Hair Growth: Do Laser Combs and Supplements Actually Work?

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Shop Picks

• Best for women's pattern hair loss: HairMax Actonis 18
• Best for quick, full-scalp coverage: HairMax LaserBand 82 
• Best budget-friendly: iRESTORE Essential 
• Best for hair, skin, & pain relief: Celluma NOVA
• Best topical for women: Minoxidil Solution 
• Best topical for men: Minoxidil Foam 
• Best supplement for men: Nutrafol Men 
• Best supplement for women: Nutrafol Women 
• Best for hormonal hair changes: Nutrafol Women's Balance 
• Best liquid supplement: Hair Growth Max Liposomal

Hair loss is one of those things everyone quietly Googles at 1 a.m. Three categories keep coming up:  laser and LED devices, topicals, and supplements. Each works differently and has a different amount of evidence behind it, so it helps to know what each is actually good for before you choose.

Everything below is built for pattern hair loss (thinning tied to genetics, hormones, or aging) — not sudden, patchy, or illness-related hair loss, which is worth a doctor's visit first. 

One exception: minoxidil is a drug, not a cosmetic product. It can cause scalp irritation or temporary shedding when you start, and stopping it means losing the gains, so go in with clear expectations.

Best Laser & LED Devices for Hair Growth

Laser combs, bands, helmets, and panels use low-level laser therapy, or LLLT, to stimulate hair follicles with light. It sounds like a stretch, but there's real independent research behind it: a peer-reviewed meta-analysis of 11 randomized trials found that people using LLLT devices saw a meaningfully greater increase in hair density than people using fake, look-alike devices, in both men and women. 

These devices are FDA-cleared for treating hereditary hair loss, and results typically show up gradually over 3 to 4 months of consistent use.

Best for Women's Pattern Hair Loss: HairMax Actonis 18

The Actonis 18 is FDA-cleared specifically for pattern hair loss in women, using 18 lasers across two different wavelengths to target hair and scalp at once. It's a handheld comb with an 8-minute session three times a week.

Shop the HairMax Actonis 18 | HSA/FSA Eligible

Best for Full-Scalp, Hands-Free Coverage: HairMax LaserBand 82

The LaserBand 82 trades the comb-and-glide approach for a flexible, hands-free band with 82 lasers built in, delivering the equivalent of full scalp coverage in as little as 90 seconds per session. It's the priciest device in the HairMax lineup, but also the fastest and most hands-off. All you have to do is position it across three sections of your scalp, and you're done.

Shop the HairMax LaserBand 82

Best Budget-Friendly Way to Get Started: iRESTORE Essential

The iRESTORE Essential takes a different form factor entirely: a wearable helmet with 282 lasers and LEDs, worn for 25 minutes every other day instead of a comb you glide around. It's iRESTORE's entry-level model, using the same FDA-cleared technology and wavelengths as their pricier options, with the main difference being a lower laser count, which just means results may build a bit more slowly. 

If you'd rather sit back hands-free than hold a comb to your scalp, but don't want to pay for the top-tier version, this is the one.

Shop the iRESTORE Essential | HSA/FSA Eligible

Best Multi-Purpose Option: Celluma NOVA

The Celluma NOVA isn't just a hair device. It's a flexible LED panel with five FDA-cleared modes covering hair growth, aging skin, acne, pain relief, and body contouring, using a mix of blue, red, and near-infrared light. 

For hair specifically, the panel drapes over your scalp to deliver the same red and near-infrared wavelengths the research above is built on. It's the pick if you want one device that does more than just hair, rather than something single-purpose.

Shop the Celluma NOVA | HSA/FSA Eligible

Best Topical Hair Growth Treatments

Minoxidil is the most established option on this entire list. It's an FDA-approved drug, not a supplement or device, with decades of research behind it. It works by increasing blood flow to hair follicles and extending the hair's natural growth phase, applied directly to the scalp. Most people see visible results within 3 to 6 months of consistent daily use, and results depend on sticking with it. Stopping typically means losing the progress within several months.

