ScalpMED Reviews: Does this hair loss treatment work?

Hair loss is distressing, and it can affect anybody. At least 50% of men and women will suffer from some form of hair loss or thinning by age 60.1 That loss can lead to depression and anxiety among sufferers, leading many to seek treatment, and many options on the market promise to help you keep or regrow your hair.2 So, is ScalpMED worth considering? We thoroughly tested its products and services to find out.

ScalpMED is one of many topical treatment programs for hair loss containing FDA-approved, non-prescription minoxidil. What sets ScalpMED apart from the competition is its combination of minoxidil and a patented carrier formula designed to maximize effectiveness. Like other topical treatments, ScalpMED will not revive dead hair follicles. If your hair is thinning, but your hair follicles are still alive, it can help you regrow and thicken your hair.

ScalpMED provides a novel but expensive treatment for men and women who want to combat hair loss without prescription intervention. Its patented minoxidil formula may outperform traditional applications, and its supplemental treatments should moderately increase efficacy. But compared to similarly effective treatments like traditional minoxidil and finasteride, ScalpMED is considerably pricier, and poor customer service makes ingredient lists for its hair care products inaccessible.

At Innerbody Research, we extensively test each health service we review. Our research team has spent just shy of 170 hours testing and researching ScalpMED and its top competitors to give you an unbiased exploration of your hair loss options.

Our testing team ordered ScalpMED for themselves to gain insights into everything from the customer service experience to the application of the product — specifically, how it differs from using typical minoxidil. We’ve also reviewed more than 100 clinical studies looking into the ingredients in ScalpMED products and hair loss in general. Additionally, this review of ScalpMED, like all health-related content on this website, was thoroughly vetted by one or more members of our Medical Review Board for accuracy.

Over the past two decades, we have helped tens of millions of readers like you make more informed decisions to live healthier lives.

In evaluating ScalpMED, we applied the same set of criteria we typically use to compare hair loss treatment services. These include effectiveness, cost, safety, and customer support. Effectiveness gets the lion’s share of the weight in many of our reviews, and it’s heavily weighted here.

But cost is a major differentiating factor between ScalpMED and its competitors. Despite its patented formula, the central medication it provides is minoxidil — which is equally effective from most companies. Safety follows along the same path, given the reliance on a well-studied and relatively safe drug like minoxidil. And we look at customer support here not so much as a deal breaker but, rather, as a potential scale tipper if you’re torn between ScalpMED and another company like Hims or Keeps.

Cost

Compared to minoxidil offerings from all of its closest competitors, ScalpMED’s combination treatment of Vitadil (minoxidil serum) and Nutrisol (patented carrier solution) is undeniably more expensive. And you can’t purchase it independent of a large bundle that includes either a thickening shampoo or a scalp detox serum and a nutritional supplement. The company couches them as gifts, letting you choose between them when purchasing, but it’s hard to imagine these aren’t factored into the high price point.

Let’s quickly look at how that compares to offerings from ScalpMED’s competitors:

As you can see, there’s a wide gulf between the price of minoxidil and the patented minoxidil formula ScalpMED offers. If it is truly more effective, which we’ll get into below, then ScalpMED might be worth the cost difference for some people, but most would do better to start with a less expensive option and try ScalpMED only if that doesn’t work for them.

Effectiveness

FDA-approved minoxidil has a respectable performance history, showing the ability to stop and reverse hair loss in multiple studies.3 However, once you apply it to your scalp, a clock starts ticking until the substance evaporates or absorbs into your bloodstream. ScalpMED’s formula is intended to slow both absorption and evaporation in an attempt to allow the minoxidil to sit in place longer and theoretically be more effective. The company’s internal studies show that its formula may indeed last longer on the head, but these were in vitro studies (conducted in a lab but not performed on humans or animals). They also don’t appear to be published anywhere that they could be peer-reviewed, and the company is not forthcoming with the studies themselves or significant details concerning them.

