Taliah Waajid Lock It Up for Natural Hair — 16 oz container

Taliah Waajid

Lock It Up for Natural Hair

Styler / Gel, polymer-set

Styler
gel

Size16 oz

Price$14.95 Good valueseen at one store · 16 oz

Price / oz$0.93/ozat 16 oz

Where to buy4 stores · 2 sizes

Add it to your products. We’ll tell you if it’s ever recalled.

Scent:

The ingredient list declares fragrance. What it smells of is not stated, and we do not guess.

Manufacturer page: taliah.com

Personal fit

Is this right for you?

Factor Your profile Fit

Best for hair types Wavy–Coily Not in your profile

Moisture level None found Not in your profile

Hold system High Not in your profile

Slip / detangling Little Not in your profile

Fragrance Present Not in your profile

Silicone / wax buildup None Not in your profile

Clarifying wash needed Low 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 18 factors we check

The rest of what your plan weighs on this product.

Animal-derived ingredients Not yet verified Not in your profile

Aerosol can Not determined Not in your profile

Needs heat to set Not determined Not in your profile

Heavy humectants Not determined Not in your profile

UV filter None listed Not in your profile

Ingredient list 12 ingredientsA short list Not in your profile

Price tier Drugstore Not in your profile

Where to buy it Brand websiteOne channel Not in your profile

The consultation builds your hair profile, checks every factor in this table against it, and tells you where this product fits or what to use instead.

Start your consultation

$49 once, with 60 days of follow-up questions and plan updates. Nothing renews, and you never have to buy a product.

Lower cost than most gels

$0.93/oz at 16 oz, less than 82% of the 267 gels , which mostly run $1.13–3.78/oz.

Price and stores

Great for

Curl definitionfilm formers hold a clump together

Short ingredient listsfifteen ingredients or fewer

Tight budgetsit sits in the lower price tiers

Maybe skip if

this product has a scent

Anyone who dislikes a castthe film formers here can set firm

Picking it up locallywe’ve only seen it sold in one channel

Whether this hold suits you depends on your density, porosity and how long your style needs to last. The consultation works that out.

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.

Hold system Synthetic polymer

Synthetic hold polymers, the firmest kind of hold.

Cast risk Likely

Film formers with little to soften them, so expect a cast to scrunch out.

Oil absorption None

No absorbent powders or starches.

Oils and butters None

No oils or butters in the list.

Needs detergent to remove No

Nothing here needs a detergent wash to remove.

Fragrance Present

Fragrance is listed; it sits below the working ingredients.

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. The 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)	solvent	The base everything else is dissolved in	Neutral
Carbomer	thickener	Sets the texture	Holds
Triethanolamine	pH adjuster	Brings the formula to hair-friendly pH	pH balancer
D&C	—	—	Neutral
Yellow 10	colourant	Colours the product, not the hair	Neutral
FD&C Dark Brown 518	—	—	Neutral
Achillea Millefolium ExtractYarrow Roots Extract (Achillea Millefolium)	botanical extract	A trace plant extract	Neutral
Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf ExtractRosemary Extract (Rosmarinus Officinalis)	botanical extract	A trace plant extract	Stabilizes
FragranceFragrance (Parfum)	fragrance	The scent	Fragrance

What the list leaves out, and what it carriesFragrance is on the label.

Full ingredient list (12)

In the US, ingredients above 1% are listed from most to least. Below 1% they can appear in any order. Each note keeps three things apart: what the ingredient generally does, its role in this type of product, and what its position can tell you.

1 Water · Water (Aqua)

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 ingredient
Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.
- solvent
2 Carbomer

General function
A thickener that turns a liquid into a clear gel. It also contributes a light hold.

Leading ingredient
Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

May suitClimate-sensitive or frizz-prone hair
A set polymer film is a physical barrier to humidity, so a style keeps its shape longer in damp conditions.

May suitMaximum-hold styling
Synthetic film formers dry into a continuous film, which is what holds a shape against movement and against humid air.

DependsBuild-up-sensitive routines
Some acrylate copolymers rinse with water and some need a detergent; the label alone does not say which one a formula used.
- thickener
- polymer
- film former
3 Triethanolamine

General function
A base used in trace amounts to neutralise acidic polymers so a gel thickens.

Leading ingredient
Listed in the first three ingredients, it is likely a structural part of this formula.

DependsFrizz-prone, damaged, or high-friction hair
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.

PubChem
- pH adjuster
4 D&C
▾Below about here, the order stops meaning much. These are usually used at 1% or less.
5 Yellow 10

General function
A certified colour that tints the product itself. It does not colour hair.

Estimated lower-concentration zone
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
- colourant
6 FD&C Dark Brown 518
7 Achillea Millefolium Extract · Yarrow Roots Extract (Achillea Millefolium)

General function
An extract of Achillea Millefolium. Plant extracts are used across a wide range of levels, and label order is the best guide to how much is here.

Estimated lower-concentration zone
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
- botanical extract
8 Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract · Rosemary Extract (Rosmarinus Officinalis)

General function
Rosemary extract, used both as a scent note and as a natural antioxidant in scalp products.

Estimated lower-concentration zone
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.
- botanical extract
- antioxidant
9 Nettle Extract · Nettle Extract (Citrus Aurantium)
- botanical extract
10 Indiam Hemp (Cannabis Sativa)
11 Caprylyl Glycol Phenoxyethanol
- preservative
12 Fragrance · Fragrance (Parfum)

General function
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.

Estimated lower-concentration zone
It appears around or below the estimated 1% line, where label order no longer indicates relative amount; its role may be minor or technical.

May not suitFragrance-sensitive routines
Declared fragrance. On a fragrance-sensitive routine this is the line that decides it, wherever it sits on the label.
- fragrance
- declared fragrance

What the whole list adds up to

3 botanical extracts
1 solvent
1 thickener
1 polymer
1 film former
1 pH adjuster
1 colourant
1 antioxidant
1 preservative
1 fragrance
1 declared fragrance

Ingredient list captured 2026-11-01. Formulas change, so check the package in your hand when an ingredient matters to you.

Price · 16 oz

Seen at $14.95 1 store · checked Oct 17

Good value under $20 Under $1.23/oz it costs less than three-quarters of the 8 products we score as doing the same job

Usually a good value. Most stores sell it under the $20 line, and products that do this job typically go for about $54 at this size.

Sizes

6 oz

$1.17/oz

16 ozusual store size

$14.95

$0.93/oz

The 16 oz costs 21% less per ounce than the 6 oz.

Show the price ladder

Price for 16 ozlower is better

Where we’ve seen it4 listings · 4 stores

16 ozusual store sizeBest per ounce

Taliah Waajid (brand site)
$12.00

16 oz · $0.75/oz

Oct 7Lowest per oz
Taliah Waajid (taliah.com)
$12.00

16 oz · $0.75/oz

Oct 17
Ensley Beauty Supply
$14.95

16 oz · $0.93/oz

Oct 17

6 oz

Taliah Waajid Brand
$7.00

6 oz · $1.17/oz

Oct 17Lowest 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

16 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 $14.95 is the price we have observed for the 16 oz. We need three stores before we call a price commonly seen.
Good value under $20 comes from the 8 products we score as doing the same job as this one. A quarter of them cost less than $1.23/oz; at 16 oz that is $20. Under that line you are paying less than most of them.
Each size is guarded on its own, so a multipack or a marketplace listing at one size cannot move another.
About $54 is what those same products typically cost at this size: the midpoint of their prices per ounce, scaled to 16 oz.

Formula

Formula score

7 of 10

Not the most complete gel formula we have read, but it is under most of the range for gels per ounce.

How the score is counted

1 products that do the same job cost less per ounce
Costs less per ounce than 82% of the 267 gels we’ve priced
No softeners alongside the hold in the formula
Drugstore tier, sold at Brand website

A hold systemThe polymer, gum, or wax that holds the shape.3 pts
Softeners alongside the holdWhat keeps a film flexible instead of brittle.2 pts
No drying alcohol in the first threeFast drying without leading on alcohol.2 pts
A humectantBinds water into the hair.1 pt
A humidity claim with a mechanismThe claim has a film former or silicone behind it.1 pt
Fragrance kept out of the top eightScent as a finishing touch, not a major share.1 pt

The formula score measures completeness for the job: a weighted share of the systems this product type is usually built around that we find in this list. It does not rate how well the product works or its quality, and it never compares across product types.

Does the same job, for less

Formulas that do the same things (cleanse, condition, coat or hold) for less per ounce. Scent, texture and where you buy them can still differ.

got2bLowest cost per oz Glued Blasting Freeze Hairspray $0.67/oz $0.26/oz less

Protein-free
Curly method
Lightweight

· Close function

Differs: 12 oz bottle
Sold in drugstores and mass retail

Compare

See more alternatives in the product library

These products do a similar job. We haven’t matched them to you. Find the one that fits your hair, routine and budget

Final decision

Should you buy it?

Good for the right person

Best user

Curls that need definition who want defined, clumped curls and fewer ingredients to react to

Biggest tradeoff

Worth skipping for anyone sensitive to fragrance, anyone who will not scrunch out a cast, or anyone who wants to pick it up locally

Best alternative if not

Consider got2b Glued Blasting Freeze Hairspray, 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

What the brand says, and what the formula shows

Claims are quoted from the brand. We mark a claim supported, partly supported or conflicting only when the ingredient list speaks to it. Everything else stays "stated by the brand". That isn’t a criticism: most claims can’t be checked from a label.

SupportedBacked by ingredients

Partly supportedSome supporting logic

Stated by brandNo clear evidence

Potential conflictFormula works against claim

Lock It Up has no alcohol so there's NO FLAKING.

No flake-prone resins sit high in the list, but flaking depends on how much you use.

—

Stated by brand

Can’t be confirmed from label.

Stops Frizz, holds locs and styles longer.

Silicones or film formers smooth the cuticle, which is the usual mechanism.

Carbomer

Supported

Smoother strands, less frizz.

How to read this

We look at the first 10–15 ingredients and what they do in a formula, not at the marketing. If the list doesn't speak to a claim, we don't assume.

How this page was made

Everything above comes from our researched product record: identity, the ingredient list as printed, the brand's own claims, dated prices and review themes our researchers wrote in their own words. No part of this page is written by hand for one 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.
4 sources consulted for this product (1 manufacturer or regulatory, 0 retailer, 3 editorial), last checked 2026-10-17.
Ingredient references are linked for 1 of 3 product-aware annotations on this page. Fit notes are general formulation guidance. They aren’t a verdict on the finished product or on you.
We haven’t tested this product in a lab, and we don’t physically test your hair. Formula readings come from the ingredient list. Claims about how it behaves are labelled as the brand's.
Ingredient order tells you relative amount only above roughly 1%. Prices are what we saw on the dates shown and can change.
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 v23. Record last updated 2026-10-17.