We Asked 11 Hair Experts How Often You Should Wash Gray Hair—Here’s What They Said

If you’ve been Googling “how often to wash gray hair” at 2am, you’ve probably noticed something super annoying: everyone says something different. One article swears you should only wash once a week. Another says every other day. Your hairstylist friend with that gorgeous silver bob? She’s doing her own thing entirely.

It’s enough to make you want to scream into a pillow.

The truth is that there is no magic number that works for everyone. How often you wash your gray hair comes down to your specific hair texture, what your scalp is like, your lifestyle, and what products you’re using.

And here’s what nobody tells you upfront—gray hair genuinely acts different than the hair you had before it went gray. Like, structurally different. Which means that washing routine you’ve had for the past twenty years? Yeah, it might need a total makeover.

Why Gray Hair Needs Different Washing Habits

Okay, so gray hair isn’t just your old hair that forgot its color. It’s actually changed on a deeper level, and once you get why, everything else makes so much more sense.

“When hair loses melanin, it also loses the natural oils and proteins that melanin helps retain,” explains celebrity colorist Rita Hazan. “This makes gray hair naturally drier, coarser, and more porous than pigmented hair. It’s essentially thirstier hair that needs more moisture and gentler handling.”

Think of it this way: gray hair is like a sponge that’s always a bit parched. The cuticle—that’s the outer layer—is more open and raised, which means it soaks up products really easily but also loses moisture crazy fast. And your scalp’s natural oils? They have a much harder time sliding down coarse gray hair, so your roots might feel greasy while your ends are the Sahara Desert.

The whole structure changes too. “Gray hair tends to be more fragile and prone to breakage,” notes trichologist Dominic Burg. “Overwashing strips away what little natural oil does make it down the shaft, leaving hair feeling wiry, brittle, and frizzy.”

This is why overwashing shows up immediately on gray hair. Your friend with brown hair might wash daily and look fine. You wash daily and suddenly look like you stuck your finger in an electrical socket. Not fair, but it’s science.

How Often Should You Wash Gray Hair? (Short Answer)

Let’s just get straight to it:

Most people with gray hair: 2–3 times a week. This is the Goldilocks zone—not too much, not too little, just right for keeping things clean without turning your hair into straw.

Super dry or coarse gray hair: 1–2 times a week is plenty. Seriously. Your scalp might feel weird at first, but your hair will thank you. Use dry shampoo between washes if you need it.

Fine gray hair or you’ve got an oily scalp: Every other day with a really gentle shampoo. Fine hair shows grease faster, so you can’t push it as long.

Quick reality check though: your scalp health trumps everything else. If you’ve got something like dandruff or psoriasis going on, you might need to wash more often regardless of your hair type. Your scalp comes first, always.

Washing Gray Hair Based on Hair Type

Fine Gray Hair

Fine gray hair is tricky because it gets greasy-looking way faster than thicker hair, which means going too long between washes leaves you looking like you forgot showers exist.

“Fine gray hair needs lightweight, sulfate-free shampoos that clean without weighing the hair down,” says stylist Sam Villa. “The key is finding products that remove oil and buildup without stripping, because even fine hair is still gray hair—meaning it’s naturally drier.”

If you wash too rarely, your hair just sits there all sad and flat against your head. Every other day is usually as long as you want to go, though some people with really fine hair actually do better with a super gentle daily wash.

Thick or Coarse Gray Hair

Thick, coarse gray hair is basically a moisture vacuum—it can never get enough hydration, and washing it a lot just makes the problem worse.

“Thick, coarse gray hair is like a sponge that’s always slightly parched,” explains colorist Aura Friedman. “Washing it too often just keeps it perpetually dry. These clients do much better washing once or twice a week and focusing their energy on deep conditioning treatments and hair masks.”

For this hair type, honestly, the conditioner and masks you use matter way more than the shampoo. Think about co-washing (that’s washing with just conditioner) for mid-week touch-ups, and save the real shampooing for when your scalp actually needs it.

Curly or Wavy Gray Hair

Curly and wavy hair is already naturally drier because your scalp’s oils have to navigate all those twists and turns to get down the hair shaft. Add gray into the mix and you’ve got hair that’s basically begging for moisture 24/7.