So, we rate ScalpMED highly for effectiveness based on the well-established knowledge that minoxidil is effective for many users.4 But the significant questions remaining about ScalpMED’s patented formula prevent us from going above this current rating. Greater transparency from ScalpMED about its studies would help.

Of course, ScalpMED has a few other products, and you need to consider these to see the complete picture of the company’s effectiveness. These include scalp treatments, shampoo and conditioner, and supplements. None of these ancillary treatments work anywhere near as well as minoxidil, but they can help strengthen your hair and create an environment on your scalp for continued growth.

Safety

Of the ingredients in ScalpMED’s system, most may only cause minimal side effects. Minoxidil can create sensitivity or even a burning sensation on the scalp, along with itching or scaling. However, this often decreases with use, and many people in minoxidil studies don’t find the adverse reactions serious enough to discontinue treatment. Another ingredient in ScalpMED’s minoxidil formulation is propylene glycol (PG), which is a common irritant for many.5 Hims and Keeps offer minoxidil in a foam that’s both easier to apply and devoid of PG, making it more suitable for anyone sensitive to it. ScalpMED’s patented carrier solution, Nutrisol-RM, contains many common ingredients found in hair care products, none of which should pose a threat to the average person.

Where ScalpMED’s safety profile suffers is in the PhytoComplex and Phyto-Pūr blends it employs in its nutritional supplement and hair care products. These blends have their ingredient doses obscured by proprietary formulas. And the ingredient lists for the company’s hair care products are not available on the website, nor can you access them with a request to customer service. Since we got hands-on with these products, we can show you those ingredient labels.

None of the botanicals in the supplement’s PhytoComplex are associated with especially dangerous side effects, particularly at the potential doses in which they appear. Some may even promote healthy cholesterol levels.6 But we find this lack of transparency concerning, with no way to know about sulfates, parabens, or other potentially dangerous chemicals in the shampoo, conditioner, and hair spray.

One important potential side effect to note is that about 4-6 weeks into a minoxidil treatment, some users experience a temporary acceleration of hair loss. It’s crucial to emphasize that this is temporary. It results from the product forcing your follicles to restart their growth phase, which may push existing hair out to make room. This may be the worst possible time to stop treatment, so if you experience this, push through a little longer, and you should begin to see regrowth. If you’re particularly concerned by this, speak to your doctor if it occurs.

Customer support

Customer support with ScalpMED is disappointing. The customer service hotline led to a voicemail instead of a person, though we received a call back just a few hours later. Once we got on the line with a representative, they were certainly friendly, but even uncomplicated questions required a bit of research on their end. Ultimately, even for simple requests like an ingredients list, they told us we’d get an email with those answers. None ever came, even after repeated attempts. (We include images of ingredient labels in the dedicated shampoo and conditioner sections below for your convenience.)

An underrated section on a lot of similar sites, the FAQ page ScalpMED offers is more helpful. The questions they pose are actually among the most pressing for potential patients, not just those with the most self-promoting answers. That said, the answers given are sparse in detail, especially when it comes to revealing ingredients in certain products.

Some of our orders arrived exceptionally quickly. From purchase to arrival, it was a little over 24 hours to our testers on the West Coast. Testers in the New York area waited closer to a week. ScalpMED does not advertise next-day shipping, of course, so this was a pleasant anomaly we don’t advise you to count on.

Founded in 2009, ScalpMED is a hair loss treatment company focused on a novel delivery mechanism for minoxidil. Its topical treatment is formulated to restore hair growth for those suffering from male or female pattern hair loss, and it can also be of use to those with alopecia areata, telogen effluvium, and chemotherapy-induced hair loss. Its most potent ingredient is the FDA-approved drug minoxidil, which effectively combats hair loss for many men and women.

