Terminal hair and vellus hair are two distinct types of hair found on the human body, each with unique characteristics and functions. Terminal hair is known for its coarser texture, pigmentation, and longer length, while vellus hair is recognized for its fine, soft texture, and lighter pigmentation. The differences between these two types of hair play a crucial role in the body’s thermoregulation, protection, and overall appearance.
What is terminal hair vs. vellus hair? Let’s go into the differences between these two types of hair that everyone has on their bodies.
What Is Vellus Hair?
At the most basic level, vellus hair is the hair we have on our bodies that we sometimes refer to as “peach fuzz” around our main hairline.
Vellus hair is fine, soft, and lightly pigmented. It covers most of the body, except the palms, soles, lips, and genital areas.
Females usually retain more vellus hair, whereas males convert more vellus to terminal hair during puberty. Infants and children also have many vellus hairs. As people reach puberty, many vellus hairs change into terminal hairs.
Vellus hair serves two primary functions: thermoregulation and sensory perception. By providing a light layer of insulation, these fine hairs help reduce heat loss. They also act as a sensory warning system, allowing the skin to detect light touch and triggering reactions like goosebumps.
Vellus hair varies between people. Length, thickness, and color can differ based on genetics, age, and body area. A sudden increase, new coarse growth, or unusual distribution can sometimes point to an underlying health issue. Visit a medical professional in such cases.
Vellus hair is difficult to remove permanently because it often lacks the pigment required for laser treatments, though temporary removal (dermaplaning/shaving) is common.
What Is Terminal Hair?
Terminal hair is the hair that grows from your scalp, excluding peach fuzz. It also includes armpit hair and pubic hair once puberty hits and is complete.
Terminal hair can also grow on the face. A man’s beard or stray hairs on the upper lip or chin in women are forms of terminal hair.
Eyebrows and eyelashes are also considered to be terminal hair. And chest hair is terminal hair, as is the hairline many people have from their navel to their pubic region (often called a ‘happy trail’).
What Do Vellus Hair and Terminal Hair Look Like?
Vellus hair is typically lower in pigment than terminal hair. It is shorter, not growing longer than about 5 to perhaps 10mm in length. People with lighter skin tones typically have unpigmented or very pale blond vellus hair.
People with more pigmented skin can have vellus hair that ranges in color from light brown to dark brown. In women or people without facial hair growth, vellus hair is still present on the sides of the face, although it is colorless.
Vellus hair covers the face, earlobes and trunk; while hair on the scalp, armpits, pubic area, and (for many adults) arms and legs is considered terminal hair.
Terminal hair goes much deeper into the skin; you may have noticed that it’s much more painful to pluck your eyebrows (terminal hair) than to remove the fine peach fuzz (vellus hair) on your cheek. This is because terminal hair is rooted much deeper into your skin, which we will discuss below.
Where vellus hair is typically much less pigmented, and in some individuals, it isn’t noticeable, terminal hair is dark in color, especially for those with more melanin in their skin. People with very light blonde hair can have blond scalp hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes, but they are a minority across most of the globe.
Most of the time, terminal hair is far more pigmented than vellus hair, and it appears on parts of our bodies that we would refer to as “hairy,” like our beards, armpits, pubic area, and of course, our scalps.
Now, these generalizations don’t work universally—Alopecia Areata has been reported at roughly 0.1% to 0.2% worldwide prevalence. While most cases involve patchy scalp loss, severe forms (Alopecia Universalis) can cause the loss of both terminal and vellus hair.
Key Differences Between Terminal and Vellus Hair
The primary difference we’ve already discussed is color. Terminal hair, even in blond people, is more pigmented than vellus hair. The texture of vellus hair is smooth and soft. While terminal hair is thicker, which leads to it being coarser and much more noticeable than vellus hair.
Even if you could gather together enough vellus hair to make it into a ponytail, the hair is so flimsy it wouldn’t be able to stay in place.
Terminal hair provides thicker coverage, creating a denser appearance than fine vellus hair, even though vellus follicle count can be quite high.
In androgenetic alopecia (male or female pattern hair loss), some terminal scalp hairs can miniaturize into finer, shorter, vellus-like hairs. Under all other circumstances, a terminal hair stays a terminal hair. Terminal hair follicles can reach deeper under the skin than vellus hairs.
Vellus Hair Vs. Terminal Hair Comparison Table
| Difference | Vellus Hair | Terminal Hair |
|---|---|---|
| Length | Short hairs (about 1–10 mm) | Scalp: can grow long; Body: Short (cm range) |
| Thickness | Usually under 30 microns (under 0.03 mm) | Thick hairs (30 to 120 microns) |
| Density (Hairs per pilosebaceous unit) | Varies (often 1 hair per follicular unit) | Varies (often 1–4 hairs per follicular unit, especially on the scalp) |
| Pigmentation | Unpigmented | Usually pigmented |
| Life Cycle | Shorter life cycle (in telogen, 90% of time) | Scalp: 2–7 years in anagen; Body: Months |
| Texture | Smooth, soft, no blunt ends | Coarser, thicker, can range from soft to rough |
| Location | Face, edges of the scalp (baby hairs/peach fuzz), abdomen, toes, and fingers | Facial hair (beards, mustaches), armpits, pubic region, arms, legs, eyebrows, eyelashes, scalp |
| Color | Ranging from no color to blond, brown, and sometimes black | All possible hair colors are found across the world, but much more pigmented than vellus |
| Follicle Depth | Reticular dermis (0.6mm from the skin surface) | Deep dermis to Hypodermis (2–4 mm deep from the skin surface) |
| Diameter | Less than 0.03mm | More than 0.03mm, usually more than 0.06mm |
In short, your scalp, eyebrows, and eyelashes are terminal hair at birth. Everything else is vellus hair until puberty.
Then vellus hair on your pubic region, armpits, and face (in some cases) becomes terminal hair and stays that way unless pattern baldness develops. Most of the hair on your body is vellus hair, but the hair you groom and style is typically terminal hair.