Lady Alopecia’s Complete Folexin Reviews
30 Comments
Which One Works?
Before any review, comparison or otherwise, I like to remind my readers that there are no miracle cures for hair loss. Trust me, having spent most of my life as an alopecian, who’s tried pretty much every treatment going, I have experience in this area!
Still, we can reduce inflammation and the other factors that lead to hair loss through our diet, our lifestyle and yes, the haircare products we use.
Because often, we use products that can dry out and irritate the scalp, block our hair follicles and in short, give our hair much less of a chance to survive. When we choose gentle, natural options that support a healthy scalp environment, we do the opposite: we provide optimal conditions for hair growth.
And when we combine those haircare products with essential nutrients and minerals that support our gut health and address hormonal imbalances – sometimes in the form of hair vitamins or supplements – well, we really can control our hair loss and promote hair growth.
This comparison post covers two popular hair loss vitamins and hair care treatments: Hair La Vie vs Nutrafol. Helping you decide which, if any, would be a good option for thinning hair and some more cost-effective alternatives.
Emma’s ‘not a doctor’ disclaimer
Hi there, I’m an alopecian, I’m not a doctor! Any advice I give is based on my own research and personal experiences. This site is, however, reader-supported. When you buy through external links, I may earn a tiny affiliate commission. Learn more here.
Hair La Vie is fairly new to the hair loss industry; founded in 2014 by a group of entrepreneurs who worked within the health and wellness space. The products are aimed at women to manage hormonal hair loss, postpartum hair loss, age-related hair loss and to support healthier, thicker hair.
The company makes topical treatments: including shampoos, conditioners, hair masks and serums, various hair vitamins plus a powdered elixir that you mix with water to support a healthy immune system and encourage hair growth.
There’s lots on offer – so check out my full review to read more about these products. But the takeaway is that Hair La Vie’s offerings are vegan, cruelty-free, paraben and sulfate free and they contain only natural ingredients.
Many of these ingredients have been proven to support hair growth, too: like saw palmetto, hydrolyzed collagen and tocotrienol complex (a member of the Vitamin E family). The topical hair loss treatments contain lots of natural oils to moisturize and soothe the scalp, plus anti-inflammatories like ginger to reduce hair shedding and boost circulation to the hair follicles.
If you’re thinking Hair La Vie sounds too good to be true, well, you’re not alone. I was skeptical after reading some of the big claims on the company website, especially when I found out that some of these claims had to be retracted as there was no scientific evidence or clinical trial to back them up.
Plus, many customer reviews complain about being signed up for a subscription program without their permission, which they can’t cancel. Hair La Vie doesn’t have the greatest reputation in terms of its customer service for that reason.
Still, there are plenty of positive reviews out there, too – lots of people who recommend Hair La Vie say it helped their existing hair get stronger, thicker and shinier, that thinning hairlines started to fill in, even that it stopped shedding!
A couple of reviewers mentioned that it was great for their sensitive skin too, so perhaps it’s a good option for those with an irritated scalp or who have allergies to other products.
Hair La Vie is also highly recommended for those with colored hair or chemically treated hair because its whole purpose is to revitalize and restore damaged hair or fine hair that’s become brittle, lackluster and prone to breakage. Good to know.
I hadn’t heard of Hair La Vie until recently but Nutrafol have been on my radar for quite some time. This brand is HUGE: in fact, it’s pretty much the leading hair loss vitamin on the market. Although Nutrafol also make a shampoo, a conditioner, a hair mask and serum, they’re most popular for their award-winning hair growth supplements.
(Actually, they’re more than just your regular ol’ supplement: they’re classified as ‘nutraceuticals’ because they’re made from medical grade botanical ingredients, bio-optimized and clinically tested.
Their 5 different nutraceuticals aim to help fight 6 different forms of hair loss and their formulas are adjusted to treat whatever could be triggering yours (for instance, metabolism-related hair loss, stress-related hair loss or hereditary hair loss).
I love Nutrafol’s targeted approach: that they have a supplement for the postpartum period, or during menopause. They also offer boosters that get even more personalized – so you can opt for liver support, stress adaptogens or digestive enzymes depending what your hair loss triggers may be.
They also feature clinically proven ingredients to reduce hair loss: like ashwagandha, which works to lower stress and inflammation in the body, saw palmetto extract to block DHT (the hormone linked to hair loss) and, in Nutrafol Women’s Balance supplement, maca to balance declining levels of estrogen during menopause.
Nutrafol has an impressive nutrient profile, far lengthier than any other hair growth vitamin I’ve come across. However, this long list leads me to wonder whether the pills contain enough of these nutrients to have any real effect.
Plus, the brand gets even worse customer reviews than Hair La Vie in terms of their customer service and their autoship program. People loved their products but too many got caught up in a scam, which they struggled to get out of. See this post for more or make sure to get your Nutrafol supply through Amazon, which I’ve linked to below.
Despite the negative reviews about subscription services and frustrations with customer service, Nutrafol is still a firm favorite for those with thinning hair and many forms of hair loss. Customers call it “incredible” and mention how it helped their hair grow, their nails get longer and stronger and their skin to glow, too.