What separates ScalpMED from its competitors is the inclusion of its patented Nutrisol carrier solution, which contains ingredients to nourish the scalp and extend the time that minoxidil is in place at the hair follicles, potentially extending its effectiveness. Users apply ScalpMED’s regrowth treatment twice daily, and it can produce visible results in as little as four months. Like all other topical treatments with minoxidil, ScalpMED’s products stop working once you discontinue use. It needs to become a permanent fixture in your hair care routine to achieve the full benefits.

Who is a good fit for ScalpMED?

One of the most successful treatments for men with male pattern baldness is a prescription medication called finasteride. But many men are wary of taking the drug due to a known incidence of sexual side effects.32 And because it mainly regulates testosterone activity, the treatment doesn’t offer a solution for women with thinning hair. That’s why ScalpMED focuses on non-prescription medicines like minoxidil that are suitable for both men and women.7

But you don’t have to be opposed to finasteride to reach for minoxidil. In fact, studies show that the combination of minoxidil and finasteride is more effective than either drug used in isolation.8

The major downside here is price. ScalpMED’s minoxidil is much more expensive than minoxidil from companies like Keeps and Hims — including the foam formulations from those companies, which reduce scalp discomfort in users sensitive to propylene glycol. We advise most people who have never tried minoxidil to start with Keeps or Hims (we recommend Keeps over Hims for minoxidil in our head-to-head guide). If you find that traditional minoxidil formulations from either company aren’t working well after several months, you may want to try ScalpMED to see if its patented carrier formula can increase the minoxidil’s efficacy for your hair loss.

ScalpMED’s company standing

ScalpMED isn’t accredited with the Better Business Bureau, with only three reviews posted to the Bureau’s website, all of which are one-star. It doesn’t get much better on Trustpilot, where ScalpMED has a 2.7-star rating from five total reviews at the time of this writing. To be fair, a rating made up of so few reviews, in our opinion, isn’t a large enough sample size to gauge ScalpMED’s potential with accuracy. Among these few reviews were complaints about poor customer service, bad skin reactions, and a lack of results.

ScalpMED’s core product — a combination of minoxidil and a patented carrier solution — should be safe for most users. Minoxidil’s side effect profile is well-known and minimal, consisting mostly of things like itching, scaling, and a burning sensation on the scalp.

A greater potential for side effects may exist in the patented carrier solution, but we’ve dug into the research regarding its individual ingredients and believe it should also be safe for most users. Its most abundant ingredients include:

• Water: Two hydrogens and an oxygen. We’re all mostly water, so this ingredient should be safe.
• Glycerin: Added for viscosity, glycerin should be safe for most skin types, even for those with eczema.9
• Polysorbate 80: This is an emulsifier used to bind other ingredients together.
• Retinol: Retinol is a type of vitamin A typically used in cosmetics for its purported anti-aging effects.10
• Saw palmetto extract: This is the ingredient most likely to address hair loss among the components of ScalpMED’s carrier solution. However, it can cause topical side effects like itching, forehead acne, and allergic contact dermatitis.11

ScalpMED’s other products boast similar safety profiles, though its PhytoComplex — a combination of botanical ingredients, many of which are plant sterols — is a proprietary blend. That makes it difficult to know how much of each ingredient is present. This can be an issue in the nutritional supplement, as plant sterols can affect hormonal activity and cholesterol levels.33 Though, to be fair, similar ingredients also appear in ScalpMED’s shampoo and conditioner, and where the same or similar ingredients appear in competitor shampoos from Hims, Keeps, or Roman, exact quantities are also not listed.

Androgenetic (or androgenic) alopecia (male and female pattern baldness) is the most common culprit for hair loss.12 It results when the body converts testosterone into an excess of the hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT). In addition to playing a role in other conditions, such as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), DHT constricts the small blood vessels on the scalp that bring nutrients and oxygen to the hair follicles.13 As the blood supply to the follicles diminishes, so does the delivery of nutrients, leading follicles to produce thinner hairs that live a shorter time, stunting the growth phase. Eventually, the follicles die and can no longer grow hair.

