The best mousses for curly hair offer a more lightweight hold and softer curl than defining gels or creams. If you want to add moisture and volume to your curl routine, these are the 12 best mousses to try for every hair type.

Say goodbye to crunch and frizz and hello to bouncy curls.

In This Article

In This Article

The best mousses for curly hair are essential for adding volume and dimension to your curls. However, we know that the curly-hair umbrella encompasses many textures. To find the best mousse for curly hair, expert hairstylist Chris Lospalluto recommends first identifying your curl type—loose, tight, slightly straight—and the kind of texture your curl presents: soft, rough, frizzy, or dry. “This will help you streamline and pinpoint exactly which mousse is right for your exact hair,” he says.

To determine which mousses will help transform your curls from fine to fabulous, we tested 20 mousses for curly hair over four weeks, evaluating each for performance, volume, consistency, and overall results while procuring expert insights from top hair care professionals.

Our Top Picks

Best Overall: Briogeo Yuzu + Plum Oil Full Miracle Styling Foam at Amazon $26 Jump to Review Best Budget: SALE Lottabody Coconut Oil and Shea Wrap Me Foaming Curl Mousse at Amazon $6 $4 Jump to Review Best Hydrating: Bread Beauty Supply Hair-Foam: Curl Defining Mousse at Amazon $26 Jump to Review Best Scent: Oribe Curl Shaping Mousse at Amazon $42 Jump to Review Best Lightweight: Bumble and bumble Curl Mousse at Amazon $36 Jump to Review Best for Fine Hair: Crown Affair The Texturizing Air Dry Hair Mousse at Sephora $38 Jump to Review Best Softening: Davines This Is A Curl Moisturizing Mousse at Amazon $35 Jump to Review Best for Frizz: Function of Beauty Zero Gravity Styling Hair Mousse at Amazon $26 Jump to Review Best Volumizing: Maria Nila Styling Mousse at Amazon $35 Jump to Review Best With Strong Hold: SALE Not Your Mother’s Curl Talk Activating Mousse at Amazon $16 $10 Jump to Review

Best Overall

Briogeo Yuzu + Plum Oil Full Miracle Styling Foam

$26 at Amazon $26 at Sephora $26 at Ulta

Why We Love It: If you want a one-and-done styling foam, this product will quickly become your new BFF. This product is an excellent addition to blowouts, infused with yuzu extract for added antioxidants, plum oil for lightweight moisture, and super B-complex that promotes healthy-looking hair. Ideal for all hair types, this multitasking styling foam really exceeded our tester’s expectations. It left her hair soft to the touch, reduced frizz, and never felt sticky. Our tester found this product great for quickly styling her 3C hair and didn’t need to diffuse it to get the soft, bouncy curls she desired. No wonder the word “miracle” is in the name.

Who It’s For: The lightweight formula is versatile, whether using it on wet hair or giving your curls a touch-up. But if your styling routine includes any heat tools, no worries. The foam leaves your tresses smelling absolutely amazing and protects them from heat styling up to 450 degrees. It’s a win-win for everyone, no matter your hair routine.

Hair Type: Straight, wavy, curly | Scented: Citrus, floral, musky  | Size: 5 oz

Michelle, tester with 3C hair: “This mousse did a great job of enhancing my curl pattern while making my hair look fluffy, bouncy, and well-hydrated. There was a lot less frizz, and my hair felt super soft to the touch.”

Best Budget

Lottabody Coconut Oil and Shea Wrap Me Foaming Curl Mousse

$6 $4 at Amazon $5 at Walmart $7 at CVS

Why We Love It: Lottabody enriches this nourishing curl definer with coconut and shea oils to provide hydration and shine to your tresses. Our tester found that this color-safe formula held curls for up to two days before they started to fall visibly. Although the product is at a lower price point, it didn’t perform like its price tag—our tester didn’t experience any stiffness, sticky consistency, or crunchy hair.

Who It’s For: Under $5, this product provides hydration, shine, definition, and frizz-taming. While the formula is ideal for curly and natural hair, I personally loved using it for my knotless bohemian braids, which incorporated curly human hair. It helped keep my braids looking fresh and shiny and stopped the curly pieces from becoming frizzy. Trust me, after they got tangled one too many times, incorporating this product into my routine made all the difference.

Hair Type: Curly, natural | Scented: Coconut | Size: 7 oz

Alyssa, tester with 3B hair: “I did love the moisture this product added to my hair. The formula consists of coconut and shea oils, and it definitely shows. My curls even had a slight sheen to them after using this.”

Best Hydrating

Bread Beauty Supply Hair-Foam: Curl Defining Mousse

$26 at Amazon $26 at Sephora $26 at Ulta

Why We Love It: It’s time to put away your crispy, crunchy mousse. The Black-owned beauty company makes products specifically for curly and coily hair. Perfect for wavy, coily, curly, wash-n-go, twist, and braid styles, this fragrance-free formula keeps your locks feeling soft to the touch.

