How to Determine Your Hair's Porosity & Density

“Porosity” and “density” are terms that you constantly hear being used in the natural hair community. But do you know what these terms mean and why they’re important? Porosity is your hair's ability to absorb and retain moisture. Density is the number of strands that are growing out of each square-inch of your scalp. Knowing your porosity and density is important because it allows you to develop an effective hair care routine that consists of products that work perfectly on your hair. We are sharing our tips on how to determine your porosity and density. 

Different Levels of Porosity & How to Determine Yours:

Low Porosity: The cuticle is nearly shut, meaning the hair does not easily allow moisture in or out. Low porosity hair is more prone to product build-up.
How to determine if you have low porosity: Take a few strands of hair and drop them into a glass of room temperature water for 15 minutes (do not mess with it). If your hair floats to the top, you have low porosity.

Medium Porosity: Hair allows the right amount of moisture in and out. The cuticle isn't too tight or too loose, which makes medium porosity hair pretty low maintenance. How to determine if you have medium porosity: Drop a few strands of hair into room temperature water and let it sit for 15 minutes; if your hair floats to the middle, you have medium porosity.

High Porosity: The cuticle is very loose, allowing everything to come in and escape. Because of this, high porosity is more prone to frizz and dryness. How to determine if you have high porosity: Place a few clean hair strands into a cup of room temperature water; if your hair sinks immediately to the bottom, you have high porosity.

Different Levels of Density & How to Determine Yours:

Low Density: The easiest way to determine if you have low density is to put your hair into a ponytail and measure the circumference. Low density will be less than two inches.

Medium Density: To determine if you have medium density or not, measure the circumference of your ponytail. If it's between two to three inches, you have medium density.

High Density: The circumference of your ponytail will be at least four inches if you have high density.

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