Best Oil for Hair Growth: 9 Natural Oils Compared

No one oil is best for hair growth in every situation. Coconut oil may help reduce hair protein loss, and rosemary has some limited human research on growth. Most other oils are better as conditioners than as regrowth solutions.

A shiny strand and a new strand are not the same. Before buying an oil, think about what you want. Do you want softer ends or easier handling? These are cosmetic goals. If you want to change hair density, that’s a different issue and not something a product labeled “stronger roots” can solve.

This comparison covers nine oils, focusing on texture, practicality, and available research. Texture descriptions are meant as general guidance, not based on product testing. The feel of an oil can change depending on how refined it is, added ingredients, and how much you use.

Hair growth and length retention are different goals

An oil can change how your hair feels without affecting how fast your follicles produce hair. Keeping your hair in good condition may help you keep length, but that does not prove the oil is causing new growth.

This difference matters when you look at photos. The same hair can look very different depending on styling, parting, lighting, and how much oil is used. A shiny before-and-after photo does not show what is happening at the follicle.

When buying a conditioner, judge it by how easy your hair is to manage and whether you can wash it out. If you have ongoing thinning, it’s better to seek advice about the cause instead of trying many oils one after another.

Nine natural hair oils at a glance

Carrier oils like coconut, jojoba, and olive can be the base of a cosmetic product. Rosemary and peppermint are essential oils. A small bottle of essential oil and a large bottle of carrier oil are very different and cannot be directly compared.

Oil	Typical texture	Practical hair or scalp consideration	Evidence to keep in perspective
Coconut	Rich; can become solid in a cool room	A pre-wash option for lengths; may feel heavy on fine hair	Hair-protein-loss research supports a conditioning role, not a blanket regrowth claim
Rosemary essential oil	Concentrated aromatic ingredient; finished blend determines feel	Choose a formulated scalp product and follow its label	Limited human comparative research; not proof that every rosemary product regrows hair
Peppermint essential oil	Concentrated aromatic ingredient	A cooling sensation does not establish effectiveness	The frequently cited growth experiment used mice
Castor	Thick, sticky, and slow-spreading	Can leave a persistent coating; easy to overapply	A systematic review found no strong growth evidence
Argan	Usually fluid, with an oily finish	Consider a small amount on ends; check for fragrance and other ingredients	Popularity and cosmetic positioning exceed the available growth evidence
Jojoba	Fluid, wax-like oil	Compare plain products with fragranced scalp blends	Do not assume a carrier oil stimulates growth
Olive	Rich and oily	More suited to a small conditioning trial than a heavy scalp coating	A familiar ingredient is not proof of follicle effects
Avocado	Rich, with texture varying by refining	Consider on dry lengths rather than automatically coating the scalp	Treat as a conditioning choice, not established regrowth care
Grapeseed	Generally more fluid than castor	May appeal when thick oils feel difficult to distribute	A lighter feel is not evidence of better growth

The table does not rank oils by a universal scalp safety score. Your own tolerance and the full product formula matter most.

What does the research actually show?

1. Coconut oil: a stronger case for protecting existing hair

A 2003 study found that coconut oil reduced protein loss from both damaged and undamaged hair in pre-wash and post-wash tests. The authors worked for a haircare company, which is important to keep in mind when looking at the results.

This leads to a more limited conclusion than saying “coconut oil grows hair.” The study focused on hair fiber damage and protein loss, not on new follicles or faster growth for everyone who uses it.

If you want an oil for dry hair, coconut oil is worth comparing to a regular conditioner. If it makes your hair feel coated and hard to wash out, that downside matters even if research supports the ingredient.

2. Rosemary oil: promising evidence with important limits

A 2015 randomised controlled trial assigned 100 people with pattern hair loss to either rosemary oil or 2% minoxidil for 6 months. Hair counts increased from baseline in both groups at 6 months with no significant difference between the groups. There was no significant change in hair count in either group at 3 months.

This result does not prove that rosemary is equal to all minoxidil products. The study compared rosemary to 2% minoxidil, had no untreated placebo group, and a non-significant difference does not mean the two are the same. The abstract also mentions more scalp itching in both groups.

