Wigs are popular fashion accessories worn in place of hair to change or complete a look. Two of the best quality wigs and hair extensions are virgin hair and Remy hair. Both virgin and Remy hair are made up of 100 percent natural human hair. 

This article will discuss the key differences between virgin and Remy hair wigs so you can carefully consider your choices before swiping to get the most out of your shopping.  

So if you want to learn more, read on! 

Virgin Hair vs Remy Hair

There are three types of human hairs—virgin, Remy, and non-Remy. But for this article, we will only focus on virgin hair and Remy hair. 

Though they are both made entirely of human hair, they differ significantly. Virgin human hair has never undergone chemical treatments or dyeing. Remy hair, has undergone physical and chemical processing to align the hair cuticles in one direction. 

Virgin Hair 

Virgin hair has undergone zero chemical processing, including dyeing, bleaching, and perming. This is the fundamental distinction between virgin and Remy hair. 

Typically, virgin hair is carefully removed from a single donor, specifically young women with long, thick, healthy hair.

Collecting a significant amount of hair from a single donor can be challenging, and this is why virgin hair is the rarest and most expensive type of hair, superior even to Remy hair. 

So when comparing the quality of virgin hair versus Remy hair, virgin hair takes the top spot.  

Remy Hair 

Remy hairs are collected from different donors. Hairs collected are physically treated with remy machine then, followed by chemical processing. 

Its most significant feature is its cuticles, which are still aligned in a single path from the root to tip. This lessens tangling and matting and makes it more manageable and high-quality compared to regular human hair (non-Remy hair) wigs. 

We have written a detailed article about Remy hair wigs, do take a look via here.

Similarities and Difference 

Virgin hair and Remy hair are both good choices for wigs or extensions and can be treated like your own hair. Here is a list of their similarities and differences: 

Similarities

• Virgin and Remy hair are real human hair. If you burn them, both of them will turn into ashes. 
• Both of them can be dyed, heat styled, and turned into various hairstyles. 

Differences 

• Virgin hair has more cuticles left on the hair strands than Remy hairs
• Virgin hair can be dyed and bleached to any color, remy hair can only dye to a darker color
• Remy hair may come from multiple donors while virgin hair comes from a single donor 
• Virgin hair is more expensive than Remy hair since it's of higher quality, rarer, and very in demand. 
• The lifespan of Remy hair is shorter than Virgin hair, you may expect to spend more time in taking care of remy hair 

Below is a photo showing the differences between cuticles on healthy hair and damaged hair. Virgin hair is more on the normal hair side, while Remy hair is more on the damaged hair side because it has gone through chemical processing. We have written an article explaining the importance of hair cuticles for hair health, do check this article out for more information.

Virgin hair is recommended if you want to have the best quality hair possible. This type of human hair is structurally stronger than chemically processed hair, which means it can better withstand processes like dyeing and heat-styling. 

You can choose Remy hair if you want to save money, as it's still a very high-quality product but cheaper than virgin hair. 

The process of maintenance is crucial regardless of which Remy hair or virgin hair you purchase. That means washing your hair with a sulfate-free shampoo and using a light conditioner that won't wear down your hairpieces.  

Outro 

We hope that this information was able to help you understand the key differences between virgin and Remy hair, so you can better appreciate what you're purchasing. You can invest in either Remy or virgin hair as both offer high-quality locks. But for the best, all-natural, untouched hair that is perfect for dyeing and styling, virgin hair is your best bet.