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Side by side

American Crew Fiber Cream vs American Crew Grooming Cream

62% function match · 4 of the 8 functions we compared match Formula overlap 21%. American Crew Fiber Cream and American Crew Grooming Cream 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 Cream — protein-sensitive hair
  • Grooming 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 Fiber Cream — 3.3 oz container American Crew

Fiber Cream

  • Styler
  • Masstige
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
American Crew Grooming Cream — 3 oz container American Crew

Grooming Cream

  • Styler
  • Masstige
Price, size & price per ounce
$21–23 3.3 oz · $6.59/oz
$18–23 3 oz · $6.66/oz
Value / price positioning
Priced above most curl creams $$$$$ Masstige tier · costs more than 94% of the 105 curl creams we’ve priced
Priced with its peers $$$$$ Masstige tier · costs less than 60% of the 90 pastes we’ve priced
Best for hair types
Wavy–Coily Co-washes, curl creams, and gels are built around wave and curl. Your hair
Curly–Coily A heavy formula: coarse, curlier strands carry it without flattening. Your hair
Moisture level Differs
High Humectants near the top — water-binding is a headline mechanism here. Your hair
Low Humectants appear, but low enough to be a minor part. Your hair
Hold (as stated)
Medium A medium hold, as stated by the brand. Your hair
—
Slip / detangling Differs
Moderate Conditioning agents are present, lower in the list. Your hair
Little Nothing here is built to reduce combing force. 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
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
Moderate Gums and synthetic polymers together. Your hair
Cast risk
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
Present, lower down Oils are present, but low enough to be a finishing touch. 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
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
  • 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
Stylercream
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 (adjustable based on application amount—can reach firm hold with liberal application)
—
Finish
shine
—
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

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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 CreamGrooming Cream
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
Beeswax
Buildup
#3Leading
#7Supporting
VP/VA Copolymer
Holds
#4Supporting
#6Supporting
Fragrance
Fragrance
#25Below the 1% line
#20Below the 1% line
Limonene
Fragrance
#27Below the 1% line
#22Below the 1% line
Citronellol
Fragrance
#28Below the 1% line
#23Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Fiber Cream

Grooming Cream

Full ingredient list — Fiber Cream (33)
Full ingredient list — Grooming Cream (29)

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 CreamGrooming Cream
Supported
1
1
Partly supported
1
1
Stated by brand
2
0
Potential conflict
0
0

Fiber Cream

  • Medium hold, adjustable with amount appliedSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • Natural shinePartly supportedA hint of gloss.
  • Long-lasting style controlStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • Increased textureStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.

Grooming Cream

  • High hold and high shine for sleek stylesSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • Conditions while repelling excess moisturePartly supportedSome hydration, at a low level.

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.

Fiber Cream

Holds all day and a little goes a long way.

5-star Ulta reviewer

Noted salons use this professionally, and a partner really likes how it styles his hair.

Ulta reviewer

Became the only styling product their son will use.

parent reviewing for a teen/young adult son

Styles hair without the stiff, firm-gel look — gives hold with more natural movement.

Ulta reviewer buying for their kid

Applying too much makes hair hard to brush out afterward, even though the styling effect itself is good.

4-star Ulta reviewer

Grooming Cream

Several reviewers describe a reformulation that made the cream oilier and less able to hold hair in place.

Long-time customers, some using it since the 1990s, call it their favorite pomade for a classic slicked-back look.

Multiple reviewers say it washes out easily with cold water and leaves no residue.

A few reviewers find the scent unpleasant even while praising the hold.

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.

$6.59/oz vs $6.66/oz — within about the same cost per ounce.

Fiber Cream

Against 105 curl creams with a computable unit price.

Grooming Cream

Against 90 pastes with a computable unit price.

Value readFiber CreamGrooming Cream
Label
Priced above most curl creamsCosts more per ounce than most curl creams; nothing in our library matches it closely for less.
Priced with its peersSits in the middle of the range for pastes per ounce.

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 Cream vs Strong Hold, Frizz Free Forming FiberVerb · 94% function matchGrooming Cream vs KILLER.CURLS Anti-Frizz Defining CrèmeKevin Murphy · 89% function matchFiber Cream vs Matte SeparationBed Head · 91% function matchGrooming Cream vs 90 Proof Strong Hold Matte PomadeBlind Barber · 89% function matchFiber Cream vs Miracle Texture FiberIt's A 10 · 90% function matchGrooming Cream vs Strawberry Gum Grip Styling StickBondi Boost · 89% function matchFiber Cream vs American Crew FiberAmerican Crew · 87% function matchGrooming Cream vs Blue Extreme Hold Matte PomadeREUZEL · 83% function match

Fiber Cream · Grooming Cream · All curl creams 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.
  • 8 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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