Just how important is a wig for cosplay? Except for very few exceptions, the wig is considered a MUST for cosplayers both aspiring and professional. It’s not too farfetched to say cosplayers can be completely unrecognizable without a wig, especially if the character is your average highschooler with magical powers.
Wigs should be at the top of a cosplayer’s head (heh). But finding a wig could be incredibly daunting even for veteran cosplayers. So where do you start?
Well, the single most important question you need to ask yourself is this:
How much money can I spend?
This single question will take you a long way, thanks to this handy-dandy list divided into price ranges.There is a lot that goes into a wig, but it all begins with the purchase.
Really Cheap (Less Than $20)
Let’s be clear here. If you get a cheap wig, it will almost always be less than satisfactory. It might not be thick enough, resulting in the scalp being visible and reducing the stylability of the wig. On top of that, the strands could be less resistant to heat, more easily tangled, and generally less durable. They also run the risk of looking less than similar to the online photos. With that said, I’ve seen many casual cosplayers pull off cheap wigs quite well, although they’re never proud of it when asked.
This is THE place to purchase cheap wigs. It’s like the Chinese equivalent of Amazon, which means everything is unreasonably cheap there. Their selections is immense too. However, note that they’re almost always Chinese vendors, which means shipping could get either very expensive or very long. Expect to wait about a month for some wigs. And try not to order around February, as most suppliers take long breaks for Chinese New Year.
The old eBay still works like a charm, except it’s pretty much Alibaba. While there is a more diverse selection of wig vendors on Ebay, most of them are Chinese. As such, the same pros and cons apply.
Middle Range ($30-60)
This is the sweet spot for most cosplayers. They are also the most common. The reason is that these wigs are realistic enough to be convincing, but not too real as to send to tumbling into the Uncanny Valley. Be ready to style your wigs though, because we’ve left character-specific wigs at the Halloween party stores.
Quite arguably the most popular cosplay wig store. Each wig has a huge array of colors to choose from and thoughtfully designed layers to give every wig a unique feel. But perhaps the most defining feature about Arda is how thick the hair is, Thanks to this, you can often style them without worrying at all about showing scalp. The only downside is that they’re so popular, they often find themselves out of stock of generic wig/color combinations. To address this, they have a regularly updated future inventory list so you can backorder your wig even if it’s not available.
Cosplayers have been using this wig store for ages, and while their wigs are not as anime-centric as other wig shops, they make up for that in quality and realism. If you need a wig that sits on your head like real hair or you need curls, Amphigory is a great place to look.
This shop has been getting incredibly popular lately, and it’s largely in thanks to its very obvious support of the cosplay community. They feature a bunch of cosplayers both casual and professional, and their “Wigspirations” page is just awesome. But that’s not to say their wigs are not impressive, because they definitely are. While their color selection needs work, they have an immense library of hair styles. If you’re looking for a wig, definitely look into them and support a store that loves cosplay.
CosplayWigs used to have its own store some years ago, but it has since been rolled into Rockstar Wigs. But they haven’t changed much. As opposed to most wig stores, they sell many wigs specifically made and styled to a character. While that can be a good thing, you’ll have a hard time finding a wig for a character with less than Elsa levels of popularity. That’s not too much of a problem though, because they do have non-character specific wigs too. Their wigs are of good quality and their colors are incredibly vibrant, which could be a good or bad thing depending on the situation.
Top Shelf Wigs ($70+)
If you want to go hard, you better start learning Japanese, because the following sites take cosplay so seriously, they won’t even speak English. These websites are also favored by lolitas, who can get very snobby when brands are concerned. But that says a lot about the quality of these wigs. These wigs are not necessarily $70+, but expect to pay that much with currency exchange and shipping.
Probably the most cosplay-esque in this section and coincidentally the cheapest. Their wigs are comparable to Arda, although they have a selection large enough to make your head spin. Airily is also the only one with English support, which is on their top header, titled “English Guide”, in case you’re not looking to learn Japanese anytime soon.
A great part about Classewig is that they sell wigs by character. The not so great part is that they’re not styled, so you need to do it yourself. Their wigs are slightly more on the realistic side, and they have a huge price range, meaning Classewig will likely have a wig for any character you’re doing.
If you’re looking for incredibly realistic Japanese hair, look no further. Cyperous wigs are created with true Japanese hair in mind, making it a favorite for lolita shoppers and cosplayers looking to do characters from idol anime. But they do have an anime-centric cosplay wig site as well, which is not as impressive as their realistic hair, but incredible nonetheless.
(Featured image credited to CocoSori and Tomia cosplay.)
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