Skip to main content

Side by side

Biolage Thermal Setting Spray vs Herbal Essences Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control

90% function match · 8 of the 9 functions we compared match Formula overlap 2%. Biolage Thermal Setting Spray and Herbal Essences Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control share 1 ingredient among each other's most prominent.

These sit in different steps of a routine — Biolage Thermal Setting Spray is a heat protectant and Herbal Essences Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control is a styler. Comparing their formulas is fair; treating one as a replacement for the other is not.

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.

  • Thermal Setting Spray — heat styling
  • Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control — 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
Biolage Thermal Setting Spray — 8.5 oz container Biolage

Thermal Setting Spray

  • Heat protectant
  • Sulfate-free
  • Protein-free
Herbal Essences Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control — 6 oz container Herbal Essences

Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control

  • Styler
  • Drugstore
  • Sulfate-free
  • Protein-free
Price, size & price per ounce
$25–28 8.5 oz · $3.21/oz
$5.99 6 oz · $1.00/oz
Value / price positioning
Upper-mid price for a heat protectant $$$$$ costs more than 52% of the 1358 heat protectants we’ve priced
Lower cost than most gels $$$$$ Drugstore tier · costs less than 80% of the 157 gels we’ve priced
Best for hair types
Straight–Curly Smoothing and thermal products span straight through curly hair. Your hair
Wavy–Coily Co-washes, curl creams, and gels are built around wave and curl. Your hair
Moisture level Differs
Moderate Humectants in the working part of the formula. Your hair
None found No humectants found — nothing here pulls water into the hair. Your hair
Heat protection
High The brand states a protection temperature — a label claim, not a measurement. 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
Medium Middle of the range — noticeable on fine hair, light on coarse hair. Your hair
Medium Middle of the range — noticeable on fine hair, light on coarse hair. Your hair
Fragrance
Prominent Fragrance sits in the first eight ingredients — a larger share of the formula. 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
Low The silicones here are the water-soluble kind. Your hair
Low The silicones here are the water-soluble kind. Your hair
Clarifying wash needed
Low Your hair
Low Your hair
Hold system
—
High Synthetic hold polymers — the firmest of the hold systems. Your hair
Fast-drying alcohol Same
None No fast-drying alcohol in the list. Your hair
None No fast-drying alcohol in the list. Your hair
Cast risk
—
Likely Film formers without much softening them — expect a cast to scrunch out. Your hair
Oil absorption
—
None No absorbent powders or starches. Your hair
Oils and butters Same
—
None No oils or butters 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
  • Heat stylingthe brand states protection to 450°F
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
  • Very dry hairno fast-drying alcohol in the list
  • Sun and colour fadea UV filter is in the list
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
  • Curly-method routinesno sulfates and no water-insoluble silicones
  • Curl definitionfilm formers hold a clump together
  • Very dry hairno fast-drying alcohol in the list
Why you might skip it
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
  • Dry or very humid airwhere heavy humectants work against you
  • Silicone-free routinesit does contain silicones — the water-soluble kind
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
  • Anyone who dislikes a castthe film formers here can set firm
  • Silicone-free routinesit does contain silicones — the water-soluble kind
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
Heat protectantspray
Styler
Where to buy
Salons · Brand website
Grocery / mass
Free of
  • sulfate-free
  • protein-free
  • curly-method compatible
  • sulfate-free
  • protein-free
  • curly-method compatible
Vegan
Vegan · label states
—
Cruelty-free
—
Cruelty-free · label states
Scent
Scented, not described
Scented, not described
Heat protection
up to 450°F
—

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

IngredientThermal Setting SprayStrong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
Fragrance
Fragrance
#8Below the 1% line
#9Below the 1% line
Benzyl Alcohol
Stabilizes
#19Below the 1% line
#4Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Thermal Setting Spray

Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control

Full ingredient list — Thermal Setting Spray (28)
Full ingredient list — Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control (11)

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.

VerdictsThermal Setting SprayStrong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control
Supported
1
6
Partly supported
1
0
Stated by brand
1
2
Potential conflict
0
0

Thermal Setting Spray

  • Forms a protective shield around strands for heat protection up to 450FPartly supportedSold for hot tools; untestable here.
  • Vegan formulaSupportedMatches our researched record.
  • Paraben-, mineral-oil-, and colorant-freeStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.

Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control

  • all-day-strong holdSupportedStructure that lasts the day.
  • humidity-protection and frizz control up to 24 hoursSupportedSmoother strands, less frizz.
  • PETA cruelty-freeSupportedMatches our researched record.
  • paraben-freeSupportedPreserved without parabens.
  • mineral-oil-freeStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • color-safeSupportedLess fade per wash.
  • dye-freeStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • pH-balancedSupportedBrought to an acidic pH.

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.

Biolage Thermal Setting Spray draws complaints about dryness and residue or cast.

Thermal Setting Spray

Easy, lightweight application with good smell

Ulta exact-product written reviewers

Workable hold and body while heat styling

Ulta exact-product written reviewers

Some report sticky, stiff, gummy residue or drying feel

Ulta exact-product written reviewers

Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control

Several loyal customers report difficulty finding this product on store shelves and having to order it online instead.

Multiple reviewers say the scent is mild and fruity, though one described the reformulated version as smelling like glue.

A large cluster of longtime users say a reformulation made the gel thin and watery with little to no hold or frizz control, a sharp regression from the product they used for years.

Long-time users with wavy to 3b/3c curly hair say it enhances curl definition and controls frizz with all-day hold and little crunch to scrunch out.

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.

$1.00/oz vs $3.21/oz — Biolage Thermal Setting Spray costs about 3.2× more per ounce than Herbal Essences Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control.

Thermal Setting Spray

Against 1358 heat protectants with a computable unit price.

Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control

Against 157 gels with a computable unit price.

Value readThermal Setting SprayStrong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control
Label
Upper-mid price for a heat protectantSits in the middle of the range for heat protectants per ounce.
Lower cost than most gelsCosts less per ounce than most gels 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.

Thermal Setting Spray vs Extra Hold Alcohol-Free Hair GelTRESemmé · 95% function matchStrong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control vs Big Sexy Hair Root Pump Plus Humidity Resistant Volumizing Spray MousseSexy Hair · 93% function matchThermal Setting Spray vs Style Sexy Hair Blow It Up Volumizing Gel FoamSexy Hair · 90% function matchStrong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control vs Big Sexy Hair Root Pump Plus Humidity Resistant Volumizing Spray MousseSexyHair · 93% function matchThermal Setting Spray vs Kenra Platinum Boosting Spray-Foam 17Kenra Professional · 90% function matchStrong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control vs Texturising Salt SprayBed Head · 90% function matchThermal Setting Spray vs Platinum Boosting Spray Foam 17Kenra Professional · 90% function matchStrong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control vs Touchable Hold Hairspray with Frizz ControlHerbal Essences · 90% function match

Thermal Setting Spray · Strong Hold Curl Scrunching Gel with Frizz Control · All heat protectants 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.
  • 9 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.

Still unsure? Take your consultation or browse more products.

Your personalized hair plan

Tell us what’s going on with your hair, see what we understand, and get a plan built around it — with the reason behind every recommendation.

Free to start · $49.00 for your consultation and hair profile · No subscription · Nothing you must buy

Start your consultation