Detangler that doesn't weigh hair down

Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-In Detangler has the best record for keeping hair light: 27 of 30 said it didn't leave hair greasy or weighed down, and 58% of its reviews say it works on curly hair. The best pick sold on Amazon is TRESemmé Pro Pure Detangle & Smooth Spray at 15 of 17. Heaviness is the complaint to watch: 41% of reviews of Rizos Curls Refresh & Detangle Spray say it felt greasy or heavy, and it has the weakest record here at 12 of 21.

  • 228 store reviews counted
  • Target shoppers
  • Dec 2017 to Oct 2026

Updated . How we count

Did it leave hair light? What shoppers said
  1. Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-In Detangler 30 said either way
  2. TRESemmé Pro Pure Detangle & Smooth Spray 17 said either way
  3. SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Kids Detangler 33 said either way
  4. Hask Argan Oil Leave-In Spray 24 said either way
  5. Cantu Care for Kids Conditioning Detangler 23 said either way
  6. Garnier Fructis Pure Clean Detangler 25 said either way
  7. Rizos Curls Refresh & Detangle Spray 21 said either way

Share of reviewers who stated an outcome for weight. Ranked by the lower bound of a 90% confidence interval, so a product needs both a good share and enough reports to rank high.

Best record Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-In Detangler 27 of 30 say it left their hair light
Best pick on Amazon TRESemmé Pro Pure Detangle & Smooth Spray 15 of 17 say it left their hair light See price & reviews on Amazon
What stands out

Heaviness and build-up are the repeat complaints lower in the ranking: 41% of Rizos Curls reviews and 16% of Hask reviews say greasy or heavy, and 26% of Garnier reviews mention build-up. Sprayer trouble adds to the Rizos Curls complaints, at 28% of its reviews.

The ranking, product by product

Praise and complaints are the points reviewers repeat most, shown as a share of each product's counted store reviews.

1

Kinky-Curly

Knot Today Leave-In Detangler

Best for light feel on curls

27/30 say it left their hair light

Light feel is the draw: 65% of reviews say it isn't greasy or heavy, and 58% say it works well on curly hair. Reviews also credit it with getting knots out (35%). Complaints are small, with 8% mentioning build-up.

What buyers praise

  • Good on curly hair 57%
  • Gets knots out 35%
  • Smells good 28%
  • Leaves hair soft 23%
  • Good value 10%

What buyers complain about

  • Doesn't detangle 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 27 of 30

Share of 40 store reviews that mention each point. A full bar is 50%.

2

TRESemmé

Pro Pure Detangle & Smooth Spray

Best for light detangling

15/17 say it left their hair light

A smaller group weighed in (17 shoppers), and 15 of 17 said it left hair light. 50% say it gets knots out and 41% like the smell. Reviews first posted on the brand's site agree at 9 of 9, which we show but don't count.

What buyers praise

  • Gets knots out 50%
  • Smells good 41%
  • Good value 18%
  • Leaves hair soft 14%

What buyers complain about

No repeated complaints yet.

Where buyers said it
  • Target 15 of 17
  • Brand site 9 of 9 shown, not counted
3

SheaMoisture

Coconut & Hibiscus Kids Detangler

27/33 say it left their hair light

More reviewers weighed in on this one than on any other here (33 in all), and 27 of 33 said it left hair light. 52% say it gets knots out, 45% like the smell and 32% say it suits curly hair. Complaints are spread thin, with 10% saying greasy or heavy and 10% saying build-up.

What buyers praise

  • Gets knots out 53%
  • Smells good 45%
  • Good on curly hair 33%
  • Leaves hair soft 15%
  • Fewer tears at brushing time 8%

What buyers complain about

  • Doesn't detangle 10%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 27 of 33
  • Brand site 7 of 7 shown, not counted
4

Hask

Argan Oil Leave-In Spray

19/24 say it left their hair light

The smell splits shoppers: 39% like it and 10% don't. 19 of 24 said it left hair light and 32% say it leaves hair soft, but 16% call it greasy or heavy.

What buyers praise

  • Smells good 39%
  • Leaves hair soft 32%
  • Gets knots out 29%
  • Good value 6%

What buyers complain about

  • Doesn't detangle 10%
  • Bad smell 10%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 19 of 24
  • Brand site 8 of 10 shown, not counted
5 Cantu Care for Kids Conditioning Detangler

Cantu

Care for Kids Conditioning Detangler

Best for getting knots out

16/23 say it left their hair light

Knots are the draw, with 59% saying it gets them out. 16 of 23 said it left hair light, and 52% praise the light feel. Complaints are build-up (14%) and sprayer problems (14%).

What buyers praise

  • Gets knots out 59%
  • Smells good 38%
  • Good on curly hair 28%
  • Good value 10%
  • Leaves hair soft 7%

What buyers complain about

  • Sprayer problems 14%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 16 of 23
  • Brand site 7 of 7 shown, not counted
6

Garnier

Fructis Pure Clean Detangler

15/25 say it left their hair light

Opinions split: 15 of 25 said it left hair light and 44% praise the light feel, but 26% say it doesn't detangle and 26% mention build-up.

