Best Hair Oil NZ: Kérastase Elixir Ultime and How to Use It Properly

If you've ever stood in front of a shelf of hair oils wondering which one actually does something, you're in good company. Most clients ask us the same thing at the basin: which hair oil is worth the money? For us, the short answer has been the same for years. Kérastase Elixir Ultime is the oil our colourists keep reaching for, and it's one of the few we'd genuinely call the best hair oil you can buy in NZ.

This isn't a marketing line. We use it on real heads of hair every day in the salon, on fresh balayage, on coarse curls, on fine hair that goes limp if you so much as look at it wrong. It earns its keep, and below we'll walk you through why, who it suits, the honest downsides, and how to use it so you actually get the shine instead of a greasy mess.

What is Kérastase Elixir Ultime?

Elixir Ultime is Kérastase's hero multi-use oil. The idea is a lightweight oil blend that adds gloss, tames frizz and smooths flyaways without weighing the hair down. It's built around a few oils chosen for shine and softness, and the formula has been around long enough that it's become a bit of a salon staple rather than a passing trend.

The version most people mean when they say "the Kérastase oil" is the original Elixir Ultime. There are a couple of variations within the line, including a richer option for thicker, more textured hair, so it's worth matching the one you buy to your hair type rather than grabbing the first bottle you see. You can see the current range on our Elixir Ultime collection, and the wider Kérastase range sits alongside it.

Why we rate it as the best hair oil in NZ

There are plenty of decent oils out there, and we stock a few of them. What pushes Elixir Ultime to the top for us is how versatile it is. A single bottle does the job of three or four products, and it plays nicely with almost every hair type we see.

The shine is the obvious one. A drop or two through mid-lengths and ends gives that polished, glassy finish you usually only get straight after a salon blow-dry. It also calms frizz on humid Kiwi days without that crunchy, over-product feel, and it smells lovely, which sounds trivial until you're wearing a scent all day.

The part clients underestimate is heat protection and slip. A little Elixir Ultime before you blow-dry or straighten makes the hair easier to work through and adds a buffer against the heat. We're not going to pretend it replaces a dedicated heat protectant for someone straightening daily at high heat, but as an everyday smoothing-and-shine step it's hard to beat.

Who it suits (and who might want something else)

Elixir Ultime is a genuine all-rounder, but a quick steer based on what we see in the chair:

• Coloured and blonde hair: oils like this are brilliant for adding shine back to colour-treated hair and softening the slightly drier feel that comes with lightening. If you're blonde, it pairs well with the rest of your routine for blonde and highlighted hair.
• Dry or dehydrated hair: if your ends drink up everything you put on them, the original or the richer Elixir Ultime variant works beautifully. Browse our dry and dehydrated picks if dryness is your main concern.
• Frizzy or unmanageable hair: this is where it really shines for smoothing. Have a look at our frizzy and unmanageable edit too.
• Curly and wavy hair: the richer version helps define and soften texture without crunch. Curls have their own needs, so it's worth pairing with the right cleanse and condition from our curly and wavy range.
• Fine hair: you can absolutely use it, you just need a featherlight hand. One drop, ends only. If volume is your priority, our fine and volume collection has products designed to lift rather than weigh down.

The honest caveat: any oil on fine or low-density hair is easy to overdo. If you apply too much or get it too close to the roots, you'll look freshly oily rather than glossy. The fix is dosage, not avoidance, which we cover below.

How to use Kérastase Elixir Ultime properly

This is where most people go wrong, so it's worth getting right. The amount is smaller than you think.

• On damp hair, before drying: warm one to two pumps between your palms and smooth through the mid-lengths and ends. This is our favourite way to use it. It protects against heat, adds slip for easier styling, and locks in shine as the hair dries.
• On dry hair, to finish: half a pump, ends only, to tame frizz and add gloss after styling. Less is more here. Start tiny and add a touch if you need it.
• As a quick refresh: a little rubbed through the ends on day two or three brings tired hair back to life without a full wash.

Three rules we give every client: warm it in your hands first so it spreads evenly, keep it away from the roots and scalp, and always start with less than you think you need. You can add more, but you can't take it out without rinsing.

Where Elixir Ultime fits in your routine

An oil is a finishing and smoothing step, not a replacement for the foundations. For the best results, get the wash-and-condition stage right first, then let the oil do the polishing. The right shampoo and conditioner for your hair type make a bigger difference than any single styling product.

If your hair is genuinely damaged or over-processed, an oil alone won't rebuild it. That's a job for a treatment. Have a look at our masks and treatments, or if breakage is the issue, our damaged and broken hair range. Use Elixir Ultime as the daily shine-and-smooth step on top of that stronger care.

If you'd rather compare a few oils side by side before deciding, our full hair oils collection has the options we trust, so you can match one to your exact hair type and budget.

Is it worth the money?

Honestly, yes, with one condition: use it correctly. The price sits above supermarket oils, but a bottle lasts a long time because you use so little, and the quality of shine is in a different league. Where people feel let down is almost always overuse, not the product. Get the dosage right and it's one of the best-value things in a haircare routine, because it lifts the look of everything else you do.

We stock it because it's the oil we actually reach for ourselves, and as an authorised stockist everything we sell is genuine and in-date. That matters more than people realise with premium haircare. There's a lot of grey-market and expired stock floating around online, and an old or fake bottle won't perform the way it should.

Shop Kérastase Elixir Ultime at Crew

You can order genuine, in-date Kérastase Elixir Ultime straight from us, with free shipping NZ-wide on orders over $99. Browse the Elixir Ultime collection to pick the right version for your hair, or explore the full Kérastase range if you want to build out the rest of your routine. Not sure which oil suits you? Send us a message with a bit about your hair and we'll point you to the right one, the same way we would at the basin.

Frequently asked questions

Is Kérastase Elixir Ultime really the best hair oil in NZ?

It's the one our colourists reach for most because it does so much from a single bottle: shine, frizz control, slip for styling and a buffer against heat. Whether it's the best for you depends on your hair type, but as an everyday all-rounder it's very hard to beat, which is why we rate it so highly.

How much Elixir Ultime should I use?

Less than you think. One to two pumps on damp hair through the mid-lengths and ends before drying, or half a pump on dry hair to finish. Warm it in your palms first and keep it off the roots. Start small and add a touch only if you need it.

Can I use Elixir Ultime on fine hair?

Yes, you just need a light hand. Use a single drop on the ends only and stay well clear of the roots, otherwise fine hair can look oily rather than glossy. If volume is your main goal, pair it with products designed to lift, like those in our fine and volume range.

Is the Kérastase I buy from Crew genuine?

Yes. Crew is an authorised stockist, so every bottle is genuine and in-date. That's worth checking with premium haircare, because expired or grey-market stock sold cheaply online often won't perform the way it should.