Prescription medications like finasteride act to inhibit the production of an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase, which is responsible for converting testosterone into DHT. Minoxidil and similar topical products work more as vasodilators and signaling pathway modulators without any effect on hormonal balance.24 That’s why women can use minoxidil but not finasteride.

Any minoxidil treatment will work best at the crown or vertex of the head. It doesn’t work as well on receding hairlines, especially when compared to how well finasteride works for hairline recession. It reactivates hair follicles that have stopped producing hair but have yet to die out completely. That’s why starting with a minoxidil treatment as early as possible is the best way to ensure you retain as much hair as you can.

Anyone undergoing chemotherapy should know that minoxidil doesn’t seem to stop hair loss.14 However, as chemotherapy-induced hair loss is typically temporary, you can use minoxidil to accelerate the rate at which your hair returns after treatment.

You can also use minoxidil to treat hair loss caused by telogen effluvium, which is a thinning that results from stress.15 Stress that can induce hair loss may be physical, emotional, or psychological. Your body could have elevated cortisol levels (the stress hormone) from a poor diet or extreme pressure at work.16 In situations like these, we recommend minoxidil to treat the hair loss itself but also that you seek a resolution to your stressors. That might mean a change of pace at work, revamping your diet, or a visit to a therapist. Whatever the case, minoxidil is only a symptom cure for stress-related hair loss.

Of course, avoid self-diagnosis if you notice that your hair is thinning. Androgenetic alopecia is extremely common, but there are other, more severe conditions for which hair loss is a symptom. These can include anything from nutritional deficiencies to immunological disorders. Be sure to speak with a dermatologist or trichologist before investing in any treatment courses.

ScalpMED’s main product is its regrowth formula (part of the regrowth system sets), supported by daily supplements, a weekly scalp treatment, shampoo, conditioner, and hair spray. Some ScalpMED products are packaged and marketed separately for men and women. The essential ingredients are the same, but the FDA-approved minoxidil concentrations are different for the two sexes, and the formulation of supplements is slightly different.

ScalpMED’s hair loss treatment revolves around its minoxidil formulation (Vitadil) combined with its patented carrier solution (Nutrisol).

• Vitadil is essentially a standard minoxidil solution in 5% concentration for men and 2% concentration for women. It also contains alcohol, propylene glycol, and water.
• Acting as a carrier, Nutrisol is designed to help the minoxidil solution remain on your scalp for a longer period, potentially increasing the duration of vasodilation and bolstering follicles more than minoxidil on its own.

We’ve spoken a bit about minoxidil’s potential to increase blood flow at the scalp, but this is only part of the picture of its efficacy. In truth, the scientific community isn’t entirely sure how minoxidil works. There are studies pointing to the vasodilation effect, but others have illustrated potential genetic effects downregulating certain inflammatory genes.24

You can try ScalpMED’s products by making a one-time purchase of two, four, or six months’ worth of treatments or signing up for a subscription service that bills and ships every two months.

You can supplement this effort with the company’s daily hair care kit, including shampoo, conditioner, and thickening spray, though only some of these are available on a subscription basis. ScalpMED told us this was due to the vast difference in product amounts used by men and women with varying hair lengths. The company would rather put the impetus to reorder products on its customers than prescribe any level of recurring shipment.

In our opinion, there’s no reason not to offer both a standalone and subscription model as an opportunity to add convenience and save customers money. Companies like Hims, Keeps, and Roman have subscription opportunities for all of their hair loss products.

Because hair grows slowly, hair regrowth therapy results can be slow to appear even when the treatment is working. Increased blood flow to the hair follicles can initially stimulate them to release previously produced, poor-quality hair, resulting in a brief shedding phase before new growth begins. Stick with it, though — you should see visible improvement after 4-6 months.