Who It’s For: This paraben-free mousse provides​​ the hold and definition you want without the damage and fillers in similar products. Anyone who wants to eliminate unnecessary fillers from their products should consider the clean haircare brand.

Hair Type: Wavy, curly, coily | Scented: Unscented  | Size: 6.7 oz

Hira, tester with 2C hair: “I really loved how well this worked as a one-product styler for my wash days. It didn't weigh my fine curls down and left them enhanced and defined.”

Best Scent

Oribe Curl Shaping Mousse

$42 at Amazon $42 at Nordstrom $42 at Sephora

Why We Love It: If you want to enhance your wavy hair with mega volume and long-lasting hold, look no further than this Oribe Shaping Mousse. This product performs best on fine hair (often the most challenging texture to hold a curl), offering shape and body with a lightweight, non-crunchy feel to make the loose waves of your dreams.

Who It’s For: Featuring amino acids, strengthening proteins, and sweet almond oil (plus a subtle jasmine and sandalwood-infused scent). This product nourishes strands while creating a protective barrier against heat, making it great for those who heat-style often. Though we don’t believe this is a true “curly” hair product (we don’t recommend it for those with 3 or 4-level curls), it still creates bouncy, shiny curls for those who’ve always wanted them.

Hair Type: Wavy and curly | Scented: Fruity, floral | Size: 5.7 oz

Taylor, tester with 3B hair: “The scent is great. It is not extremely fragrant, but it does linger on my hair. The mousse worked great when I air-dried my hair and diffused it. I do not use other hot tools on my hair. It added hydration to my curls and helped with frizz.”

Best Lightweight

Bumble and bumble Curl Mousse

$36 at Amazon $36 at Ulta $36 at Sephora

Why We Love It: The Bumble and Bumble Curl Mousse is lightweight and offers fantastic hold and definition. It doesn’t leave your hair with a crunchy feel; instead, it feels soft and more manageable. Plus, the curls last for days.

Who It’s For: This mousse lets your curls air-dry frizz-free. Our tester liked how it defined her curls after each application. However, this formula might be better for those with medium, coarse, wavy, or curly hair—it might dry out fine, curly hair a bit.

Hair Type: Medium or coarse, wavy or curly hair | Scented: Citrus, floral, musky | Size: 5 oz

Jenna, tester with curly hair: “The mousse did make my hair feel like it had a lot of volume, and it lasted the day with curls as well. The volume is still here a day after sleeping on it, and even after brushing my hair out and curling my hair with a curling iron, it is still very full.”

Best for Fine Hair

Crown Affair The Texturizing Air Dry Hair Mousse

$38 at Sephora $38 at Modaoperandi.com View on Goop.com

Why We Love It: While fine hair can often be a problematic texture to hold a curl, this texturizing mousse offers shape and body with a lightweight, non-crunchy feel to achieve the loose waves of your dreams.

Who It’s For: Infused with pink Bolivian salt for effortless texture and a plant protein blend that strengthens your strands, this product nourishes your hair while creating touchable volume without the crunch. InStyle writer Irene Richardson found it best to achieve that model-off-duty, lived-in, tousled, wavy hair look that’s a great everyday style.

Hair Type: Fine or medium, straight, wavy, or curly | Scented: Bergamot, yuzu, lemongrass  | Size: 5.1 oz

Irene, tester with 3A hair: “Last summer, I went on a serious hair journey, including eliminating all hot tools from my routine. The Crown Affair mousse saved my hair from morphing into a crazy, frizzy mess. It kept my curls bouncy and defined in one of NYC’s worst heat waves. I can’t think of a better testament to its efficacy than that.”

Best Softening

Davines This Is A Curl Moisturizing Mousse

$35 at Amazon $35 at Nordstrom $35 at Sephora

Why We Love It: The hunt for a mousse that leaves hair softer than what you started with is over. This lightweight mousse is a game changer for anyone with curly hair. It infuses your strands with deep hydration while boosting bounce and curl patterns, leaving your tresses soft and frizz-free. Whether your hair is curly, wavy, or coily, this mousse boosts your natural texture with long-lasting moisture for defined, healthy-looking curls all day.

Who It’s For: One of the first things that our InStyle tester Taylor noticed after using this product on her curly hair was a significant reduction in frizz. Best of all, her hair felt soft and light to the touch while the product continued to highlight her natural curl pattern.

Hair Type: Wavy, curly, coily | Scented: Citrus, floral | Size: 8.45 oz

Taylor, tester with 3B hair: “The product was long-lasting and kept my curl shape all day. It was also a great product for day two hair because a little went a long way. A small amount of this product worked for my whole head.”

