Side by side
Kevin Murphy Heated.Defense vs Kevin Murphy Staying.Alive
87% function match · 6 of the 7 functions we compared match Formula overlap 0%. Kevin Murphy Heated.Defense and Kevin Murphy Staying.Alive share 1 ingredient among each other's most prominent.
These sit in different steps of a routine — Kevin Murphy Heated.Defense is a heat protectant and Kevin Murphy Staying.Alive is a leave-in. Comparing their formulas is fair; treating one as a replacement for the other is not.
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.
- Heated.Defense — heat styling
- Staying.Alive — 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”.
- Heat stylingthe brand states protection to 450°F
- Protein-hungry hairthat stretches and stays stretched when wet
- Very dry hairno fast-drying alcohol in the list
- A wide range of haira middle-of-the-range weight
- Curl definitionfilm formers hold a clump together
- Cuticle-smoothing pHa pH adjuster brings it to the acidic range hair prefers
- Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
- Curly-method routinesthese silicones need a detergent to remove
- Protein-sensitive hairthat goes stiff or straw-like on protein
- Scents bother youthis product carries a scent
- Curly-method routinesthese silicones need a detergent to remove
- Tight budgetsit sits in the upper price tiers
More facts about each one
- sulfate-free
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.
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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
What only one of them carries
Heated.Defense
Full ingredient list — Heated.Defense (24)
-
1
Water
- solvent
-
2
Cetyl Triethylmonium Dimethicone Peg-8 Succinate
- emollient
- light ester
- silicone
-
3
Polysorbate 20
- solubilizer
- emulsifier
-
4
Hydrolyzed Quinoa
- film former
- protein
- hydrolysed protein
-
5
Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- film former
- protein
- hydrolysed protein
-
6
Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil
- emollient
- light ester
- oil
- wax
- Below about this point, order stops being meaningful — these are typically used at 1% or less.
-
7
Piper Nigrum (Pepper) Seed Oil
- botanical extract
- essential oil
- fragrance
-
8
Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil
- oil
- emollient
-
9
Amyris Balsamifera Bark Oil
- oil
- emollient
-
10
Caprylyl Glycol
- preservative
- humectant
-
11
Hexylene Glycol
- solvent
- humectant
-
12
Sodium Coco Pg-Dimonium Chloride Phosphate
- conditioning agent
-
13
Polyquaternium-55
- conditioning agent
- film former
- polymer
-
14
VP/Dmapa Acrylates Copolymer
- film former
- polymer
-
15
Disodium EDTA
- hard-water chelator
-
16
Phenoxyethanol
- preservative
-
17
Potassium Sorbate
- preservative
-
18
Sodium Benzoate
- preservative
-
19
Benzalkonium Chloride
- conditioning agent
-
20
Fragrance
- fragrance
- declared fragrance
-
21
Benzyl Benzoate
- fragrance
- named fragrance allergen
-
22
Limonene
- fragrance
- named fragrance allergen
-
23
Benzyl Salicylate
- fragrance
- named fragrance allergen
-
24
Benzyl Alcohol
- preservative
- solvent
Full ingredient list — Staying.Alive (27)
-
1
Water
- solvent
-
2
PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil
- solubilizer
- emulsifier
-
3
Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Extract
- botanical extract
-
4
Citrus Grandis (Grapefruit) Fruit Extract
- botanical extract
-
5
Hedera Helix (Ivy) Extract
- botanical extract
-
6
Arctium Lappa Root Extract
- botanical extract
- 7 Cetraria Islandica Extract
- Below about this point, order stops being meaningful — these are typically used at 1% or less.
-
8
Rosa Canina Fruit Oil
- oil
- emollient
- antioxidant
- 9 Nasturtium Officinale Flower/Leaf Extract
-
10
Piper Nigrum (Pepper) Seed Oil
- botanical extract
- essential oil
- fragrance
-
11
Glycerin
- humectant
-
12
Hydrolyzed Silk
- film former
- protein
- hydrolysed protein
-
13
Cetrimonium Chloride
- conditioning agent
- cleanser
-
14
Amodimethicone
- silicone
- conditioning agent
- film former
-
15
Trideceth-12
- emulsifier
- solubilizer
-
16
sodium laneth-40 maleate/styrene sulfonate copolymer
- film former
- polymer
-
17
Disodium EDTA
- hard-water chelator
-
18
Phenoxyethanol
- preservative
-
19
Chlorphenesin
- preservative
-
20
Sorbic Acid
- preservative
-
21
Benzoic Acid
- preservative
-
22
Dehydroacetic Acid
- preservative
-
23
Sodium Benzoate
- preservative
-
24
Citric Acid
- pH adjuster
- hard-water chelator
-
25
Fragrance
- fragrance
- declared fragrance
-
26
Hydroxycitronellal
- fragrance
- named fragrance allergen
-
27
Limonene
- fragrance
- named fragrance allergen
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.
Heated.Defense
Protect your hair against daily life's biggest aggressor, heat damage
Stated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.A weightless and invisible leave-in treatment foam to protect your hair against damage associated with heated and mechanical tools
Partly supportedDepends how fine your hair is.Providing heat protection up to 232C / 450F
Partly supportedSold for hot tools; untestable here.
Staying.Alive
A high-performance leave-in treatment, that instantly helps repair damaged or colour-treated hair
Stated by brandCan’t be confirmed from label.Helps to seal the cuticle
SupportedSmoother strands, less frizz.Helps fight frizz and deliver smoothness
SupportedSmoother strands, less frizz.Sulphate, paraben, and cruelty-free
SupportedMatches our researched record.
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.
Heated.Defense
Lightweight foam protects hair through repeated heat styling
SalonCentric reviewersLeaves curls or thick hair soft, shiny, and healthy
Haircare NZ and Walmart reviewersSome reviewers report little difference after styling
SalonCentric reviewerStaying.Alive
Multiple reviewers report a noticeable reduction in frizz and easier styling after spraying it on damp hair.
general reviewersReviewers with fine hair say it adds lift and volume without feeling sticky, greasy, or heavy.
reviewers who self-identify as having fine hairDetangling right out of the shower is the single most cited use, applied as a first step before other leave-ins or styling products.
general reviewersA few reviewers with fine hair describe the volumizing effect as modest rather than dramatic, though they still consider the leave-in benefit worthwhile.
reviewers with fine hair looking for a volumizing effectPrice 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.
$4.80/oz vs $6.67/oz — Kevin Murphy Staying.Alive costs about 1.4× more per ounce than Kevin Murphy Heated.Defense.
Heated.Defense
Against 553 heat protectants with a computable unit price.
Staying.Alive
Against 481 leave-ins with a computable unit price.
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.
Heated.Defense · Staying.Alive · 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.
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