7 best scalp massagers that promote hair growth

Best: Overall

Measuring 8cm in diameter, Biovene’s perfectly round essential scalp shampoo brush is designed to fit into the curves of your palm. Just off centre on the hard plastic topside is a raised notch with a flat panel that helps you to grip onto the brush. There’s also a hole in this notch so you can hang it up when not in use. Underneath are 19 soft, cone-shaped bristles made from BPA-free food-grade silicone that are designed to be used with thick or thin hair, wet or dry.

We found the brush really easy to hold on to, even when wet and covered with shampoo foam or conditioner. The seven bristles in the cushioned centre of the brush are ever so slightly shorter than the 12 on the edge, and there’s a slight give when you push into it, which means it just traces the curve of your head. This, we felt, made it especially satisfying to use, like a really gentle hair brush. We tested the brush in a hot pink, but you can also get it in a more calming mint green colour.

Best: For those with thick hair

Also measuring 8cm in diameter is Champo’s shampoo brush. It’s made entirely from ocean-friendly recyclable silicone in a peachy colour. Like Biovene’s version, this one has a raised notch just off centre to help you grip onto the brush, and a hole in the notch so you can hang it up.

The main difference is in the underside. Champo’s brush has 19 cone-shaped bristles that have a more tapered finish, which actually made them feel firmer during use. Instead of simply gliding over the surface of the scalp, it was gently pushing the skin, like mini massage fingers. Another point of difference is that all of the bristles appear to be of slightly different lengths. This, along with a concave base (all the other shampoo brushes we tested had a flat or domed base with bristles protruding from it), makes it much easier for those with thicker hair to use.

Best: For detangling hair

We were initially apprehensive about the Routes brush. At 9cm in diameter, the blossom shaped brush is made entirely from plain black plastic. It felt quite soft and flimsy to the touch, and didn’t look nearly as impressive as some of its competitors. But this malleable property was actually a benefit in the shower.

We found that it managed to gently detangle wet hair without ever pulling on it. This is in part thanks to the extra soft bristles, densely packed and all slightly different in length, which carefully teased out any knots. The base was also quite bendy, which helped the brush to navigate the curves of the head. The only real downside we found during use was the notch in the middle of the brush that’s designed to improve grip – it had two curved flaps over the top that are designed to mould around two of your fingers, but we felt that they would be too tight for those with larger hands.

Best: For short hair

At just over 9cm in diameter, the Boucleme scalp massager was the biggest shampoo brush we tried. It has 44 silicone bristles in four different sizes, all arranged in concentric circles with the longest on the outside and the shortest in the middle. The topside is moulded with a domed centre for your palm and grooves on the top and at the sides to rest your fingers and thumb. To help improve grip, there are two handles protruding from the sides of the brush that flap over the top to gently enclose your hand.

We think this brush would best suit those with bigger hands as the position of the grooves and its size meant that it’s not as easy to hold as its competitors. In use, the tapered, cone-shaped bristles were soft and gentle on the scalp. But as the base is slightly domed, the brush didn’t follow the curves of the head as well as some of the other brushes, despite the fact that it had shorter bristles in the middle. And because of the shorter bristles, we felt it didn’t work as well on longer, thicker hair.

Best: Unisex option

Kent’s version is an oval-shaped brush that measures 9cm at its longest and 8cm at its widest. On the hard plastic top, there’s an extra long notch stretching from the centre to one edge lengthways, that’s designed to help improve grip. This is ideal for bigger hands, but smaller hands may find it uncomfortable. On the underside, the base is made from a rubbery plastic that has plenty of give, which creates the same cushioned effect as if you are using a regular hair brush.

Unlike the other shampoo brushes, this one has two different types of bristles. There are 28 cylindrical bristles lining the edge of the brush and in the centre are 15 cone-shaped bristles. Each of the cone-shaped bristles also feature a crosshair tip, just like the end of a screw, rather than a tapered or pointed tip. In use, we found that the bristles caught onto the hair a little more than its competitors so we’d recommend this one for those with shorter hair (or even no hair!).

Best: For a relaxing head massage

Body Buzz’s antenna-style head massager is designed to relax you by gently caressing the acupuncture points on your head. It has a 7.5cm-long bronze-coloured metal handle that tapers to a point on one end and 12 little “fingers” – six long and six short – fanning out in a dome shape on the other. The fingers are made from fine metal wires that have been dipped in plastic to create little bulbs on the ends that won’t scratch your skin during use.

To use the head massager, you simply push it gently and slowly down from the crown of your head. The fingers should gradually fan out as they run down the side of your head and wrap around it. Then you slowly lift it up and repeat. The tingly sensation might feel a bit weird to start with but rather than being tickly, it feels quite relaxing. We found that this head massager is best used with clean, dry hair, as otherwise it won’t glide down your scalp as easily and therefore won’t produce that tingly sensation.

Best: For couples head massage

Menkind’s vibrating head massager is very similar to Body Buzz’s version but it has a much longer handle. Like its competitor, this one has 12 fingers – six long and six short – all with a bulbous, scratch-free tip. The chrome-coloured handle is 14cm long to accommodate an AA battery and the powerful motor, and on the end is the on/off button.

This massager produces the best sensation when you keep it in place and switch on the motor rather than moving it up and down. We found that the motor was incredibly powerful, which could be a bit of a distraction. Because of this, we think it’s much better if you lie back and relax while someone else operates it. It’s also quite loud, so you may want to plug in some earphones and listen to some music while you’re relaxing.