Best for Frizz

Function of Beauty Zero Gravity Styling Hair Mousse

$26 at Amazon $13 at Target $13 at Walmart

Why We Love It: Function of Beauty's commitment to naturally derived formulas tailor-made for your hair's uniqueness sets it apart from other brands. Its Zero Gravity Styling Mousse is perfect for those seeking to breathe life into their waves. The mousse hydrates and strengthens each strand to provide a touchable, soft hold. Plus, it’s silicone and paraben-free, so you won’t feel or see noticeable product buildup between washes.

Who It’s For: Thanks to key ingredients, including tara pod extract and sunflower sprout extract, the mousse defends hair against humidity and heat exceptionally well—two culprits that love to cause frizz. Although the mousse didn’t give our tester’s hair noticeably more volume, she’s willing to sacrifice that benefit in exchange for its lightweight formula and frizz-fighting properties.

Hair Type: Wavy | Scented: Peach, lemon, jasmine | Size: 7 oz

Giovanna, tester with 2C hair: “This mousse did enhance and define my natural curl pattern in a nice, lightweight formula. I really enjoyed how it helped my curls, especially as someone who doesn't wear their curls often and has a lot of heat damage. This mousse brought them back easily and without extra care.”

Best Volumizing

Maria Nila Styling Mousse

$35 at Amazon $17 $15 at Nordstrom View on Marianila.com

Why We Love It: This mousse is a must-have for hair that is full of life and volume. The lightweight product creates an enviable body and texture, giving locks a natural lift and bounce without feeling weighed down. It works wonders on all hairstyles, helping define curls or add smoothness to straighter styles. Whether aiming for a sleek blowout or bouncy, textured curls, this mousse ensures your style stays put all day long.

Who It’s For: No matter your hair texture, this mousse enhances curl definition and keeps hair volumized throughout the day. Plus, the scent of the mousse had our InStyle tester Marissa in a chokehold (in the best way possible, of course!). Lightweight, hydrating, volumizing, and smells fantastic? Yeah, we’ll be keeping this one.

Hair Type: Wavy, curly, coily | Scented: Vanilla, fruity | Size: 10.1 oz

Marissa, tester with type 3A hair: “I loved the volume it created throughout my hair, especially at my roots. I've been looking for a mousse to give me the volume while still hydrating and giving my curls the hold. The volume lasted all day for me and only lost definition at the ends of my hair by the end of the day.”

Best With Strong Hold

Not Your Mother’s Curl Talk Activating Mousse

$16 $9 at Amazon $11 at Ulta $9 at Walmart

Why We Love It: Looking for a mousse with serious frizz-control capabilities? This is it. Not Your Mother’s Curl Activation Mousse defines and enhances curls while providing heat-tested and long-lasting anti-frizz benefits. For the best results, apply the product to wet hair (the damper, the better!) and let it air-dry, or use a hair dryer with a diffuser. You’ll see overall enhanced volume but shapely and defined individual curls.

Who It’s For: If you’re heading somewhere humid, this mousse will actually keep you frizz-free. It won’t have the softest feel compared to other formulas on this list, but that’s the price to pay for heavy-duty frizz control. Your hair will retain bounce and shine even in tropical climates—as long as you don’t use too much product. Anything more than a small dollop can leave you with sticky strands.

Hair Type: Curly, coily | Scented: Citrus, Jasmine | Size: 7 oz

Dawn, tester with 2B hair: “This product touts itself as holding up to humidity and helping to achieve ‘the perfect balance of having defined curls with a light and touchable hold.’ I feel like this mousse delivers on both of those promises!”

Best Curl-Defining

The Doux Mousse Def Texture Foam

$15 at Target $15 at Walmart $16 at Walgreens

Why We Love It: If you want to bring out the best in your curls, this mousse gives your hair that flawless, defined look. It works wonders for curly and coily hair, providing moisture and control without weighing down your natural texture, but that’s not all. The all-in-one foam detangles, conditions, and adds shine—everything you could want in a styling product. Its smooth application ensures a frizz-free finish that lasts all day, leaving you with voluminous curls that feel as good as they look.

Who It’s For: Whether you want bouncy curls or a more defined wave, this foam creates the right balance of shape and movement. It’s infused with aloe to prevent dryness, silk protein to enhance your strands’ elasticity, and natural humectant to lock in moisture. Even our InStyle tester Katherine, who has a sensitive scalp, found the formula gentle with no irritation.

Hair Type: Curly, straight | Scented: Natural  | Size: 7 oz

Katherine, tester with 3A hair: “This makes my curls more defined without adding a ton of weight—my hair did look fuller than when I used other mousses. I noticed some flatness by the end of the day—thin hair like mine usually does that, no matter what products you're putting in it—but the volume was better than expected. The definition remained great.”

