Claw Clips Are Cute & All... Until You Lean Back

Claw clips are the perfect lazy-girl hair accessory — until you have to sit down.

You’ve just showered, thrown your hair into a claw clip, and settled onto the couch for a night of doing absolutely nothing. You lean your head back, ready to get comfortable, only to be met with a hard piece of plastic digging into the back of your skull. The same thing goes in the car, on a plane, or basically anywhere else with a headrest — forcing you to either take it out, crane your neck at an awkward angle, or move the clip to the top of your head.

“There is something so niche about the way your hair looks when it’s in a claw clip and you need to adjust it to watch TV,” TikTok creator @paytonpurther said in a now-viral clip, showing off her hair piled on top of her head with a little rat tail dangling in front of her face. Even without the visual, everyone in the comments already knew what she meant. “Thought this was just me thank gawd we’re aligned,” one person replied. “Literally me rn,” added another, dropping a photo of the same ‘do.

The problem isn’t the hairstyle — it's that claw clips sit exactly where every headrest wants your head to be. So, for an accessory that’s supposed to be the pinnacle of effortless, no-fuss hair, claw clips might require a little more strategy than you initially signed up for. Thankfully, you don’t have to choose between comfort and the dreaded rat tail. Ahead, a hairstylist shares the easiest ways to make your claw clip actually work with your couch.

The Claw Clip Comfort Fix

Not every claw clip works for every hair type — or every chair, for that matter. According to hairstylist Finola Hurley, finding the right clip for your needs is the key to making them as foolproof as they should be.

If you want to comfortably lean back, look for a flat-back option, like Free People’s Jetsetter Flat Claw or Kitsch’s Cloud Flat Claw Clip. “They’re a great choice for sitting with a headrest because they don’t stick out,” Hurley says. The catch is that the slimmer shape typically can’t hold as much hair as a traditional curved clip, so they’re better suited to half-up styles.

Flexible silicone claw clips offer another solution if you want to lean back comfortably, with brands like Cozy Clip and Mello specializing in them. They’re designed to bend when you lean against them, making them a better option if you like wearing your hair fully up without sacrificing comfort.

If you don’t want to buy a whole new accessory, switch up your placement instead. Hurley recommends a half-up, half-down style positioned above the crown, which is “least likely to get in the way of a headrest because it keeps the bulk away from the back of the head.” A smaller clip works especially well here, since you only need enough grip to hold the top section in place.

Those with curly hair will probably want a clip that can “gather a lot of hair without pulling too much,” according to Hurley. (Comfort doesn’t just start with leaning back, after all.) Try a wide-tooth or octopus-style claw clip — Pattern and Chunks both have good options — which leaves more space for the curls to sit without getting squished and helps preserve your natural pattern when you take it down.

Of course, even if you’re not trying to keep your curls intact, that’s one of the perks of a claw clip: they keep your hair up without pulling on your scalp as much as a slicked-back bun or pony. “They’re quicker than a more detailed updo and often gentler on the hair,” says Hurley. “If worn correctly without pulling too tightly, they should not cause breakage or scalp tension.”

So, are claw clips actually as effortless as they’re made out to be? As it turns out, the only thing standing between you and peak claw-clip convenience is a headrest. Solve that, and you get cute hair, a happier scalp, and full couch privileges — no rat tail required.