Jump to:
When it comes to trendy waves, the looser and messier, the better! See our favorite 15 medium beach waves hair ideas to channel your inner sunshine goddess year-round.
You’ll find softly tousled looks to more defined glamorous options in our photo guide. Check them out below!
Want Medium Beach Waves Hair? Start Here
- Medium-length waves are trendy, loose, and easy to style
- Use waving products to enhance your hair’s natural wave
- Beach wave styles work best on hair types 1A-3A
Medium beach waves hair styles are honestly one of our favorite looks. If you have medium-length hair and love a tousled, casual look, soft beachy waves are at the top of the list.
Rocking waves in medium-length hair gives you the perfect boho vibe. Long enough to show off the wave pattern but not so long that the wave gets weighed down, medium-length locks are right in the wavy sweet spot.
Waves are always a popular style for different hair lengths, but you could argue that medium styles are the absolute best for beachy wave looks. From wavy lobs to layered medium shags, any cut around the shoulders is an ideal candidate for creating wavy styles.
It’s essential to get familiar with some wave-enhancing products that lend structure to beach waves if you want to create some of these trendy looks. Sea salt spray is a fan favorite for adding fresh-from-the-beach texture and grit to the hair for that breezy, windblown look.
Root-lifting spray is another key product for creating medium beach waves hair looks. Achieving that extra lift at the root gives waves more bounce and movement for a truly casual, soft look.
If your hair isn’t naturally wavy (like straight hair types 1A, 1B, and 1C), you can make use of curl-enhancing cream to coax a little more bend out of your mane. Of course, a great curling iron or curling wand will be key to creating the perfect beach waves, no matter your texture!
If you tend to struggle with frizz, it’s worth it to grab a quality anti-frizz serum product to smooth everything down and keep your medium beach waves hair style messy-cute, not messy-for-real.
Different hair textures from straight (1A-1C) and wavy (2A, 2B, and 2C) to curly (3A) can rock medium beach waves hair styles with a little help from products like these and great hot tools. Create easy, tousled waves with a curling iron, curling wand, waving iron, or even a flat iron using different techniques!
15 Medium Beach Waves Hair Ideas to Try
Can’t get enough of that gorgeous medium beach waves hair texture? You’ll have to try one – or all – of these sexy, tousled looks! From loose, unstructured bendy waves to defined waves that give off glam vibes, there’s a look for you in the list.
Some examples show longer hair, but don’t worry! These styles will look extra-amazing on medium length hair.
1. Tousled Loose Beachy Waves
Look Studio/Shutterstock
Leaving the ends out of your beach wave style is the key to nailing that casual, beachy vibe. This partial wave is most prominent in the midshaft zone, leaving the roots and ends relatively straight for a messy-but-cute finish. It’s easy to achieve these waves by twirling the midshaft zone of your hair around a curling wand without wrapping the ends.
2. Distressed Salt Spray Beach Waves
Hagen Production/Shutterstock
Nothing will texturize and wave your hair quite like that salty ocean spray, but a salt spray at home can get you pretty close! These messy, distressed waves aren’t perfect and don’t need to be. Spritz some salt spray into your damp hair, scrunch, and let air dry for beautifully natural beach waves.
3. Mega Body Beach Waves
Kourdakova Alena/Shutterstock
A larger-barreled curling iron or wand will help you achieve big-bodied waves that are soft enough to have that beachy look. These full waves are just a step below curls, giving you tons of volume and body that make hair appear thick and healthy. Use a little hairspray on each section you curl to make these waves last!
4. Retro Glam Beach Waves
YuriyZhuravov/Shutterstock
These retro-inspired beach waves remind us of old-school finger waves with a casual twist! This look creates lots of volume, so it’s ideal for thin to thick hair. Create these medium waves by curling sections of hair, then lightly brushing through to combine the waves for that vintage vibe.
5. Barely-There Brunette Bendy Waves
Sofia Zhuravetc/Shutterstock
Beach-inspired waves don’t have to be tight or super-wavy. Try a barely-there beach wave with subtle bends to really master this pretty trend! Tugging on warm waves after releasing from your hot tool will relax and flatten them out a bit, perfect for toned-down looks like this.
6. Big Voluminous Messy Waves
YuriyZhuravov/Shutterstock
Volume and beach waves go so well together – nothing beats the look of windblown waves inundated with texturizing salt from the sea! This style features tons of volume thanks to root-lifting spray and texturizing sea salt paired with medium beach waves.
7. Soft Casual Beach Waves
Dmitry_Tsvetkov/Shutterstock
Medium beach waves hair styles are perfect for nailing that effortless look – even if more than a little effort is going into the look! Loosely wrap long hair around a large-barreled curling iron or wand, concentrating on the midshaft to ends. Release and tug lightly to reveal soft, casual beach waves.
8. Trendy Flattened Medium Waves
Irina Bg/Shutterstock
Ever notice that your medium beach waves hair style seems to look better on day 2 (or 3)? The trendy flattened wave style is so pretty and easy to create in a medium wavy hair texture! Try creating beach waves with a hot tool as you normally would, but glide the hot barrel down over the finished waves while holding each section taut. This will flatten the wave a bit and give you this casual look!
9. All-Over Defined Waves
Oksy001/Shutterstock
Beach waves are versatile, so try a medium wave with a little more wave definition than traditional “loose” wavy styles. Keeping your waves separate adds a little more dimension and structure to the style, but still keeps that loose and casual vibe. Run your fingers through your finished waves to tousle them up!