Best for Thick Hair

Sienna Naturals Dream Curl Mousse

$30 at Sephora View on Siennanaturals.com View on Credo Beauty

Why We Love It: Say goodbye to dry frizz and hello to beautifully defined curls. The brand formulates this mousse with aloe vera for extra hydration, nourishing and enhancing your natural curl pattern. Whether you have loose waves or tight coils, this product brings out your curl’s natural beauty, leaving you with soft and perfectly sculpted curls every time.

Who It’s For: This mousse is effective on high- and low-porosity hair. It can define your curl pattern, curb frizz, or refresh braided styles. We especially love that the brand designs it with a patented formula that protects hair from heat damage, color fading, and humidity for smooth locks all day.

Hair Type: Coily, wavy, curly | Scented: Floral, citrus, jasmine | Size: 8 oz

Alyssa, tester with 3B hair: “Sienna Naturals helped me to define my 3B curls so they looked more like ringlets (I love that). It did help to reduce frizz, but at a cost. Once dry, I can feel the product in my hair.”

Our Testing Process

After consulting several hair stylists and experts on the best mousses for curly hair, the InStyle team dug through insights to find the top-performing options. With the help of several testers with different hair textures, we compiled insights on the mousses that performed best on curly hair to determine which ones left strands feeling healthy, smooth, and nourished. Of course, we considered how each of these products performed in terms of alleviating frizz, ease of use, enhancing natural curl patterns, how long it held curls, and so on. After evaluating each product’s performance, we decided that these 12 mousses are best for curly hair types.

What to Keep in Mind

Curl Type: “Mousse is generally lighter in weight compared to gels and curl creams,” explains Denver-based curl specialist Natalie Kaleel, making it an excellent choice for wavy hair or those with curly hair that happens to be on the fine end. That said, different mousses will provide differing levels of holds and definitions. Opt for a light mousse if you have looser curls or wavy hair; it won’t give you super-defined ringlets but rather envy-inducing beachy waves. On the other hand, if your hair is thick or your curl type is tighter, you’ll need to look for a mousse designed for a stronger hold. Overall Hair Goals: The product that will be right for you depends on more than just your hair type—it’s also important to consider how you like to style your hair and how you want it to look and feel. Is volume your primary goal or is frizz control? Are you the air-dry type, or is the diffuser your go-to? “If I’m air-drying curls, I tend to gravitate towards lightweight products. The longer it takes your hair to dry, the longer gravity has to pull your curls down,” explains Kaleel. “If I’m diffusing, I use slightly heavier products and make sure that one of those products has a good built-in heat protectant to keep curls juicy and healthy,” adds Kaleel.

Your Questions, Answered

What does mousse do for curly hair?

Mousse is unique as a curly hair styling product—it might not provide the same taming prowess as a gel, but it does offer greater volume and buildability. It’s versatile and works well alongside gels and curl creams to create bold impact and long-lasting results. “Mousse will provide a strong hold to help maintain a tighter curl pattern and maximum volume,” explains Kaleel. “Plus, it encases the hair and therefore holds moisturizing ingredients in the hair for longer periods of time, keeping your curls healthy,” she says. “Mousse is the best product to define curls with long-lasting hold,” adds LA-based celebrity hairstylist Dimitris Giannetos.

Is mousse or gel better for curly hair?

Typically, gel provides a stronger hold, while mousse creates shape and body. “Gel can make your hair look stiff and crunchy, whereas mousse is soft on the hair,” explains Giannetos. I like to use mousse as a styling base and finish it off with a touch of gel (always mixed with water) to ensure maximum frizz control. An extra tip? “If diffused until fully dry, the curl cast created by mousse will often turn soft, leaving you with light and airy curls,” says Kaleel.

How do I use hair mousse?

According to Kaleel, you should always apply mousse to wet hair. She advises starting with a leave-in conditioner, styling with a Denman or similar hair brush, and then scrunching in mousse, thoroughly coating the hair from the roots to the ends. She finishes by using the plopping method with a microfiber towel. If you opt for the diffuser, Giannetos says, “Halfway through drying, use a little extra mousse for a better hold.”

Why Shop With Us

Chaise Sanders is a contributing writer for InStyle with three years of experience covering everything from beauty to fashion. She consulted testers for their insights on the best mousses for curly hair and, as someone with 4C hair, has tested a few of these products herself, including the Lottabody and Oribe options.

Linne Halpern is a beauty, fashion, and lifestyle writer. She extensively researches and reviews countless products. She spoke with the following experts to provide tips and tricks for using mousses on curly hair.

Dimitris Giannetos is an LA-based celebrity hairstylist and stylist ambassador for Garnier.Natalie Kaleel is a Denver-based curl specialist who expertly works with different hair textures and patterns.Chris Lospalluto is a hairstylist with over twenty years of experience profiled in publications such as the New York Times.