymers — the firmest of the hold systems. Your hair
Slip / detangling Same
Some Some slip, mostly from esters or silicones rather than conditioners. Your hair
Some Some slip, mostly from esters or silicones rather than conditioners. Your hair
Weight on hair Same
Rich Heavy butters and waxes in the first eight ingredients. Your hair
Rich Heavy butters and waxes in the first eight ingredients. Your hair
Fragrance
Present Fragrance is listed; it sits below the working ingredients. Your hair
Prominent Fragrance sits in the first eight ingredients — a larger share of the formula. Your hair
Protein Same
Minor Protein appears, low enough to be a supporting ingredient. Your hair
Minor Protein appears, low enough to be a supporting ingredient. Your hair
Silicone / wax buildup Same
High Water-insoluble silicones or waxes: a detergent wash is what removes them. Your hair
High Water-insoluble silicones or waxes: a detergent wash is what removes them. Your hair
Clarifying wash needed
Moderate Your hair
Moderate Your hair
Cast risk Same
Unlikely Softening ingredients sit alongside the film formers, so a hard shell is unlikely. Your hair
Unlikely Softening ingredients sit alongside the film formers, so a hard shell is unlikely. Your hair
Oil absorption Same
None No absorbent powders or starches. Your hair
None No absorbent powders or starches. Your hair
Oils and butters Differs
None No oils or butters in the list. Your hair
Rich Butters near the top: a heavy, softening formula. Your hair
Fast-drying alcohol Differs
Present Fast-drying alcohol is present — it speeds drying and can read dry on the hair. Your hair
None No fast-drying alcohol in the list. Your hair
Formula completeness
out of 10
Complete for its job
out of 10
Complete for its job
Who should choose this
  • Dry, thirsty hairhumectants and emollients both sit up front
  • Curly-method routinesno sulfates and no water-insoluble silicones
  • Curl definitionfilm formers hold a clump together
  • Coarse or dry hairthat absorbs everything you give it
  • Curly-method routinesno sulfates and no water-insoluble silicones
  • Curl definitionfilm formers hold a clump together
  • Coarse or dry hairthat absorbs everything you give it
  • Silicone-free routinesno silicones appear in the list
Why you might skip it
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a strong scent
  • Oily scalp or fine hairthat gets weighed down
  • Very dry or damaged hairit contains fast-drying alcohol
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
  • Oily scalp or fine hairthat gets weighed down
  • Stretching wash dayswaxes stay until a detergent wash removes them
from the formula stated by the brand reported by reviewers Scale: 1 dot low · 5 dots high, within this product type.
More facts about each one
Type
Stylerpaste
Stylercream
Where to buy
18.21 Man Made · Ulta
Grocery / mass
Free of
  • sulfate-free
  • silicone-free
  • curly-method compatible
  • sulfate-free
  • silicone-free
  • curly-method compatible
Cruelty-free
Cruelty-free · brand states
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Scent
Amber & spice · Sweet & vanillaStrong
Scented, not described
How often
as needed
—

Facts as we recorded them. A dash means we have not researched that field for that product — it is not a "no".

The bottom line

The bottom line depends on your hair

Which of these two suits you is a question about your hair, not about them. The consultation answers it — and tells you what your routine needs around it.

Take the consultation

$49.00 once, for your consultation and hair profile. No subscription, no required purchases.

The detail behind the table

Where the readings above come from: the ingredient lists themselves, each brand’s claims checked against them, what owners report, and cost per ounce in context.

Shared and distinct ingredients

Shared and distinct ingredients

Computed from the ingredient lists as printed. "Shared" means both lists carry it; where it sits on each label is stated, because position is what tells you how much.

What both formulas carry

IngredientSweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling PasteWeightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
Cetearyl Alcohol
Softens
#3Leading
#3Leading
Glycerin
Moisturizes
#7Supporting
#34Below the 1% line
Ceteareth-20
Stabilizes
#8Supporting
#5Supporting
Fragrance
Fragrance
#14Below the 1% line
#6Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste

Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream

Full ingredient list — Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste (23)
Full ingredient list — Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream (43)

Claims check

What each brand says, against what each formula shows

Claims are quoted from each brand. We only mark one supported, partly supported, or conflicting when that product’s ingredient list actually speaks to it.

VerdictsSweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling PasteWeightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream
Supported
4
3
Partly supported
0
0
Stated by brand
1
0
Potential conflict
1
0

Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste

  • soft holdSupportedNatural movement without stiffness.
  • frizz controlSupportedSmoother strands, less frizz.
  • smooths textureSupportedSmoother strands, less frizz.
  • touchableSupportedNatural movement without stiffness.
  • water solublePotential conflictExpect to need a real cleanse.
  • blow-dry compatibleStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.

Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream

  • Activates featherlight curls and waves while delivering long-lasting moistureSupportedHelps hair feel hydrated.
  • Leaves curls and waves light, bouncy & frizz-freeSupportedSmoother strands, less frizz.
  • Formulated with organic fair trade blue agave, squalane, meadowfoam, and macadamia oils for moistureSupportedHelps hair feel hydrated.

What owners say

What people report

Recurring themes our researchers wrote in their own words from sourced reviews. We do not store or scrape star ratings, and we never balance one product’s themes against another’s by inventing them.

18.21 Man Made Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste draws complaints about the scent; Cantu Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream draws complaints about weight.

Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste

A user with short wavy hair says it holds a mohawk in place without looking or feeling overloaded with product.

Verified Ulta buyer review from Richmond, Virginia, submitted 2022

A buyer says the paste works on both thin, puffy hair and thick, curly hair in their household.

Ulta customer review from Fort Liberty, North Carolina, submitted 2023

A customer with thick shoulder-length hair says two small amounts last through a hospital workday, still allow restyling, and look natural without weighing hair down.

Ulta customer review from Maryland, submitted 2025

One purchaser finds the product functional but says the scent is too strong and remains on their hands even after washing.

Ulta customer review from Boston, Massachusetts, submitted 2025

Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream

Long-time users say it works well across most hair types and that it keeps moisture locked in especially well through the summer.

reviewers who have used the product for years

Reviewers say a small amount adds moisture and brings out curl definition without feeling heavy, describing it as a light addition to an existing routine.

curl-cream users adding it to a routine

Reviewers describe the formula as lightweight, saying it defines their waves and curls without weighing hair down while cutting frizz and adding shine.

wavy and curly hair reviewers

One reviewer found a small amount did nothing for their hair but that using more left it heavy and greasy, calling the right amount hard to judge.

a reviewer who struggled to find the right dose

Price check

Cost per ounce, in context

Cost per ounce against every product of this type we have priced, each at the size it is most often sold in. Value labels are computed from that percentile and from how many products that do the same job cost less; they are comparisons, not judgements about a brand.

$0.70/oz vs $13.00/oz — 18.21 Man Made Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste costs about 19× more per ounce than Cantu Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream.

Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste

Against 92 pastes with a computable unit price.

Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream

Against 107 curl creams with a computable unit price.

Value readSweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling PasteWeightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream
Label
Priced above most pastesCosts more per ounce than most pastes; nothing in our library matches it closely for less.
Lower cost than most curl creamsCosts less per ounce than most curl creams we have researched.

Computed from cost per ounce against every product of this type we have priced, and from how many products that do the same job cost less. It is a comparison, not a judgement about the brand.

Compare with something else

Close formulas to each of these, as their own comparison pages.

Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste vs Sumotech Flexible Hold Cream SolidBumble and bumble · 99% function matchWeightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream vs Almond & Avocado Defining Crème GelDesign Essentials · 93% function matchSweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste vs Pomade - 3.0 ozAmerican Crew · 81% function matchWeightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream vs Manuka Honey & Yogurt Hydrate + Repair Whipped Curl CreamSheaMoisture · 89% function matchSweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste vs Almond & Avocado Defining Crème GelDesign Essentials · 81% function matchWeightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream vs Strong Hold CustardWondercurl · 83% function matchSweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste vs Volume Boost Volumizing Spray for Fine HairBiolage · 81% function matchWeightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream vs Natural Hair Coconut Curling Cream with Shea ButterCantu · 81% function match

Sweet Tobacco Soft Hold, Medium Shine Hair Styling Paste · Weightless Smooth + Curl Enhancer Cream · All pastes in the library

How this page was made

  • This page is assembled from the same researched records the individual product pages render: identity, each ingredient list as printed, each brand's own claims, dated price observations, and review themes written in our researchers' own words. Nothing on it is written per comparison.
  • We do not rank these against each other. Which of them suits you depends on your hair, and that is what the consultation works out.
  • The formula similarity percentage is a stored, precomputed number: position-weighted overlap of the two ingredient lists blended with agreement on the attributes we derive. It measures how alike two formulas are, not how well either works.
  • The value band is a fixed label over two stored numbers: this product’s cost per ounce as a percentile of every product of this type we have priced, each at the size it is most often sold in, and how many products we score as doing the same job cost at least a quarter less per ounce.
  • The "Is this right for you?" panel reads only your own consultation answers, and it applies exactly the filters our recommendation engine applies. It is computed when you load the page and is never stored on it.
  • 4 sources were consulted across the products on this page.
  • Ingredient order tells you relative amount only above roughly 1%. Prices are observations on the dates shown and change without notice. We do not sell these products and take no placement fees.
  • This is cosmetic information, not medical advice, and nothing here diagnoses or treats a health condition.

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