10 Best Pregnancy-Safe Shampoos of 2024

This rich, creamy shampoo is listed as being extra gentle and especially good for color-treated hair. However, your hair doesn’t have to be color-treated to benefit. It leaves hair shiny, manageable, and free from build-up after several washes.

The fragrance is pleasant and not overpowering, even when you use the matching conditioner and have two “layers of smell.”

The label says 87 percent natural origin shampoo, which is a fancy way of saying 13 percent of the shampoo in the bottle has artificial origins. That’s another way to say human-made. However, having artificial ingredients does not mean you should not use a product.

The shampoo makers have submitted a detailed list of every ingredient to the Environmental Working Group, which assesses products for their impact on human health. The EWG verified this shampoo as being free from any ingredients with health concerns.

Choosing the best scented pregnancy-safe shampoo was especially tricky. One person’s wonderful scent is another person’s repulsive. We tried multiple pregnancy-safe shampoos and chose the one with the fragrance most people liked.

This shampoo from Attitude was popular not only for the scent itself but because the smell wasn’t overpowering. This is an essential consideration for those who become especially sensitive to smells while pregnant.

Users found they did not need an excessive amount of shampoo to work up a good lather, and it was easy to rinse out. Once dry, hair was left feeling reasonably soft when used without any conditioner and soft and shiny when used with.

Even though it is not specifically formulated for dry, frizzy tresses, users with this type of hair were especially happy with the results. They reported a reduction in frizz and an increase in manageability.

If you are a fan of products where the shampoo and conditioner are all in one, then Aveeno’s Soothing Fresh Greens Blend is an excellent pregnancy-safe shampoo.

Pregnant women shouldn’t consume rosemary or peppermint oils in quantity high enough to be considered medicinal. However, the rosemary you might have on food and peppermint flavor items are fine. Likewise, they do not pose a danger when used topically in this shampoo.

For those who like shampoos with ingredients that are sourced in the U.S., the oats used in these products are grown in the Mississippi River Valley.

If you’re not a fan of the smell of rosemary and mint, there are other scents, such as Aveeno Apple Cider Vinegar Blend, Aveeno Almond Oil Blend, and more.

Formulated for family use and gentle enough for newborn babies, the Babo Botanicals plant-based shampoo can also be used as a body wash and bubble bath.

The ingredients include Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, a water-soluble organic compound that sounds like something you want to avoid but is benign. GHC is an excellent conditioner that prevents your hair from becoming tangled, allowing it to remain silky and volumized without becoming weighed down.

The shampoo doesn’t become too foamy, and as it’s also a body wash, you can use it in the bath or shower without worrying about skin irritation. In addition, the calendula in this shampoo and bubble bath acts as a relaxing and soothing addition, helping you unwind and aiding restful sleep. Furthermore, it prevents dryness for both hair and skin.

The only disadvantage is that because it is mild enough for newborns, it may not be strong enough to clean your locks in one application, especially if you have thicker hair.

If you have allergies, easily irritated skin, or respiratory sensitivities to perfumes, even the mildest shampoo can trigger an adverse reaction. Somewhat surprisingly, shampoos without added fragrances are not necessarily free from other potentially harmful substances.

Fortunately, we tracked down Free & Clear shampoo and conditioner, which has everything you need to clean your hair with only the bare minimum ingredients.

It should be noted that while this shampoo is considered fragrance-free, this is because it has no ingredients added to make it smell a particular way. This does not mean it is free from any smell at all.

Some users report noticing a slight “waxy” type of smell if they hold the bottle up to their nose. However, everyone said there was no discernible aroma while using the shampoo or residual perfume after use.

Aromatica produces a wide range of hair care products free from sulfates, phthalates, and silicone. They are also vegan, cruelty-free, and the Cyprus formula makes our list because it can deep clean without astringent chemicals.

The alpha-pinene and camphene provide a pleasant, stimulating feel on the scalp that makes your head feel like it has been cleaned. This is especially popular among users with oily hair and those who worked in environments that leave them feeling oily or grubby.

The use of pine, French Cyprus, and eucalyptus give the shampoo an aroma best described as foresty. Users agree there is not a discernible, single scent, just an overall smell of the woods.

In some parts of the world, spending time in the forest is considered a therapeutic practice that medical professionals sometimes prescribe to promote destressing. If you can’t make it to a forest to unwind and reconnect with yourself and nature, Aromatica Cyprus might stimulate some of those feelings.

Frizz control shampoos for curly and unruly hair are easy to find. What’s not so easy is finding an effective one without a slew of potentially harmful ingredients. But this is it.

I am used to creamy looking frizz control shampoos, so I was skeptical when I saw the clear liquid on my hands. However, I was in for a pleasant surprise. Once you have lathered up your hair, the shampoo takes on a creamy feel, without the heaviness of some other options.

A tiny amount in the palm of your hand is enough to work up a good lather on a head full of long, thick hair. This decent sized bottle lasted for weeks, even with daily use.

And speaking of daily use, even when washing my hair every morning, Herbal Essences left me with soft, frizz-free, manageable tresses, which is almost unheard of with other products.

While we spent a lot of time researching the best pregnancy-safe shampoos, with help from the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep website, their verification program is dependent on product manufacturers providing detailed information about ingredients that may not be included on product labels.

Burt’s Bees have not taken this step, so the “fragrance” details on the label cannot be independently assessed. Consequently, this shampoo doesn’t qualify as “verified.” However, we found no ingredients of concern for use during pregnancy.

The shampoo itself has mixed reviews. Users seem to love it or hate it, with very little middle ground. They all agreed that the shampoo lathered well, the scent was light and pleasant, and that the shampoo texture was pleasing.

However, one group adored how the shampoos made their hair look and feel, while others felt it left their hair feeling flat, with residue build-up after extended use.

We think it is worth giving this one a try.

If you need to wash your hair every day because of oil, build-up, or simply because you prefer to wash your hair daily, finding a shampoo that doesn’t dry your hair or scalp too much is essential.

Natural Daily Shampoo from Biggreen is specially formulated to keep hair clean and your scalp well moisturized, which is a pretty smart trick, especially when it comes to oily hair.

Users appreciated that the shampoo lathered up well, even for those who live in hard water areas. Following a good lather, it was easy to rinse, so there was no need to spend too long with the water running on that sensitive skin on your head.

The one problem that some people encountered was that they felt a lot of shampoo was needed to get that good lather. Whether this is an issue seems to depend on the shampoo you were using before switching to BIGGREEN.

Clevos Natura Foresta Eucalyptus has a bright, zingy scent that falls just short of being medicinal. You can work up a decent foam with one squirt of the dispenser, but for longer hair, you might need a second wash.

This was our favorite pregnancy-safe shampoo for dandruff and dry, flaky skin on the scalp. It cleared things up quickly, but this was a double-edged sword. Users with oily hair had to switch this shampoo in and out of their routine as its scalp moisturizing properties were too much for their naturally oily heads.

The fancy looking bottle looks nice in the bathroom and has a handy pump dispenser, which is great for the shower. However, every now and then, the pump would stick, meaning you had to unscrew the top, wiggle it about a bit, screw the top back on and test the pumping action.

This wasn’t the end of the world but was a point against this shampoo, especially as it is at the less affordable end of the pricing spectrum.