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Because sometimes a five-minute shower won’t fix the kind of week you’ve had.
There’s a regular shower — and then there’s the shower you take when you need to feel like yourself again. Hair washed, skin exfoliated, everything shaved, moisturized, conditioned, and smelling ridiculously good.
I started making mine less about buying twelve new products and more about choosing a few things I actually use — plus one or two upgrades that make the whole routine feel better.
The internet calls it an everything shower, but honestly, women have been doing some version of this forever. The difference between this and your five-minute Tuesday morning shower is intention.
You’re not just getting clean. You’re doing all the little things you normally rush through or tell yourself you’ll do later. And when you finally step out with clean hair, soft skin, fresh pajamas, and fresh sheets waiting, life somehow feels a little more put together.
This list covers the everything shower essentials worth having before, during, and after your shower, from exfoliation and hair care to body treatments and the little luxuries that turn it into a proper reset.
What Do You Actually Need for an Everything Shower?
Not 37 products.
The best everything shower essentials should make your routine easier or more enjoyable — not turn your bathroom into another place where you have a to-do list. Think of the routine in four parts: prep, hair, body, and aftercare.
You also don’t need the most expensive version of everything. For most steps, an inexpensive product does the job perfectly well. But there are a few places where upgrading can save time, improve the experience, or give you something you’ll use far beyond your weekly everything shower.
Here’s what’s actually worth having.
Before the Shower
The everything shower starts before you even turn the water on. A few minutes of prep means you can let treatments work while you get on with the rest of your routine.
1. Dry Body Brush
Use a dry brush on your body in gentle strokes before showering to help remove loose, flaky skin and give yourself a little pre-shower exfoliation. You don’t need to scrub aggressively; if your skin is turning angry red, you’re doing too much.
Why it earns a spot: It’s inexpensive, reusable, and takes about two minutes. This is one of those products where I wouldn’t spend a fortune — a simple body brush is enough.
2. Pre-Shampoo Hair Oil
If your ends constantly feel dry after washing, try applying a small amount of hair oil before shampooing. Concentrate it through the lengths and ends rather than drowning your scalp in it.
Put your hair up, leave it while you do something else, then wash as normal. It turns waiting for your shower into part of the routine.
Worth the upgrade: If your hair is damaged, color-treated, or regularly heat-styled, this is one category where I’d consider spending more on a quality bond-repair or intensive pre-shampoo treatment rather than simply buying another basic oil.
3. Hair Oil Applicator Bottle
This is one of those little Amazon things you don’t think you need until you use one. Instead of pouring oil into your palm and trying to distribute it evenly, a hair oil applicator makes it easier to put your treatment exactly where you want it.
Less mess, less wasted product, and somehow the ritual instantly feels more intentional.
The Hair Reset
If I’m doing an everything shower, I’m washing my hair properly — not the quick shampoo-and-go version.
4. Silicone Scalp Massager
Keep one permanently in the shower and use it while shampooing instead of scratching your scalp with your nails. It helps work shampoo through your hair and, more importantly, feels ridiculously good after a long day.
A basic silicone version is one of the cheapest everything shower essentials on this list.
Want an upgrade? An electric scalp massager does the work for you and can also be used outside the shower while you’re watching TV or applying a scalp treatment. It’s not necessary, but it’s a much nicer option if scalp massage is something you genuinely enjoy.
5. Clarifying Shampoo
Your everyday shampoo and your reset shampoo don’t necessarily need to be the same thing. If you regularly use dry shampoo, oils, styling products, or leave-ins, an occasional clarifying wash can help remove product buildup.
Think of this as the clean-slate step. You don’t necessarily need it every time you shower — an everything shower should work for your hair and skin, not require you to complete every step you saw online.
6. Deep Conditioning Hair Mask
This is where I stop pretending conditioner sitting on my hair for 45 seconds is a treatment.
Apply a proper hair mask through your lengths and ends, clip your hair up, and let it sit while you move on to your body routine. By the time you’re finished, so is the mask, so you’re not really adding extra time.
If hair care is important to you, this is another category where paying more for a genuinely good treatment may make more sense than buying several inexpensive masks you barely use.
Before You Add Another Product, Look at Your Water
This isn’t technically one of the 17 products, but it’s worth mentioning. If you’ve bought better shampoos, masks, and body products but your skin still feels tight after showering or your hair never quite feels the way you want it to, look at what’s actually coming out of your shower.
