What Is Your Hair Type?
A plain English guide to the hair typing system, the 1 to 4 and a, b, c scale that sorts hair by curl pattern, what type 4 Afro textures mean, and why porosity and density matter just as much.
African Stores Editorial Team
The short answer
Your hair type is a shorthand for your curl pattern. The system runs from 1 to 4, where 1 is straight, 2 is wavy, 3 is curly and 4 is coily or Afro textured, and each number is split into a, b and c for how tight the pattern is. So 4a, 4b and 4c all describe coily hair, from springy coils through to a tight zigzag. Type is useful, but it is only one piece of the picture, since porosity and density shape how your hair behaves too. African Stores lists salons and beauty supply shops across the UK to help you care for whatever type you have.
What to remember
- The hair typing system sorts hair by curl pattern from 1, straight, through to 4, coily or Afro textured.
- The letters a, b and c mark how tight the pattern is within each number, so 4a is looser and 4c is the tightest.
- Type 4 covers most Afro textures, and many heads carry more than one type across different sections.
- Curl type is only one factor, and porosity and density often tell you more about how to care for your hair.
- The system is a helpful starting point, not a rulebook, so use it to understand your hair rather than to grade it.
Ask around any family with Afro textured hair and you will hear a dozen small debates about whose head is which number. A cousin insists she is a solid 4a, an aunt swears the crown is looser than the nap, and somebody always pulls a coil straight to prove a point at the kitchen sink. The typing system arrived and gave everyone a shared vocabulary for something they had always known by feel.
What lingers is not the labels so much as the care wrapped around them. Learning your type is really learning your hair, the way it drinks up a butter, the way it springs back after wash day, the way one section behaves nothing like the next. That knowledge, passed between generations and now shared freely online, turns a chart into something warmer, a way of understanding and celebrating the texture you were born with.
What the Hair Type System Actually Is
The hair typing system is a simple way of describing the shape of your curls using a number and a letter. It was popularised in the 1990s and has since become the common language people reach for when they talk about their hair online, in salons and on product labels. The idea is straightforward. Hair is grouped into four numbered families based on how much it curls, from dead straight to tightly coiled, and each family is then split into three sub types marked a, b and c to capture the finer differences within it. Put together, you get labels like 2b, 3c or 4a that give a quick sense of what someone is working with.
It helps to remember what the system is and is not. It is a descriptive tool, a way to name a pattern so you can find products, tutorials and stylists suited to it. It is not a test you pass or fail, and it says nothing about whether one type is better than another. Plenty of people find their type at a glance, while others sit between two categories or carry several types across one head, which is completely normal. This article is general grooming information rather than a strict guide, so treat the labels here as a starting point for understanding your own hair, not a box you have to fit neatly inside.
What the Numbers and Letters Mean
The number tells you the broad shape. Type 1 is straight hair with no natural curl. Type 2 is wavy, forming loose S shapes that range from a slight bend to a defined wave. Type 3 is curly, with springs and ringlets you could loop around a finger. Type 4 is coily or Afro textured, where the hair forms tight coils, springs or zigzags close to the scalp, and it is the family that covers most Afro and Caribbean hair. Within type 4, the sub types matter a great deal. 4a has springy, defined coils about the width of a crochet needle, 4b bends in sharper angles like a folded zigzag, and 4c is the tightest of all, with coils so compact they may not show a clear curl until the hair is stretched. If you want a closer look at that tightest texture, our full guide to 4c hair goes into detail.
The letters, then, are all about how tight the pattern sits within its number. An a is the loosest and most open version of that curl, a c is the tightest and most compact, and b sits in between. This is why two people can both have type 4 hair that looks and behaves quite differently, one with soft, visible coils and another with a dense, cottony texture that drinks up moisture. It is also worth saying that very few heads are a single clean type. It is common to have looser curls at the crown, tighter coils at the nape and something different again around the hairline, so many people describe themselves with a range, such as 4a to 4c, rather than one fixed label.
