Shampoo / Clarifying, deep-cleaning
Scent:
The ingredient list declares fragrance. What it smells of is not stated, and we do not guess.
Manufacturer page: k18hair.com
Personal fit
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The rest of what your plan weighs on this product.
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Your avoid-list
Same job for less elsewhere
$4.59/oz at 8.5 oz — more than 93% of the 805 shampoos , which mostly run $0.81–3.01/oz.
Great for
Maybe skip if
What the formula actually does
Each row says where it comes from: F means we derived it from this product’s own ingredient list, S means it is a claim the brand makes that the formula neither confirms nor contradicts.
Removes oil, buildup, and most residue — a reset wash.
Thick foam that spreads quickly through the hair.
Conditioning agents are present, lower in the list.
Humectants in the working part of the formula.
No over-the-counter scalp active.
Chelators are present — they bind hard-water and pool minerals.
Nothing here needs a detergent wash to remove.
Protein appears, low enough to be a supporting ingredient.
Fragrance is listed; it sits below the working ingredients.
Ingredients that matter
The workhorse ingredients plus anything lower down that changes a decision. These chips name what an ingredient does — they are not safety scores, and no ingredient here is rated good or bad on its own.
| Ingredient | What it does | Why it matters | Chip |
|---|---|---|---|
| WaterWater (Aqua) (Eau) | solvent | The base everything else is dissolved in | Neutral |
| Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate | olefin sulfonate cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| Cocamidopropyl Betaine | amphoteric cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| Sodium Methyl 2-Sulfolaurate | cleanser | Does the cleaning | Cleanses |
| Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate | mild anionic cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| SH-Oligopeptide-78 | protein | Firms up soft, over-stretchy hair | Protein |
| Panthenol | humectant | Pulls water into the hair | Detangles |
| Glycerin | humectant | Pulls water into the hair | Moisturizes |
| FragranceFragrance (Parfum) | fragrance | The scent | Fragrance |
| Limonene | fragrance | The scent | Fragrance |
| Hydroxycitronellal | fragrance | The scent | Fragrance |
| Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Flower Oil | botanical extract | A trace plant extract | Fragrance |
US labelling rules put ingredients above 1% in descending order of amount; below 1% they may be listed in any order. Annotations keep three readings separate: the ingredient's general function, its role in this product type, and what its position can support.
The base of almost every rinse-off and cream hair product. It carries everything else and is normally the first ingredient on the label.
Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.
A strong non-sulfate detergent used in "sulfate-free" shampoos. It cleans about as thoroughly as a sulfate despite the label difference.
Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.
A strong detergent with no sulfate on the label. It removes deposited films about as completely as a sulfate does.
Sulfate-free on the label is a naming fact, not a mildness one: this is an efficient detergent, and hair short of moisture can feel it.
A mild coconut-derived co-cleanser that boosts foam and softens the effect of stronger detergents. It appears in most shampoos, gentle or not.
Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.
Mild cleansing leaves more surface lubrication in place on hair that dries out quickly.
The mildest detergents are also the least complete: a routine that deposits films needs something stronger periodically.
Among the mildest detergents in use — it is what baby shampoos are built on — but it is almost always the second detergent in a formula. How much a wash strips is still decided by the primary detergent listed above it.
A mild cleanser that foams well in hard water, usually paired with disodium 2-sulfolaurate.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
Cleansing is what lifts deposited films off the strand. How completely depends on which detergent it is and how high on the list it sits.
Every detergent removes some sebum along with the product it is there to wash out. Which detergent it is matters more than that there is one.
A moderate cleanser that foams well without the stripping reputation of sulfates.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
The detergent class most curl routines are built around: it lathers and cleanses without stripping the strand back to bare.
A gentler detergent leaves more of the surface oil that slows water loss from coarse or porous hair.
Cleanses with less sebum removal than a sulfate detergent, so hair that is short of moisture keeps more of it through the wash.
A bioengineered peptide used at low levels in scalp and growth-positioned products.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
A large surface-depositing protein. If protein reliably makes your hair feel rigid, this is the form most likely to do it.
Unhydrolysed protein is too large to enter the strand. It sits on the surface, which is a coating effect rather than internal reinforcement.
Provitamin B5. It draws in water and penetrates the strand a little, which is why it is the standard ingredient for softness and shine claims.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
It hydrates without adding oil or a film, which is the combination fine hair usually needs.
Deposits a lubricating layer that makes combing easier, which is most of what stops mechanical damage adding to frizz.
A humectant that also penetrates the cuticle, so it holds water inside the strand rather than only on the surface.
A small water-loving molecule that draws moisture into the hair and holds it there. It is the most common softening ingredient in conditioners and leave-ins.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
High-porosity hair loses water fast; a humectant holds some of it in place for longer than the wash itself would.
Binds water into the outer layers of the strand, and water is what makes dry hair flexible again rather than brittle.
Water moves both ways. Measured across concentrations, glycerin solutions give water up in some conditions and take it from the air in others. What it does for you depends on how much of it is there and on the air around it.
A rice-derived chelator that binds hard-water minerals without EDTA.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Binds the calcium and magnesium in hard water, which is what stops mineral deposits accumulating on the strand wash after wash.
Copper and iron carried in tap water deposit on the strand and read as a dull, warm cast on gray or light hair. A chelator holds those metals in solution so the wash carries them off.
A conditioning polymer made from guar bean gum. It deposits during rinsing, which is why sulfate shampoos can still leave hair soft.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Gums thicken and set soft, which gives definition that bends rather than a rigid cast.
Cationic conditioners bind to the negatively charged damaged cuticle, laying it flat and cutting the friction that causes combing breakage.
