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Side by side

American Crew Fiber - 3.0 oz vs Dove Men+Care Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste

93% function match · 12 of the 13 functions we compared match Formula overlap 16%. American Crew Fiber - 3.0 oz and Dove Men+Care Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste share 2 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.

  • Fiber - 3.0 oz — protein-sensitive hair
  • Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste — protein-sensitive hair

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 Fiber - 3.0 oz — 3 oz container American Crew

Fiber - 3.0 oz

  • Styler
  • Masstige
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
Dove Men+Care Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste — container Dove Men+Care

Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste

  • Styler
  • Drugstore
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
Price, size & price per ounce
$19–23 3 oz · $7.67/oz
$8.89 1.75 oz · $5.42/oz
Value / price positioning
Priced with its peers $$$$$ Masstige tier · costs less than 52% of the 90 pastes we’ve priced
Lower cost than most pastes $$$$$ Drugstore tier · costs less than 78% of the 90 pastes we’ve priced
Best for hair types
Curly–Coily A heavy formula: coarse, curlier strands carry it without flattening. Your hair
Curly–Coily A heavy formula: coarse, curlier strands carry it without flattening. Your hair
Moisture level Same
Moderate Humectants in the working part of the formula. Your hair
Moderate Humectants in the working part of the formula. Your hair
Hold (as stated)
Strong A strong hold, as stated by the brand. Your hair
Medium A medium hold, as stated by the brand. 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
Present Fragrance is listed; it sits below the working ingredients. Your hair
Protein Same
None No protein or amino acids in the list. Your hair
None No protein or amino acids in the list. 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
Hold system Same
Mixed Gums and synthetic polymers together. Your hair
Mixed Gums and synthetic polymers together. 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 Same
None No oils or butters in the list. Your hair
None No oils or butters in the list. 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
  • 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
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
  • 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
Why you might skip it
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a 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
Stylerpaste
Where to buy
Ulta · Brand website
Target · Brand website
Free of
  • sulfate-free
  • silicone-free
  • protein-free
  • curly-method compatible
  • sulfate-free
  • silicone-free
  • protein-free
  • curly-method compatible
Cruelty-free
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Scent
Scented, not described
Scented, not described
Hold
strongHigh hold / Strong, pliable hold
mediumMedium Hold (product name and label claim)
Finish
matte
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

IngredientFiber - 3.0 ozDove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
PVP
Holds
#4Supporting
#5Supporting
Propylene Glycol
Moisturizes
#7Supporting
#10Secondary
Fragrance
Fragrance
#17Below the 1% line
#12Below the 1% line
Limonene
Fragrance
#19Below the 1% line
#23Below the 1% line
Citronellol
Fragrance
#20Below the 1% line
#21Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Full ingredient list — Fiber - 3.0 oz (27)
Full ingredient list — Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste (25)

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.

VerdictsFiber - 3.0 ozDove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste
Supported
2
2
Partly supported
1
0
Stated by brand
1
2
Potential conflict
0
0

Fiber - 3.0 oz

  • High holdSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • Low-shine, matte finishPartly supportedA hint of gloss.
  • Strong, pliable holdSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • Natural, textured lookStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.

Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste

  • Medium holdSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • Matte finishStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • Can be reshaped and restyled throughout the dayStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • Paraben-freeSupportedPreserved without parabens.

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.

Dove Men+Care Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste draws complaints about the scent and hold.

Fiber - 3.0 oz

Did exactly what was needed, no complaints.

Ulta reviewer, brief neutral-to-positive note

Styles a partner's hair nicely and the fragrance is a standout, repeat-purchase reason.

Ulta reviewer buying for a male partner

A years-long repeat purchase; loves the scent and consistent performance.

long-term Ulta reviewer

Texture is basically a hard wax, so it's tricky to scoop the right amount, and hair can look greasy if too much is used while still damp.

Ulta reviewer describing application difficulty

Effective overall but wanted a stronger hold and less oiliness than delivered.

Ulta reviewer

Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste

Doesn't leave much visible residue in the hair after styling

Target verified reviewer

Hold lasts all day without the paste feeling hard or crunchy

Target verified reviewer

Works as well as or better than pricier styling pastes they'd tried before

Target verified reviewer

Some reviewers with straight/fine hair say it provides little to no hold and leaves hair looking greasy

Target verified reviewer, straight/fine hair

Scent is noticeably strong for some users

Target verified reviewer

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.

$5.42/oz vs $7.67/oz — American Crew Fiber - 3.0 oz costs about 1.4× more per ounce than Dove Men+Care Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste.

$1.50/oz median $7.92/oz $73.33/oz $7.67/oz Fiber - 3.0 oz $5.42/oz Dove Men+Care Medium Hold

Every mark sits on one distribution because these are compared against the same set: 90 pastes with a computable unit price.

Value readFiber - 3.0 ozDove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste
Label
Priced with its peersSits in the middle of the range for pastes per ounce.
Lower cost than most pastesCosts less per ounce than most pastes 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.

Fiber - 3.0 oz · Dove Men+Care Medium Hold Hair Styling Paste · 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.
  • 5 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.
  • This particular combination is not listed in our sitemap: we only submit pairs of comparable products that our similarity data says people would actually weigh against each other.

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