It even helped to improve mood and energy levels thanks to its anti-inflammatory, gut-healing effects! It’s a shame you can only get the boosters when you sign up to a subscription service. But even if you get one of the original hair vitamins on Amazon, there’s a good chance you’ll find an option that can support you with your own hair thinning.
Nutrafol is 100% drug-free and hormone-free. Although Hair La Vie states it only uses natural ingredients, without fillers or preservatives, I couldn’t find anything saying it’s completely free of chemicals, too.
Nutrafol has a much more impressive ingredients list – although remember, that might just mean it has smaller quantities of key ingredients that might make them less effective. Hair La Vie actually has a higher dosage of saw palmetto than Nutrafol, the dosage that’s recommended for maximum efficacy.
And since saw palmetto is such an important active ingredient in terms of a) preventing hair loss and b) promoting hair growth, perhaps Hair La Vie’s got the edge here.
Nutrafol gets amazing reviews about the pills and also about its topical treatments: their shampoo and conditioner clocks up 4.5 stars on Amazon. The equivalent set from Hair La Vie gets 4.3 stars. Also, Nutrafol offers a separate hair vitamin for men; while Hair La Vie seems to focus primarily on women.
There’s a big difference between Hair La Vie vs Nutrafol that we simply can’t ignore: and that’s the price. Hair La Vie costs $49 for a bottle, or one month’s supply. And you can get a 10% discount, plus free shipping, when you order from their website.
Nutrafol is a whopping $88 per bottle, or $79 if you join their autoship service (not recommended, as it seems impossible to cancel!) Quite a price gap, in my opinion.
Maybe the price difference has swung it for you already. But if you’re still undecided, here’s a quick recap of the two brands.
To be honest, both brands have a lot going for them…but there’s plenty to be wary of, too. Especially around scammy subscription services and poor customer service. They’re both pretty expensive, too – so if you can’t cancel, you could end up paying a fortune!
My favorite brand for thinning hair products is Revita from DS Laboratories. Their range of products are made by dermatologists, they’re paraben and sulfate free – and they’re FAR cheaper, too! I’ve used Revita’s shampoo and conditioner, their options with CBD and I’m excited to try their serum with nanoxidil, too.
In terms of supplements, I’d highly recommend Folexin. It’s got many of the same ingredients as Nutrafol – like biotin and saw palmetto, plus extra natural DHT blockers and antioxidants, like red clover and green tea.
I’ve only ever heard positive reviews about Folexin: and, at $25 per bottle, they’re half the price of Hair La Vie, and over a third of the price of Nutrafol. Folexin contains soy, though – so if you have a known soy intolerance, check out these Revita supplements instead.
Hair La Vie is way cheaper, but Folexin is even cheaper again!
You can buy some, but not all, Hair La Vie products on Amazon. However, you can get better discounts through their website. Unless you want to buy a subscription service and get boosters through Nutrafol’s website, I’d recommend buying from Amazon or your local salon.
It’s a tough call but I’d choose Hair La Vie over Nutrafol. Even if it may not be as effective in terms of hair growth, it’s way better value and, from customer reviews, it can really improve the condition of your hair and scalp.
Nutrafol seems to position itself more as a hair loss cure (and remember, I’m wary of supposed miracle cures!) so I’d say you’re better off saving your money and going for natural treatments that won’t break the bank.
Whether that means Hair La Vie, Revita and Folexin, or something else, I’d love to hear about your experiences. So get sharing in the comments below!
Love & hugs,
Get free, semi-regular alopecia-related news things and musings.
Psst… If no welcome email shows up, check your spam.
Alopecian. Yoga Teacher. Copywriter. Here to share information, offer support and show people the adventures that can lie in hair loss. I’m proud to have alopecia and I want to help others embrace their baldness, too!
Every month, thousands with hair woes visit my site. The more the merrier! But it takes AGES to write posts and reply to emails. Don’t get me wrong, I love it! But running a website isn’t free. So I’m trying something new: I’m asking for your support. If Lady Alopecia has helped you, please consider buying me a (virtual) coffee or even become a patron of the site. Thanks!
I’m Emma. I’ve had alopecia for 24 years and I’m here to inform/hopefully empower people like me! Read my full story here. But I’m not a doctor, so any advice here is based on my own research and experience. I’m also in a few affiliate programs – see my disclaimer page for more. Or contact me here. Also, why not join a thousand fellow alopecians and get my-semi regular hair about life with irregular hair?
Psst… If no welcome email shows up, check your spam.
Small print time: Ladyalopecia.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
Copyright © 2023, Lady Alopecia. All rights reserved. Important – By using this website, you promise not to steal stuff. Thank you kindly.
Join the gang and receive semi-regular news and joy from someone with very irregular hair.
2 Responses
False statement – “ You also need to take 4 Nutrafol supplements a day – so your bottle won’t last as long as Hair La Vie, which recommends taking 3 capsules daily”. Hair La Vie has 90 pills per bottle @ 3 per day, while Nutrafol has 120 capsules per bottle @ 4 per day. So yea they BOTH will last 30 day
Ah, thank you Johnese, I’m sorry I missed that! I will update the post to represent this. Thanks again for sharing!