Curly Hair Society

Brand comparison

Only Curls vs Cantu: Is the Premium Brand Worth the Price?

Both brands suit thick, dry curls and are too heavy for fine hair. One costs several times as much, and reviewers rate it lower.

Only CurlsCantu
What reviewers thinkMixed opinions: Good on thick, dry curls. Heavy on fine hair.Divides opinion: Great value. Heavy for fine hair.
Curl Score3.2 Mixed3.7 Good
People with an opinion4168
Best-liked productAll Curl ConditionerMoisturizing Curl Activator Cream
More promising forThick, dry or coarse curls that need moisture, slip and definition.Thick, dense or coily hair, children's curls, and anyone starting out on a budget.
Think twice ifYour strands are fine and easily weighed down, you are sensitive to fragrance, or you are on a tight budget.Your hair is fine, wavy or low porosity, or you're sensitive to strong fragrance.

Only Curls and Cantu suit the same hair. Both work best on thick, dry or coily curls, and reviewers with fine hair say both are too heavy. The difference is price. Cantu is one of the cheapest curl brands on the shelf, and Only Curls is a premium brand. One reviewer in an Only Curls discussion simply calls Cantu "great and affordable."

Reviewers give Cantu the higher Curl Score.

The main difference

Curl cream: Cantu's Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream is a long-time favorite for soft, shiny, defined curls. Only Curls' Hydrating Curl Creme is loved on thick, dry hair and is the most divisive product in its range. Both get the same warning: too heavy for fine hair.

Wash day: Only Curls' All Curl Conditioner, praised for slip, is its best-liked product, and Cantu has nothing reviewers rate as highly for that job.

Scent: both brands get fragrance complaints. Only Curls sells fragrance-free versions of its core products. Cantu doesn't have an equivalent among the products we track.

Reliability: some long-time Cantu users say it suddenly stopped working and left their hair dry, frizzy or flaky. Only Curls critics are more likely to say cheaper products did the same job.

Which to choose

Choose Cantu if you're starting out, buying for children's curls, or you want to see whether a rich cream suits you before spending more.

Choose Only Curls if your hair is thick and dry and you want a conditioner with real slip, or you need fragrance-free products.

Skip both if your hair is fine, wavy or low porosity.

The verdict

For a rich curl cream, Cantu does the job for a fraction of the price, and reviewers like it more. Only Curls is worth paying for mainly for its conditioner and its fragrance-free line.

Head to head

Each brand's strongest product of each type, by what reviewers say.

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Curl cream

Only Curls

Hydrating Curl Creme

5 positive·6 negative

The most divisive product in the range: loved on thick, dry hair, too heavy and greasy on fine hair.

Best for Thick, dry, coarse curls and coils

Read reviewAmazon

Cantu

Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream

7 positive·2 negative

A 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

Read reviewAmazon

Which suits your hair

What reviewers with each kind of hair report.

Fine or wavy hair

Only Curls

Start with the mousse, the one product fine-haired reviewers keep using. The curl creme was the most common source of “heavy” and “greasy by day two”.

Try Volumising Curl Mousse

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.

Try Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream

Thick, dense or coily hair

Only Curls

This is where the range does best. Reviewers with thick, dry curls and coils rate the conditioner and curl creme, and one with thick, dry 2C waves calls the cleanser and conditioner the only pair that has ever worked.

Try All Curl Conditioner

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

Only Curls

The Enhancing gel is soft, and that is its most common complaint. The Mega Hold gel is the firmer option, though there are only two opinions on it so far and its scent is strong.

Try Mega Hold Curl Gel

Cantu

Reviewers don't single out Cantu for this.

Sensitive scalp or scent-sensitive

Only Curls

Buy the fragrance-free cleanser and conditioner, which are sold online only. The Mega Hold gel has no fragrance-free version, and a few reviewers suspect the coconut in the formulas.

Try All Curl Cleanser

Cantu

Reviewers don't single out Cantu for this.

Starting out or on a budget

Only Curls

Try the Starter Pack before full sizes; results vary so much that even critics recommend it. Several reviewers also found technique made more difference than any one range.

Try Starter Pack

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.

Try Moisturizing Curl Activator Cream

Based on what commenters with similar hair reported. Hair varies.

What reviewers like and dislike

Only Curls

  • Frizz control and definition, when it suits your hair
  • Plenty of slip in the conditioner
  • A little shampoo goes a long way
  • Fragrance-free versions of the core products
  • Sample and starter kits for trying the range
  • Too heavy for fine hair and loose waves
  • A cloying, sickly sweet standard fragrance
  • The price, especially next to drugstore curl ranges
  • A soft hold from the Enhancing gel
  • Coconut in the formulas, for those it doesn't agree with

Cantu

  • Cheap and easy to find
  • Soft, shiny, defined curls on thicker hair
  • Works on children's curls
  • A refresh spray that keeps curls going between washes
  • A nice smell, for many
  • Too heavy for fine or wavy hair
  • Stopped working for some long-time users
  • Flakes or dryness, for a few
  • Strong added fragrance
  • A refresh spray with a single-stream nozzle

More comparisons

Only Curls vs

Every Only Curls review

Cantu vs

Every Cantu review