“Most of my curly gray-haired clients wash once, maybe twice a week max,” says curl specialist Lorraine Massey. “Their hair simply doesn’t need more than that, and overwashing destroys their curl pattern while creating frizz.”

Co-washing works really well for some curly gray-haired people, but not everyone. If your hair feels heavy or your scalp feels gross and gunky, you need to bring in a proper shampoo at least weekly.

What Happens If You Wash Gray Hair Too Often

Overwashing gray hair basically creates a domino effect of bad hair days that’ll have you googling “why does my hair hate me.”

First up: crazy dryness and frizz everywhere. “Every time you wash, you’re lifting the cuticle and rinsing away protective oils,” notes trichologist Dr. Kari Williams. “On gray hair, which is already moisture-depleted, this creates a vicious cycle of dryness.”

Your color starts looking super dull too. Gray hair’s shine comes from smooth cuticles that reflect light like a mirror. When you overwash, those cuticles stay rough and open, scattering light instead—so no shine for you.

You’ll also get way more breakage and those annoying flyaways. Gray hair is already more fragile, and all that washing and rubbing weakens it even more.

Plus your scalp gets irritated. Even “gentle” shampoos mess with your scalp’s pH when you use them constantly, which leads to dryness, sensitivity, and sometimes your scalp freaks out and makes more oil to compensate.

This is exactly why gray hair feels so wiry and rough when you overwash it—you’re literally roughing it up and dehydrating it with every single shampoo.

What Happens If You Don’t Wash Gray Hair Enough

But don’t go thinking you can just never wash your hair, because that creates its own nightmare.

The biggest problem? Yellowing. “Gray and white hair acts like a magnet for environmental pollutants, cigarette smoke, chlorine, and even minerals in hard water,” explains colorist Jack Martin. “When you’re not washing regularly enough, all that buildup settles into the hair and creates that dingy, yellow cast.”

Gross but true: your scalp gets itchy and flakey when all the natural oils, dead skin, sweat, and product gunk piles up. Your scalp needs regular washing even if your hair doesn’t.

Your hair also starts looking flat and lifeless, like it’s given up on life. Product buildup is sneaky—it happens so gradually that one day you wake up and your hair just feels heavy and won’t do anything you want it to.

And here’s something that catches people off guard: purple shampoo straight-up won’t work if you’ve got buildup on your hair. The purple pigments need a clean surface to grab onto, so if you’re wondering why your purple shampoo isn’t doing anything, buildup might be the villain.

Should You Use Purple Shampoo Every Time You Wash?

Okay, let’s get this sorted once and for all: No. Absolutely not. Don’t do it.

Purple shampoo is a toning treatment, not your everyday shampoo. It’s got violet pigments that cancel out yellow and brassy tones. Yeah, it cleans your hair, but that’s not its main job—it’s there to fix color.

“Purple shampoo is wonderful, but it’s not meant to replace your regular shampoo,” says colorist Kristin Ess. “Using it every wash can actually lead to a purple or ashy buildup that makes hair look dull and even slightly purple-tinted, especially on very light or white hair.”

For most people, once every week or two is perfect. If your hair turns yellow super fast (thanks, hard water), maybe once a week. If you’ve got naturally bright silver that doesn’t yellow much, every couple weeks is fine.

You’re using it too much if: your hair looks flat and dull, you’re seeing a purple tint (especially in certain lights), or your hair feels dry and crunchy. If any of that’s happening, back off and alternate with a moisturizing shampoo.

Best Shampoo Types for Washing Gray Hair

The shampoo you pick matters just as much as how often you use it. Here’s what you need to know:

Sulfate-free is non-negotiable. Sulfates are super harsh cleaners that strip way too much oil away, and gray hair needs every drop of moisture it can get. Look for gentler stuff like coco-glucoside or decyl glucoside on the ingredient list.

Try: Pureology Hydrate Sheer Shampoo or Olaplex No. 4 Bond Maintenance Shampoo—both are sulfate-free and seriously gentle on gray hair while still getting it clean.

You need both moisturizing AND clarifying shampoos. Moisturizing shampoo is your everyday workhorse—it cleans gently and adds hydration. Clarifying shampoo is for occasional deep cleaning (like once every week or two, or even monthly) when you need to really strip away stubborn buildup from products, minerals, and gross environmental stuff.

