Ouidad vs. AG Strong Hold, Anti-Humidity Gels Comparison

Which strong hold, anti-humidity gel is best for you? Today I’m putting two of my holy grail gels head-to-head, the Ouidad Advanced Climate Control Stronger Hold Gel and the AG Liquid Effects Extra Firm Styling Lotion.

I’ll be doing 2 curly hair routines and sharing the results, including day 2, day 3, and a humidity test.

Gel Comparison

Key Ingredients Comparison

Below are ingredients that stand out in these formulations. This is not a full list of ingredients for either of these.

Application

For both routines, I did my usual staying technique and gel application. I did solely use the gels and did not use any other stylers.

1. Start with clean, damp hair. Mist the lengths until evenly wet but not soaked or dripping. Comb through.
2. Section hair. Apply about a nickel-size amount per section. Brush through and define curls using horizontal brush sections. Separate large clumps with fingers and scrunch.
3. Further define front and face-framing curls taking vertical sections and finger coiling where needed.
4. Scrunch hair with a hair towel to absorb excess water.
5. Glaze another light coat of gel+water on the surface.
6. Diffuse until dry.
7. Fluff roots and scrunch out the cast after letting it sit and cool for about 15-30 minutes.

Day 1 Results

Images below show my wash day results after scrunching out the cast. Both look nearly identical with a few minor differences. The Ouidad side had more shrinkage and slightly tighter curls. Proteins usually create this effect, however both gels contain proteins. It could be the specific proteins in the Ouidad gel that my hair responds well to.

The other difference was the amount of hold. Both provide a cast/crunch after diffusing that feels smooth and flexible, not brittle. After scrunching it out, the curls retain their shape and don’t frizz entirely. The Ouidad results were virtually frizz-free, shinier, and very defined (more of a wet look), whereas the AG gel had a small amount of frizz, soft definition, and more volume. Now, you could also achieve a softer look by using less of the Ouidad gel. However, due to the oil/butter ingredients in the Ouidad gel, this could be contributing to more shine.

In the video, you can also watch me do the strand/hold test where I take a curl in the front after it’s dried, run my dry fingers down it, and assess how well it holds up. This mimics friction throughout our data nd will tell you if a gel is long-lasting. If the curl completely frizzes up and loses its structure, then the gel doesn’t have enough hold. If the curl retains its definition, it’s a good gel!

The Ouidad curl did not have any frizz even after running my fingers down it multiple times. The AG gel also held up great but had a tiny bit of frizz on the end. I was able to finger twirl it with dry hands and it went back into its shape. This is key!

Both are very close and I am happy with either result!

Day 2

On day 2 I did not refresh. This is the ultimate test because I want my gels to hold up without needing to do much on day 2. A good gel will keep your curls intact (with proper sleep protection).

Both results look even more voluminous and soft on day 2. The crunch is mostly gone with a little bit still there in some areas. The curls are even more clumped and bouncy. They appear duller from the natural moisture evaporation but are not dry by any means.

You can see my Ouidad results are a bit shorter due to me getting more shrinkage on wash day.

Day 3

By day 3 I usually have to refresh, so I wanted to share my results before and after refreshing. Refreshing is so easy with these gels because they have so much slip and you can use just water to get that slippery feeling back in your hair. I wet my hands and just smooth over frizzy curls, separating any really large clumps and removing shed hairs. I didn’t have to wet it very much so diffusing only takes 2 minutes or so. The cast returns after drying with both gels.

Refresh results look similar. My AG routine resulted in a little bit of a stringier look but that could be from me separating the curl clumps. It was very clumped with the AG routine.

Humidity Test

After refreshing on day 3, I wanted to put these gels to the ultimate weather test to see how well they hold up.

I say directly under a big humidifier for about an hour. My hair never felt damp or wet during it but it did soften up more.

With the Ouidad gel, it happened to be raining that day so I also sat outside under my covered porch while it was raining for about 30 minutes.

Unfortunately on the day I had the AG gel in my hair, it was not raining and actually very dry and windy. I was outside quite a bit this day so it went through multiple weather test. To make things even. as I could, I also sat under the humidifier for about an hour.

With both gels, the cast disappeared after being under humidity with the exception of a few pieces still having a light cast. I also developed frizz, which is normal with any products in direct humidity. The main thing I look for is for an anti-humidity gel to help my curls retain their shape and not fall completely flat with a ton of frizz. My curl clumps and definition still looked great. Both of these could be easily revived with refreshing.

The biggest difference is the AG results are a bit stringier. This was because my results after refreshing were a bit stringy to begin with. This could have been user error and just how I happened to refresh that day, not re-clumping all the curls. However I didn’t do a ton of re-clumping when refreshing the Ouidad hair either, so I kept it as close as possible.

Overall I’m extremely happy with the results after humidity with both gels.

Which gel is best for you?

These gels are extremely similar so I think you would be happy with either gel, if you have similar preferences to me.

Weight

The biggest difference in formulation would be the moisture/conditioning content between them. The Ouidad gel contains 2 butters/oil, multiple polyquats, and more conditioning ingredients. This could potentially make it too heavy for someone with very fine or very low porosity hair that is very soft. The AG gel tends to be a bit more lightweight and allows for more volume.

Hold, Humidity, Definition, & Volume

The Ouidad gel gives a slightly stronger hold which can last longer but also not give as much volume. This is visible in the strand test I did in the video. The Ouidad gel retained its curl clump even after sliding my fingers down it multiple times and looked the same on Day 2. The AG gel strand test showed a bit of frizz on the end after running my ringer down the strand a few times.

You can redefine clumps though with both gels with just twirling them with dry hands.

When using these gels, I often add in volumizers such as foams or mousse to add volume.

When it comes to humidity, the Ouidad gel as the upper hand due to the multiple polyquat and film-forming ingredients. However, I didn’t see a major difference in results there.

Buildup Potential

I also wanted to touch on buildup here because I did not have time to cover it in the video. Both polyquats and silicones have the potential to buildup on the hair if you’re not properly cleansing regularly. If you’re someone who exclusively co-washes, you may get buildup from these. I don’t recommend that method regardless and suggest rotating your shampoos to incorporate a more cleansing, lathering shampoo.

I have not experienced buildup from either of these gels, and I’ve used them in back-to-back wash days before. I clarify about every 3 washes and do not use co-washes.

I have discount codes above for both of these gels that you can use when purchasing directly from the brand.

What do you think? Do you notice any other differences in my hair that I did not call out? Please share!