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Side by side

Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Shampoo vs Paul Mitchell Super Smooth Shampoo

56% function match · 7 of the 13 functions we compared match Formula overlap 63%. Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Shampoo and Paul Mitchell Super Smooth 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
  • Your answers appear here

When each one is the right call

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

  • Awapuhi Shampoo — protein-sensitive hair
  • Super Smooth Shampoo — colour-treated 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
Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Shampoo — 2.5 oz container Paul Mitchell

Awapuhi Shampoo

  • Shampoo
  • Salon
  • Protein-free
  • Lightweight
Paul Mitchell Super Smooth Shampoo — 10.14 oz container Paul Mitchell

Super Smooth Shampoo

  • Shampoo
  • Salon
  • Sulfate-free
  • Silicone-free
Price, size & price per ounce
$28.50 8.5 oz · $3.35/oz
$18 10.14 oz · $1.78/oz
Value / price positioning
Same job for less elsewhere $$$$$ Salon tier · costs more than 79% of the 817 shampoos we’ve priced
Upper-mid price for a shampoo $$$$$ Salon tier · costs more than 57% 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
None found No humectants found — nothing here pulls water into the hair. Your hair
Moderate Humectants in the working part of the formula. 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
Some Some slip, mostly from esters or silicones rather than conditioners. Your hair
Moderate Conditioning agents are present, lower in the list. Your hair
Weight on hair
Light Water-first and light: unlikely to flatten fine hair. Your hair
Light Water-first and light: unlikely to flatten fine 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
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 Differs
High Water-insoluble silicones or waxes: a detergent wash is what removes them. Your hair
None Nothing here needs a detergent wash to remove. Your hair
Clarifying wash needed
Moderate Your hair
Low 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
Covers the core
out of 10
Complete for its job
Who should choose this
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
  • Fast-oiling scalpsthat need a real reset wash
  • Hard waterand swimmers dealing with mineral deposit
  • Fine hairthat flattens under most products
  • Colour-treated hairthat fades faster in a sulfate wash
  • Protein-sensitive hairthat stiffens when protein is added
  • Fast-oiling scalpsthat need a real reset wash
  • Curly-method routinesno sulfates and no water-insoluble silicones
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
  • Dry or damaged haira strong detergent system strips as it cleans
  • Hair that needs proteinthere is none in this list
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
Awapuhi
Super Smooth
Where to buy
Brand website · Salons
Brand website · Salons
Free of
  • protein-free
  • sulfate-free
  • silicone-free
  • protein-free
  • curly-method compatible
Cruelty-free
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Cruelty-free · PETA-listed
Scent
Scented, not described
Scented, not described

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

IngredientAwapuhi ShampooSuper Smooth Shampoo
Water
Neutral
#1Leading
#1Leading
Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate
Cleanses
#2Leading
#2Leading
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Cleanses
#4Supporting
#4Supporting
Cocamide MIPA
Cleanses
#5Supporting
#3Leading
Sodium Chloride
Stabilizes
#6Supporting
#7Supporting
Fragrance
Fragrance
#18Below the 1% line
#19Below the 1% line

What only one of them carries

Full ingredient list — Awapuhi Shampoo (24)
Full ingredient list — Super Smooth Shampoo (21)

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.

VerdictsAwapuhi ShampooSuper Smooth Shampoo
Supported
0
2
Partly supported
0
0
Stated by brand
1
1
Potential conflict
1
0

Awapuhi Shampoo

  • #1 Best-Selling Paul Mitchell shampoo (2024 sales data)Stated by brandPopularity, not performance.
  • Color-safe cleanser ideal for all hair typesPotential conflictLikely to pull colour faster.

Super Smooth Shampoo

  • Up To 86% Smoother Hair (with shampoo + conditioner, third-party testing)Stated by brandOnly the brand’s testing shows this.
  • Daily sulfate-free (without SLS, SLES, ALS) shampoo cleanses and smooths hairSupportedGentler on colour and coils.
  • Perfect prep for a smooth blowoutSupportedSmoother strands, less frizz.

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.

Awapuhi Shampoo

Long-time repeat buyers, some using it for 20+ years, describe it as a reliable staple

long-term/loyal users

Reviewers with long, wavy/curly hair say it leaves hair feeling clean and nourished without excessive static

long wavy/curly hair

Praised for pleasant, distinctive fragrance and good lather/cleansing performance

Super Smooth Shampoo

Reviewers with curly or thick, coarse hair report noticeably softer, more manageable, frizz-reduced results

curly and thick/coarse-hair users

Some reviewers with sensitive or easily-irritated scalps say the current formula feels calming rather than irritating

sensitive-scalp users

A protein-sensitive reviewer with low-porosity coily hair reports the formula does not cause the breakage they get from protein-heavy products

low-porosity/protein-sensitive coily hair

A reformulation is noted by long-time users, with mixed reactions including a report of an eczema flare-up after switching to the current formula

long-time users noticing a recent reformulation

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.

$1.78/oz vs $3.35/oz — Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Shampoo costs about 1.9× more per ounce than Paul Mitchell Super Smooth Shampoo.

$0.00/oz median $1.48/oz $17.29/oz $3.35/oz Awapuhi Shampoo $1.78/oz Super Smooth Shampoo

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

Value readAwapuhi ShampooSuper Smooth Shampoo
Label
Same job for less elsewhereYou are paying above the range for a formula close to several lower-priced options.
Upper-mid price for a shampooSits 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.

Awapuhi Shampoo · Super Smooth 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.
  • 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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