Why Your Cowlick Decides Where Your Hair Parts
Learn how your cowlick controls your natural hair part and how working with it makes styling much easier.
Have you ever tried to part your hair, but a small clump jumps right back up? That is a cowlick. It gets its funny name because it looks like a baby cow licked your head.
No matter how hard you push it down with water or gel, it wants to go its own way. Here is the secret: you cannot beat a cowlick. But when you learn to work with it, your hair will look great every single day.
What Is a Cowlick?
A cowlick is a spot on your scalp where hair grows in a circle. Everyone has at least one. Most people have them at the very back of the head on the crown. Many people also have one right in front along the hairline.
The hair roots in a cowlick point in a spiral. Because the roots point that way under your skin, you cannot change their direction. If you try to force the hair to lay flat the other way, it stands straight up like a tiny tent.
How It Dictates Your Part
A good hair part looks neat and stays flat without a bucket of hair glue. Your cowlick decides where that part should be.
If your hair swirls clockwise, your hair naturally wants to fall to the left. If it swirls counterclockwise, it wants to fall to the right.
Here is how you can find your natural part:
Wet your hair completely in the shower or sink. Comb all your hair straight back away from your face. Push the hair gently forward from the back with your palm. Watch where the hair splits open on its own. That is your true part.
What This Means for Your Haircut
When you go to the barber or salon, tell them about your cowlick. A good barber will look for it before they pick up the scissors.
If you have a strong front cowlick, a middle part might make your hair puff up on one side. A side part right next to the swirl will sit much flatter. Round and square face shapes often look great with a deep side part because it adds height on top. Oval faces can usually wear a part anywhere, as long as the cowlick allows it.
If you want short hair, you have two choices. You can cut the cowlick very short so it cannot stand up. Or you can leave it a bit longer and heavier so the weight of the hair holds it down. Tell your barber: "Please cut around my cowlick so it does not pop up when it dries."
Fighting your hair growth pattern every morning takes a lot of time and hair product. Working with your cowlick makes your morning easy.
Before you let anyone cut your hair, see how a new part looks on your real face. You can use HairMatch AI to check your face shape for free, then preview realistic haircut styles on your own photo with packs starting at just $0.99.