A home made mix, a fragranced serum and the formulation used in a trial could be very different. Don’t take one study and use that as a reason to abandon your prescribed regime or to simply copy an essential oil recipe from Facebook.

3. Peppermint oil: animal findings are not human results

The often-shared 2014 peppermint-oil study investigated topical applications in mice. Its findings do not establish that peppermint oil grows hair on a human scalp or determine a suitable human-use formula.

The cool/tingling sensation is very easy to overinterpret. It simply tells you that you can feel the product, it doesn’t mean that it’s improved follicle function at all. Burning is a reason to stop using a product, not a sign that it’s ‘working’.

If you’re after a peppermint-containing cosmetic then pick one that’s formulated for that purpose and read the label. This article would not recommend applying undiluted essential oil to the scalp.

4. Castor oil: thickness is not a measure of effectiveness

Castor oil is thick and sticky, and it can make hair look heavily coated. This feeling can be mistaken for a stronger treatment.

A 2022 systematic review of coconut, castor and argan oil found no strong evidence for the use of castor oil in promoting hair growth. The evidence for improved hair lustre was described as being even weaker.

Consider the washout effort prior to covering your scalp or lengths. A small cosmetic test is far more informative than simply supposing that a thicker coat will give you a better result.

5. Argan oil: judge the finished product

Argan is common in finishing oils and serums, but a bottle labeled “argan” may also have silicones, fragrance, or other oils. These ingredients affect how the product feels, so you cannot credit argan alone for the result.

The same 2022 review found no significant evidence to support argan for growth or hair quality. That doesn’t mean you can’t like the cosmetic finish of a particular serum (indeed you probably can), it just means that liking the finish isn’t evidence of a clinical growth result.

Read the ingredient list and buy for the effect you actually want (e.g. a less greasy finish) rather than paying an extra fee for a regrowth claim that’s not actually supported.

6. Jojoba oil: a carrier is not necessarily a growth treatment

Jojoba is frequently used as the base of a scalp blend. That’s important: if an essential oil is being tested in jojoba then it doesn’t necessarily follow that plain jojoba would produce the same result.

Choose it on practical grounds really: formula simplicity, how easily you can dispense a small amount and whether you actually tolerate it. A 2023 review of the various hair oils on the market stresses the need for more research and the fact that much of this area is still very much reliant on animal studies.

Adding in a number of fragrant ingredients doesn’t close that evidence gap at all and in fact makes it more difficult to work out which ingredient you’re actually intolerant of if the blend is irritating.

7. Olive oil: familiar does not mean proven

Olive oil is widely available and quite rich in feel, but familiarity in the kitchen doesn’t in any way equate to hair regrowth. You could look at it as a potential conditioning agent rather than a treatment that actually stimulates follicles.

If you already have a plain product that’s suitable for the purpose in question then just compare a small amount on one section of the lengths against your normal routine. There’s very little point in having a heavy coat that you then have to wash off aggressively on a number of occasions.

Don’t assume that an ‘extra virgin’ label means you’re going to get a better result. That label doesn’t in any way guarantee a superior scalp formula or a clinically proven growth effect.

8. Avocado oil: keep the goal cosmetic

Avocado oil is another good option for lengths and ends. Its nutritional profile doesn’t in any way suggest that applying it to the scalp will give a growth benefit to the follicles.

Our avocado oil hair care guide is all about conditioning and manageability. Remember to keep those two things separate when you’re assessing whether or not a bottle is worth the investment in terms of new growth.

Start with a small product size if you’ve not used it before. Whether it’s right for your hair is going to be down to more than just the name of the oil really; the refining, the other ingredients and how much you apply will all have an impact.

9. Grapeseed oil: a different texture, not stronger evidence

Grapeseed oil is generally more fluid than castor oil so it’s going to be a bit easier to distribute in small amounts. That could be a useful attribute, particularly if you find that thick coats leave your hair looking flat.

It doesn’t place grapeseed above all the other oils in terms of growth. You’ll choose it because the texture works for you in your regime, not because ‘lightweight’ is some kind of scientific plus.

Same as with the other carrier oils, really, you need to compare the plain version with the finished serum. The total formula of the product is what’s going on your hair and scalp.

How to compare the price of hair oils

Compare like with like when you’re comparing the numbers. A pure carrier oil is not the same thing as an essential oil and not the same thing as a ready-to-use scalp serum. A small bottle of essential oil isn’t automatically a poor value and a large bottle of carrier oil isn’t automatically a better value.

For two comparable products, calculate:

Price per 100 ml = bottle price ÷ bottle volume in ml × 100.

For instance a hypothetical $12 bottle with 60ml is $20 per 100ml. A hypothetical $18 bottle with 120ml is $15 per 100ml. These are just arithmetic examples, not actual current retail prices.

Record the ingredients, the retailer, the currency and the date alongside the price. Don’t go around comparing the sale price of one product to the regular price of another without making note of the difference. A small bottle that you can easily finish may be a far better first purchase than a large bottle of an oil that you’ve never tried before.

Use a simple routine before trying a complicated blend

Pick one finished product that you’re going to use and follow its instructions rather than trying to steal an application schedule from some other oil or some research experiment.

If you’re after softer ends then start with the lengths rather than assume your scalp needs oiling. Keep all your other products the same so you can properly assess whether the new product makes any difference in terms of manageability, residue or washout.

The American Academy of Dermatology would advise you to test any new skin care product on a small area first. You need to follow the product’s contact time and cease use immediately if any reaction occurs. A patch test at home can help you to identify a problem but it can’t guarantee that you’ll be OK in the future.

Don’t heat the oil and don’t use the essential oil undiluted as part of this comparison. If you’re using a rosemary or peppermint product then go with a ready made formulation and use it according to the label rather than trying to work out a dilution from drop counts.

Read blends as carefully as single oils

An aloe labelled oil might be based on another oil. Our aloe vera oil hair guide has some related reading on that product type. Check the actual ingredient list to see what the carrier oil and other ingredients are in the bottle you’re looking at.

The same goes for the “growth oils” which contain a number of botanicals. You can’t just take a number of unrelated ingredient studies and assume that the finished blend has been tested. If a manufacturer is making a specific performance claim then you need to look for research on the actual formula.

When to get professional advice

If you’re concerned about new thinning, patchy changes or ongoing shedding rather than just cosmetic dryness then you should see a dermatologist. The AAD’s diagnosis and treatment guide makes it very clear that you need to establish the cause before you can even begin to consider any treatment.

An oil comparison will not tell you the reason for a change in density. Don’t discontinue your prescribed treatment simply because an online oil comparison has made the oil look more natural or less complicated.

Questions about oil for hair growth

Which oil is best if your main worry is breakage?

Coconut does have some research in the area of hair protein loss so it’s a conditioning option that’s at least worth considering. The fact that it has that research doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll like the texture of it or that it will be better than your normal conditioner in your own use.

Is rosemary oil proven to work as well as minoxidil?

One comparative trial won’t answer that question. The results of such a trial will be specific to the preparation, the population, the comparator and the follow-up period. They won’t establish that every rosemary product is equivalent to an approved treatment.

Should I oil my scalp every day?

There is no one schedule that will make all nine of the oils work for growth. You have to follow the instructions on the finished product and assess your own tolerance and level of buildup. Daily application is not necessarily better than less frequent cosmetic application.

Can I mix all nine oils together?

There’s no demonstrable benefit in doing that. It makes the mixture more complicated, it masks which of the ingredients is actually having the effect and it introduces concentrated essential oils which need to be properly formulated. A single good product is far easier to assess.

Choose a bottle for a specific purpose: conditioning your existing hair, giving you a certain texture and a price point you can compare. If the purpose is regrowth then make your next decision based on what you can actually demonstrate in your own situation rather than on the length of the ingredient list.

This article provides general cosmetic information, not medical advice or an individualized hair-loss treatment plan.

Sources

• Rele and Mohile, 2003: Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage.
• Panahi et al., 2015: Rosemary oil versus minoxidil 2%.
• Oh et al., 2014: Peppermint oil hair-growth experiment in mice.
• Phong et al., 2022: Coconut, castor, and argan oil systematic review.
• Dinkins et al., 2023: Narrative review of commonly used hair oils.
• AAD: How to test skin-care products.
• AAD: Hair loss diagnosis and treatment.