A deep dive into bestselling leave-in conditioners from Marc Anthony, Renpure, Fable & Mane, and JVN.
I’ve been growing my hair out for the past year, and leave-in conditioners have become an essential part of my haircare routine. A couple of spritzes after a shower keeps my hair looking and feeling healthy and makes detangling easier, decreasing the amount of shedding that happens when I brush through my tresses.
With all that being said, I embarked on a quest to test four popular leave-in conditioners, two under $15 and two from luxury brands, to see which one worked the best on my hair.
Now, let’s get into my reviews.
My Experience Using The Fable & Mane MahaMane Leave-In Conditioner
The Fable & Mane MahaMane Detangling Leave-In Conditioner was the first product I tried in this experiment. The nozzle on this bottle spritzes a more concentrated stream as opposed to a mist, so I had to hold the bottle farther away. This is an easy adjustment, but something to keep in mind if your hair tends to get weighed down by product easily.
It detangled quickly, and I was able to brush and comb through my hair without tangles. It does have the strongest scent out of all four of the leave-in conditioners I tried, with a sandalwood-based fragrance that is rich and earthy. Consider this if you’re sensitive to smells or prefer different scent profiles.
It felt lightweight on my hair, and after blow-drying, my hair was smooth and felt moisturized. I like that it doesn’t include any silicones, and while my hair looked and felt really healthy, it did get the greasiest the fastest with this product, even when I blow-dried it. I think this would work much better on someone with thicker and more textured hair, or maybe in dryer months when my hair needs a little more help with moisture retention.
My Experience Using The Marc Anthony Grow Long Leave-In Conditioner
I’m no stranger to Marc Anthony products, so I knew there was a good chance that this one would probably work with my hair. To start, of all the leave-in conditioners I tried, this one had the most product in the bottle. The spray nozzle dispenses it in an even mist, which coats the mid-lengths and ends of my hair like a dream.
I let it sit for a few minutes to do its thing and brushed it through. I didn’t have to fight any tangles, and my hair felt soft, even in its damp state. For the purpose of the experiment, I dried and styled my hair the exact same way with every leave-in conditioner, with a round drying brush that resulted in a light wave. I found that my hair dried the fastest with this one.
I appreciate that it has a heat-protectant built in, so I didn’t have to add another product that could potentially weigh down my hair. After drying, I noticed my hair was silky, smooth, shiny, and smelled like I had just left a high-end salon. This lasted all day.
My Experience Using The Renpure Biotin & Collagen Leave-In Conditioner
Since I’m currently using Renpure’s Tea Tree & Rosemary Shampoo and Conditioner, I was excited to see how this leave-in worked with them. The nozzle on this bottle of conditioner gives a more concentrated spray, so I just adjusted how I applied it to get an even coat on my hair, which detangled easily and painlessly. I immediately loved the subtle coconut scent it has, which lasted for most of the day.
My hair has thinned out over the years, and after I dried my hair, I noticed that it looked and felt a little thicker. Like a lot of the other reviewers who tried this product, I found that a little goes a long way, and it did give me a boost of volume. My hair seemed to like this product the best as it looked the smoothest and shiniest out of all four, and the results lasted for a few days without looking limp or greasy.
My Experience Using The JVN Complete Conditioning Mist
Through testing, I’ve found that the JVN Complete Conditioning Mist is the only leave-in conditioner that gives me the same results whether I air dry or blow dry my hair. It’s the lightest formula, and it makes my hair soft and reduces frizz. My hair always looks moisturized and super smooth after I use it, and it boosts my natural texture without weighing my hair down.
This is the leave-in conditioner I have probably reached for the most when I style my hair after a shower. I love that it’s lightweight enough that I can put it on second-day hair to smooth any frizz without making it look dirty. Plus, the citrus, amber, and cashmere musk scent doesn’t really interfere with any other scents I wear.
I also like that it offers UV protection, making it my go-to hair product during the summer.
Which Leave-In Conditioner Did I Like The Best?
All four of these leave-in conditioners worked well in my hair. I have reached for all of them multiple times since my experiment. For my hair, which isn’t super thick, has a slight wave, and has never been chemically treated, it was a tie for me between the Renpure Biotin & Collagen Leave-In Treatment and the JVN Complete Conditioning Mist.
I found that they performed similarly, and that they gave me my desired results whether I let my hair air dry or took the extra time to blow dry and heat style. In my opinion, while all four are worth buying, but these two are the ones I would repurchase once I run out.