For moisturizing: Kérastase Bain Satin is a cult favorite that adds serious hydration. For clarifying: Ouai Detox Shampoo removes buildup without totally wrecking your hair.

Chelating shampoos are clutch if you have hard water. These remove mineral deposits that regular shampoos can’t touch. “I recommend chelating shampoos for gray-haired clients with hard water,” says stylist Chris Appleton. “Used once a month, they prevent that stubborn yellowing and dullness that comes from mineral buildup.”

Malibu C Hard Water Wellness Shampoo is the gold standard for this—it’s specifically designed to remove mineral buildup and keep gray hair bright.

Ingredients to hunt for: Glycerin (pulls moisture in), ceramides (repair your hair’s outer layer), natural oils like argan or jojoba, and proteins like keratin. These help your hair actually hold onto moisture, get stronger, and look shiny.

How to Tell Your Washing Routine Is Working

You don’t need some fancy test to figure this out. Your hair literally tells you everything:

Your hair feels soft, not squeaky. If it feels stripped and squeaky-clean after washing, you’re going too hard. Gray hair should feel soft and smooth after a wash, not like broom bristles.

The shine looks natural, not greasy. Healthy gray hair has this gorgeous pearlescent shine. If it looks shiny in that wet, greasy way, you’re not washing enough. If it looks completely dull and flat, you’re probably overwashing or need better products.

Your scalp feels chill. No itching, no flakes, no tight feeling or irritation. Your scalp should feel comfortable—not too oily, not too dry.

Your gray looks bright and clean, not yellow or dingy. Your natural silver should look vibrant, not like it needs a good scrubbing. If yellowing is a constant problem even when you’re washing regularly, you might need purple shampoo or need to deal with hard water issues.

How Washing Frequency Changes During the Gray Transition

Here’s something nobody talks about: your washing routine will shift while you’re growing out your gray, and knowing this ahead of time can save you so much confusion.

Dyed hair and natural gray are totally different animals. “When clients are growing out color, they’re dealing with two distinct hair textures on their head,” explains colorist Marie Robinson. “The previously colored sections often need more frequent washing because dyed hair tends to get oilier faster, while the natural gray roots are drier and more delicate.”

During the awkward grow-out phase, you might need to wash more often than you will once you’re fully gray—not because the gray needs it, but because the colored parts do. Confusing? Yep. But it’s temporary.

Plus, let’s be real, most people use a ton of styling products during this phase to try to blend everything together, which means more gunk building up and more need for regular washing.

Once all the colored bits are cut off and you’re working with 100% natural gray, you’ll probably notice you can wash way less often. “Give yourself permission to experiment during this phase,” says stylist Jonathan Torch. “What works today might not work in six months, and that’s okay.”

Common Gray Hair Washing Myths

Let’s kill some myths that just won’t die:

“Gray hair should never be washed often.” Nope. While most gray hair does better with less washing, fine gray hair or oily scalps might need more regular cleaning. There’s no one-size-fits-all rule here.

“Purple shampoo replaces regular shampoo.” Hard no. Purple shampoo is for occasional toning, not daily washing. Use it too much and you’ll actually damage your hair and end up with weird purple or super ashy tones.

“If you have an oily scalp, you’re washing wrong.” Not true. Some people just naturally make more oil, and that’s totally normal. You might need to wash more often, but you’re not broken or doing anything wrong. Just work with what you’ve got.

Final Thoughts: Listen to Your Hair

Look, at the end of the day, the best washing routine for your gray hair is whatever makes your hair look and feel amazing. That might be twice a week. Might be every other day. Might be something totally different that changes with the weather.

Give yourself permission to mess around with it. Pay attention to how your hair reacts to washing more or less often, different products, different techniques. Notice what makes it feel soft versus what leaves it feeling like straw. Check in with how your scalp feels on day two versus day four.

You’re not doing it wrong if your routine looks nothing like your friend’s. Gray hair is as unique as you are, and what works perfectly for someone else might be a total disaster for you.

Trust your gut, stay curious, and remember: your hair talks to you constantly. You just have to actually listen to what it’s saying.

Found your perfect shade? We’d love to see it! Tag us on Instagram @coloredhaircare or Facebook and share your hair color stories. Looking for more hair care tips? Check out How to Look After Colored Hair: 11 Expert Secrets For Long-Lasting Color.