Weft vs Tape-In vs Keratin: What Distributors Should Stock

Every page ranking for this question on 20 August 2026 was written for the person wearing the hair. Google's own AI Overview closes by asking the reader about their natural hair type and density. Useful if you are booking an appointment. Useless if you are deciding what to put in a container.

This one is written for the buyer. Where the three formats sit against each other on install time, stylist skill, reorder cycle and stock risk, plus the full type comparison if you need the wider format list first.

The three formats

Weft, tape-in and keratin cover most of what a salon-facing distributor moves. They are made on different machines, they sell to different stylists, and they come back on different cycles.

The stock decision is rarely about which one is better. It is about which reorder cycle your cash flow can carry and which stylists are already in your area.

Weft

A continuous track of hair with the strands attached along one edge. The stylist sews it into a braided row or beads it in.

Machine, hand-tied and genius

Machine weft has the strands sewn through a sewing machine. The track is thicker, it holds up to cutting, and it is the cheapest of the three to produce. It sits highest off the scalp.

Hand-tied weft is knotted by hand. Thinner track, lies flatter, and it cannot be cut without unravelling, so the stylist has to order the width they need.

Genius weft is machine-sewn and then trimmed and sealed so it lies flat like a hand-tied and still takes a cut. It is the format that took over the US salon market over the last few years, and the search data backs that: "genius weft" runs 1,000 searches a month in the US and 260 in the UK, against 40 a month for "weft vs tape in extensions" itself (Google Ads API, pulled 20 August 2026).

If you stock one weft type for a US salon audience, the demand signal points at genius.

Install time and stylist preference

A full weft row takes longer to put in than a tape-in set. Two to three hours is normal for a full head, and the stylist needs to be trained on beaded rows or sew-ins.

That training requirement is a filter on your customer base. Weft sells to salons that have already invested in the skill, which makes them stickier customers once you land them.

Margin and reorder rate

Weft carries more grams per unit than tape-in, so the ticket per order is higher. The client keeps the same hair through several move-ups, which means the salon reorders hair less often and consumables not at all.

Higher value per order. Longer gap between orders. Plan the cash flow around that shape.

Tape-in

Thin panels of hair with a medical-grade adhesive strip along the top edge. Two panels sandwich a small section of the client's hair.

Regular and invisible

Regular tape has the hair sewn onto a fabric-backed adhesive panel. It is stronger and cheaper, and the panel edge is visible if the client parts over it.

Invisible tape, sometimes sold as PU or injected tape, has the strands set into a thin polyurethane skin so the panel reads as scalp. It costs more to produce and it is what the premium end of the US and EU market asks for.

Reusability

The hair is reusable. The tape is not.

At every move-up the stylist strips the old adhesive and re-tapes the same panels, usually two to three times before the hair itself is retired. Your customer buys tape tabs on a cycle and hair on a longer one, and a lot of distributors miss the tab revenue entirely.

Why tape-in reorders fastest

Move-ups run every four to eight weeks, faster than weft. Panels get lost, damaged in removal, or retired early. New stylists start with tape because the install is under an hour and the training barrier is low.

Smaller ticket per order, more orders per year, and the lowest skill barrier of the three. That combination is why tape-in is the format most distributors open with.

Current tape stock sits in regular tape hair.

Keratin bonds

Individual strands attached to the client's hair with a keratin tip, either melted with heat or clamped in a bead.

I-tip, U-tip, V-tip, flat tip and nano tip

The letter describes the shape of the tip and the shape decides the install method.

Bonds are sold by the strand, usually in packs of 100 or 200, which makes the unit maths different from weft and tape. A full head runs into the hundreds of strands.

Which markets buy bonds

Europe buys bonds harder than the US does. UK, Netherlands and Germany salons have run keratin fusion for years and the stylist base is trained on it.

The US skews toward weft and tape. Africa moves very little bond volume, because the install time per head does not fit the price point.