PhytoComplex and Phyto-Pūr blends

Central to three of ScalpMED’s supplemental treatments — specifically, its shampoo, conditioner, and nutritional supplement — are the company’s PhytoComplex and Phyto-Pūr botanical blends. In the case of the nutritional supplement, the company blends botanical extracts with plant sterols, the latter of which have been linked to improvements in cholesterol.6 There is also some research connecting plant sterols to hair health, with one study illustrating effects similar to those of 5-alpha reductase inhibitors like finasteride.17

The Phyto-Pūr blend, which is found in the shampoo and conditioner but not the supplement, shares few ingredients with the PhytoComplex. It doesn’t contain any plant sterols, but it has a selection of botanical extracts in it that are exclusive to the shampoo and conditioner. Other hair care products from ScalpMED have unique ingredient profiles, but none contain Phyto-Pūr or anything else the company has bothered to patent.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll find in the PhytoComplex for which we could identify at least some credible research:

Many components of the Phyto-Pūr blend suffer from a similar research deficit, though a few show potential in studies:

ScalpMED’s supplemental lineup includes nutritional supplements, a scalp detoxifier, and several hair care products. The supplement, detoxifier, and shampoo are available as free gifts with your purchase of the Vitadil and Nutrisol combination. This deal ends up providing you with a package similar to the non-prescription hair loss kit you can get from Hims, which includes minoxidil serum, thickening shampoo, and biotin gummies. That package costs $37/month, more than $20 cheaper than the monthly cost of ScalpMED’s two-month supply package.

Subscriptions used to be available on more ScalpMED products, but the company has recently limited that option to the shampoo and conditioner kit. There, the subscription will save you 10%. The only way to save money on other products is to buy in larger quantities, though even that cost-saving measure isn’t available for every product

Here’s a quick breakdown of ScalpMED’s costs. A one-pack of the Regrowth System lasts for two months:

ScalpMED’s nutritional supplements are available in packs of one, three, and six, priced at $39.95, $107.00, and $179.00, respectively.

Let’s take a closer look at each product to see what each has to offer.

The ScalpMED hair regrowth formula comprises two components that you mix together after they arrive and then use for twice-daily applications: Nutrisol and Vitadil. ScalpMED offers this product in its Hair Regrowth for Men and Hair Regrowth for Women packages. They also include an empty pump bottle into which you pour each solution to make the mixing and application process a little simpler.

Vitadil

Vitadil contains an FDA-approved minoxidil solution, which improves blood flow and nutrient delivery to the hair follicles. The men’s version contains 5% minoxidil, and the women’s version has 2%, in line with typical guidelines.

In the simplest sense, rather than directly blocking DHT, minoxidil promotes improved blood flow where you apply it on the scalp. DHT constricts the blood vessels in your scalp, starving your hair follicles until they die. By improving your blood flow at the scalp, minoxidil can stop and often reverse this damage. Research into minoxidil’s other potential mechanisms of action is ongoing, with potential genetic signaling effects under investigation.24 For now, we know that minoxidil is safe and side effects are rare (which is why it’s available without a prescription). You may experience some itching or scaling, as well as a burning sensation where you apply it.

Like many minoxidil solutions, Vitadil contains propylene glycol, which can be irritating to some scalps. If you experience discomfort with Vitadil, you may need to look for a foam minoxidil solution like the ones from Hims and Keeps, which do not contain this ingredient.

Nutrisol

The patented Nutrisol solution has several roles in the hair regrowth process. It contains biotin to strengthen hair and botanical ingredients like saw palmetto that act as DHT blockers, which can help improve blood flow to revitalize hair follicles. Most importantly, its glycerin can keep minoxidil in contact with the hair follicles for a more extended period by slowing evaporation.25

Normally, minoxidil absorbs into the blood and evaporates. Most minoxidil solutions are predominantly made with alcohol, which evaporates very quickly. In an in-vitro, double-blind study, Nutrisol allowed the minoxidil to remain on the scalp for six times longer than topical minoxidil by itself. This increased contact time may improve the treatment’s efficacy, potentially boosting the speed and quality of the results. Of course, this study was internally funded and has not been published or peer-reviewed, so its results should be met with some skepticism.

