Photo by Innerbody Research
While hair loss is an extremely common issue, cultures across the world still associate it with aging and look upon it as a problem to be solved.1 Fortunately for men and women dealing with hair loss, treatments have come a long way in the past few decades, and accessing those treatments is easier than ever.
Hims has been a pioneer in expanding that access via telemedicine, initially offering oral finasteride and topical minoxidil but eventually expanding to a range of prescription and non-prescription interventions that boast significant scientific support.
Hims also offers numerous other products and services, including erectile dysfunction treatment, skin care, and even some mental health support. Our team has been reporting on Hims for years, and this review aims to spotlight the company’s hair loss offerings and compare them to your other options.
Our Findings
Editor's Rating4.40
Pros
- Oral and topical forms of the top two hair loss medications
- Well-priced, especially with extended billing periods
- Topical minoxidil available as a serum or a foam
- Topical finasteride is stronger, less expensive, or both, compared to competitors
- Good selection of effective, well-made shampoo and conditioner
- Relatively fast and straightforward consultation experience
- Live chat can provide nuanced information
- OTC products available through some retail outlets like Amazon or Target
Cons
- Oral minoxidil is only available mixed with a multivitamin
- No flexible dosing with Hair Hybrids
- Fewer medication options than some competitors
- $5 processing fee on all orders
Purchase options
With its expanding set of combination treatments and topical options, Hims is providing a customer-friendly variety of convenient and effective hair loss treatment options, making it likelier each year that the company will help the vast majority of men deal with pattern hair loss in the way that suits them best. Hims isn’t perfect – for instance, it doesn’t offer dutasteride as a treatment option, and minoxidil by itself is more affordable elsewhere — but in most cases, it rises to the top of the list in the long run.
Table of Contents
In this Review
Why you should trust us
At Innerbody Research, we extensively test each health service we review whenever possible, including telemedical services like Hims. At-home hair loss treatment options, whether prescription or OTC, have been a major focus of ours for years. We’ve followed Hims especially closely, keeping up with new offerings as they’ve become available and even ordering and trying nearly 20 different products and services in the company's lineup, around a dozen of which were specific to hair loss. And we’ve been similarly vigilant when it comes to Hims’ competitors.
At every stop, we’ve researched the scientific studies supporting the ingredients in Hims products, including more than 300 hours spent researching hair loss treatments. Additionally, like all health-related content on this website, this guide was thoroughly vetted by one or more members of our Medical Review Board for accuracy and will continue to be monitored for updates by our editorial team.
Over the past two decades, Innerbody Research has helped tens of millions of readers make more informed decisions about staying healthy and living healthier lifestyles.
How we evaluated Hims hair loss services
We considered several important criteria in evaluating Hims hair loss services, which made it possible for us to faithfully compare these products to those available from Hims’ direct competitors. And because the hair loss treatment landscape has expanded a lot in recent years, we looked at available medications as the most important criterion.
After that, we considered cost, safety, and the customer experience, a criterion we can speak to at length given our years of experience interacting with and ordering from Hims.
Let’s take a closer look at the most important factors in our Hims evaluation:
Treatment options
Rating: 9.2 / 10
Hims’ greatest strength is its treatment options. They don’t include every possible approach to treating hair loss, but they do include several varieties of the most popular and well-researched medications. The company also offers better shampoo and conditioner options than any others we’ve tried in the space.
Hims hair loss medications include topical and oral forms of both finasteride and minoxidil, drugs better known perhaps by their respective brand names, Propecia and Rogaine.2 Other companies offer similar solutions, but Hims’ variety is slightly greater than the rest.
Here’s a quick breakdown of what’s available in the hair loss market:
Hims | Keeps | Roman | Happy Head | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Oral finasteride | ||||
Topical finasteride | ||||
Topical minoxidil solution | ||||
Topical minoxidil foam | ||||
Oral minoxidil | ||||
Oral dutasteride | ||||
Topical dutasteride | ||||
Thickening shampoo and conditioner | ||||
Anti-dandruff shampoo | ||||
Nutritional supplements | ||||
Styling products | ||||
Bundles | ||||
Other healthcare, including sexual wellness support | ||||
Oral multi-therapies | 2 | 3 | ||
Topical multi-therapies | 3 | 1 | 8 |
As you can see, Hims’ variety of available treatments is impressive. It lacks a few things you can find from other companies, like dutasteride or styling products, but it has the potential to serve your core hair loss needs in more ways than its competitors.
