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Side by side

American Crew Defining Paste vs American Crew Firm Hold Styling Cream

35% function match · 1 of the 8 functions we compared match Formula overlap 0%. American Crew Defining Paste and American Crew Firm Hold Styling Cream share no ingredient among each other's most prominent — which does not stop them doing the same job.

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.

  • Defining Paste — protein-sensitive hair
  • Firm Hold Styling Cream — curl definition

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
American Crew Defining Paste — 3 oz container American Crew

Defining Paste

  • Styler
  • Masstige
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
American Crew Firm Hold Styling Cream — container, alternate view American Crew

Firm Hold Styling Cream

  • Styler
  • Masstige
Price, size & price per ounce
$18–21 3 oz · $6.13/oz
$18.50 3.3 oz · $4.22/oz
Value / price positioning
Priced with its peers $$$$$ Masstige tier · costs less than 70% of the 90 pastes we’ve priced
Same job for less elsewhere $$$$$ Masstige tier · costs more than 85% of the 157 gels 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 Differs
High Humectants near the top — water-binding is a headline mechanism here. Your hair
Moderate Humectants in the working part of the formula. Your hair
Hold (as stated)
Medium A medium hold, as stated by the brand. Your hair
—
Slip / detangling Differs
Some Some slip, mostly from esters or silicones rather than conditioners. Your hair
Little Nothing here is built to reduce combing force. Your hair
Weight on 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
None No protein or amino acids in the list. Your hair
—
Silicone / wax buildup Differs
High Water-insoluble silicones or waxes: a detergent wash is what removes them. Your hair
None Nothing here needs a detergent wash to remove. Your hair
Clarifying wash needed
Moderate Your hair
Low Your hair
Hold system Differs
Mixed Gums and synthetic polymers together. Your hair
High Synthetic hold polymers — the firmest of the hold systems. Your hair
Cast risk Differs
Unlikely Softening ingredients sit alongside the film formers, so a hard shell is unlikely. Your hair
Likely Film formers without much softening them — expect a cast to scrunch out. Your hair
Oil absorption Differs
Some Absorbents appear, low in the list. Your hair
None No absorbent powders or starches. Your hair
Oils and butters Same
None No oils or butters in the list. Your hair
None No oils or butters in the list. Your hair
Fast-drying alcohol
Present Fast-drying alcohol is present — it speeds drying and can read dry on the hair. Your hair
—
Formula completeness
out of 10
Complete for its job
out of 10
Covers the core
Who should choose this
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
  • 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
  • Curl definitionfilm formers hold a clump together
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
  • Anyone who dislikes a castthe film formers here can set firm
  • Picking it up locallywe have it recorded in one channel only
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
Ulta · Brand website
Brand website
Free of
  • sulfate-free
  • silicone-free
  • protein-free
  • curly-method compatible
—
Scent
Scented, not described
Scented, not described
Hold
mediumMedium hold
—
Finish
matte
—
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

IngredientDefining PasteFirm Hold Styling Cream
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
Fragrance
Fragrance
#24Below the 1% line
#8Below the 1% line
Benzyl Salicylate
Fragrance
#26Below the 1% line
#9Below the 1% line
Limonene
Fragrance
#27Below the 1% line
#10Below the 1% line
Linalool
Fragrance
#28Below the 1% line
#11Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Defining Paste

Firm Hold Styling Cream

Full ingredient list — Defining Paste (38)
Full ingredient list — Firm Hold Styling Cream (19)

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.

VerdictsDefining PasteFirm Hold Styling Cream
Supported
2
1
Partly supported
1
0
Stated by brand
0
1
Potential conflict
0
0

Defining Paste

  • Medium holdSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • Low shine / matte finishPartly supportedA hint of gloss.
  • Adds texture or increased definitionSupportedHolds a clump together.

Firm Hold Styling Cream

  • Non-flaking gel-cream with strong, lasting holdSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • Thickened appearance and shine from panthenol, copolymer and castor oilStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.

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.

American Crew Defining Paste draws complaints about frizz.

Defining Paste

Consistently works on thick, hard-to-style hair where other pastes have failed.

5-star Ulta reviewer describing years of use on a partner's thick hair

Builds texture and hold without leaving visible product buildup, for a natural look.

4-star Ulta reviewer

A little goes a long way — one fingertip amount lasts all day and the tub lasts a very long time despite the price.

5-star Ulta reviewer weighing cost against longevity

Needed an unusually large amount to work and it made hair look dirty; didn't control frizz as advertised.

1-star Ulta reviewer

Scent is strong and lingers through the day; product needs to be warmed between palms first or it leaves white clumps.

4-star Ulta reviewer noting application quirks

Firm Hold Styling Cream

Several reviewers say it does not flake or cake up the way other styling creams do.

Multiple reviewers say the hold lasts only until midday and needs reapplication.

Reviewers repeatedly complain that the product has been discontinued or sold out and ask the brand to bring it back.

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.

$4.22/oz vs $6.13/oz — American Crew Defining Paste costs about 1.5× more per ounce than American Crew Firm Hold Styling Cream.

Defining Paste

Against 90 pastes with a computable unit price.

Firm Hold Styling Cream

Against 157 gels with a computable unit price.

Value readDefining PasteFirm Hold Styling Cream
Label
Priced with its peersSits in the middle of the range for pastes per ounce.
Same job for less elsewhereYou are paying above the range for a formula close to several lower-priced options.

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.

Defining Paste vs Manipulator Texturizing Putty with Firm HoldBed Head · 93% function matchFirm Hold Styling Cream vs 121 Proof Thickening Style GelBlind Barber · 99% function matchDefining Paste vs Fiber Pomade Flexible Hold Low ShineREUZEL · 89% function matchFirm Hold Styling Cream vs Styling Gel 17Kenra Professional · 99% function matchDefining Paste vs American Crew FiberAmerican Crew · 89% function matchFirm Hold Styling Cream vs Castor Oil Curly Styling GelMixed Chicks · 99% function matchDefining Paste vs Fiber - 3.0 ozAmerican Crew · 89% function matchFirm Hold Styling Cream vs Living Proof Style Lab Flex HairsprayLiving Proof · 99% function match

Defining Paste · Firm Hold Styling 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.
  • 7 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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