Stock bonds if your customer list is European or if you are supplying a salon that already runs fusion. Bought speculatively, they sit.

Bond stock sits in keratin hair extensions.

Side by side for a distributor

Our numbers: lead time is 1 to 2 days for in-stock items and 10 to 12 working days for custom production, the same across all three formats because they run in one building. Minimum order for testing is 1 bundle at 100g, 1 wig, or 1 closure or frontal, at normal price. Wholesale volume gets a better per-unit price. Send your quantity on WhatsApp for the tier, and for per-format minimums on tape panels and bond strands.

What to stock if you can only pick one

Tape-in, if your customer base is new salons or stylists you are still winning.

The install barrier is the lowest, the reorder cycle is the fastest, and a stylist who has never fitted extensions will try tape before anything else. You get more transactions per customer per year, which is what builds the relationship that later carries weft and bond orders.

If your customers are established extension salons, the answer flips to genius weft. They already have the skill, the ticket is bigger, and the search demand is 25 times the demand for the comparison question itself.

Buy bonds third, and only against a named customer.

We produce all three at our own factory in Vietnam. That matters for a distributor holding mixed stock, because the hair in your weft, your tape panels and your bonds comes off the same sorting line and takes colour the same way. Mixed sourcing is where a salon notices that row three does not match row one.

Sourcing is step one of our 6-step production process. Channel NewsAsia and NPO Netherlands have both filmed inside our factory. Both broadcasts are public: AZ Hair on Channel NewsAsia and our NPO Netherlands feature.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between weft and tape-in?

A weft is one continuous track sewn or beaded into a row. A tape-in is a small panel with adhesive on the top edge, applied in pairs that sandwich the client's hair. Weft takes longer to install and holds more grams. Tape installs in under an hour and comes back sooner.

What are the downsides of weft extensions?

Install time of two to three hours, a stylist who needs beaded-row or sew-in training, and more weight on a single row than fine hair may carry. Machine weft also sits higher off the scalp than hand-tied or genius.

What are the downsides of tape-in hair extensions?

The adhesive is the weak point. Heavy oils, sweat and some conditioners loosen it. Panels can be damaged during removal, and the tabs have to be replaced at every move-up even though the hair is reusable.

What is the healthiest hair extension method?

Any method is as gentle as its install and removal. The variables that decide damage are how much weight goes on each section, how carefully the removal is done, and whether the client returns for move-ups on schedule. Bead-based methods with no heat and no adhesive give the stylist the most control.

Which extensions do the Kardashians use?

Publicly reported installs across that family have included tape-in and weft work at different times, and celebrity installs are done by stylists working without a budget ceiling. It is a poor guide to what a salon three time zones away will reorder.

Which is better for salons, tape-in or weft?

Tape-in for a salon starting out or serving fine hair. Weft for a salon with trained stylists and clients who want maximum density. Most established extension salons carry both and choose per client.

Which has the best margin?

Weft has the highest value per order because it carries the most grams. Tape-in generates the most orders per year. Bonds sit between the two and carry the highest stock risk if you buy them without a customer.

What is genius weft?

A machine-sewn weft that has been trimmed and sealed so the track lies flat like a hand-tied weft while still surviving a cut. It gives the stylist a flat row without the width restriction of hand-tied.

How often do clients reorder each type?

Move-ups run every four to eight weeks for tape and every six to ten for weft, but that is service revenue, not hair revenue. Hair itself is replaced when it retires: sooner for tape panels, later for weft, and bonds land in between.

What MOQ should I expect on tape-in wholesale?

Our testing minimum is a full 100g bundle, one wig, or one closure or frontal, at normal price. Per-format minimums on tape panels and bond strands work differently and wholesale tiers improve the per-unit price. Send your quantity on WhatsApp and you get the current tier back.

Can one supplier make all three?

Some can. Most cannot, and the ones that cannot will buy in the formats they do not produce, which is where the colour and texture mismatch between your weft row and your tape panels comes from. We make weft, tape and bonds in the same building.