What’s also interesting is that Hims is the only provider, at this time, offering chewable hair loss medication, including finasteride and minoxidil, as well as a multivitamin mixture intended to promote healthy hair growth. To be fair, that multivitamin is a little limited compared to similar products by Happy Head or Nutrafol, containing just four vitamins:
- Biotin: 2.5mg
- Vitamin B5: 10mg
- Vitamin B6: 2mg
- Vitamin C: 100mg
Happy Head's supplement contains more than 20 ingredients, though it does come at a significant cost, especially if you combine it with oral minoxidil or oral finasteride, as Hims does. That makes Hims Hair Hybrid chews a significant value by comparison.
Related:These are the best testosterone boosters, according to research studies
Cost
Rating: 8.3 / 10
Hair loss interventions are known as “forever treatments.” They aren’t cures, but they’ll be effective for as long as you keep using them. For that reason, it’s helpful to compare the costs of popular treatments over longer periods than just a month or two.
Most companies offer discounts for subscribers with larger billing/shipping periods. Let’s look at the best possible prices for a year’s treatment for some popular medications offered by the top companies:
Oral finasteride 1mg | Topical finasteride | Topical minoxidil serum | Oral minoxidil | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Hims | $269 | $480 | $160 | $480 (3mg) |
Happy Head | $288 | $1,428 | $708 | $264 (1.25mg) |
Roman | $240 | $600 | $192 | $360 (2.5mg) |
Keeps | $245 | $740 | $102 | N/A |
Hims doesn’t boast the lowest price in every category, but only its oral minoxidil presents the highest cost in the field. Its topical finasteride, which is compounded with a full 6%-7% minoxidil solution, is significantly less expensive than alternatives from competitors, some of which have lower concentrations of finasteride, minoxidil, or both. Topical finasteride is an especially popular treatment option because it can deliver many of the same benefits as oral finasteride without the potential for sexual side effects.3
Of note, Hims offers the largest oral minoxidil dose of the group at 3mg. Studies indicate that male pattern hair loss responds best to doses ranging from 2.5mg to 5mg daily.14 That places Roman at the low end of the effective spectrum and Happy Head well below it. Still, Roman’s cost per milligram is superior, as is the sticker price. So, if 2.5mg works for you, Roman may be the brand to stay with. But if you need something a little stronger, you might consider switching to Hims.
Customer experience
Rating: 7.7 / 10
We’ve spent a lot of time with Hims customer service, having ordered products and services from every one of the company’s major categories — hair loss, erectile dysfunction (ED), premature ejaculation, mental health care, skin care, and more. So our familiarity with the company runs deep, and we’ve typically had positive experiences as customers.
The live chat feature is the Hims website’s most useful tool if you have nuanced questions you need answered in detail. But that feature is available only at the site’s customer help center; it’s not available on any of the product pages.
The site itself is generally easy to navigate; it’s certainly gotten easier over the years. However, prices are not always clear, especially on prescription products. Roman, Keeps, and Happy Head are all up-front about their pricing, but Hims prices are sometimes hidden. You can get answers to most pricing questions through customer service, but we’d much prefer the information to be visible on the product pages.
As with most companies in this space, packages typically arrive quickly in nondescript boxes that don’t hint at their contents.
Safety
Rating: 8.5 / 10
Many of today’s hair loss treatments are generally safe, and Hims gets high marks for safety by using many of the same relatively safe ingredients as its competitors. Still, the active ingredients in these treatments do present some risks that are worth examining.
