Tar-based formula for the treatment of dandruff and psoriasis
No over-the-counter anti-dandruff active appears in the list.
—
Stated by brand
Soothing, not an active treatment.
Personal fit
Is this right for you?
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Factor
Your profile
Fit
Best for hair types
All types
Not in your profile
Moisture level
None found
Not in your profile
Expected lather
High
Not in your profile
Slip / detangling
Little
Not in your profile
Silicone / wax buildup
None
Not in your profile
Clarifying wash needed
Low
Not in your profile
Sulfates
Sulfate detergent
Not in your profile
Parabens / preservatives
Not determined
Not in your profile
Essential oils
Not determined
Not in your profile
Vegan / cruelty-free
Not yet verified
Not in your profile
Show all 17 factors we check
The rest of what your plan weighs on this product.
Animal-derived ingredients
Not yet verified
Not in your profile
Heavy humectants
Not determined
Not in your profile
UV filter
None listed
Not in your profile
pH adjusted
Adjusted
Not in your profile
Ingredient list
7 ingredientsA short list
Not in your profile
Price tier
Masstige
Not in your profile
Where to buy it
Brand websiteOne channel
Not in your profile
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Your avoid-list
Upper-mid price for a shampoo
$1.92/oz at 8 oz — more than 61% of the 805 shampoos , which mostly run $0.81–3.01/oz. The cost less.
Great for
Cuticle-smoothing pHa pH adjuster brings it to the acidic range hair prefers
Short ingredient listsfifteen ingredients or fewer
Maybe skip if
Sulfate-free routinesit uses a sulfate detergent
Hair that tangles wetnothing here reduces combing force
Picking it up locallywe have it recorded in one channel only
What the formula actually does
Read from the label, not the marketing
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.
Expected lather
High
Thick foam that spreads quickly through the hair.
Slip and detangling
Little
Nothing here is built to reduce combing force.
Water-binding (humectants)
None found
No humectants found — nothing here pulls water into the hair.
Scalp active
None
No over-the-counter scalp active.
Needs detergent to remove
No
Nothing here needs a detergent wash to remove.
from the formula
stated by the brand
reported by reviewers
Scale: 1 dot low · 5 dots high, within this product type.
Ingredients that matter
The ingredients that change a decision
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solubilized Coal Tar Extract (0.5% Coal Tar) | — | — | Neutral |
| WaterPurified Water | solvent | The base everything else is dissolved in | Neutral |
| Sodium Laureth Sulfate | sulfate cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine | amphoteric cleanser | — | Cleanses |
| Peg-8 Distearate | thickener | Sets the texture | Stabilizes |
| Sodium Chloride | salt | Thickens the formula | Stabilizes |
| Citric Acid | pH adjuster | Fine-tunes the pH | pH balancer |
Full ingredient list (7)
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.
- 1 Solubilized Coal Tar Extract (0.5% Coal Tar)
-
2
Water
· Purified Water
General function
The base of almost every rinse-off and cream hair product. It carries everything else and is normally the first ingredient on the label.
Leading ingredientListed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.
- solvent
-
3
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
General function
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.
Leading ingredientListed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.
Indian Journal of DermatologyMay suitBuild-up-sensitive routinesA sulfate detergent removes deposited silicone, wax and styling films in one wash, which is what resets a routine before build-up is visible.
May suitFine or easily flattened hairFine hair that goes limp under conditioning films usually reads a full detergent wash as volume returning.
May not suitDry, coarse, or high-porosity hairCoarse and high-porosity hair loses water quickly on its own; an efficient detergent removes the surface oils that were slowing that down.
- sulfate cleanser
- cleanser
-
4
Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine
General function
A mild co-cleanser that keeps foam stable in hard water.
Supporting ingredientListed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
May suitDry, coarse, or high-porosity hairMild cleansing leaves more surface lubrication in place on hair that dries out quickly.
May suitVery dry or highly damaged hairOne of the mildest detergent classes. It is usually there to let a formula lather without a harsher detergent doing the work.
May not suitBuild-up-sensitive routinesThe mildest detergents are also the least complete: a routine that deposits films needs something stronger periodically.
- amphoteric cleanser
- secondary cleanser
- cleanser
-
5
Peg-8 Distearate
General function
An ethoxylated fatty ester used to thicken a liquid and hold oil and water together. At high ethoxylation it is a thickener more than an emollient.
Supporting ingredientListed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
- thickener
- emulsifier
-
6
Sodium Chloride
General function
Table salt. In shampoo it is used to thicken the liquid, not to treat the hair.
Supporting ingredientPubChemListed in positions 4–8, it likely makes a meaningful contribution alongside the formula's main ingredients.
- salt
- thickener
- ▾Below about this point, order stops being meaningful — these are typically used at 1% or less.
-
7
Citric Acid
General function
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.
Estimated lower-concentration zoneIt appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
International Journal of TrichologyMay suitBuild-up-sensitive routinesHolds hard-water minerals in solution so they rinse away instead of depositing on the hair.
May suitFrizz-prone, damaged, or high-friction hairThe 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.
May suitGray, silver, or brass-prone hairWhere a warm cast comes from water minerals rather than from the hair itself, holding those metals in solution is what removes it.
- pH adjuster
- hard-water chelator
What the whole list adds up to
- 2 cleansers
- 2 thickeners
- 1 solvent
- 1 sulfate cleanser
- 1 amphoteric cleanser
- 1 secondary cleanser
- 1 emulsifier
- 1 salt
- 1 pH adjuster
- 1 hard-water chelator
Drug facts actives
- undefined
This product is an over-the-counter drug as well as a cosmetic. It treats a cosmetic scalp condition; it does not diagnose or treat disease.