10. Alternating Tousled Beach Waves
Shumskaya Tatiana/Shutterstock
One trick we love to give any medium beach waves hair style a “messy” appearance that’s still cute is alternating the direction of the waves. Use your curling iron or wand to wrap sections clockwise, then counterclockwise on the next section for this tousled, undone look.
11. Half-Bend Unstructured Waves
Oleg Gekman/Shutterstock
Want subtle waves that don’t enter into curly territory? Try a medium beach waves hair style with half-bend unstructured waves for a trendy take on this look. Use a flat iron and make a half turn while sliding the plates down the length of your hair to create these waves!
12. Brushed Beach Waves With Structured Accents
Beauty Style/Shutterstock
The trendy brushed beach wave gets an instant lift with a few structured pieces done around the face for texture and definition. The style is overall relaxed and chic with that effortless look and feel thanks to the loose nature of these medium beach waves.
13. Trendy Tousled Waves
galyakiss/Shutterstock
Channel your inner baddie with a cute beach wave style like this. Long, loose waves take on a messy, tousled look while remaining frizz-free and subtly defined with texture. Try alternating wave directions and tug on warm pieces to loosen the wave for this look.
14. Structured Medium Beach Waves
Look Studio/Shutterstock
Love a more structured wave? Opt for a defined medium beach wave hair texture that gets a little closer to curly territory. This look is perfect for casual outfits, but also suits more formal looks thanks to the added definition! Try it with extra root volume for a beautiful, breezy style.
15. Messy Boho Waves
Ekaterina Jurkova/Shutterstock
Make the most of your natural texture with a little texturizing sea salt spray and a quick scrunch! This look features medium beach waves hair texture that isn’t supposed to be perfectly neat – it’s all about that loose, messy vibe! You’ll look like you’re fresh from the beach with this casual style.
Things to Consider
Rocking that medium beach waves hair texture with length around your shoulders is always going to look cute, but it’ll look even better when you keep these considerations and tips in mind!
- Prep your hair properly. If you’re creating medium beach waves hair looks with hot tools, make sure you take the right prep steps. A curl-enhancing product like mousse or gel will help define and create a stronger wave structure. Heat protectant before using a hot tool is a must to protect your hair from damage!
- Embrace the messy texture. Trying to create perfect beach waves can be frustrating. You want a loose, tousled texture that looks a little messy, but you don’t want your hair to look like a rat’s nest! Anti-frizz serum helps polish a messy waved style and a quick touchup with a curling iron can help define an air-dried wavy style.
- Create cute styles with waves. Waves can be worn alone, down and loose, for a really pretty hairstyle that can be as casual or formal as you’d like. But they’re also a great foundation for other cute styles! Try half-up pigtails, half-braided looks, high ponytails, and side ponytail looks with waves to up the wow factor. It’s also a great way to stretch your style over a few days!
- Leave the ends out. When you’re creating pretty medium beach waves hair texture, you want to ensure you’re only focusing on waving/curling the midshaft zone primarily. Leaving the ends out gives you a subtle difference in texture and a looser overall wave that looks more boho than glam.
- Finish with hairspray for staying power. Waves can easily fall out of your hair over a few hours if you don’t finish the style properly – especially if you have naturally straight hair. Make sure to finish up with a little hairspray to add some hold to your waves! Using a medium- to firm-hold mousse or gel product before drying and styling your waves will help prolong them, too.
Frequently Asked Questions
Shumskaya Tatiana/Shutterstock
Love the idea of medium beach waves hair, but still have some questions you need answered? See if your answer is below as we address the most commonly asked questions!
How do you get beach waves in medium hair?
You can use curl-enhancing products like mousse, curl cream, gel, or sea salt spray to get waves in medium hair.
For more regular, defined waves, use a hot tool like a curling iron, curling wand, waving iron, or flat iron to create beachy waves.
How do you get loose beach waves?
Loose beach waves can be created by styling hair with a hot tool of your choice, then tugging on the wave while it's still warm to relax it a bit.
Try alternating the direction of your waves to give any wavy style that beachy, messy vibe.
Do you need layers for beach waves?
Layers and waves go hand in hand. To really nail that trendy beach wave look, you'll need some layers to help stack and separate the waves to create the beachy look.
Long layers work best in medium hair for beach waves. Try getting additional layers around the face for the most impact.
Are beachy waves still in style 2022?
Beach waves are definitely in style this year - and probably will never go out of vogue. This loose, casual texture is one of the most popular ways to style hair whether it's short, medium, or long.
Which Medium Beach Waves Hair Ideas Will You Try?
We’ve shown you some of our favorite medium beach waves hair ideas, from soft and tousled to voluminous and glam. Which looks are you most excited to try? You can channel your inner sunshine goddess anytime of year with these casual, breezy looks.
If your hair isn’t quite medium length just yet, no worries! All of the styles you’ve seen in this guide will work for short bob lengths, medium lengths, and long, layered lengths.
We encourage you to experiment with a few different types of waves using a range of hot tools (curling iron/wand, waving iron, flat iron, etc.). You might find that you love the shape and structure of a flat iron beach wave a lot more than the rounder, more full-bodies waves you’ll get from a curling iron.
When it comes down to it, you really can’t go wrong with any of the medium beach waves hair ideas you’ll find in this guide and online. If you’ve got the right products to prep your hair, a great hot tool to use, and plenty of imagination to create your perfect wavy style, you’re going to love your trendy, tousled results!