Oral finasteride continues to present the most harrowing side effect profile, with the potential for adverse sexual side effects in 2%-3% of users, as well as the potential to increase symptoms of depression.12 But Hims offers a great price on the topical version of finasteride, which prevents the majority of the dose from ever entering the bloodstream and causing those side effects.3
Related:Best Topical Finasteride | We Tried the Top Products [2024]
Oral minoxidil may not be safe for those with low blood pressure or on medications to control blood pressure. It was originally developed to reduce blood pressure, so some users may experience a significant and potentially dangerous drop.14 Oral minoxidil has also been associated with a high incidence of hypertrichosis, or unwanted hair growth on parts of the body other than the head. Despite its prevalence, this side effect rarely resulted in drop-outs in the studies we’ve researched.14
Topical treatments like finasteride and minoxidil might result in some burning, itching, or scaling, which are typically mild.15 These side effects are sometimes due to the inclusion of propylene glycol, an ingredient you won’t find in the Hims topical minoxidil foam. With Hims, then, customers with sensitive scalps have an additional option for successful treatment.24
What is Hims?
Hims is a telehealth company offering a range of products and services aimed at treating hair loss, ED, mental health issues, and more. The company’s catalog has expanded and contracted over the years, but hair loss treatments have always been part of its core. In fact, while Hims has trimmed the fat around some of its ancillary services (e.g., its primary care platform and mental health coverage, including individual counseling), its focus on hair and sexual health has increased.
Hims continues to add new products in these areas, such as custom-compounded medications and chewable tablets for hair loss and ED. How the company’s product line might evolve in the future remains to be seen, but we’ll stay on top of it as always.
Who is Hims for?
Hims is built for men, a designation that can include anyone assigned male at birth and others who identify toward the male end of the spectrum. The company has a sister site called Hers that’s designed to address female concerns more directly.
However, many of the products and services found on Hims are suitable for anyone, like minoxidil for hair loss or the company’s skin care line. Case in point, the female partners of some of our male testers have made good use of products we’ve bought from Hims.
Since the company offers several different products, it’s worth the time to go through the consultation process to see what you may be eligible to take.
Who might want to look elsewhere?
So, there aren’t many people for whom the company can’t offer at least some benefits. But it’s worth noting that products containing finasteride — whether in simple tablet form or compounded into topicals — are not suitable for women who haven’t been through menopause. That’s because the hormonal influence finasteride exerts on the body can cause significant side effects in younger women.25 Similarly severe risks extend to other products, as well, like oral minoxidil not being suitable for people with certain heart conditions.14
What causes hair loss in the first place?
Hair loss can occur under many circumstances. There are obvious influences like genetics but also unexpected factors like medication side effects or hormonal disorders.
The most common form of hair loss is androgenetic alopecia (sometimes called androgenic alopecia).4 The primary driver behind androgenetic alopecia is the hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT). When you produce too much DHT, it messes with your hair follicles, and those follicles shed their strains and have trouble creating new ones. In time, as this happens to more and more follicles, you experience hair loss.5
The most effective way researchers have found to combat DHT accumulation is to stop your body from creating so much of it to begin with. That requires a little dance with an enzyme called 5-alpha reductase. Your body typically uses 5-alpha reductase to turn testosterone into DHT, so doctors will prescribe 5-alpha reductase inhibitors to slow this conversion and allow your follicles to breathe again.
But medication can’t address every cause of hair loss. For example, telogen effluvium is a type of hair loss caused by physical or psychological stress on the body like chemotherapy, an accident, or a bad breakup.6 Your DHT levels have nothing to do with this kind of hair loss, so a 5-alpha reductase inhibitor won’t help.
Hair loss can also result from an autoimmune disorder called alopecia areata, in which your body’s immune system attacks the hair follicles.7 Alopecia areata can be localized, causing a patch of baldness, or it can go so far as to affect the whole body, rendering you completely hairless. None of the hair loss treatments you’ll find from Hims or its competitors can treat alopecia areata.
What does Hims offer for hair loss?
The Hims hair loss product line consists of various topical and oral medications — routes of delivery that remain the most widely researched and reliable methods for treating hair loss. Here are the products Hims offers to help you fight hair loss and maximize hair health:
- Finasteride (oral and topical)
- Minoxidil (oral and topical)
- Multivitamins
- Biotin gummies
- Thickening shampoo and conditioner
- Volumizing shampoo and conditioner
- Anti-dandruff shampoo
You can mix and match several of these solutions with oversight from your Hims doctor to ensure you get the greatest possible efficacy while minimizing potential side effects.