Type Is Not Everything Porosity and Density
Curl type gets most of the attention, but it is genuinely only one of several traits that shape how your hair behaves, and often not the most useful one. Porosity, which is how easily your hair takes in and holds on to moisture, frequently tells you more about which products and routines will work. Low porosity hair resists water and can sit with product on top of it, so it tends to prefer lighter layers and a little warmth to help things absorb. High porosity hair soaks moisture up quickly but loses it just as fast, so it usually loves richer creams and butters to seal that moisture in. A rich, natural sealant such as shea butter is a popular choice for locking moisture into thirsty, higher porosity coils.
Density is a different thing again, and it describes how many strands you have packed together on your head, whether your hair is thin, medium or thick as a whole. A person with tightly coiled 4c hair that is low in density will style and wear it very differently from someone with the same coil pattern but very dense hair. On top of porosity and density sit strand thickness, elasticity and your scalp condition, all of which feed into what your hair needs day to day. The honest takeaway is that curl type is a handy label for finding your starting point, but the moment you are choosing products or a routine, porosity and density usually deserve just as much of your attention.
Where to Find Products and Help for Your Hair Type in the UK
Once you have a rough sense of your type, porosity and density, shopping gets much easier, because you can look past the marketing and choose things that suit how your hair actually behaves. Coily type 4 hair generally thrives on moisture, so leave in conditioners, curl creams, custards and natural butters and oils are the everyday staples, alongside a wide tooth comb and a satin bonnet to protect coils overnight. African and Caribbean beauty supply shops are the natural home for all of this, since they stock the brands and textures made with coily hair in mind. You can find beauty supply shops near you on African Stores to pick up what you need close to home.
If you would rather have a professional read your hair and show you what works, a stylist who handles textured hair every day can be a real shortcut. They can tell you roughly where your curl pattern sits, get a feel for your porosity and density, and set you up with a routine that fits, whether you wear your hair loose, stretched or in protective styles. You can find African hair salons near you on African Stores to compare stylists in your area. It is worth asking whether a salon works with your texture regularly and how they would approach your particular mix of types, since a good stylist will treat your hair as a whole rather than a single label.
Frequently asked questions
What is the hair typing system?
The hair typing system is a way of describing your hair by its curl pattern, using a number from 1 to 4 and a letter of a, b or c. The number sets the broad shape, from 1 for straight through 2 for wavy and 3 for curly to 4 for coily or Afro textured hair. The letter marks how tight that pattern is, with a being the loosest and c the tightest. Together they give a quick label, like 3c or 4b, that helps you find suitable products and advice.
What is the difference between 4a, 4b and 4c hair?
All three are type 4, which means coily or Afro textured, and the letters describe how tight the coils are. 4a has springy, defined coils roughly the width of a crochet needle. 4b bends in sharper, zigzag angles rather than smooth loops. 4c is the tightest of the three, with very compact coils that may not show a clear curl pattern until the hair is stretched. Many people carry more than one of these across different sections of their head.
How do I find out my hair type?
The easiest way is to look at a small section of clean, product free hair as it dries naturally and compare the pattern to the 1 to 4 chart. See whether it dries straight, wavy, curly or coily for the number, then judge how tight the pattern sits for the letter. Remember that most heads carry a mix, so you may be something like 4a at the crown and 4c at the nape, and a stylist who works with textured hair can help you read it.
Is knowing my curl type enough to care for my hair?
Not on its own. Curl type is a useful starting point, but porosity, which is how well your hair absorbs and holds moisture, and density, which is how thickly your strands grow, often tell you more about which products and routines will suit you. Two people with the same type 4 coils can need very different care depending on their porosity and density, so it is best to consider all three together rather than relying on curl type alone.
Where can I find products and salons for my hair type in the UK?
You can find curl creams, leave in conditioners, natural butters, oils and styling tools suited to your type at African and Caribbean beauty supply shops across the UK, and get hands on help from stylists who work with textured hair every day. African Stores lists African hair salons near you and beauty supply shops near you, so you can find a specialist or pick up what you need wherever you are.
