Brand comparison
Not Your Mother's vs SheaMoisture: Which Drugstore Curl Brand Suits You?
Not Your Mother's is light and better rated, and suits waves. SheaMoisture is rich and suits thick, coily hair, with one cult classic.
| Compared | Not Your Mother’s | SheaMoisture |
|---|---|---|
| What reviewers think | Mostly positive: Great value. Stylers hit and miss. | Mixed opinions: One cult classic. Mostly heavy. |
| Curl Score | 3.8 Good | 3.4 Mixed |
| People with an opinion | 203 | 67 |
| Best-liked product | Curl Talk Curl Cream | Coconut & Hibiscus Curl Enhancing Smoothie |
| More promising for | Waves and loose curls on a budget, especially as cream plus foam, or anyone avoiding shea butter and heavy oils. | Thick, coarse or coily hair that likes rich products, children's detangling, and the Smoothie as a leave-in. |
| Think twice if | Your hair builds up easily, you're sensitive to strong scents, or mousses tend to leave you sticky. | Your hair is fine, wavy or low porosity, or you loved the old formulas and expect them unchanged. |
Not Your Mother's and SheaMoisture are both inexpensive drugstore brands, and they sit next to each other on the shelf. They suit very different hair. Not Your Mother's avoids shea butter and heavy oils. SheaMoisture is built on them. Not Your Mother's has the higher Curl Score and three times as many reviewers.
The main difference
Curl cream: the Curl Talk Curl Cream is light and well liked on fine to medium waves and curls. SheaMoisture's Curl Enhancing Smoothie is a rich, decade-long staple for medium to thick curls, used as a leave-in or one-step styler.
Leave-in: the Curl Talk Leave-In is soft and light. SheaMoisture's JBCO leave-in is for average to thick hair, and has few reviews.
Fine hair: most reviewers with fine or wavy hair say SheaMoisture's range is too heavy. Not Your Mother's is often recommended for exactly that hair.
Problems: both brands have changed. SheaMoisture's long-time users describe new formulas after the 2017 Unilever buyout, with more residue and less moisture. Not Your Mother's reformulates and discontinues products, and its famous mousse has turned sticky for many. Both get complaints about residue.
Which to choose
Choose Not Your Mother's if your hair is fine, wavy or loosely curled, or rich products leave it greasy.
Choose SheaMoisture if your hair is thick, coarse or coily and likes butters and oils, or you're detangling children's hair.
Skip both if your hair builds up easily, unless you clarify regularly.
The verdict
For waves and fine curls, Not Your Mother's is the better brand. For thick, dry curls, SheaMoisture's Smoothie is the product to buy, though the rest of its range is a gamble.
Head to head
Each brand's strongest product of each type, by what reviewers say.
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Conditioner and leave-in
Not Your Mother’s
Curl Talk Leave-In Conditioner
7 positive·1 mixed·1 negativeA soft, moisturising leave-in that most reviewers like, though it's become hard to find.
Best for A light leave-in under Curl Talk stylers
SheaMoisture
Jamaican Black Castor Oil Strengthen & Restore Leave-In Conditioner
2 positive·1 mixed·1 negativeDense, softening and effective on thick hair, but too heavy for thinner hair, and changed since restocking for some.
Best for Thick or coarse hair that needs a rich leave-in
Curl cream
Not Your Mother’s
23 positive·5 mixed·4 negativeThe best-liked Curl Talk styler: defined, juicy curls from a small amount, at a drugstore price.
Best for Waves and curls that want soft definition on a budget
SheaMoisture
Coconut & Hibiscus Curl Enhancing Smoothie
9 positive·2 negativeA decade-long staple for many, giving shine and bounce, though too heavy for some.
Best for A moisturising leave-in or one-step styler on medium to thick curls
Which suits your hair
What reviewers with each kind of hair report.
Fine or wavy hair
Not Your Mother’s
The Curl Cream works on fine hair in small amounts: one reviewer emulsifies a little with water, and another says a quarter-size amount covers their whole head. The Refreshing Foam is lighter and water-based, and reviewers with low-porosity 2B hair say it works really well.
SheaMoisture
Most reviewers with fine or wavy hair say the range is too heavy. The exceptions are small and specific: one reviewer applies a little Smoothie before wringing out so it doesn't weigh their hair down, another uses it as a single styler in a small amount, and a reviewer with fine 2C/3A curls loves the Frizz-Free Curl Mousse as a last step.
Thick, dense or coily hair
Not Your Mother’s
Reviewers with dense or coarse hair are less impressed. Samples didn’t condition enough for one with dense, medium-coarse hair, and another found the gel heavy and frizzy even in a tiny amount.
SheaMoisture
This is who the brand suits. Reviewers say the JBCO leave-in does wonders for average or thick hair, a reviewer with very thick 4c hair says it works pretty well, and one with coarse corkscrew curls loves the whole set.
Try Jamaican Black Castor Oil Strengthen & Restore Leave-In Conditioner
Children's hair
Not Your Mother’s
Reviewers don't single out Not Your Mother’s for this.
SheaMoisture
Parents are some of the warmest reviewers. The leave-in is the only thing that worked on one daughter's worst knots, and another calls the kids' detangler the best on the market.
Based on what commenters with similar hair reported. Hair varies.
What reviewers like and dislike
Not Your Mother’s
- Praised: Cheap and easy to find
- Praised: Juicy, defined curls from the Curl Cream
- Praised: A light, water-based refresh foam
- Praised: Free of shea butter and heavy oils
- Praised: A protein-free, fragrance-free line
- Complaint: A mousse that has turned sticky for many
- Complaint: A film or residue on some hair
- Complaint: Strong scents, for some
- Complaint: Constant reformulating and discontinuing
- Complaint: A gel that splits reviewers
SheaMoisture
- Praised: The Curl Enhancing Smoothie
- Praised: Rich moisture for thick and coily hair
- Praised: Smells reviewers love
- Praised: Cheap and easy to find
- Praised: Good kids' detanglers
- Complaint: Too heavy for fine, wavy or low-porosity hair
- Complaint: Formulas that changed after the buyout
- Complaint: Residue and buildup
- Complaint: Lighter lines that get discontinued
- Complaint: Protein overload, for one reviewer