Some competitors offer additional products that are missing from the Hims line, such as volumizing styling products or dutasteride (an alternative to finasteride). You can also find lesser-known ingredients like spironolactone and latanoprost from a competitor like Happy Head.
Do Hims hair loss products work?
Hims hair loss products should be effective for most men in the early-to-middle stages of hair loss, as they have the potential to stop further loss and revive dormant follicles.
In a placebo-controlled study looking at more than 1,500 men using finasteride 1mg for up to two years, men on finasteride saw a greater than 10% increase in hair count within target areas.8 Another study pitting topical finasteride against oral finasteride showed nearly identical results between the two.3
On the minoxidil side, studies of its topical application reveal increases in scalp coverage and patient satisfaction at the 5% concentration, which is the minimum employed by Hims.9 Oral minoxidil has produced similar, occasionally superior results to its topical counterpart, and it does so without the inconvenient regimen topical minoxidil involves.10
However, these medications can’t resurrect follicles from the dead if they’ve been starved of nutrients for too long. Also, you have to keep taking the product for as long as you want to keep your hair. Once you stop, your hair loss resumes.
Are Hims hair loss products safe?
While finasteride and minoxidil have been shown to be effective in treating hair loss, they aren’t without their risks. Here’s what you can expect from each:
Oral finasteride
In about 2-3% of patients, oral finasteride can cause unwanted sexual side effects, including reduced libido, infertility, and erectile dysfunction.11 Over the years covering men’s hair loss, we’ve spoken to many men who’ve experienced these effects, which can severely impact a person’s quality of life.
Finasteride is also capable of increasing symptoms of depression, which is why any good intake screener (including the one Hims employs) will ask you about your depression history when you seek hair loss treatment.12
Oral minoxidil
Oral minoxidil does not suffer from the same potential sexual side effects you see in finasteride, but that doesn’t mean it’s completely safe. As it was originally developed to treat high blood pressure, minoxidil may lower blood pressure in men taking it for hair loss.13 That said, hypertension doses range between 10mg and 40mg daily compared to the 1mg-5mg daily dose applied in hair loss cases. And some research suggests that minoxidil doesn’t exert a hypotensive effect in patients with normal blood pressure.14
Oral minoxidil has also been associated with a high rate of hypertrichosis, or the unwanted growth of hair on body parts other than the scalp.
Topical finasteride or minoxidil
Though topical finasteride and minoxidil get around the unpleasant side effects associated with their oral counterparts, they can cause itching, burning, scaling, or other discomfort at the application site.15
Finasteride from Hims
Photo by Innerbody Research
Finasteride, the generic form of Propecia, is one of the most widely used hair loss medications on the market. Accessible only with a prescription, it’s a 5-alpha reductase inhibitor that slows the conversion of testosterone into DHT — the culprit behind pattern hair loss.8 For most of its lifespan, finasteride has been prescribed orally, but topical administration has recently gained popularity for having similar efficacy with a significant reduction in side effects.3
Hims offers finasteride in the following forms:
Dose | Ideal for | Other ingredients | |
---|---|---|---|
Oral tablets | 1mg | Hairline thinning | None |
Oral chews | 1.1mg | Hairline thinning | 3mg minoxidil (optional), 2.5mg biotin, multivitamin |
Topical spray | 0.3% | Global thinning | 6% or 7% minoxidil, 2.2% ketoconazole (optional), biotin |
Topical serum | 0.3% | Global thinning | 6% minoxidil, essential oils |
This variety of delivery mechanisms makes Hims a great place to start for men interested in finasteride treatment. Competitors Keeps and Happy Head lack the chews and the topical spray (though Keeps has gel and foam options), and Roman lacks the chews and topical serum.
Photo by Innerbody Research
Oral finasteride’s side effect profile is a big sticking point for a lot of men, as it’s been shown to cause sexual side effects in about 2% of users and present mental health implications for others. These can include:11
- Loss of libido
- Erectile dysfunction
- Fertility issues
- Increased intensity of depression
Fortunately, Hims has the ability to treat sexual dysfunction. If you find yourself among the unlucky 2% who experience sexual side effects from oral finasteride, Hims doctors can prescribe you several treatments, including the generic forms of popular PDE-5 inhibitors like Cialis and Viagra.
