Global: Where are people most likely to wash their hair every day?

There’s no consensus on how often you should wash your hair: advice varies based on gender, hair type – fine, thick, coarse, dyed – personal preference, and whatever lifestyle magazine or website you’ve most recently chosen to read. There are several accounts on the internet about what happens when you stop washing your hair entirely: some seem broadly happy with the results; others report that, while the experiment repaired some damage, it “smelled weird and felt sticky” in the absence of shampoo and conditioner.

But this article concerns those on the other end of the spectrum. Using global data from YouGov Profiles, we’ve found that, when you ask the public if they like to wash their hair every day, the responses can vary depending on region and market.

European consumers are all less likely to wash their hair every day than the reverse. The French (26% agree vs. 54% disagree), British (30% vs. 63%), and German (36% vs. 59%) are all less likely to use shampoo and conditioner on a daily basis than the other markets in this study. Americans were slightly more likely to do so (41% vs. 50%).

In MENA and Asia, it’s a different story. In Saudi Arabia (50% agree; 21% disagree) and the UAE (61% agree; 16% disagree), a majority say they wash their hair every day; the same goes in Singapore (67% vs. 14%) and India (54% vs. 18%). If you’re selling hair products, these markets might therefore be more receptive.

YouGov Profiles is based on continuously collected data and rolling surveys, rather than from a single limited questionnaire. Profiles data is nationally representative and weighted by age, gender, education, region, and race. Learn more about Profiles.