What Is an Eyebrow Cowlick and How Can You Tame It?

Eyelash & Eyebrow Specialist Zin Lwin explains how to style brows with cowlicks

Co-authored by Glenn Carreau Reviewed by Zin Lwin

Last Updated: March 1, 2026 Fact Checked

What is an eyebrow cowlick?

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Are eyebrow cowlicks bad?

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Styling & Fixing Eyebrow Cowlicks

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Is there a permanent fix?

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Causes

You may have seen the term “eyebrow cowlick” discussed among beauty and styling content creators on TikTok—but what is an eyebrow cowlick? How can you tell if you have one? An eyebrow cowlick is a small patch of hair growing in the opposite direction of the rest of your brow hair; you’re most likely to find one at the inner edge of either eyebrow. If you aren’t fond of having an eyebrow cowlick, we can also show you several different ways to tame one! Read on, and we’ll explain everything you need to know.

How to Manage Eyebrow Cowlicks

Eyelash & Eyebrow Specialist Zin Lwin says most eyebrow cowlicks can be tidied with basic grooming and a pomade or gel. An eyebrow sculpt and tint can make the brows appear more even. For stronger cowlicks that make the eyebrows look imbalanced or "angry," lamination can keep the stray hairs under control.

Section 1 of 5:

What is an eyebrow cowlick?

Eyebrow cowlicks are hairs growing in a different direction from the rest. Typically, an “eyebrow cowlick” refers to the few brow hairs next to the glabella (the space between your eyebrows) that don’t go the same way as the other hairs—often standing straight upright, or even curving inward.^{[1]
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Research source} Some cowlicks are just hairs with a little extra curl, while others are actually growing in a different direction.
- If you have an eyebrow cowlick, don’t sweat it; most people do! It’s extremely common to have a few rogue eyebrow hairs standing out from the rest.

Section 2 of 5:

Are eyebrow cowlicks bad?

No, eyebrow cowlicks aren't bad—some people actually love theirs! Many people don’t mind their cowlicks one bit, and others prefer to style their eyebrows into looking more uniform. There’s no right or wrong way to go, here. So, if you want to style your eyebrow cowlick, you can follow our tips below—but don’t feel like you have to! It’s completely up to you.
- Compared to a hair cowlick, an eyebrow cowlick isn’t really that noticeable most of the time.
- Furthermore, some people feel like leaving their eyebrow cowlicks as untampered with for a more natural look.
- On the other hand, there are plenty of styling methods you can use to wrangle a rogue eyebrow cowlick into place fairly easily.

Section 3 of 5:

How to Style & Fix Eyebrow Cowlicks

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Use eyebrow gel to point your cowlick in the right direction. Grab a clear brow gel of your choice and use it to slick your cowlick in the same direction as the rest of your eyebrow hairs. The gel should hold your unruly eyebrow hair in place for the day without you having to repeatedly adjust or fix it.^{[2]
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- If you’re in a bind and don’t have brow gel with you, you can use clear mascara or even Vaseline and a spoolie brush to adjust your eyebrows instead.
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Apply brow pomade to weigh down your cowlick. Like the gel, brow pomade can hold down your cowlick after you restyle it in the right direction. It can also fill in sparse-looking areas of your brow that’re left over after trimming it. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different brow gels and brow pomades to see if one works better than the other for you!
- You can use a spoolie brush to comb your eyebrow cowlick in the right direction before applying the pomade.
- If you want double the security, you can also add a quick swipe of clear eyebrow gel after the pomade.
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Trim any cowlick hairs that stick out noticeably. If you have small grooming scissors, you can use them to trim back the cowlick hairs just enough to make them less noticeable. You don’t want to trim too many hairs, or your eyebrow might be left looking patchy. Before going in with the trimmers, brush your eyebrows straight up with a spoolie brush so you can easily find and snip off the excess cowlick hair.^{[3]
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- If there are any bald spots left when you style your brows, you can use a darker powder makeup to add color to the skin underneath your brows.
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Tweeze your cowlick hairs to make your brows look smoother. Using a high-quality pair of tweezers, pluck away the few rogue hairs making up your cowlick. To make sure your brows look clean and well-defined, you can use a brow pencil to outline the desired shape beforehand, then just pluck any of the hairs outside the outline.^{[4]
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- Tweeze in the direction of each hair’s growth to make this process as painless as possible.
- High-quality tweezers will also minimize breakage when you’re trying to pull each brow hair.
- Keeping your brows groomed regularly with a spoolie brush and light trimming can make cowlicks less noticeable, since longer hairs tend exaggerate stray hairs.^{[5]
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  Expert Source
  
  Barbie Ritzman
  Beauty & Skincare Specialist
  
  Expert Interview}
Brow lamination is basically a form of chemical straightening. The lamination process breaks the bonds of your eyebrow hairs, making them much easier to position. Eyelash & Eyebrow Specialist Zin Lwin corroborates that since you can’t tackle your brows with a plain old hair straightener, lamination is the next-best way to get an eyebrow cowlick lying in the right direction with minimal fuss on your part.^{[6]
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Expert Source

Zin Lwin
Eyelash & Eyebrow Specialist

Expert Interview}
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Consider a professional tinting or microblading treatment. Again, a professional fix isn’t necessary—but if you’re looking for something semi-permanent because you don’t want to worry about fixing your eyebrows every day, tinting and microblading are viable solutions. Tinting will darken your eyebrows; microblading, meanwhile, involves making small incisions in your brow to add pigment, thus making your brows look fuller.
- Either way, with tinting or microblading, a cowlick will be significantly less noticeable.

Section 4 of 5:

Can you permanently fix eyebrow cowlicks?

You can make styling changes and get professional treatments, but ultimately, your hair is your hair—its natural growing patterns can’t be permanently changed! So, if you’re especially bothered by your eyebrow cowlick, a semi-permanent treatment at the salon might be ideal; it won’t last forever, but you won’t have to restyle your brows every day.

Section 5 of 5:

What causes eyebrow cowlicks?

Eyebrow cowlicks largely result from genetics and natural growth patterns, though environmental factors can play a part in cowlick growth, too.^{[7]
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Research source} So, if you’re feeling frustrated over the presence of a cowlick in your eyebrow hair, just know that nearly everyone has some sort of brow cowlick for one reason or another. Common causes include:
- Genetics. If your other family members (parents, grandparents) have eyebrow cowlicks, you’re likely to inherit that trait, too.
- Natural growth patterns. Every hair on your body has a natural direction in which it grows, and if a few eyebrow hairs naturally grow in the opposite direction compared to the rest, it’ll create a cowlick.
- Regular habits. If you touch or rub your eyebrows too often, or use product on them a lot, it can add to the presence of a brow cowlick.
- Environmental factors. Things like humidity can also change your brow hair, making it curl or bend in a different direction than usual.