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Side by side

Joico Color Balance Purple Shampoo vs Joico K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo

79% function match · 9 of the 13 functions we compared match Formula overlap 64%. Joico Color Balance Purple Shampoo and Joico K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo share 4 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
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When each one is the right call

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

  • Color Balance Purple Shampoo — fast-oiling scalps
  • K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo — fast-oiling scalps

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
Joico Color Balance Purple Shampoo — 33.8 oz container Joico

Color Balance Purple Shampoo

  • Shampoo
  • Salon
  • Moisture-rich
Joico K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo — 33.8 oz container Joico

K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo

  • Shampoo
  • Salon
  • Moisture-rich
Price, size & price per ounce
$23.97 10.1 oz · $2.37/oz
$37–44 33.8 oz · $1.30/oz

Compared at different sizes — 33.8 oz against 10.1 oz. Per-ounce prices favour the larger bottle.

Value / price positioning
Upper-mid price for a shampoo $$$$$ Salon tier · costs more than 66% of the 817 shampoos we’ve priced
Priced with its peers $$$$$ Salon tier · costs less than 55% of the 817 shampoos we’ve priced
Best for hair types
All types Nothing in the formula or the claims narrows this to one pattern. Your hair
All types Nothing in the formula or the claims narrows this to one pattern. Your hair
Moisture level Differs
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
Cleansing strength Same
Strong Removes oil, buildup, and most residue — a reset wash. Your hair
Strong Removes oil, buildup, and most residue — a reset wash. Your hair
Slip / detangling Differs
High Conditioning agents sit high in the list — this is a detangling formula. Your hair
Moderate Conditioning agents are present, lower in the list. Your hair
Weight on hair
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
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
Prominent Protein high in the list — a strengthening formula, not a moisture one. Your hair
Prominent Protein high in the list — a strengthening formula, not a moisture one. 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
Expected lather Same
High Thick foam that spreads quickly through the hair. Your hair
High Thick foam that spreads quickly through the hair. Your hair
Scalp active Same
None No over-the-counter scalp active. Your hair
None No over-the-counter scalp active. Your hair
Hard-water defence Same
Chelators present Chelators are present — they bind hard-water and pool minerals. Your hair
Chelators present Chelators are present — they bind hard-water and pool minerals. Your hair
Formula completeness
out of 10
Complete for its job
out of 10
Complete for its job
Who should choose this
  • Fast-oiling scalpsthat need a real reset wash
  • Protein-hungry hairthat stretches and stays stretched when wet
  • Maximum slipfor hair that tangles the moment it is wet
  • Dry, thirsty hairhumectants and emollients both sit up front
  • Fast-oiling scalpsthat need a real reset wash
  • Protein-hungry hairthat stretches and stays stretched when wet
  • Dry, thirsty hairhumectants and emollients both sit up front
  • Hard waterand swimmers dealing with mineral deposit
Why you might skip it
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
  • Sulfate-free routinesit uses a sulfate detergent
  • Curly-method routinesthese silicones need a detergent to remove
  • Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
  • Sulfate-free routinesit uses a sulfate detergent
  • Curly-method routinesthese silicones need a detergent to remove
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
Shampoo
Shampoo
Line
Color Balance Purple
—
Where to buy
Salons
Salons · Specialty beauty
Vegan
Not vegan · ingredient list
—
Cruelty-free
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Scent
Scented, not described
Scented, not described
How often
—
every wash

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

IngredientColor Balance Purple ShampooK-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Cleanses
#2Leading
#2Leading
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleanses
#3Leading
#3Leading
Cocamide MEA
Cleanses
#4Supporting
#7Supporting
Laurdimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Keratin
Protein
#7Supporting
#14Secondary
Arginine Hcl
Protein
#8Supporting
#35Below the 1% line
Amodimethicone
Buildup
#23Below the 1% line
#28Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Color Balance Purple Shampoo

K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo

Full ingredient list — Color Balance Purple Shampoo (40)
Full ingredient list — K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo (46)

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.

VerdictsColor Balance Purple ShampooK-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo
Supported
1
2
Partly supported
0
0
Stated by brand
1
2
Potential conflict
1
1

Color Balance Purple Shampoo

  • Preserves cool platinum blondes and silver foxesStated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.
  • Multi-Spectrum Defense Complex helps protect color against fadingPotential conflictLikely to pull colour faster.
  • Bio-Advanced Peptide Complex delivers root-to-tip repairSupportedReinforces a damaged strand.

K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo

  • Maintains over 82% of haircolor for up to 8 weeksStated by brandOnly the brand’s testing shows this.
  • Repairs & strengthens damaged hairSupportedReinforces a damaged strand.
  • Instantly 9X stronger hairStated by brandOnly the brand’s testing shows this.
  • Twice the shineSupportedReflects light for visible shine.
  • Gently cleanses color-treated hairPotential conflictLikely to pull colour faster.

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.

Joico Color Balance Purple Shampoo draws complaints about dryness; Joico K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo draws complaints about weight and the scent.

Color Balance Purple Shampoo

Effective at neutralizing brassy/yellow tones on blonde and gray hair, several reviewers say it keeps platinum tones cool

users with lightened/highlighted or gray hair

Some reviewers report noticeable shedding/hair loss after use

Leaves hair feeling dry or straw-like when used alone without the matching conditioner

Best results reported when alternated with regular shampoo and paired with the matching Color Balance Purple Conditioner, per both manufacturer directions and reviewer feedback

Purple pigment can stain hands during application; reviewers recommend wetting hands first

K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo

Reviewers with colored hair consistently say the shampoo keeps hair feeling clean, soft and shiny while the color stays looking fresh rather than fading.

color-treated hair customers

A recurring negative pattern is hair feeling limp, oily or greasy after use, which some reviewers link to noticeable breakage over months of continued use.

long-term users reporting breakage

Multiple reviewers complain that the bottle arrives filled noticeably below the neck compared to other brands, reading it as a fill-level or quality-control problem rather than a formula one.

customers checking fill level on receipt

Several reviewers describe the fragrance as overpoweringly strong, calling it extremely perfumey.

scent-sensitive reviewers

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.

$1.30/oz vs $2.37/oz — Joico Color Balance Purple Shampoo costs about 1.8× more per ounce than Joico K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo.

$0.00/oz median $1.48/oz $17.29/oz $2.37/oz Color Balance Purple Shamp $1.30/oz K-PAK Color Therapy Color-

Every mark sits on one distribution because these are compared against the same set: 817 shampoos with a computable unit price.

Value readColor Balance Purple ShampooK-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo
Label
Upper-mid price for a shampooSits in the middle of the range for shampoos per ounce.
Priced with its peersSits in the middle of the range for shampoos 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.

Color Balance Purple Shampoo vs Color Balance Blue ShampooJoico · 87% function matchK-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo vs K-PAK Daily Reconstructing ShampooJoico · 93% function matchColor Balance Purple Shampoo vs Moisture Recovery Moisturizing ShampooJoico · 85% function matchK-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo vs Color Balance Blue ShampooJoico · 91% function matchColor Balance Purple Shampoo vs Brass Off Blue Shampoo for BrunettesMatrix · 83% function matchK-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo vs John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Color Vibrancy ShampooJohn Frieda · 90% function matchColor Balance Purple Shampoo vs K-PAK Daily Reconstructing ShampooJoico · 81% function matchK-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo vs Colour Goddess™ Oil Infused ShampooTIGI Bed Head · 90% function match

Color Balance Purple Shampoo · K-PAK Color Therapy Color-Protecting Shampoo · All shampoos 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.
  • 10 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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