How Often Should You Get Your Hair Cut? A Hairdresser’s Guide
One of the questions we’re asked surprisingly often in the salon is: how often should you get your hair cut?
You may have heard the traditional advice that everyone should visit their hairdresser every six weeks, but the reality is a little more individual than that.
A short precision cut, long layered hair, curls and a style you’re deliberately trying to grow all have very different needs.
So rather than watching the calendar, we prefer to look at your hair, your style and what you’re trying to achieve.
Is every six weeks really necessary?
Not necessarily.
For some hairstyles, six weeks is absolutely the sweet spot. For others, you may comfortably go considerably longer between appointments.
The important thing is understanding why you’re having your hair cut.
If you have a shorter or more structured style, regular appointments are often about maintaining the shape. With longer hair, the focus may be more on condition, movement and keeping the ends looking healthy.
And if you’re growing your hair, your cutting schedule can look different again.
How often should you cut short hair?
Shorter hairstyles tend to show their growth more quickly.
Pixie cuts, crops and other precision shapes can begin to lose their structure as the hair grows, particularly around the neckline, ears and fringe.
For this reason, many clients with shorter styles prefer appointments approximately every 4–6 weeks.
That doesn’t mean your hair suddenly becomes unhealthy at week seven. It’s simply about how sharp and polished you like your style to look.
What about bobs and mid-length hair?
A beautifully shaped bob can be surprisingly precise.
As it grows, the weight and balance of the haircut can begin to change, so clients wanting to maintain a strong bob shape may find 6–8 weeks works well.
Softer, more relaxed mid-length styles can often go longer.
Again, the right timing depends on the haircut rather than a rule written on a calendar.
How often should you cut long hair?
Long hair doesn’t necessarily need cutting as frequently as a short, structured style.
If your hair is in good condition and you’re happy with the shape, you may find 8–12 weeks between cuts works perfectly well.
However, coloured or lightened hair, frequent heat styling and naturally fragile hair may need a little more attention.
Rather than cutting healthy length unnecessarily, we look at the condition of your ends and how the overall haircut is sitting.
Should you still cut your hair when you’re growing it?
Yes — but that doesn’t mean constantly cutting off everything you’ve managed to grow!
When a client tells us they want longer hair, that becomes part of the plan.
Small, well-timed trims can remove compromised ends and maintain a flattering shape while allowing you to retain as much length as possible.
Growing your hair successfully is often about balancing length retention with condition.
Does cutting your hair make it grow faster?
This is one of hairdressing’s longest-standing myths.
Cutting the ends of your hair doesn’t make the hair at your scalp grow any faster.
What regular cutting can do is help prevent damaged or split ends from travelling further up the hair shaft. That can make it easier to retain healthy-looking length over time.
So your hair isn’t necessarily growing faster — you’re simply looking after the length you’ve already grown.
What about curly and textured hair?
Curly and textured hair deserves an individual approach too.
The shape of a curly haircut can change considerably as it grows, while shrinkage, curl pattern, density and how you usually wear your hair all influence when another cut is needed.
Some clients benefit from regular shaping; others can comfortably leave much longer between appointments.
This is exactly why we don’t believe in giving every client the same cutting schedule.
Signs it might be time for a haircut
Sometimes your hair tells you before your diary does.
You might notice that your style is becoming harder to manage, your layers no longer sit properly, your ends feel dry or thin, your fringe has lost its shape, or your hair simply doesn’t fall as nicely as it did after your last cut.
That’s usually much more useful information than counting the number of weeks since your last appointment.
Looking after your hair between cuts
The way you care for your hair at home can make a real difference to how it looks and feels between salon visits.
Heat protection, appropriate styling temperatures and professional haircare suited to your individual hair can all help maintain its condition.
As a Kérastase Care Coach salon, we can recommend homecare based on what your hair actually needs rather than simply choosing products because they’re labelled for a particular hair type.
Healthy-looking hair isn’t created by the haircut alone — it’s the combination of what happens in the salon and how you care for it afterwards.
So, how often should you get your hair cut?
There isn’t one perfect answer.
Your ideal schedule should take into account your haircut, length, texture, condition, lifestyle and ultimately how you like your hair to look.
At Hair @ Hesslewood in Hessle, we’d much rather create an appointment plan around you than tell you that you must return simply because a certain number of weeks have passed.
Whether you’re maintaining a precision cut, growing your hair or aren’t quite sure what your hair needs next, talk to us.
A great haircut shouldn’t just look good when you leave the salon — it should work for you in the weeks that follow.