Olaplex No. 6 Smooth Bond
Embrace your style with Olaplex’s vegan formula, which is a great match for Dae’s more expensive styling cream. With 14 ingredients in common, including nourishing Vitamin E, Olaplex is formulated without any sulfates or parabens. It’s also intensely hydrating, frizz-fighting, and strengthening hair to help you look and feel your best.
Pros
Strengthens and fortifies hair
Smooths and reduces frizz effectively
Hydrating for supple hair
Shares 45% of ingredients with Dae Styling Cream
Cons
Contains silicones, oils, and alcohols, which may not suit all hair types
Crème of Nature Pure Honey Shrinkage Defense Curl Activator
Experiencing dry, dull, and frizzy hair? This curl activator cream has a luscious honey scent and acts like a balm for dehydrated hair. As a styling cream, the formula is made without parabens or sulfates and is designed to elongate curls, keep them healthy, and prevent them from shrinking, which can cause damage. While Crème of Nature doesn’t define curls, it enhances natural hair to bring out your optimal texture.
Pros
Activates and elongates curls effectively
Free from parabens and sulfates
Great for treating dry, dull, or brittle hair
Cons
Contains allergens, fragrances, and oils which may be sensitizing for some users
Mielle Organics Oats and Honey Soothing Hair Balm
This ultra-soothing and intense anti-frizz balm is perfect for curly-haired people. The good news is that it’s not only budget-friendly, but a little bit goes a long way, so you can get your money’s worth. Just massage it into your scalp to get to the roots of your hair for the best results.
Pros
Deeply moisturizing for dry hair
Reef-safe and environmentally friendly
Enhances and defines curls
Effectively combats frizz
Cons
Mixed opinions on smell
Cake Beauty The Curl Friend Defining Curl Cream
Packed with rich natural oils and butter such as shea butter, avocado oil, and soybean oil, this smoothing and defining cream treats hair while it styles it. Fight frizz and enjoy glossy, defined, and touchable curls with one budget-friendly cream.
Pros
Enhances gloss and shine in hair
Effectively reduces frizz
Formulated with natural butters and oils.
Does not contain sulfates or parabens
Vegan and cruelty-free product
Cons
Does contain common allergens, fragrances, alcohols, silicones, and oil
Bumble and Bumble Curl Light Defining Cream
This luscious styling cream has a refreshing coconut scent and a curl-defining formula. Gentle even on chemically-treated hair, Bumble and Bumble Cream is incredibly lightweight and specifically designed for fine or medium hair to let you style, shape, and create effortless waves and curls.
Pros
Paraben and sulfate-free
Best for fine to medium-fine hair
Lightweight formula doesn't weigh hair down
Smooths and defines curls effectively
Cons
Contains some common allergens, fragrances, silicones, and oils
Biolage Smooth Proof Smoothing Shine Milk
Get sleek, glossy locks with this lightweight vegan hair milk packed with Vitamin E that promotes glossy hair health. The vegan formula is cruelty-free and designed to help hair thrive and stay sleek even in high-humidity conditions.
Pros
No parabens or sulfates
Enhances hair shine and gloss
Controls frizz effectively, even in humidity
Vegan and cruelty-free formula
Cons
May not work well for those sensitive to scents
Contains common allergens, alcohols, silicones, and fragrances
Moroccanoil Hydrating Styling Cream
Formulated without sulfates or parabens, this hydrating styling cream is a secret weapon for silky-smooth, frizz-free, and defined hairstyles. Infused with nourishing argan oil that packs a punch of vitamins, antioxidants, and essential fatty acids, this soothing and smoothing styling cream also blends an addictive scent of spicy amber, sweet, floral, and musk notes.
Pros
Great for all hair types
Smoothing, anti-frizz, and curl-defining
Smells good
Cons
Contains silicones and oils
Oribe Featherbalm Weightless Styler
Many hair styling creams are designed to help curly hair pop or maintain optimal moisture and structure. At the same time, people with fine, thin, or straight hair often find that these products weigh down their hair or make fine curls fall flat.
Oribe is a strong Dae Styling Cream contender thanks to its weightless formula that adds hydration and a touch of styling hold without acting too heavy for fine strands. Fine hair also tends to break easily, so Oribe uses Vitamin E and other ingredients to smooth, detangle, and strengthen hair while adding shine to air-dried locks, blowouts, or finished styles.
Pros
Vegan formulation
Safe for colored and keratin-treated hair
Paraben, sulfate, cruelty, and gluten-free
Cons
Price is on the higher side
Contains fragrance, oils, and silicones
Pattern by Tracee Ellis Ross Styling Cream
A thick, buttercream texture and deep moisture-penetrating properties, not to mention the ultra-affordable price, make this styling cream a standout dupe. Infused with almond oil, shea butter, and cacay oil, this oil-rich product nourishes hair to reduce breakage, promote hair retention, and help set a variety of hairstyles that include locs, braid outs, twist outs, Bantu knots, wash-&go styles, and more. It’s particularly friendly to tight, curly, or coiling hair types. With a buttery texture that helps elongate curls without getting crunchy or weighing them down, Pattern Styling Cream is the answer to gorgeous natural hair.
Pros
Great for curly hair types and natural hairstyles
Lightweight but holds hair in place
Rich in natural oils
Cons
Contains fragrance
Curlsmith Aqua Feather-Light Protein Cream
Made with vegan and cruelty-free ingredients, Curlsmith’s Cream delivers protein-packed nourishment to your hair. It is also super lightweight and fluid, so it won’t make your hair feel heavy or greasy. The formula is created without parabens, fragrances, sulfates, harsh alcohols, common allergens, or oils. Best of all, it balances and moisturizes to ensure healthy hair.
Pros
Supports strong and healthy hair with a low dose of essential proteins
Lightweight, non-greasy formula
Free from many harsh chemicals
Cons
Consistency is on the thin side
Choosing the Best Dae Styling Cream Alternative
Achieving smooth, frizz-free hair can seem like an impossible task some days. With heat, humidity, and some hair types that don’t respond well to the elements, many people are looking for a multitasking hairstyling product that does the job.
Dae Styling Cream is famous for its ability to quickly and effectively tame frizz, deliver shine, and separate and protect even tight curls without causing hair damage.
Besides delivering solid results, Dae Styling Cream has a formula made with clean, vegan, and cruelty-free ingredients. Many of these botanicals hail from the desert, including cactus, dragon fruit, meadowfoam seed oil, and prickly pear oil that leaves hair shiny, bouncy, and moisturized.
Whether you’re looking for a product to tame flyaways, give your curls some love, or find a styling cream that doesn’t flatten or weigh down fine, straight hair, there’s something for everyone on our list of Dae dupes that give shine, nourishment, and fizz-fighting benefits while going easy on the wallet. It all comes down to what best fits your hair type and needs.
The Most Affordable Dae Styling Cream Alternative
There are many affordable Dae Cream options, so choosing the most affordable one comes down to overall quality, versatility, and nourishing factors. At just $10, Curlsmith Aqua Feather-Light Protein Cream delivers outstanding results, treating and healing hair while styling it in a weightless way.
Our Favorite Dae Styling Cream Dupe
With so many great Dae Styling Cream alternatives on the market, it’s hard to pick a favorite, but we think that Olaplex No. 6 Bond Smoother does it best. With almost 48,000 4.5-star reviews on Amazon and a strengthening, hydrating, and frizz-eliminating vegan formula that leaves hair soft, volumized, and shiny, Olaplex is an outstanding dupe that ticks all the boxes on our list.