Shampoo / Clarifying, deep-cleaning
Scent:
The ingredient list declares fragrance. What it smells of is not stated, and we do not guess.
Listing used for research: target.com
Personal fit
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Your avoid-list
Same job for less elsewhere
$8.00/oz at 8.5 oz — more than 99% 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 near the top — water-binding is a headline mechanism here.
No over-the-counter scalp active.
No chelating agent in the list.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| WaterAqua/Water/Eau | solvent | The base everything else is dissolved in | Neutral |
| Sodium Laureth Sulfate | sulfate cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate | amphoteric cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| Glycol Distearate | opacifier | Makes the product look creamy | Softens |
| Hexylene Glycol | solvent | The base everything else is dissolved in | Moisturizes |
| Sodium Lauryl Sulfate | sulfate cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| Sodium Chloride | salt | Thickens the formula | Stabilizes |
| Citric Acid | pH adjuster | Fine-tunes the pH | pH balancer |
| Salicylic Acid | active | A secondary active | Active |
| Amyl Alcohol DenatAmyl Alcohol Denat. | drying alcohol | A small amount, for fast drying | Drying |
| Hexyl Cinnamal | fragrance | The scent | Fragrance |
| Linalool | fragrance | The scent | 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, high-foaming cleanser and the most common shampoo detergent. It removes oil and product efficiently, which can be more than dry or colour-treated hair wants.
Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.
A sulfate detergent removes deposited silicone, wax and styling films in one wash, which is what resets a routine before build-up is visible.
Fine hair that goes limp under conditioning films usually reads a full detergent wash as volume returning.
Coarse and high-porosity hair loses water quickly on its own; an efficient detergent removes the surface oils that were slowing that down.
A very mild cleanser that softens the effect of stronger detergents.
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.
One of the mildest detergent classes. It is usually there to let a formula lather without a harsher detergent doing the work.
The mildest detergents are also the least complete: a routine that deposits films needs something stronger periodically.
A wax that gives shampoo its pearly look and a slightly richer feel.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
Emollients fill and smooth the surface of the strand, which lowers the friction that lifts the cuticle and reads as roughness.
A solvent that keeps other ingredients dissolved and helps preservatives work.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
Light and water-binding rather than oily, so it hydrates without contributing weight.
A small water-binding solvent. It holds moisture and helps the rest of the formula spread evenly over the strand.
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 high-foaming, strongly cleansing detergent. It clears build-up thoroughly and is the harsher of the two common sulfates.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
A sulfate detergent removes deposited silicone, wax and styling films in one wash, which is what resets a routine before build-up is visible.
Fine hair that goes limp under conditioning films usually reads a full detergent wash as volume returning.
Coarse and high-porosity hair loses water quickly on its own; an efficient detergent removes the surface oils that were slowing that down.
Table salt. In shampoo it is used to thicken the liquid, not to treat the hair.
Listed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
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.
A coconut-derived mild cleanser that boosts foam and softens stronger detergents.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Mild cleansing leaves more surface lubrication in place on hair that dries out quickly.
One of the mildest detergent classes. It is usually there to let a formula lather without a harsher detergent doing the work.
The mildest detergents are also the least complete: a routine that deposits films needs something stronger periodically.
A guar-bean conditioning polymer that deposits during rinsing. It is why a strong shampoo can still leave hair combable.
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 positively charged conditioning polymer. It leaves a thin film that cuts static and eases combing, and it survives rinsing better than a simple conditioner.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Cationic polymers hold a curl loosely and stay soft, which is why they turn up in definition products rather than firm-hold ones.
A cationic polymer stays on the hair through rinsing, which is what keeps static and combing friction down after the wash.
Film formers are what hold a style: they dry into a connected film across the strands so the shape resists movement.
A thickener that turns a liquid into a clear gel. It also contributes a light hold.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
A set polymer film is a physical barrier to humidity, so a style keeps its shape longer in damp conditions.
