#1Best overall
Rated 4.1 out of 5 from 580 reviews
vegan
- vegan
- cruelty-free
- travel-size
Best Shampoos UK 2026
Shampoo removes oil, product and dirt from the scalp, and that is essentially all it does — everything else on the bottle is secondary to that one job. This ranking orders every shampoo we track on Amazon UK by customer rating, weighted against how many people rated it, so a product a handful of reviewers loved cannot outrank one that thousands of people rated consistently well. We have not tested these shampoos ourselves; the order reflects Amazon UK customer data rather than a panel or lab comparison. The main formulation split worth knowing before reading the list is sulphate versus sulphate-free: sulphates clean thoroughly and lather generously, while sulphate-free formulas clean more gently and tend to suit colour-treated or curly hair, at the cost of a less dramatic lather. Price correlates weakly with rating in this category, and several of the best-reviewed shampoos here sit under £10.
Ranked from 26 shampoos listed on Amazon UK. We do not physically test products — see “How we picked these” below.
How we picked these
We start from every shampoos listed on Amazon UK, then rank by a score that weights customer rating against how many people rated it — a 5.0 average from three reviewers cannot outrank a 4.6 average from three thousand, because a handful of ratings tells you very little on its own. The top 12 by that score make this list. We do not accept payment for placement or ranking, and we do not physically test products ourselves: everything above is drawn from listed Amazon UK product data and customer review data, refreshed periodically.
The ranking
Ranked #1 on this list, this is currently rated 4.1 out of 5 across 580 Amazon UK reviews. It is listed at £29.99. We have flagged it here as our "Best overall" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below.
What we like
- 580 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
- Listed feature: vegan
What to consider
- A lower average rating (4.1/5) than most others on this list
Listed feature: vegan
- #2Rated 3.8 out of 5 from 103 reviews
Sitting at #2, it holds a 3.8-star average from 103 customer reviews on Amazon UK. At £71.07, it sits at the top of the price range covered here.
What we like
- 103 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
What to consider
- The most expensive option in this list
- A lower average rating (3.8/5) than most others on this list
#3This is our #3 pick — an Amazon UK listing that hasn't accumulated a customer rating yet. It is listed at £36.50.
#4Ranked #4 on this list, this pick does not yet have a published customer rating on Amazon UK. It is listed at £24.00.
#5Sitting at #5, this is a newer listing with no customer rating on Amazon UK yet. It is listed at £7.50.
#6This is our #6 pick — an Amazon UK listing that hasn't accumulated a customer rating yet. It is listed at £25.86.
#7Ranked #7 on this list, this pick does not yet have a published customer rating on Amazon UK. It is listed at £5.95.
#8Sitting at #8, this is a newer listing with no customer rating on Amazon UK yet. It is listed at £30.00.
#9This is our #9 pick — an Amazon UK listing that hasn't accumulated a customer rating yet. It is listed at £19.99.
#10Ranked #10 on this list, this pick does not yet have a published customer rating on Amazon UK. It is listed at £23.99.
#11Sitting at #11, this is a newer listing with no customer rating on Amazon UK yet. It is listed at £24.35.
What to consider
- Not consistently listed as in stock
#12Best budgetThis is our #12 pick — an Amazon UK listing that hasn't accumulated a customer rating yet. At £3.50, it is the most affordable option on this list. We have flagged it here as our "Best budget" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below.
What we like
- The most affordable option in this list
Compare all 12 picks
| # | Product | Price | Rating | Reviews | Key feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Redken Repair Shampoo 30ml | £29.99 | Rated 4.1 out of 5 from 580 reviews | 580 | vegan |
| 2 | Olaplex Salon Shampoo 250ml | £71.07 | Rated 3.8 out of 5 from 103 reviews | 103 | — |
| 3 | Redken Professional Shampoo 50ml | £36.50 | — | — | |
| 4 | Olaplex Professional Shampoo 30ml | £24.00 | — | — | |
| 5 | Head & Shoulders Professional Shampoo 15ml | £7.50 | — | — | |
| 6 | Redken Repair Shampoo 15ml | £25.86 | — | — | |
| 7 | Head & Shoulders Shampoo 50ml | £5.95 | — | — | |
| 8 | Olaplex Repair Shampoo 50ml | £30.00 | — | — | |
| 9 | Redken Shampoo 200ml | £19.99 | — | — | |
| 10 | Olaplex Shampoo 100ml | £23.99 | — | — | |
| 11 | Redken Smoothing Shampoo 250ml | £24.35 | — | — | |
| 12 | TRESemmé Shampoo 15ml | £3.50 | — | — |
What to look for
Shampoo is a scalp product, not a lengths product
Choose it for how oily or dry your scalp runs, and let conditioner and masks look after the lengths — the two ends of the same head of hair often need opposite treatment, and a shampoo rated highly for an oily scalp may be too stripping for dry lengths.
Sulphate-free is a trade-off, not automatically an upgrade
Gentler cleansing helps colour last longer and suits curl patterns, but on a very oily scalp or with heavy styling product use, a sulphate-free formula may not clean thoroughly enough, which shows up in reviews mentioning hair feeling weighed down by the next day.
Clarifying shampoos are occasional tools, not daily ones
They strip build-up from styling products and hard water effectively, which is genuinely useful roughly monthly. Used as an everyday shampoo, the same formula will leave most hair dry — worth checking a listing's stated use frequency before buying it as a main shampoo.
An anti-dandruff claim needs a named active
Zinc pyrithione, ketoconazole or selenium sulphide are the active ingredients that actually address flaking; a shampoo marketed for dandruff without one listed in the ingredients is a moisturising shampoo with a marketing angle rather than a treatment.
Bottle size changes the value calculation
Shampoo listings on Amazon UK range from around 200ml travel-friendly bottles to litre-plus pumps intended to last several months of regular washing. The price shown in the comparison table below is the listed price, not price per wash, so the cheapest bottle by that measure is frequently the most expensive per use once size is taken into account. It is worth checking the stated volume on the product page before comparing two listings on price alone, particularly when a smaller bottle sits close in rating to a much larger one.
Frequently asked questions
- How often should I wash my hair?
- There is no universal number. Oily scalps often need daily or alternate-day washing; dry, curly or coily hair usually does better with once or twice a week. Your own scalp is a more reliable guide than a fixed schedule.
- Are sulphates actually bad for hair?
- Not inherently. Sulphates clean effectively and suit oily scalps and heavy product use well. They can fade colour faster and feel stripping on dry or curly hair, which is why sulphate-free alternatives exist as an option rather than a universal correction.
- Why do inexpensive shampoos rank highly on this list?
- Because the ranking reflects Amazon UK customer rating weighted by review volume, not price. Shampoo formulation is well understood and inexpensive to do well, which the review data on Amazon UK bears out fairly clearly.
- Will a highly-rated shampoo work for my hair type?
- A strong overall rating means most reviewers were satisfied, not that the formula suits every scalp. Check whether reviews mention your hair type or concern specifically, and treat the sulphate-free versus sulphate distinction in the buying guide as your first filter.
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Last updated 8 August 2026. Prices and availability are accurate as of that date and are subject to change on Amazon.