Ingredient list captured 2026-09-08. Formulas change — check the package in your hand when an ingredient matters to you.
Price · 8 oz
Seen at
$15.36
Good value under
$4
Priced above the products that do the same job. Stores sell it above the $4 line; products that do this job typically go for about $9 at this size.
Show the price ladder
Where we’ve seen it1 listing · 1 store
-
Person & Covey (personandcovey.com)
$15.368 oz · $1.92/ozSep 8Lowest per oz
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.
How we work this out
- 8 oz is the size stores list most often; every comparison on this page is made at it. Other sizes are shown in the Sizes row and the store list.
- Seen at $15.36 is the price we have observed for the 8 oz. We need three stores before we call a price commonly seen.
- Good value under $4 comes from the 8 products we score as doing the same job as this one. A quarter of them cost less than $0.46/oz; at 8 oz that is $4. Under that line you are paying less than most of them.
- About $9 is what those same products typically cost at this size — the midpoint of their prices per ounce, scaled to 8 oz.
Formula
7
Formula score
7 of 10
Both the formula and the price land mid-range: it covers the core of what a shampoo does and costs about what shampoos cost per ounce.
How the score is counted
- 4 products we score as doing the same job cost less per ounce
- Costs more per ounce than 61% of the 805 shampoos we’ve priced
- No slip for detangling in the formula
- Reviewers mention 2 things they like about how it performs
- A working detergent systemWhat actually removes oil and product.3 pts
- Slip for detanglingReduces the force it takes to comb wet hair.2 pts
- A humectantBinds water into the hair.1 pt
- A hard-water chelatorBinds the minerals that dull hair in hard water.1 pt
- A pH adjusterBrings the formula to the acidic pH hair prefers.1 pt
- No detergent-dependent filmNothing that needs a clarifying wash to remove.1 pt
- Fragrance kept out of the top eightScent as a finishing touch, not a major share.1 pt
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.
Herbal EssencesClosest function
Herbal Essences Classic Clarifying Shampoo (Tea Tree)
$0.46/oz $1.46/oz less
- Protein-free
- Deep clean
- Hard water
- Function
- Also
AussieLowest cost per oz
Aussie Paraben-Free Miracle Volume Shampoo with Plum & Bamboo For Fine Hair
$0.32/oz $1.60/oz less
- Protein-free
- Deep clean
- Hard water
- Function
- Also
Herbal EssencesClose function
Color Me Happy Shampoo
$0.48/oz $1.44/oz less
- Deep clean
- Hard water
- Budget
- Function
- Also
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
Should you buy it?
Good for the right personBest user
Hair that frizzes after washing — for a formula brought to an acidic pH and fewer ingredients to react to
Biggest tradeoff
Less suited to sulfate-free routines and fresh keratin treatments, hair that tangles the moment it is wet, or anyone who wants to pick it up locally
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
What the brand says, against what the formula shows
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.
0
SupportedBacked by ingredients
0
Partly supportedSome supporting logic
5
Stated by brandNo clear evidence
0
Potential conflictFormula works against claim
Designed for control of even chronic scalp conditions
This is a marketing claim; an ingredient list cannot speak to it.
—
Stated by brand
Can’t be confirmed from label.
Helps prevent recurrence of scalp itching and flaking associated with Psoriasis, Seborrheic Dermatitis and Dandruff
No over-the-counter anti-dandruff active appears in the list.
—
Stated by brand
Soothing, not an active treatment.
Fragrance and dye-free
This is a marketing claim; an ingredient list cannot speak to it.
—
Stated by brand
Can’t be confirmed from label.
PABA free
This is a marketing claim; an ingredient list cannot speak to it.
—
Stated by brand
Can’t be confirmed from label.
How to read 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
What people report
Recurring themes our researchers wrote in their own words from sourced reviews. We do not store or scrape star ratings.
Repeat buyers who have used the product for years say it leaves hair feeling soft despite being a medicated, tar-based formula.
long-time repeat customersSeveral long-time users, including some directed by a doctor after trying prescription options, say it clears stubborn scalp itching and flaking within about a week when other treatments had not worked.
OTC/Rx tar-shampoo users with chronic scalp conditionsA reviewer who switched after his longtime tar shampoo (Neutrogena T/Gel) was discontinued calls this a solid direct replacement, though he would like it offered in larger bottle sizes.
shopper replacing a discontinued tar shampooMore from Person & Covey
How this page was made
- Everything above is generated from our researched product record — identity, the ingredient list as printed, the brand's own claims, dated price observations, and review themes written in our researchers' own words. No part of this page is written per product.
- 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.
- Both scores out of ten are defined on this page. The formula score is completeness for the job, computed from a fixed per-format checklist shown beneath the gauge; the price score is cost per ounce against every product of this type we have priced.
- 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.
- 2 sources consulted for this product (0 manufacturer or regulatory, 0 retailer, 2 editorial), last checked 2026-09-08.
- Ingredient references are linked for 2 of 3 product-aware annotations on this page. Fit notes are conditional formulation guidance, not a conclusion about the finished product or about you.
- We have not tested this product in a lab and we do not physically test your hair. Formula readings come from the ingredient list; behaviour claims are labelled as the brand's.
- Ingredient order tells you relative amount only above roughly 1%. Prices are observations on the dates shown and change without notice.
- Ingredient names link to our ingredient library, where each entry shows what it does, which product types use it, and where it usually sits on a label across everything we have researched.
- This is cosmetic information, not medical advice, and nothing here diagnoses or treats a health condition.
- Formula readings: derivation v22. Record last updated 2026-09-08.