Related:Hims ED Review | Are Hims’ erectile dysfunction pills legit?
Minoxidil from Hims
Photo by Innerbody Research
While it was initially developed as an oral medication for hypertension, minoxidil’s tendency to create extra hair growth led researchers to develop a topical formulation that eventually hit the market as Rogaine. It’s been a very successful treatment that, unlike finasteride, doesn’t require a prescription.16
Hims offers minoxidil in a few different forms. Let’s take a quick look before delving into the details:
Dose | Ideal for | Other ingredients | |
---|---|---|---|
Oral chews | 3mg | Global thinning | 1.1mg finasteride (optional), multivitamin |
Topical spray | 6% or 7% | Global thinning | 0.3% finasteride, biotin, 2.2% ketoconazole (optional) |
Topical serum | 5% or 6% | Crown or global thinning | 0.3% finasteride (optional), essential oils |
Topical foam | 5% | Crown thinning | N/A |
Many men find that combining topical minoxidil with oral finasteride creates an effective one-two punch, as minoxidil seems to work better on the crown than the hairline, and finasteride seems to work better on the hairline than the crown.17
For many men, the problem with topical treatment is the regimen. It can be messy and cumbersome to apply, and you can’t shower or go to sleep for several hours after application (for fear of rinsing away or unintentionally spreading the product to other parts of your body or other people in the house).
Oral minoxidil has recently returned to the spotlight as a hair loss treatment that’s globally effective (working all over the head, including at the hairline) without a messy application or oral finasteride’s side effect profile. To be fair, it has some risks of its own, including serious cardiovascular ones for certain individuals,13 but otherwise healthy men would likely find it safer than finasteride.
For its combination of convenience and efficacy, oral minoxidil has become a top recommendation of our editorial staff. Hims doesn’t have the best price for oral minoxidil, but it does have the highest available dose among competitors, and it delivers the medication as a chewable tablet.
Topical minoxidil products are available over the counter unless they contain finasteride, which requires a prescription as an oral or topical medication. Oral minoxidil also requires a prescription at this time.
Hims hair care products
Photo by Innerbody Research
In addition to its various iterations of finasteride and minoxidil, Hims offers a handful of well-made hair care products, including a shampoo and conditioner line we think is among the best in its class.
Here’s a quick look at Hims’ hair care lineup:
Thick Fix shampoo and conditioner
This is Hims’ primary shampoo and conditioner combination, and it makes an excellent go-to even if you aren’t worried about hair loss. The inclusion of saw palmetto may help reduce the amount of DHT active on your scalp, so it’s a nice addition to a treatment regimen.18 Both products smell nice (vaguely fruity with a hint of lavender) and lather relatively well.
Max Volume shampoo and conditioner
Hims Max Volume contains a branded compound called Biovolume 128, a patented form of Tilia tomentosa bud extract. Anecdotal evidence supports its ability to increase hair volume, and our testers noticed a slight increase, but scientific support is still lacking. Regardless, our testers agreed that this combination earned the top rank for fragrance in any shampoo and conditioner combo by Hims or any of Hims’ competitors, sporting a deep aroma of orange and spice.
Dandruff Detox anti-dandruff shampoo
This product comes only as a shampoo with no companion conditioner. It leverages pyrithione zinc as its dandruff-fighting agent, which boasts some supportive clinical research.19 It smells fine for an anti-dandruff shampoo — nowhere near as medicinal as some others — and pairs nicely with Hims Thick Fix conditioner.
Biotin gummies
While biotin deficiency is associated with hair loss, it’s also exceedingly rare, and biotin supplementation in healthy individuals doesn’t appear to make a big difference in hair growth.20 Still, there’s anecdotal evidence that suggests otherwise, so biotin remains a marketable ingredient.
Hims hair loss pricing
Hims doesn’t typically boast the lowest prices for hair loss interventions, but it’s also rarely the most expensive. And extended billing cycles — every 3, 5, or 12 months — can help bring down costs where available.
Those billing cycles can be confusing, however, especially when only a portion of Hims products are priced clearly on its website.
Below, we demystify some of Hims’ pricing practices so you know what you’re getting into and how certain offerings compare to similar products from companies like Keeps, Happy Head, and Roman.