Here’s a look at the full ingredient list for Nutrisol:

• Water
• Glycerin
• Polysorbate 80
• Retinol
• Ethylhexylglycerin
• Sabal Serrulata fruit extract (saw palmetto)
• Beta-sitosterol
• Panthenol
• Cysteine
• Biotin
• Polysorbate 20

ScalpMED doesn’t provide quantities per dose for its Nutrisol formula, so it’s hard to compare its potential to the efficacy of some ingredients used in cosmetic and hair loss studies. We know saw palmetto plays a role in DHT inhibition when used orally or topically. There is also some evidence that beta-sitosterol can slow hair loss.26 However, glycerin is the second most abundant ingredient in the solution, and glycerin concentrations are directly proportional to evaporation reduction. That means it is likely to slow evaporation. The question that remains until ScalpMED gets its research published and peer reviewed is whether this slowdown is enough to make a difference in performance.

Let’s take a closer look at ScalpMED’s other products, especially those available as free gifts, to see if any of them can help justify that increase in cost.

ScalpMED’s selection of supporting products includes some things you’re likely to see from competing companies, and a couple of products that are less common in the landscape. Common products include a nutritional supplement, shampoo, and conditioner, while less common ones include the company’s styling spray and scalp detoxifier.

Grow My Hair

Available for men and women, Grow My Hair is a ScalpMED hair growth supplement you take in the morning before breakfast. Each bottle contains a 60-day supply and costs $39.95 if you purchase one individually, but they are included free in the ScalpMED growth kits.

ScalpMED’s supplements contain plant extracts in its patented PhytoComplex formula. They provide your body with several vitamins and nutrients connected with hair growth, as well as a few others, behind which the science is still fledgling.

Some of the ingredients known to have positive effects include:

• Beta-sitosterol: a chemical similar to cholesterol shown to reduce DHT production17
• Biotin: a B-vitamin linked to hair loss in deficient patients27
• Saw palmetto: an extract that performs well in hair loss studies when taken orally28

Grow My Hair contains a handful of additional vitamins and minerals, including:

• Riboflavin: 1.5mg
• Niacin: 5mg
• Zinc:15mg
• Selenium: 50mcg

The capsules contain gelatin, so they aren’t suitable for vegans or vegetarians. Nutrafol, a competitor, offers a more complex multivitamin and botanical ingredient profile than ScalpMED. But ScalpMED’s supplement is about half the cost.

Thicken My Hair shampoo

Thickening shampoos in this space typically include ingredients intended to cleanse the hair and scalp, but there are some others that aren’t meant to work the way a traditional shampoo does. Instead, they can increase moisture retention in hair follicles, fight dandruff, and even act as mild 5-alpha reductase inhibitors.

Thicken My Hair resembles these types of shampoos, which you can also get from the likes of Hims, Roman, and Keeps. It contains saw palmetto, which can inhibit DHT. It has botanical ingredients throughout that are on par with those other brands despite a lack of abundant evidence in their favor. The shampoo also has a nice, light scent from its peppermint and rosemary oils that our testers found refreshing. Even the lather was impressive.

But ScalpMED does a very bad job when it comes to transparency surrounding its shampoo (and conditioner, which we’ll get into below). Nowhere on the site can you access its ingredients, and if you contact the company to ask for them, you will not get them. We tried repeatedly. And the best thing the site seems to be able to say about it is that it’s “free of harmful ingredients and irritants.”

In truth, ScalpMED’s shampoo is sulfate-free and paraben-free. It frontloads its botanical complex and soothing ingredients like aloe vera. And many of its botanical ingredients are organic. None of ScalpMED’s competitors can match this combination of claims, but ScalpMED doesn’t bother to make them.

