Mousse that defines curls without crunch

We count reviewers who said they have curly, coily or wavy hair, and among them OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse leads at 20 of 27 and is the best pick sold on Amazon. Aussie Miracle Curls Mousse has the highest share at 15 of 20, and Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Curl Activating Mousse follows at 15 of 21. The other four land between about half and two thirds, with Cantu Wave Whip Curling Mousse the weakest record here at 13 of 23.

  • 320 store reviews counted
  • Target shoppers
  • Mar 2016 to Oct 2026

Updated . How we count

Did curls come out defined and soft? What reviewers said
  1. OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse 27 said either way
  2. Aussie Miracle Curls Mousse 20 said either way
  3. Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Curl Activating Mousse 21 said either way
  4. Pantene Pro-V Anti-Frizz Mousse 22 said either way
  5. Garnier Fructis Curl Construct Mousse 23 said either way
  6. Cantu Wave Whip Curling Mousse 23 said either way
  7. Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Refreshing Curl Foam 17 said either way

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

OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse Best record OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse 20 of 27 say it defined their curls without crunch See price & reviews on Amazon
What stands out

Crunch complaints cluster on Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Curl Activating Mousse, in 38% of its reviews against 10% for OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse. Further down, weak hold and frizz are the common complaints, with Cantu Wave Whip Curling Mousse at 28% and 25%.

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 OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse

OGX

Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse

Best for definition and scent

20/27 say it defined their curls without crunch

Definition is the big praise, in 40% of its reviews, and 35% like the smell. More curly and wavy reviewers weighed in on it than on any other mousse here. Crunch comes up in 10% and dryness in 10%.

What buyers praise

  • Smells good 35%
  • Good hold 25%
  • Leaves hair soft 23%
  • Lightweight 15%
  • Adds volume 13%

What buyers complain about

  • Dries hair 10%
  • Weak hold 8%
  • Sticky 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 20 of 27
  • Brand site 5 of 5 shown, not counted
2

Aussie

Miracle Curls Mousse

Best for good value

15/20 say it defined their curls without crunch

Reviewers call it good value (20%) and 18% say it left no crunch. The complaints are hold and flakes: 15% found the hold weak and 12% mention flaking.

What buyers praise

  • Good value 20%
  • Good hold 18%
  • Smells good 13%
  • Leaves hair soft 13%
  • Lightweight 8%

What buyers complain about

  • Weak hold 15%
  • Flakes 13%
  • Frizzy 10%
  • Dries hair 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 15 of 20
  • Brand site 1 of 1 shown, not counted
3

Not Your Mother's

Curl Talk Curl Activating Mousse

15/21 say it defined their curls without crunch

It splits reviewers: 38% praise the definition, but 38% found it crunchy or stiff. Among reviewers with curly or wavy hair, 15 of 21 still said it left their curls defined and soft.

What buyers praise

  • Good hold 8%
  • Smells good 8%
  • Adds volume 5%

What buyers complain about

  • Sticky 10%
  • Frizzy 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 15 of 21
  • Brand site 3 of 3 shown, not counted
4

Pantene

Pro-V Anti-Frizz Mousse

14/22 say it defined their curls without crunch

20% say it left curls soft, but hold and frizz let it down: 20% found the hold weak and 18% mention frizz.

What buyers praise

  • Leaves hair soft 20%
  • Smells good 15%
  • Good hold 13%
  • Lightweight 8%
  • Good value 5%

What buyers complain about

  • Weak hold 20%
  • Frizzy 18%
  • Dries hair 8%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 14 of 22
  • Brand site 4 of 5 shown, not counted
5

Garnier

Fructis Curl Construct Mousse

Best for a light feel

14/23 say it defined their curls without crunch

Reviewers like how light it feels (24%) and the hold (24%), but 21% mention frizz. Reviews copied from Garnier's site come in at 5 of 7, which we show but don't count.

What buyers praise

  • Lightweight 24%
  • Good hold 24%
  • Smells good 13%
  • Good value 13%
  • Leaves hair soft 11%

What buyers complain about

  • Frizzy 21%
  • Dries hair 13%
  • Weak hold 11%
  • Sticky 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 14 of 23
  • Brand site 5 of 7 shown, not counted

Share of 38 store reviews that mention each point. A full bar is 50%.

6

Cantu

Wave Whip Curling Mousse

13/23 say it defined their curls without crunch

It has the weakest record here at 13 of 23, mostly over hold and frizz: 28% say the hold was weak and 25% mention frizz. Cantu's own site is all positive at 7 of 7, which we show but don't count.

What buyers praise

  • Smells good 18%
  • Lightweight 15%
  • Good hold 10%
  • Adds volume 8%
  • Good value 8%

What buyers complain about

  • Weak hold 28%
  • Frizzy 25%
  • Dries hair 5%
  • Sticky 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 13 of 23
  • Brand site 7 of 7 shown, not counted

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

7

Not Your Mother's

Curl Talk Refreshing Curl Foam

10/17 say it defined their curls without crunch

15% call it lightweight and 15% say it defined their curls. On the other side, 12% found it sticky and 12% say the hold was weak.

What buyers praise

  • Lightweight 15%
  • Smells good 10%
  • Good value 8%
  • Good hold 5%

What buyers complain about

  • Weak hold 13%
  • Sticky 13%
  • Frizzy 10%
  • Dries hair 8%
Where buyers said it
  • Target 10 of 17
  • Brand site 4 of 6 shown, not counted

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

Where these numbers come from

The 7 products ranked here carry 4,455 reviews at Target. We read the newest reviews of each product (up to a thousand per listing), kept the ones that talk about crunch, and counted up to 40 per product, posted between Mar 2016 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 (37 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. OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse Target (40 reviews counted)
  2. Aussie Miracle Curls Mousse Target (40 reviews counted)
  3. Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Curl Activating Mousse Target (40 reviews counted)
  4. Pantene Pro-V Anti-Frizz Mousse Target (40 reviews counted)
  5. Garnier Fructis Curl Construct Mousse Target (38 reviews counted)
  6. Cantu Wave Whip Curling Mousse Target (40 reviews counted)
  7. Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Refreshing Curl Foam Target (40 reviews counted)

Questions buyers ask

Which mousse defines curls without crunch?

OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse leads at 20 of 27 among reviewers with curly, coily or wavy hair. Aussie Miracle Curls Mousse (15 of 20) and Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Curl Activating Mousse (15 of 21) come next.

How do I get rid of crunch from curl mousse?

Let your curls dry fully, in the air or with a diffuser, then scrunch gently with your hands or a drop of oil to break the hard shell. Crunch comes up in 38% of Not Your Mother's Curl Talk Curl Activating Mousse reviews, so plan to scrunch that one out.

Do these mousses hold curls all day?

Hold is mixed. Weak hold comes up in 28% of Cantu Wave Whip Curling Mousse reviews and 20% of Pantene Pro-V Anti-Frizz Mousse reviews, while 25% of OGX Locking + Coconut Curls Mousse reviews praise the hold. A layer of gel or light hairspray over the mousse can help if your curls drop by afternoon.

Should I use mousse or curl cream on curly hair?

It depends on your curls. Many people with fine waves like mousse for its light feel, while thicker or coily hair often wants the moisture of a cream. Our curl cream page ranks creams by the same question.

Related problems

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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.