The 11 Best Sea Salt Sprays to Score Beach Waves

Best Overall

Sachajuan Ocean Mist

4.8

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Who else recommends it? Allure and GQ both picked Sachajuan Ocean Mist.

What do buyers say? 75% of 200+ Amazon reviewers rated this product 4 stars or above.

This spritz works on every hair type, from fine and flat to kinky and coiled—and everything in between. It uses not only salt but also sugar (another choice texturizer) to create waves, plus add a bit of volume and hold, along with a matte finish. “I love how nicely this works into the hair, creating a beautifully textured look without feeling too rough,” says Cedric, stylist, and owner of Cedric Salon in New York City. Spray it onto damp hair and let it air dry; you can even brush it out post-spraying if you want a more subtle effect.

Price at time of publish: $34

Active Ingredients: Salt, sugar, vitamin B5, castor oil | Size: 5 fluid ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: No

Best Budget

Odele Texturizing Sea Salt Spray

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This affordable haircare brand truly can do no wrong in our book, and this wave-enhancing spritz is proof positive. Ideal for fine to medium hair,  it contains sea salt to impart a tousled texture and lots of fullness. The formula is squeaky clean, free of over 1,300 questionable ingredients. Even the delicious scent, a fresh mix of cucumber and ylang-ylang, is totally naturally derived.

Price at time of publish: $12

Active Ingredients: Sea salt | Size: 8 fluid ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: Yes

Best for Thick Hair

Kristin Ess Soft Shine Beach Wave Spray

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While this pick works for all hair types, it’s an especially great option for those with thicker hair. Meant to be used on dry hair, you can layer on as much of this as you need (and those with thick hair do need a bit more product) without worrying about it ever starting to feel crunchy or stiff. It’s also great if your hair requires a little extra TLC since the formula touts a proprietary technology that helps to “seal” split ends.

Price at time of publish: $15

Active Ingredients: Zip-up Technology | Size: 6.7 ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: No

Best for All Hair Types

Bumble and bumble Surf Spray

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Arguably one of, if not the, most popular salt sprays out there, many would also say that this is the OG formula that spawned a thousand different copycats. It boasts Epsom salts, which make for a tousled texture and have astringent properties to absorb excess oil. Meanwhile, seaweed and kelp extracts impart smoothness and shine. The result is a spritz that almost instantly transforms even the finest, limpest of hair—but never weighs them down.

Price at time of publish: $30

Active Ingredients: Sea salt | Size: 1.7 fluid ounces, 4.2 fluid ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: Yes

Best for Volume

R+Co Rockaway Salt Spray

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Craving not only waves but added volume, too? Try this mist. A plant-based ingredient known as cranesbill plumps each shaft for added fullness, while salt leaves hair looking naturally tousled. Not to mention that there’s also antioxidant-rich and protective vitamin C and strengthening sage in the formula, too. Cedric is a big fan of this formula, as well, lauding both how easy it is to work with and the great scent.

Price at time of publish: $32

Active Ingredients: Cranesbill, yarrow plant extract, balm mint, sage, vitamin C | Size: 1.7 ounces, 4.2 ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: No

Best Splurge

Oribe Après Beach Wave and Shine Spray

4.5

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True to its name, a quick hit of this really does leave you with ‘just got back from the beach’ hair. Another salt-free option, it instead uses a combination of wheat protein, pro-vitamin B5, and a co-polymer that work together to swell the hair shaft and create that coveted beachy texture. But what makes this worth the price is the addition of other good-for-your hair ingredients, namely an antioxidant complex to protect against damaging and color fading effects, plus a plant-based extract that offers UV protection to further safeguard your hue.

Price at time of publish: $44

Active Ingredients: Oribe Signature Complex, Exotic oil extract blend, beach wave complex, glycerin, ginger root extract | Size: 2.1 ounces, 8.5 ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: No

Best for Colored Hair

Sun Bum Sea Spray

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Along with giving you beachy hair, this also goes above and beyond the call of duty. It offers UV protection—very important if you color your hair since the sun can cause serious fading and color changes—but also blocks out humidity. Hence why it’s an awesome pick if you actually are going to the beach and just want to enhance the effects of a swim in the sea (or aren’t planning on going in the water but want to make it look like you did).

Price at time of publish: $17

Active Ingredients: Hawaiin sea salt, sea kelp | Size: 6 fluid ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: Yes

Best Multi-Tasker

Playa Endless Summer Spray

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What’s better than a great sea salt spray? One that can do more than just give you great beachy hair. This aptly-named pick (which, fun fact, relies on sea salt harvested from Southern California) not only helps enhance and coax out waves, it also boosts volume and contains antioxidant-rich beta-carotene to shield both scalp and hair from UV rays and pollution. The scent is the cherry on top, a more sophisticated take on the classic tropical notes, combining black coconut with sandalwood and musk.

Price at time of publish: $24

Active Ingredients: California sea salt, cane sugar, marine collagen | Size: 3.65 fluid ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: Yes

Best for Dry Hair

Briogeo Superfoods Banana + Coconut Hydrating Soft Wave Texture Spray

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We know, this isn't technically a sea salt spray, but it adds beachy, undone texture nonetheless. The formula uses coconut sugar and banana and coconut extracts to add piece-y texture without drying out hair, and includes glycerin and panthenol so hair feels silky-smooth. Use this on second-day hair to give it a little lift and texture back, no shampooing required. Oh, and as a bonus, it smells delish.

Price at time of publish: $25

Active Ingredients: Coconut sugar, banana and coconut extracts | Size: 5.8 fluid ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: Yes

Best Drugstore

Not Your Mother's Double Take Dry Finish Texture Spray

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This drugstore favorite is infused with sea kelp and sea salt to give amazing, tousled waves without any crunchy feeling. It works well on wet or dry hair and does a good job of adding body.

Price at time of publish: $5

Active Ingredients: Sea salt and sea kelp | Size: 8 fluid ounces | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Byrdie Clean: No