Best FDA-Approved Option for Women: Minoxidil Solution

This 2% minoxidil solution is formulated and prescribed specifically for female pattern hair loss, applied to the scalp twice daily with the included dropper. It's the topical option with the longest track record on this list, though it does require daily upkeep indefinitely to maintain results.

Shop the Minoxidil Solution

Best FDA-Approved Option for Men: Minoxidil Foam

This 5% minoxidil foam is formulated for male pattern baldness, applied twice daily to dry hair. It's alcohol-free and dries quickly without leaving hair greasy, and it's best suited for regrowth at the crown or vertex specifically rather than a receding frontal hairline.

Shop the Minoxidil Foam

Best Hair Growth Supplements

Hair growth supplements work differently from the categories above: instead of stimulating follicles directly or acting as a drug, they're meant to support hair growth from the inside, usually through vitamins, minerals, and botanicals aimed at stress, hormones, or nutritional gaps. 

Worth being honest about this one: the research behind supplements is thinner than the laser therapy studies or minoxidil's drug-approval data, with smaller sample sizes and some studies funded by the companies themselves. They tend to help most with thinning caused by stress, nutritional gaps, or hormonal shifts, rather than genetic hair loss.

Best for Men: Nutrafol Men

Nutrafol Men is a daily capsule built around ingredients like saw palmetto and ashwagandha, aimed at men dealing with shedding and a receding hairline. It's meant to be taken consistently, and like most supplements in this category, results (if you see them) build gradually rather than overnight.

Shop Nutrafol Men | HSA/FSA Eligible

Best for General Thinning: Nutrafol Women

Nutrafol Women follows the same daily-capsule approach, formulated for women experiencing general thinning or decreased hair volume. One caution worth flagging: it contains saw palmetto, which isn't recommended during pregnancy or while breastfeeding, so check with your doctor first if that applies to you.

Shop Nutrafol Women | HSA/FSA Eligible

Best for Hormonal Hair Changes: Nutrafol Women's Balance

Women's Balance is formulated specifically around hormonal shifts, think perimenopause or postpartum, rather than general thinning. Same daily-capsule format and the same saw palmetto caution as Nutrafol Women applies here too.

Shop Nutrafol Women's Balance | HSA/FSA Eligible

Best for Maximum Absorption: Hair Growth Max Liposomal

MaryRuth's takes a different delivery approach: a liquid supplement using liposomal technology, which is designed to help your body absorb the nutrients more efficiently than a standard pill or liquid. It combines biotin with a proprietary blend aimed at hair thickness and shedding, and it's the pick if you're dealing with more noticeable thinning (including post-pregnancy hair loss) and want the most absorbable format available.

Shop Hair Growth Max Liposomal | HSA/FSA Eligible

The Bottom Line

If you want the most established evidence, minoxidil is where it is: it's an FDA-approved drug with decades of research behind it, not just a device or supplement. 

Laser and LED therapy comes next, backed by an independent meta-analysis and FDA clearance: the Actonis 18 is built specifically for women's pattern hair loss, the LaserBand 82 and iRESTORE Essential go hands-free with a band or helmet, and the Celluma NOVA doubles as a skin and pain-relief device.

Supplements like Nutrafol and MaryRuth's are the lowest-commitment, no-device option, but go in with realistic expectations: they're better suited to thinning from stress, hormones, or nutrition gaps than genetic hair loss, and the research behind them just isn't as strong yet.

What Does "HSA/FSA Eligible" Actually Mean?

Most of these are flagged HSA/FSA eligible, which is worth explaining. FSA is employer-sponsored, pre-tax payroll money that usually doesn't roll over; HSA is individually owned, pairs with a high-deductible plan, and rolls over indefinitely. Our full breakdown can be found here.

Supplements and beauty devices aren't automatically eligible just because they're good for you; it usually takes a Letter of Medical Necessity (LMN) linking the product to a condition like androgenetic alopecia. That's why HairMax and Nutrafol carry the eligible badge: Stridekick's shop uses Truemed to help facilitate that LMN process. More on how that works here.

Keep your documentation handy and check with your account administrator before you buy. 

Browse everything currently eligible in the Stridekick HSA/FSA Shop!

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