Insider Tip: Hims charges a $5 processing fee on all orders. That means any monthly subscription to a product incurs an additional $5 each month, totaling $60 a year in processing fees alone ($5 x 12 months). But an annual subscription incurs only one $5 processing fee per year, saving you $55. So, in addition to offering lower costs per item in most cases, extended billing cycles also save you on processing fees.
Hims finasteride pricing
Let’s start by looking at finasteride options. Hims sells finasteride as an oral medication in 1mg doses on its own or 1.1mg doses when combined with minoxidil in a chewable tablet. It’s also available as a topical medication in spray and serum form, always combined with minoxidil.
Monthly cost | Quarterly cost | 5-month cost | Annual cost | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Oral finasteride 1mg tablets | N/A | $78 | $144 | $264 |
Oral finasteride 1.1mg and minoxidil 3mg chews | $80 | $147 | $195 | N/A |
Topical finasteride 0.3% and minoxidil 6% spray | N/A | $150 | $195 | N/A |
Topical finasteride 0.3% and minoxidil 7% spray with 2.2% ketoconazole and biotin | N/A | $177 | $225 | N/A |
Topical finasteride 0.3% and minoxidil 5% serum | N/A | $177 | $225 | N/A |
Because the combination chews provide a relatively high dose of minoxidil compared to competitor offerings, that option likely presents the best deal for men looking to combine therapies with an oral delivery route (and the added vitamin content doesn’t hurt, either). Happy Head’s oral minoxidil is only a 1.25mg dose, either on its own or combined with 1mg finasteride. Roman’s oral minoxidil is superior in price and close in dose at 2.5mg, but it doesn’t come combined with any other ingredients.
Hims minoxidil pricing
As with finasteride, Hims offers numerous versions of its minoxidil — oral medication and topical formulas. Oral minoxidil still requires a prescription, whereas topical minoxidil does not. Here’s how Hims prices its minoxidil:
Monthly cost | Quarterly cost | 5-month cost | Annual cost | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Oral minoxidil 3mg chews | $80 | $147 | $195 | N/A |
Oral finasteride 1.1mg and minoxidil 3mg chews | $80 | $147 | $195 | N/A |
Topical finasteride 0.3% and minoxidil 6% spray | N/A | $150 | $195 | N/A |
Topical finasteride 0.3% and minoxidil 7% spray with 2.2% ketoconazole and biotin | N/A | $177 | $225 | N/A |
Topical finasteride 0.3% and minoxidil 5% serum | N/A | $177 | $225 | N/A |
Topical minoxidil 5% serum | $15 | $45 | $75 | N/A |
Topical minoxidil 5% foam | $30 | $60 | $114 (six-month) | N/A |
Again, the minoxidil chews offer great value if you’re looking for a convenient delivery route that maximizes your dose. However, it’s worth noting that Roman’s oral minoxidil is less expensive than the Hims version, so that may be a better choice if you want to save some money on a 2.5mg dose that isn’t combined with any other medications.
Hims’ price for topical minoxidil serum is one of the few that firmly beat out the competition. Keeps’ serum comes in a close second at $16 monthly.
Hims hair care pricing
Hims hair care products are reasonably priced compared to other options on the market. There’s also more variety than you’ll see in catalogs from Roman, Keeps, or Happy Head. In some cases, you can save money by subscribing for longer billing cycles, while some other hair care products from Hims are only available for a one-time purchase. You’d have to buy multiple bottles in those cases to avoid regular processing fees whenever you run out.
Here’s how the pricing looks:
Monthly cost | Quarterly cost | 6-month cost | Annual cost | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Thick Fix Shampoo (one-time purchase only) | $19 | $57 | $114 | $228 |
Thick Fix Conditioner (one-time purchase only) | $22 | $66 | $132 | $264 |
Max Volume Shampoo | $17 | $48 | $90 | N/A |
Max Volume Conditioner | $17 | $48 | $90 | N/A |
Dandruff Detox Shampoo | $17 | $48 | $90 | N/A |
Biotin Gummies | $16 | $48 | $96 | $192 |
Bundling options
Hims offers a few money-saving bundles for those who know they want multiple products from the lineup. They include:
Hair Power Pack
At $190, this bundle includes a three-month supply of 1mg oral finasteride, topical minoxidil serum, Thick Fix shampoo, and biotin gummies. Separately, these products would cost $228.