Of course, we acquired and tested the shampoo for ourselves, so here’s an image of the ingredient label:

The downside, which is a reliable refrain for ScalpMED products, is that it’s more expensive than others. But unlike ScalpMED’s regrowth formula, the shampoo’s price is only marginally higher than offerings from Keeps, Hims, and Roman. And you can get it for free as a gift with a purchase of the regrowth formula, though the company may have worked its cost into the price of that package and then recontextualized it as a gift to drive sales.

Here’s a quick comparison:

Note: That ridiculously low cost for Keeps only applies to your first order, after which the price for subsequent months reverts to $7.33.

Repair My Hair conditioner

ScalpMED effectively doubles down on its inexplicable reluctance to reveal details of an otherwise good product with its Repair My Hair conditioner. Between its organic ingredients and botanical blend, it’s on par with other conditioners in its class. On the website, it seems like ScalpMED is going to give you more information, listing it as sulfate-free, paraben-free, and not tested on animals. But the site stops there, and unlike the shampoo, whose ingredients become clearer when you get your hands on a bottle, the conditioner is more confusing in person.

Take a look at this image:

In addition to the basic ingredients list, ScalpMED has another list of “Key Amino Acids, Vitamins, & Minerals.” That list contains some ingredients that are apparent in the ingredient list and some that are not. Ingredients like vitamin E, isodesmosine, and histidine aren't identifiable in the ingredient list.

We reached out to ScalpMED for additional information about the conditioner’s ingredients, and we were met with friendliness and an assurance that such information would be forthcoming (either via email or traditional post). No information has arrived at this point.

The conditioner is a little pricier than the shampoo, coming in at $25.95 instead of $23.95, but that’s still inexpensive enough to compare to something like Hims Thick Fix conditioner at $22. If you’re already planning to try ScalpMED’s regrowth formula and select the shampoo as your free gift, the conditioner is likely a good option. It smells almost identical to the shampoo, as it contains the same peppermint and rosemary oils. But outside of that specific package, we can’t recommend it over similar products from competitors until the company provides us — and ideally the public — with clearer information.

You can also get the shampoo and conditioner together as a kit for $47.40 as a one-time purchase or $42.66 on a subscription basis. That can bring the monthly average cost of each product down to $23.70.

Cortex Enlarger

ScalpMED’s Cortex Enlarger has added benefits beyond typical hair spray, as it contains betaine and panthenol, both of which can cause hairs to absorb moisture. This can help keep hairs from drying out and breaking, which would otherwise add to the appearance of thinness. And strands with additional moisture in them will appear thicker, as well. Thicker individual hairs also help prevent areas of bald scalp from showing through your hairstyle.

In testing, the spray made only a subtle difference. We found the BIOVOLUME 128 in Hims Max Volume shampoo and conditioner to work a bit better. But, of course, this spray is for after you’ve gotten out of the shower, so it might help add to the effect of those other products should you choose to try them. Though, at $37.50/bottle, you might do better looking elsewhere first. That said, the likes of Hims, Roman, and Keeps all lack styling sprays. Keeps is the only one of the three with any styling products, but that’s a pomade.

Our testers also found that the product did an average job of styling, though some still relied on additional products like mousse or pomade to complete their looks.

Essentials Kit

ScalpMED sells Essentials Kits containing shampoo, conditioner, and styling spray. You can purchase these items as a set for $59.95 or individually, as priced above.

Detox My Scalp

Detox My Scalp is ScalpMED’s follicle detoxifier. The company designed this product to lift out toxic oils and cholesterol from your hair follicles, leaving them healthier in its wake. However, one of the spray’s main ingredients is alcohol, which can leave your scalp dry and prone to stress and flaking if you don’t nourish it properly afterward. This is likely why ScalpMED limits the spray’s recommended use to once weekly before using the shampoo and conditioner. One bottle of the spray costs $36.95, or you can opt to get it as a free gift alongside the Grow My Hair supplements when you purchase the regrowth kit.

