Hair Lab: Your Guide to Better Hair Care

In a world where nearly every hair product promises to keep your locks chic and glossy at all times (usually for a hefty price tag), it’s essential to distinguish what actually works from what just sounds convincing. One option is to move at a glacial pace, carefully studying each product’s formula and weighing the pros and cons of its ingredients across all available sources. Another option is to use the Hair Lab tool, which already knows what’s in your product and can explain its benefits (or concerns) based on scientific research in seconds.

What Is Hair Lab?

Hair Lab is a feature of the OnSkin app that analyzes the safety and suitability of hair products you use (or plan to use). In other words, it’s a tool that lets you see if they match your hair type and identify beneficial and potentially harmful ingredients.

Instead of guessing or browsing every product and its formula, you get instant personalized insights.

How Does It Work?

The process has four simple steps, with minimal effort on your part.

Step 1. Tell the app about your hair type and concerns

Start by sharing a few details about your hair:

1. Open the app.
2. Tap Hair Lab on the main screen, then select your hair type (dry, oily, combination, normal, or dyed) and specify any concerns you may have, like dandruff or hair loss.

Pro Tip: If you made an incorrect selection or your concerns have changed, you can always adjust them in the settings. To do that, tap your profile picture, select Skin and Hair Profile, and complete the Hair Type or Condition questionnaire once again.

This step helps Hair Lab tailor its analysis to your specific needs from the very beginning.

The more accurate information you provide, the more relevant your results will be.

Step 2. Tell the app about the product you’d like to analyze

Now, provide information about the hair product you want checked. To do that:

1. Find the product in the Hair Lab section. You can do this by scanning its barcode, taking a photo, or typing its name in the search bar.
2. Tap Get Analysis.

Step 3. Let Hair Lab check the product

Hair Lab will analyze the product’s ingredient list and compare it with your hair type and concerns in seconds. After that, you’ll be transferred to the product analysis screen.

Step 4. Study the results

In the Hair Match section, the tool will show if the product suits you. It can be labeled in one of the following ways:

1. It’s a match! Congrats, the ingredients in this shampoo suit your hair perfectly.
2. Hit-or-miss. You can try the product to find out how it works for you, but some ingredients may not be the best fit.
3. Not a match. This shampoo may be too harsh for your hair.

In addition, Hair Lab will show you both beneficial and potentially harmful ingredients, along with short descriptions of their properties. To find out more about each ingredient, tap it in the list. The tool will show you what effects it may have, what it’s used for in hair care, and a list of reputable scientific sources this information is based on.

In the Safety Rating section, you can see an overall assessment of how safe the product is for regular use. All ingredients are evaluated by OnSkin’s experts using four key criteria:

1. Hormonal and reproductive effects. Could this ingredient affect the endocrine system or reproductive health?
2. Cancer risk. Is there reliable evidence linking the ingredient to carcinogenic effects?
3. Allergy and irritation potential. How likely is it to trigger allergic reactions or skin irritation?
4. Concentration safety. Could the ingredient become harmful when used in high amounts?

After the evaluation, the product receives a Safety Rating, which ranges from 0 (the lowest) to 100 (the highest) across four levels:

• Excellent (76–100)
• Good (51–75)
• Not great (26–50)
• Bad (0–25)

If the product’s score is 95 or higher, it receives the Safe Choice mark, a science-based distinction to help you quickly spot beauty products made with ingredients that pose little to no known or suspected common health risks.

In addition to the Safety Rating, you can also review the full list of ingredients in detail.

Why Should I Trust the Results?

All scores are based on the latest scientific research. The OnSkin team relies on regularly updated databases and trusted sources such as the IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer), the California EPA (California Environmental Protection Agency), and the European Commission (EC). You’ll also find links to the sources used on each ingredient’s page.

OnSkin doesn’t partner with any brands or products, so the ratings remain unbiased.