How Much Tension Ponytails and Braids Put on Your Hair?

Is braiding your hair a safer deterrent from damage than putting your hair in a ponytail?

That depends on:

How much tension you put on the hair
What type of hair you start with
What kind of tie or band you use to hold the style
Whether you do the same style in the same spot all the time

Basically, anything that puts tension on hair has the potential to cause damage. And everything puts at least some tension on hair.

Tight ponytails concentrate tension at the hair line and where the band is placed. That can cause damage and breakage like this:

(Red for highest stress, orange for lower stress)

Loose braids tend to distribute the tension more evenly, like this:

French/cornrow/boxer braids/twists/etc. can distribute the tension even more. For hair that is kinky/curly, braids (done right) can be a protective style that prevents more breakage than they cause.

Same rules about tension go for how you secure the style.

Ties and bands that are tight and stick to/pull at hair can cause breakage. Fabric covered scrunchies are usually the gentlest alternative. I use scrunchies and coiled hairbands on my fairly fragile bleach-treated long hair to avoid further damage.

There are very few things cause massive damage right away, though— repeated stress and tension in the same spots over and over is the cause of most style-related breakage. It’s entirely possible to get a bald spot, receding hairline, or thinning hair in the sections of your hair that get repeated tension. That’s why many hairstylists recommend switching up your go-to style regularly: daily Ariana Grande ponytails can be hair killers, not to mention headache inducing.

So, to deter as much style-related breakage as possible, I suggest you: