Collection: Korean Hair Care

Korea treats the scalp as skin. That is the whole idea, and it is why Korean hair care looks different from what you are used to: the work starts at the scalp, and the hair is treated as the thing that grows out of it.

If your scalp is oily, flaky, irritated or tight, no conditioner is going to fix what is happening at the root. Scalp first.

Where to Start

Thinning and shedding. The category people arrive for. Scalp tonics and ampoules are the Korean answer — applied directly to the scalp, not the lengths. Be realistic: topicals support the scalp environment. Genuine pattern hair loss is a doctor's territory, and the earlier you go, the better the options.

Oily scalp, flaking, itch. A scalp is skin with follicles in it, and it responds to the same logic — cleanse properly, do not strip, do not scrub.

Dry, tired lengths. Treatments and conditioners, applied mid-length to ends rather than at the root.

How a Korean Scalp Routine Runs

1. Shampoo the scalp, not the hair. The lengths get cleaned by the runoff. Massage with fingertips — never nails.
2. Conditioner from mid-length down. At the root it weighs hair flat and does nothing useful.
3. Tonic or ampoule on a towel-dried scalp, parted in sections so it reaches skin rather than sitting on hair.
4. Massage. A minute of fingertips or a scalp brush.

Our Korean hair care guide goes through scalp care, shedding, and what tonics and ampoules can and cannot do.

Related

Rosemary, PDRN and peptides show up across scalp care as much as skincare — see PDRN Skincare and Peptides. For a scalp brush and massagers, see Korean Beauty Tools.

Also: Korean Body Care, Sensitive Skin, Redness & Irritated Skin and Damaged Skin Barrier.

Reading: Korean skincare ingredients explained and how to repair a damaged skin barrier — the barrier logic applies to a scalp too.