Synthetic film formers dry into a continuous film, which is what holds a shape against movement and against humid air.
Some acrylate copolymers rinse with water and some need a detergent; the label alone does not say which one a formula used.
A jasmine-like 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.
A floral fragrance component listed separately as a recognised contact 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.
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.
A rose-like 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.
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 ceramide-like lipid used to reinforce the outer surface of damaged hair.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
Restoring surface lipids lowers friction between strands, which is where much of the roughness in damaged hair comes from.
A lipid, not a protein, despite sitting alongside proteins in most repair claims. It does not carry the stiffening effect.
Ceramides are the lipid class bleaching and heat deplete. Replacing them works on the surface layer rather than adding protein stiffness.
A balsamic fragrance component listed 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.
A fatty alcohol used to thicken creams and add slip. It softens rather than dries.
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 waxy solid that gives a conditioner its body. It deposits a soft lubricating layer, which is most of what makes hair feel smooth after rinsing.
Deposits with the cationic conditioners and helps them lie flat along the strand, which is where the detangling actually comes from.
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.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
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 mild cationic conditioner known for heavy detangling with a light rinse-out feel. Common in curly-hair conditioners.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
A cationic conditioning agent: it binds to the damaged, negatively charged parts of the cuticle and lowers combing friction there.
The class that does the detangling in a conditioner. It deposits lubrication where the cuticle is worn.
Substantive by design. A routine with no detergent wash gives it nothing to leave with.
A lanolin-derived conditioning agent used for slip and a soft, coated feel. Animal-derived.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
A cationic conditioning agent: it binds to the damaged, negatively charged parts of the cuticle and lowers combing friction there.
Substantive by design. A routine with no detergent wash gives it nothing to leave with.
Unhydrolysed protein is too large to enter the strand. It sits on the surface, which is a coating effect rather than internal reinforcement.
A sugar that holds water unusually well, used for lasting moisture without stickiness.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
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.
A humectant moves water in whichever direction the air allows: it holds moisture in humid conditions and can pull it back out of hair in very dry ones.
A buffering salt that keeps pH stable as the product ages.
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
pH adjusters are how a formula is brought to a chosen acidity, and an acidic formula keeps the cuticle lying flatter than an alkaline one. Which way this one moves the pH depends on the formula, and 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.
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 $11 line; products that do this job typically go for about $14 at this size.
Sizes
The 34 oz costs 75% less per ounce than the 8.5 oz.
8.5 ozmost listed
34 ozBest per ounce
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
This is a complete shampoo formula. It is also above the range for shampoos per ounce, with 8 close matches selling for meaningfully less.
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
Scalps that oil up within a day, looking for a proper reset wash and moisture that stays in
Less suited to anyone sensitive to fragrance, sulfate-free routines and fresh keratin treatments, or very dry or high-damage hair
Biolage Biolage Volume Boost 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.
Repairs and rebuilds damaged hair from the inside out
Protein or ceramides are present, but low enough that this reads as support, not treatment.
Supports the surface, not a treatment.
Restores strength to worn-out, brittle locks
This is a marketing claim; an ingredient list cannot speak to it.
—
Can’t be confirmed from label.
Every strand is rebuilt so it is thicker, stronger and more elastic
This is a marketing claim; an ingredient list cannot speak to it.
—
Can’t be confirmed from label.
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.
Repeat/longtime buyers with color-treated or blonde-foiled hair report strong ongoing results and repurchase the product for years
color-treated/blonde-foiled hairReviewers with damaged, thin, or brittle hair report the shampoo noticeably improved strength, shine, and overall hair health, describing it as worth the premium price
damaged/thin/brittle hairReviewers who use the shampoo together with the matching Force Architecte conditioner as a system report cumulative improvement in shine and softness
used as shampoo+conditioner systemA minority of reviewers report scalp itching and a chemical smell, with one longtime user suspecting a formula change from what they remembered using years earlier
longtime user, sensitive scalp