What buyers praise

  • Gets knots out 26%
  • Smells good 24%
  • Leaves hair soft 9%
  • Good on curly hair 6%
  • Good value 6%

What buyers complain about

  • Doesn't detangle 26%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 15 of 25
  • Brand site 2 of 4 shown, not counted

Share of 34 store reviews that mention each point. A full bar is 50%.

7

Rizos Curls

Refresh & Detangle Spray

12/21 say it left their hair light

Curls get the praise, with 50% saying it works on curly hair, but 41% say it felt greasy or heavy and 28% had sprayer problems. The brand's own site is more upbeat at 8 of 8, which we show but don't count.

What buyers praise

  • Good on curly hair 50%
  • Smells good 25%
  • Leaves hair soft 9%
  • Good value 9%
  • Gets knots out 9%

What buyers complain about

  • Sprayer problems 28%
  • Bad smell 13%
  • Too expensive 13%
  • Doesn't detangle 6%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 12 of 21
  • Brand site 8 of 8 shown, not counted

Share of 32 store reviews that mention each point. A full bar is 50%.

Where these numbers come from

The 7 products ranked here carry 3,788 reviews at Target. We read the newest reviews of each product (up to a thousand per listing), kept the ones that talk about weight, and counted up to 40 per product, posted between Dec 2017 and Oct 2026.

A review counts only when the reviewer used the product themselves. We drop reviews written in exchange for a free product or a sweepstakes entry (0 on this page), and products that are no longer sold.

Target also shows reviews first posted on brands' own websites. We show them on product cards but never count them, because brand-site reviews run more positive than store reviews of the same products.

Because we searched for the problem, people who had it are overrepresented. Compare products with each other rather than reading a share as your own odds.

Skin type, skin tone and age splits use what reviewers chose on Sephora's review form (and age on Ulta's when given). We only show a split when enough reviewers fall on each side.

Amazon buttons appear only on products that most reviewers here say fix the problem (at least 60%, with enough reviews to trust it). Everything else gets no buy link.

An AI model labels each review against a fixed list of points, and we spot-check the labels before publishing. We publish counts, never the reviews themselves.

Read the full method

Product pages we read

  1. Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-In Detangler Target (40 reviews counted)
  2. TRESemmé Pro Pure Detangle & Smooth Spray Target (22 reviews counted)
  3. SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Kids Detangler Target (40 reviews counted)
  4. Hask Argan Oil Leave-In Spray Target (31 reviews counted)
  5. Cantu Care for Kids Conditioning Detangler Target (29 reviews counted)
  6. Garnier Fructis Pure Clean Detangler Target (34 reviews counted)
  7. Rizos Curls Refresh & Detangle Spray Target (32 reviews counted)

Questions buyers ask

Which detangler doesn't weigh hair down?

Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-In Detangler has the best record (27 of 30), followed by TRESemmé Pro Pure Detangle & Smooth Spray (15 of 17) and SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Kids Detangler (27 of 33). Shoppers often write about weight when something went wrong, so read the shares as a way to compare these detanglers, not as a promise for your hair.

Which detanglers feel greasy or heavy?

Rizos Curls Refresh & Detangle Spray stands out, with 41% of its reviews saying so, against 16% for Hask and 10% for SheaMoisture. For the leader, Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-In Detangler, it is 5% of reviews.

Is there a detangler for curly hair that stays light?

Two do well and draw praise for curls: Kinky-Curly Knot Today Leave-In Detangler (27 of 30, with 58% of reviews saying it works on curly hair) and SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Kids Detangler (27 of 33, with 32% saying so). Rizos Curls Refresh & Detangle Spray gets the same praise for curls, at 50%, but it has the weakest record here at 12 of 21.

Do any of these detanglers have sprayer problems?

It is a repeat complaint on two of them: 28% of reviews of Rizos Curls Refresh & Detangle Spray and 14% of reviews of Cantu Care for Kids Conditioning Detangler mention sprayer problems.

Related problems

Detangling spray Detangler that gets knots out Top pick: Not Your Mother's All Eyes On Me 10-in-1 Hair Perfector 360 buyer reports Conditioner Conditioner for fine hair Top pick: Pureology Nanoworks Gold Conditioner 283 buyer reports Leave-in conditioner Leave-in conditioner for frizz Top pick: Mizani 25 Miracle Milk Leave-In 247 buyer reports Detangling brush Detangling brush for curly hair Top pick: Tangle Teezer Ultimate Detangler 175 buyer reports

HiveTried earns a commission when you buy through the "See price & reviews on Amazon" buttons. It never changes the ranking: the order comes from buyer reports only, and a product gets an Amazon button only when buyers here say it works.