Non-prescription Hair Loss Kit
This $37 bundle is the same as the Hair Power Pack, but it omits the oral finasteride and ships monthly instead of quarterly. Separately, the products would cost $50.
Max Volume Shampoo + Conditioner
This is a simple bundle that packages two related products for $30, instead of the $34 it would cost to buy them separately. Unfortunately, Hims doesn’t have a similar bundle for its Thick Fix shampoo and conditioner.
Hims products for sale elsewhere
Hims sells several of its over-the-counter hair loss products in other places like Amazon and Target, often at prices that resemble what you’d pay with a high-level subscription through Hims. This could save you money in most cases when you’re shopping for
For instance, here’s a quick price comparison comparing Target prices and one-time purchases through Hims:
ForHims.com | Target | |
---|---|---|
Thick Fix Shampoo (one-time purchase only) | $19 | $14 |
Thick Fix Conditioner (one-time purchase only) | $22 | $14 |
Max Volume Shampoo | $17 | $15 |
Max Volume Conditioner | $17 | $15 |
Dandruff Detox Shampoo | $17 | $15 |
Non-prescription Hair Loss Kit | $37 | $30 |
Topical minoxidil 5% serum | $15 | $15 |
Topical minoxidil 5% foam | $30 | $27 |
As you can see, Target sells these items for a little less than you’d pay on Hims’ website, and there’s no $5 processing fee. However, you can’t access any of the Hims Hair Hybrid products, whether topical or oral, and you can’t get prescription Hims products anywhere other than the Hims website.
HSA, FSA, and health insurance
Insurance companies very rarely cover hair loss treatments. We’ve seen cases in which burn victims and childhood cancer patients were denied coverage for hair growth treatments. So, at this time, neither Hims nor its competitors work with insurers for hair loss, and you won’t be able to get a reimbursement through an HSA or FSA, either. In fact, Hims’ Terms and Conditions explicitly state that you can’t make an HSA/FSA claim.
Alternatives to Hims for hair loss
Hims has some pretty ardent competition in the hair loss space. We’ve mentioned its top three competitors throughout this piece, but now let’s take a slightly closer look at each, as well as another approach to hair loss treatment that you may prefer.
Similar companies to Hims
Hims’ top three competitors in the hair loss treatment space are Keeps, Happy Head, and Roman. Each has its strengths and weaknesses, as described below:
Keeps
Keeps generally has better prices than Hims in most categories, but Hims has several products in its catalog that Keeps does not, most notably oral minoxidil. Keeps used to focus solely on hair loss, but it’s recently expanded to offer several sexual wellness products, including STD testing and ED medication. However, ED meds are typically less expensive from Hims and other providers.
Happy Head
Happy Head maintains a focus on hair loss. It was the first in its class to offer custom-compounded medications — in both oral and topical forms. Its lineup also includes meds that others don’t, like spironolactone and dutasteride, the latter of which is an alternative to finasteride that’s shown serious promise in studies. In one case, dutasteride beat out oral finasteride as well as oral and topical minoxidil in increasing total hair count.21
Roman
Roman is the competitor that most directly resembles Hims, boasting a wide catalog of treatments for hair loss, ED, premature ejaculation, skin care, and more. It has the best prices for oral finasteride and oral minoxidil, though its minoxidil dose is slightly lower than what you get with Hims (2.5mg vs. 3mg), and its hair loss treatments are limited to six products in total.
Low-level laser therapy (LLLT)
LLLT is a form of photobiomodulation that stimulates blood flow in the scalp. It has gained serious traction in recent years, with the prices of laser caps coming down to more attainable levels. The technology has been shown to be about as effective as topical minoxidil, and its regimen is more convenient for many.22
Related:The Best Laser Caps for Hair Loss in 2024
The entirety of its mechanism of action isn’t completely understood, but studies have regularly shown that it can stop hair loss and regrow hair.23
For most people, we typically recommend the Kiierr 272 Premier Laser Cap. It’s well-priced, boasts a high number of laser diodes, and has one of the longest battery lives we’ve encountered.
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