I wrote an entire guide on filtered shower water and its potential benefits for skin and hair, including the shower filters worth looking at.
A filtered showerhead also happens to be one of the more substantial upgrades on this list. Unlike another bottle of body wash, it’s something that affects every shower you take.
The Everything Shower
Hair up, mask working — now comes the satisfying part.
7. Exfoliating Shower Glove
If you’re still relying entirely on your hands and body wash, this is probably one of the easiest everything shower essentials to add.
An exfoliating glove gives you physical exfoliation and can make areas like your arms, legs, elbows, and knees feel smoother. Be gentle, especially if you’re also using a body scrub, and wash the glove properly so it can dry completely between uses.
Want an upgrade? If you like the exfoliating step but don’t love manually scrubbing, an electric body cleansing brush is the elevated option. Look for a waterproof model with interchangeable or adjustable heads, so it isn’t another single-purpose gadget taking up bathroom space.
8. Body Scrub
The glove is practical; the body scrub is the part that makes the shower feel luxurious. Sugar, salt, and coffee-based body polishes can all work depending on what your skin tolerates, but focus on rough areas rather than aggressively scrubbing your entire body.
You can also make this one yourself. Easy DIY: Mix coffee grounds with brown sugar and enough olive or coconut oil to create a spreadable scrub. Sometimes the expensive-feeling part of a routine costs almost nothing.
If you’re in full self-care mode, this is also a natural place to turn your shower into a longer ritual. My At-Home Spa Day Essentials Checklist has more ideas for doing exactly that.
9. A Body Wash You Actually Love
Yes, body wash cleans your body, but scent matters too. An everyday shower is one of the few times I think choosing something simply because it smells incredible is completely justified.
Clean, warm, vanilla, citrus, floral — whatever makes you linger for another minute. This isn’t the product I’d choose solely because it’s the cheapest, since you’re going to smell it several times a week.
Choose one you actually enjoy.
10. Shaving Oil
If shaving leaves your legs feeling tight or uncomfortable, replacing foamy shaving cream with a good shaving oil may be worth trying. It gives the razor more slip and makes shaving feel like part of the body-care routine rather than something you’re rushing to finish.
You don’t need anything fancy here. A little goes a long way.
11. A Good Razor — or an Electric Shaver
There are some things worth replacing before they’re completely unusable, and your razor is one of them. If you prefer a traditional shave, a good multi-blade razor with fresh cartridges is really all you need.
But if shaving is the part of your everything shower you dread, consider a waterproof wet/dry electric shaver. It’s a bigger initial purchase, but the benefit isn’t “luxury” — it’s speed, convenience, and being able to use it wet or dry depending on the model.
That’s the kind of upgrade I’m willing to pay more for: something that actually makes the routine easier.
The After-Shower Routine
This part matters almost as much as the shower. Don’t do all that work and then stand around scrolling your phone while your skin completely dries.
12. Microfiber Hair Towel
Wrap your hair first. A microfiber towel absorbs water without the weight of wrapping a giant bath towel around your head, and it stays put while you finish the rest of your routine.
Small purchase, used constantly. Exactly the kind of Amazon find I like.
13. Body Oil
Apply your body oil while your skin is still slightly damp; you don’t need enough to look glazed. A thin layer is plenty.
If you’re going to splurge anywhere in your everything shower routine, body oil is a good place to do it. Choose something you genuinely enjoy using because the scent and feel of it continue long after the water is off.
14. Body Lotion or Body Butter
Oil and lotion aren’t necessarily an either/or situation. If your skin is dry, follow with lotion or body butter, particularly on your legs, arms, elbows, and knees.
This is where the everything shower earns its name — you’re finally moisturizing the parts of your body you normally remember only when they’re dry.
For more body-care ideas, see my Best Body Skincare Routine for Glowing Skin.
15. Foot Cream
Feet always seem to get excluded from body care, but a rich foot cream takes about 30 seconds to apply. Put socks over it if you like and let it sit while you finish getting ready for bed.
It’s a tiny step, but it makes the whole routine feel more complete.
The Finishing Touches
Technically, you’re done, but these last few minutes make the whole ritual feel complete.
16. Deodorant + Body Mist
Start with clean skin and use a scent you actually enjoy wearing at home. Not everything has to be saved for leaving the house.
You are allowed to smell good on a Tuesday night when nobody is coming over.
17. Your Favorite Perfume
Yes, I sometimes put perfume on after a shower even when I’m going straight to bed. One or two sprays is enough. Here are my top 20 recommendations.