While products like Rogaine are available over the counter in retail spaces, ScalpMED’s online presence and subscription offerings put them in direct competition with companies like Hims, Keeps, Roman, and Nutrafol. Some may see the value in ScalpMED’s unique formulas and supplemental products, while others may be more interested in saving money and sticking with treatments that have more research support.

Hims

Hims is a telehealth service that offers minoxidil, shampoo, conditioner, and supplements, much in the same vein as ScalpMED. It also offers doctor consultations to provide finasteride prescriptions in either oral or topical form and to help men figure out which treatment might be right for them. Its products are a little less expensive than ScalpMED’s, and we often recommend them for several hair loss strategies.

Hims also offers medications and other treatments for mental health and erectile dysfunction, making it a one-stop shop if you need to combat finasteride’s potential side effects or want to address additional health concerns in one fell swoop. It also boasts more flexible subscription models for its products instead of the bulk approach from ScalpMED.

Keeps

Keeps boasts similar hair loss offerings as those you’ll see from Hims. The biggest differences are that almost all of its prices are slightly better than Hims, and that it doesn’t offer the additional healthcare options you can get from Hims. Keeps’ thickening shampoo and conditioner also contain more ingredients in line with ScalpMED’s, but they cost significantly less.

Keeps also offers a prescription shampoo containing ketoconazole, an antifungal agent that keeps dandruff at bay. Dandruff ultimately results in a dry, flaky scalp, and it can cause you to lose more hair than you normally would. Hims also offers an anti-dandruff shampoo that we prefer for several reasons, not least among them that it doesn't require a prescription.

Roman

Thanks to a robust complementary healthcare infrastructure, Roman is closer to Hims than it is to Keeps. That system offers mental health care, ED treatments, allergy and eczema medications, and more. It also includes oral finasteride and minoxidil in both topical and oral forms. Right now, only Roman and Happy Head (another competitor) offer oral minoxidil, a version of the treatment that fell by the wayside for a time and is making waves in recent research.29

While not all of Roman’s prices beat out its competitors, its finasteride is less expensive than anyone else’s, making it a smart place to start if you’re interested in combining that treatment with something topical. However, Roman does not offer topical finasteride at this time.

Nutrafol

Nutrafol’s goal is to use drug-free remedies for everything from excess DHT to stress and even dietary problems. Naturopathic doctors on the team will speak with you about your symptoms and lifestyle after you sign up, and they can guide you toward the supplements that are most likely to have a positive effect on your hair loss.

The one knock on its services is that some hair loss supplements’ science isn’t overwhelming. Its products would make better supporting players alongside a more proven treatment like minoxidil or finasteride. That said, its primary nutritional supplements for men and women boast significantly more well-rounded ingredient lists than ScalpMED’s supplement.

In addition to hair loss, Nutrafol has supplements for women, pregnancy, liver health, and more. Its subscription method and doctor access make it a good place to start if you prefer a holistic approach. If you fail to see meaningful results, you can always upgrade to something like minoxidil. Just keep in mind that the sooner you begin seriously treating hair loss, the more hair you’ll ultimately be able to save and grow back.

The ScalpMED privacy policy is easy to read and clear about the information the company collects about you and how it can be used.

ScalpMED collects non-identifying data when you browse the site, including your IP address, the browser you are using, and information about how you interact with the site. Some of this information is collected automatically through the use of cookies and similar technology.

If you purchase products from ScalpMED, you will share your name, address, and financial information with them. The company stores this information securely and only uses it to complete services or in ScalpMED’s internal analytics regarding its customers’ demographics.

In cases where ScalpMED outsources these processes to a third party, your data can only be used for the specific service that ScalpMED requires and will not be used or disclosed for any other purpose by the third party. ScalpMED may share its customers’ email, mailing, or telephone lists with other reputable organizations.

ScalpMED may send you marketing SMS messages if you have signed up for SMS notifications. You can opt out of this at any time.