A styling polymer dries into a film across the strands, which is what makes a shape hold instead of relax.
A mild cleanser used with sodium methyl 2-sulfolaurate in gentle shampoo systems.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Cleansing is what lifts deposited films off the strand. How completely depends on which detergent it is and how high on the list it sits.
Every detergent removes some sebum along with the product it is there to wash out. Which detergent it is matters more than that there is one.
A gentle preservative helper that also holds a little moisture.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Humectants bind water into the strand, and water — not oil — is what makes dry hair flexible instead of brittle.
A humectant follows the air: it holds water in humid conditions and can give it up in very dry ones. Climate decides what it does more than the label does.
A coconut-derived preservative booster that also binds trace metals.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Binds the calcium and magnesium in hard water, which is what stops mineral deposits accumulating on the strand wash after wash.
Copper and iron carried in tap water deposit on the strand and read as a dull, warm cast on gray or light hair. A chelator holds those metals in solution so the wash carries them off.
Used to bring the product to a slightly acidic pH, which helps the cuticle lie flat. It is almost always near the end of the list.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Holds hard-water minerals in solution so they rinse away instead of depositing on the hair.
The acid side of pH adjustment, and the reason it matters is measured: alkaline formulas raise the fibre's surface negative charge, increase friction between strands and lift the scales, while lower-pH ones do the reverse.
Where a warm cast comes from water minerals rather than from the hair itself, holding those metals in solution is what removes it.
A strong base used in trace amounts to raise pH; fully neutralised in the finished product.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
The alkali half of a pH-adjusting pair, used in small amounts to bring a formula up to its target rather than to make it alkaline. Alkaline conditions raise the fibre's surface charge and lift the scales — but the finished pH is not on the label.
An undisclosed blend of scent ingredients. Regulations let it stay unlisted, so a fragrance-free product is the only way to be certain what is not in it.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Declared fragrance. On a fragrance-sensitive routine this is the line that decides it, wherever it sits on the label.
A citrus-smelling fragrance component that EU rules require to be named separately because some people react to it.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
One of the 26 scent components the EU requires to be named individually above a threshold. It is named because it is a known contact allergen, not because it is unusual.
A soft floral fragrance component named separately as a recognised allergen.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
One of the 26 scent components the EU requires to be named individually above a threshold. It is named because it is a known contact allergen, not because it is unusual.
The essential oil of Citrus Aurantium. Essential oils are aromatic — they are in the formula for scent, and they are a common source of declared fragrance allergens.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Essential oils are fragrance. Several carry constituents on the EU list of declared fragrance allergens, so a label with no fragrance line can still be a scented product.
A cold-pressed orange peel oil used for scent. Citrus oils are naturally high in limonene.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Essential oils are fragrance. Several carry constituents on the EU list of declared fragrance allergens, so a label with no fragrance line can still be a scented product.
A cold-pressed citrus oil used for a fresh scent; naturally high in limonene.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Essential oils are fragrance. Several carry constituents on the EU list of declared fragrance allergens, so a label with no fragrance line can still be a scented product.
A synthetic musk or woody-amber note used as a fragrance base.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Declared fragrance. On a fragrance-sensitive routine this is the line that decides it, wherever it sits on the label.
Ingredient list captured 2026-08-22. Formulas change — check the package in your hand when an ingredient matters to you.
Price · 8.5 oz
Priced above the products that do the same job. Stores sell it above the $13 line; products that do this job typically go for about $22 at this size.
Sorted by price per ounce. Dated observations from our research, not live prices. Direct store pages, no affiliate links. We don’t sell this product.
Formula
Sold through specialty beauty at a price 5 products that do the same job undercut — the counter is part of what you are paying for.
The formula score is completeness for the job: the share of the systems this product type is normally built around that we can find in this list, weighted. It is not efficacy, not quality, and it never compares across product types.
Does the same job, for less
Same derived functions — what it cleans, conditions, coats or holds — at a lower cost per ounce. Scent, texture and where you buy it can still differ.
See more alternatives in the product library
These are functional neighbours, not personal recommendations — they are close on formula, not chosen for anyone. Get the one that fits your hair, routine, and budget
Final decision
Colour-treated hair who want washing without sulfates and a proper reset wash
Less suited to anyone sensitive to fragrance, dry or damaged hair, or people shopping on a budget
CHI Royal Treatment Volume Shampoo — for similar results at a lower price
We do not sell products or take placement fees. This page states what the formula and the prices show; the consultation is what matches it to a person.
Claims check
Claims are quoted from the brand. We only mark one supported, partly supported, or conflicting when the ingredient list actually speaks to it; everything else stays "stated by the brand", which is not a criticism — most claims simply cannot be read off a label.
Clinically proven to provide conditioning protection against damage from UV rays, mechanical styling, and environmental aggressors for up to 3 days
A brand-run study. We report it as stated and do not repeat the number as fact.
—
Only the brand’s testing shows this.
We look at the first 10–15 ingredients and what they do in a formula — not marketing. If the list doesn't speak to a claim, we don't assume.
Reviewers
Recurring themes our researchers wrote in their own words from sourced reviews. We do not store or scrape star ratings.
Pleasant scent called out repeatedly as a selling point
general usersReported to visibly repair brittle, dry, or chemically damaged hair over a few weeks of use
users with color-treated/bleached or heat-damaged hairLeaves hair clean and soft without feeling weighed down
general users, several noting fine or fine-to-medium hairSome reviewers pair it explicitly with the leave-in mask and report better results using the full system rather than the shampoo alone
repeat/multi-product K18 users
