Brand comparison
Miss Jessie's vs Cantu: Which Curl Cream Brand Is Better?
Cantu is cheap and suits thick curls and coils. Miss Jessie's costs more, rates higher, and has options for fine hair.
| Compared | Miss Jessie’s | Cantu |
|---|---|---|
| What reviewers think | Loved, with a catch: Soft definition. Divisive scent. | Divides opinion: Great value. Heavy for fine hair. |
| Curl Score | 3.9 Good | 3.7 Good |
| People with an opinion | 70 | 68 |
| Best-liked product | Pillow Soft Curls | Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream |
| More promising for | Waves, curls and coils that want soft definition without crunch, if you can live with the fragrance. | Thick, dense or coily hair, children's curls, and anyone starting out on a budget. |
| Think twice if | You are sensitive to fragrance, you avoid silicones, or your fine hair is quickly weighed down by creams. | Your hair is fine, wavy or low porosity, or you're sensitive to strong fragrance. |
Miss Jessie's and Cantu are both best known for curl creams. Cantu is one of the cheapest curl brands available. Miss Jessie's costs more, but has a higher Curl Score and a range that covers fine hair as well as thick.
The main difference
Curl cream: Miss Jessie's Pillow Soft Curls is its most recommended product, for soft definition without crunch on fine to medium waves and curls. Cantu's Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream is a long-time favorite for soft, shiny definition on thicker curls. Both can be too heavy for very fine hair, Cantu more so.
Fine hair: Miss Jessie's has Feather Soft Curls, a light cream that everyone who mentions it likes. Cantu's range draws repeated complaints from reviewers with fine or low-porosity hair.
Gel: Miss Jessie's Jelly Soft Curls is one of the best-liked gels we track. Cantu doesn't have a gel reviewers rate as highly.
Scent: both brands get fragrance complaints. Miss Jessie's is described as fabric softener, and Cantu's as strong.
Price: Cantu wins by a long way, and parents use it happily on children's 3A to 4A curls.
Which to choose
Choose Cantu if your hair is thick, dense or coily, you're starting out, or you're buying for children.
Choose Miss Jessie's if your waves or curls are fine to medium, you want a reliable gel alongside your cream, or Cantu has felt too heavy.
Skip Miss Jessie's if you avoid silicones. Skip Cantu if your hair is fine, wavy or low porosity.
The verdict
For thick curls and coils on a budget, Cantu does the job. For finer hair, or a full cream and gel routine, Miss Jessie's is better reviewed and worth the extra.
Head to head
Each brand's strongest product of each type, by what reviewers say.
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Curl cream
Miss Jessie’s
18 positive·6 mixed·3 negativeThe most reviewed and most recommended product in the range: soft, uncrunchy definition, for anyone who can bear the smell.
Best for Fine to medium waves and curls that want soft definition without crunch
Cantu
Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream
7 positive·2 negativeA long-time favourite for soft, shiny, defined curls, though too heavy for some fine hair.
Best for Softness and definition on curly to coily hair
Which suits your hair
What reviewers with each kind of hair report.
Fine or wavy hair
Miss Jessie’s
Feather Soft Curls is the one reviewers with fine hair pick over Pillow Soft, and all five who mention it like it. The Leave In Condish is another that fine-haired reviewers say doesn’t weigh curls down.
Cantu
This is where Cantu gets most of its bad reviews. Reviewers with fine 2C to 3A hair say every product is way too heavy, or that it left their hair looking wet.
Thick, dense or coily hair
Miss Jessie’s
Multicultural Curls is the one reviewers with thicker hair name most: a reviewer with low-porosity 3B-4A curls highly recommends it, and another rates it above Pillow Soft on 3B-3C hair. Opinion isn’t unanimous.
Cantu
This is what the brand suits best. Reviewers say it's very good for hair that needs heavier products, a parent's 4A child thrives on it, and a reviewer with dense curls says it keeps their hair looking good for a whole week.
Try Curl Cream
Strong hold
Miss Jessie’s
Jelly Soft Curls is the gel, and the best liked product in the range. Reviewers say the curls stay soft and intact all day, even when dancing and sweating, and that it avoids the scrunchy feel of other gels.
Try Jelly Soft Curls
Cantu
Reviewers don't single out Cantu for this.
Sensitive scalp or scent-sensitive
Miss Jessie’s
This is the brand’s weak spot. Feather Soft Curls is the one reviewers call mild, and a reviewer who is very sensitive to scents says the Leave In Condish has been good to her.
Cantu
Reviewers don't single out Cantu for this.
Starting out or on a budget
Miss Jessie’s
Pillow Soft Curls is the most reviewed and the most recommended, and paired with Jelly Soft Curls it is the routine reviewers call their daily go-to. Because the scent is such a deal-breaker, try it in a shop or a small size before you commit.
Cantu
Reviewers call it a great introduction to curly care at an amazing price. Start with the Curl Activator Cream, the most-reviewed product, or the Curl Cream under a gel.
Based on what commenters with similar hair reported. Hair varies.
What reviewers like and dislike
Miss Jessie’s
- Praised: Soft definition without crunch or a stiff cast
- Praised: Second-day hair that still looks good
- Praised: Staples that reviewers have repurchased for years
- Praised: Lightweight options for fine hair, such as Feather Soft Curls
- Praised: A range made for many textures, from fine waves to coils
- Complaint: A fabric-softener scent that some find nauseating
- Complaint: Heavy or greasy results on fine hair, for a few
- Complaint: Silicones in many of the products
- Complaint: Skin or scalp reactions, for a handful of reviewers
- Complaint: Price and availability, especially outside the US
Cantu
- Praised: Cheap and easy to find
- Praised: Soft, shiny, defined curls on thicker hair
- Praised: Works on children's curls
- Praised: A refresh spray that keeps curls going between washes
- Praised: A nice smell, for many
- Complaint: Too heavy for fine or wavy hair
- Complaint: Stopped working for some long-time users
- Complaint: Flakes or dryness, for a few
- Complaint: Strong added fragrance
- Complaint: A refresh spray with a single-stream nozzle