The point isn’t for anyone else to notice. It’s that moment when your hair is clean, your skin feels soft, you’ve put on fresh pajamas, and you smell like yourself again.
That’s the everything shower.
4 Everything Shower Upgrades Actually Worth Spending More On
Most of these everything shower essentials are inexpensive, and that’s a good thing. You don’t need a $100 version of a product that works perfectly well for $10.
But if you want to elevate your routine — or you’re shopping specifically for products that save time and get used repeatedly — these are the upgrades I’d consider.
1. Waterproof Wet/Dry Electric Shaver
If shaving takes up half your shower, this is probably the most practical upgrade. You’re paying for convenience and repeated use rather than simply a prettier product.
The manual version works perfectly well, but an electric model turns a two-minute shampoo step into something that actually feels like a scalp treatment. Bonus if it can be used wet and dry.
3. Filtered Showerhead
This is an upgrade you use every single day rather than once during an occasional self-care night. Read my guide to filtered shower water before deciding whether one makes sense for your home.
4. Towel Warmer
Completely necessary? No.
Do I understand the appeal of stepping out of an everything shower and wrapping yourself in a warm towel or robe? Absolutely.
A towel warmer is one of those purchases that doesn’t add another step to your routine. It simply makes something you’re already doing feel much better — and that’s my favorite kind of upgrade.
Your Everything Shower Doesn’t Need Everything
Despite the name, you don’t have to use every product every single time. Your routine should suit your own skin, hair, schedule, and preferences.
Dermatologist-reviewed guidance from UPMC HealthBeat’s guide to the everything shower routine also points out that an elaborate routine isn’t necessary for basic hygiene. More isn’t automatically better.
Choose the everything shower essentials that actually make a difference to you and skip the rest.
The Everything Shower Isn’t Really About the Shower
None of these products are going to transform your life, and that’s not why they’re here. The value of an everything shower is that for an hour, you stop treating yourself like the last item on your list.
You take care of the details. You replace the razor, use the hair mask instead of saving it, moisturize your feet, and wear the perfume even though you’re staying home. There is something quietly powerful about maintaining yourself when nobody is watching.
Not because you need fixing, but because you’re worth maintaining.
Maybe that’s why the everything shower became such a thing. Sometimes feeling more like yourself starts with something as ordinary as washing your hair properly.
Everything Shower Checklist
Save this everything shower checklist for your next reset night.
- Before: Dry brush, pre-shampoo hair treatment, hair oil applicator.
- Hair: Scalp massager, clarifying shampoo, hair mask.
- Body: Exfoliating glove, body scrub, body wash, shaving oil, razor or electric shaver.
- After: Microfiber hair towel, body oil, body lotion or butter, foot cream.
- Finish: Deodorant, body mist, and your favorite perfume.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an everything shower?
An everything shower is a longer head-to-toe shower where you combine the hair, body, and grooming steps you don’t normally do during a quick everyday shower. It can include washing and conditioning your hair, exfoliating, shaving, body care, and moisturizing afterward.
What products do I need for an everything shower?
The basic everything shower essentials include shampoo and conditioner or a hair mask, body wash, an exfoliating product, shaving essentials if you shave, and moisturizer afterward.
Extras such as a scalp massager, dry brush, body oil, and microfiber hair towel can make the routine more enjoyable, but you don’t need every product.
What is the correct order for an everything shower?
Start with your pre-shower treatments, then shampoo your hair and apply your conditioner or mask. While your hair treatment sits, cleanse and exfoliate your body, shave if you choose to, rinse everything thoroughly, and finish with your post-shower hair and body care.
How often should you do an everything shower?
There isn’t one rule for everyone. Many people make it a weekly reset, but how often you exfoliate, clarify your hair, or shave should depend on your skin, hair, and personal routine.
You also don’t need to perform every step each time.
How long should an everything shower take?
An everything shower doesn’t have a required length. Depending on the treatments you use, it might take 30 minutes or become a slower hour-long self-care ritual.
The point isn’t how long you’re in the bathroom — it’s giving yourself enough time to do the steps you normally rush.
What should I do before an everything shower?
Start any treatments that need time to work before you turn on the water. This could include applying a pre-shampoo hair treatment, gently dry brushing your body, or simply getting your products, clean pajamas, and towels ready beforehand.
Doing the prep first makes the actual shower feel much less rushed.
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