I Tried Rahua’s Voluminous Dry Shampoo And It Gave My Hair a Second Life

We put the Rahua Volumizing Dry Shampoo to the test after receiving a complimentary sample from the brand. Keep reading for our full product review.

It’s 2021, and we’ve all come to learn that we need a little dry shampoo in our lives. We’re overworked, overtired, and overbooked in this day and age, but that doesn’t mean our hair has to succumb to the sufferings of a busy lifestyle. Once I personally factored parenthood and exercise into my daily grind, dry shampoo became one of my must-have beauty necessities. I was eager to try the Rahua Volumizing Dry Shampoo with its non-aerosol dispenser because I’ve loved all their products that I’ve tried so far. Still, I had yet to discover a powder-based dry shampoo that could satisfy my thick, heavy strands. Keep reading for my honest review. 

About My Hair: Always up

I have thick, shoulder-length hair. Basically, ever since I cut it to this length, I’ve been wearing it up in a low ponytail or bun. I ride my peloton every day and spend most of my hours running around with my toddler, so I see no point in doing much of anything to my hair. After the workouts, I get especially oily roots by days two and three, which is usually when I wash my hair. On the rare occasion that I don’t have time to wash before we host people or have somewhere to go, I’ll turn to an aerosol dry shampoo, but historically they add too much grittiness to my hair and can be hard to wash out, so it isn’t an option I frequently turn to. 

The Feel: Weightless

I really didn’t feel any heavily weighted powder sitting on my roots once I applied the Rahua Voluminous Dry Shampoo. In my past experience with dry shampoos, the product feels gritty and built-up after it’s been there for a while, and even if my hair appears clean, I can’t stand how dirty it feels. That was not the case with this formula. My hair still had its natural feel to it after application and was easy to flip around, the way it would be if it were actually clean. 

The Packaging: Unique

Where most dry shampoos come either in an aerosol spray or require a baby-powder-like application, Rahua’s packaging really stands out. Their squeeze pump applicator is really unique and effective, giving you that airy powder that can still travel a good distance to dispense itself among your roots.  The only (embarrassing) difficulty I faced with this application method was around the hairline. It wasn’t easy to get it near some of my most noticeably greasy areas around the face without it spilling onto my face or shooting myself in the eye in an effort to get the hair above the ears.

Ingredient Quality: Environmentally-conscious

Both founders of Rahua consider themselves environmentalists, so it’s no surprise that they would create a line of beauty products that share their same level of consciousness. Aside from its environmentally-friendly dispenser, their ingredients are plant-based and minimal. Cassava starch (tapioca) and Cosmetic Clay work together to absorb excess oil, perspiration, and debris at the scalp, while Organic Star Anise provides the antimicrobial properties that help keep the scalp clean and healthy. There’s only five ingredients total in this formula, and they’re all up to par by Byrdie’s standards.

The Results: Wildly impressive

After being super sick for an entire week and not having the energy to wash my hair when I showered, my hair was seriously suffering and disgustingly oily. Like, I’m talking way beyond my normal day-to-day hair woes. It was filthy. After applying this dry shampoo, my hair looked incredibly different – it looked dry, fresh, and clean, but my roots were also noticeably voluminous! I was so relieved to be able to run my fingers through my hair again without cringing. It really made me feel so much better when I was trapped in bed, unable to do much of any favor for myself.

This formula afforded me an extra two days of fresh hair while I recovered. Once I was feeling better and gained the energy to be able to wash my hair again, I was most relieved that I didn’t have to shampoo two or three times in a row just to get the product out and find squeaky clean roots again (which is what most other dry shampoos have left me with). I didn’t lose handfuls of hair washing this out (another issue I’ve faced with dry shampoos in the past). Everything about the experience was pleasantly surprising and wildly impressive. 

The Value: Pricey even with its effectiveness

The cost per ounce of Rahua's Volumizing Dry Shampoo is high. Where most other dry shampoos fall in the same general price range of around $30, this bottle comes with 1.8 ounces of product, whereas others on the market provide an average of five to eight ounces. While Rahua’s dry shampoo is extremely effective and much cleaner than many of its competitors, it may be hard to justify the cost. 

Similar Products: You've got options

Playa’s Pure Dry Shampoo ($24): Another clean hair care brand on the market offering a non-aerosol dry shampoo is Playa. It’s slightly cheaper for much more product (7 oz.), but in my experience, much more product is required to see effective results when you have a thicker mane like myself. It has a pleasantly muted rosy scent to it, but the salt shaker applicator isn’t as great as Rahua’s pump. 

Living Proof’s PhD Advanced Dry Shampoo ($30): This dry shampoo has a longer list of ingredients, many of them unrecognizable and not always easy to pronounce; however, it’s still free of sulfates, silicones, SLES, and SLS, and made cruelty-free. So far, this has been my personal favorite dry shampoo formula to date. It’s extremely effective, straightforward to use, and leaves the hair not only clean and free of unwanted oils but soft to the touch. It comes in 5.5 oz. and is much milder than the original Living Proof dry shampoo formula, which is perfect for the hesitant, infrequent user like myself. Long story short, I love this dry shampoo.