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Shop vetted options for every hair type and texture. Jrl Hair Clippers
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A streamlined, time-saving beauty routine is essential for looking great when you get out the door in the morning. And when it comes to blow drying your hair, the best hair dryer brushes are the go-to tool for cutting down your styling time without sacrificing an ounce of volume or shine. To select the best hair dryer brushes, we tested 12 options — these are the ones worth investing in.
A hair dryer brush is a hair tool hybrid (half blow dryer, half traditional round hair brush) that can create waves, curls, or a smooth, straight blowout in one simple step. Hair dryer brushes catapulted to fame courtesy of TikTok users demonstrating their ability to take your hair from damp to done in a matter of minutes. The Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer, for example, has over 62.8 million views on TikTok and counting.
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Beyond social media-scrollers, hairstylists also have heart eyes for these tools. “I’m a huge fan of blow dryer brushes,” says Chicago-based celebrity hairstylist, Alex Brown, who counts Hailey Bieber, Kendall Jenner, and Bella Hadid as clients. “They are such an easy way to get a smooth, voluminous ‘blowout’ look. They make it easier to tame frizzy hair, rather than managing a dryer in one hand and a brush in the other.”
And the benefits of these hair dryers with brush-like features keep rolling. Brown adds that they’re designed to not only combine two blowout steps into one to “make it quicker to achieve a nice style,” but also to manage and smooth all hair types and textures, even wispy fine hair. She says that “fine hair can achieve volume so much easier when using a blow dryer brush.”
After gathering expert guidance from Brown and celebrity hairstylists Andrew Fitzsimons and Annagjid “Kee” Taylor, we researched hair dryer brush market and ordered up 12 top-rated, expert-recommended options to road test. Over the course of one month, a panel of three testers powered up the tools, spritzed on heat protectant, and carefully evaluated each tool on their own head of hair. Discover the top seven hair dryer brushes, plus tips on using the tools and keeping your hair healthy during your next styling session.
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No single hair dryer brush earned best overall on our list due to the variation in the category and independent styling needs for different hair lengths and textures. Our testers found the top choices below best for a range of hair types, textures, and results.
Best Hair Dryer Brush for All Hair Types
The majority of hair dryer brushes feature a ceramic-coated barrel, but the Amika Hair Blow Dryer Brush has tourmaline coating instead. Combined with 360° airflow through the barrel’s vents, this material swirl negative ions through your hair to slash frizz and lift hair from the root to give mega-volume. A mix of long and short bristles detangles hair first, preventing any breakage from the blowout. For hair dryer brushes with adjustable heat settings like this one, you can customize your blowout to have it exactly as you like it, but Brown cautions against using too much heat and tension while styling the hair for a long time.
Editor testing and review notes: “I have long, medium-thick hair that falls somewhere between a straight and wavy texture. I can usually get away with air drying it, so it takes a star product to sell me on the extra step in my beauty routine. I’m really impressed with the Amika Hair Blow Dryer Brush 2.0 because it gives my hair such a shiny finish, bounce, and overall healthy feel. I tried it for the first time on my birthday (risky, I know) on a humid summer day, and it stayed smooth and frizz-free for over 12 hours. My long, damp dry with just one to two passes, and it became fairly simple to create voluminous curls and flipped ends after I got the hang of it with further use. Due to its large size, I suspect it would be challenging for the bristles to grasp on to shorter cuts for defined curls, though I did find this brush successful in styling my curtain bands in long, draping swoops. My only complaint is in terms of the tool’s design. The notches that toggle the heat settings sit at the bottom of the handle, so they can easily be shifted as you’re turning the brush for a curl. I have accidentally turned the tool off in the middle of styling several times.” — Cigliano
Amika Hair Blow Dryer Brush $100 Buy Now at SEphora
WWD Shop writer Olivia Cigliano tests Amika’s hair dryer brush in our New York City office.
Best Hair Dryer Brush on Amazon
With nearly 16,000 five-star reviews on Amazon, the Revlon One-Step Volumizer Plus 2.0 Hair Dryer Brush is clearly a game-changer, and one of the best-rated TikTok beauty products and Amazon beauty products. The original version of the tool had a major moment during the peak of the pandemic, and this updated version boasts all the same features, but with improvements. The barrel size is smaller, which allows you to get closer to the roots of your hair for better smoothing and lift, and making it a great hot air brush for short hair. The handle is also slimmer, lending a more comfortable grip as you maneuver the device.
This tool is often on sale for under $50, making it the most affordable hair dryer brush on our list. Although it’s cost-effective, Revlon didn’t short you on special features: Dual bristles detangle while styling, three heat settings allow you to calibrate the temperature to your hair thickness, and it has ionic technology for extra shine.
Editor testing and review notes: “Revlon’s One-Step Volumizer hair dryer brush outperformed every other under $100 hair dryer brush on our list. You’ll get similar heat settings (four) that pricier hair dryer brushes deliver, and a similar result: It left my hair surprisingly shiny and with no frizz in sight. The only downside to the brush is its potential to damage fine hair types due to its high heat, but I found that a solid spritz of heat protectant kept my hair healthy throughout my two month testing period. Having tested the first version of this hair dryer brush, I found this newer iteration is easier to use, quieter, and brings a level of versatility that is hard to find elsewhere.” — Chwatt
Revlon One-Step Volumizer Plus 2.0 Hair Dryer Brush $69.99 $39.99 Buy Now at amazon
WWD Shop editor Nikki Chwatt tests the Revlon One-Step hair dryer in our New York City office.
Best Hair Dryer Brush for Thick Hair
If we’ve learned something in the past decade, it’s that brands that make vacuum cleaners have a knack for creating knockout hair tools. Take Shark’s FlexStyle Air Drying and Styling System, which launched in fall 2022. The tool is often compared to the Dyson Airwrap for its multiple attachments, including curling barrels that feature the Airwrap’s same Coanda technology, pulling strands around the attachment bouncy waves. This top Shark Beauty hair tool includes a joint-like feature that allows the wand to bend in a 90 degree angle — great for those who want the feel of a traditional hair dryer, but with the benefit of additional styling attachments.
To turn the FlexStyle into a hair dryer brush, simply attach the oval barrel head or the paddle brush hair dryer head onto the nozzle and power it on. Its large barrel size and moderate heat make the FlexStyle the best hair dryer for thick hair on the market, according to our tester with type 2B hair. Those with short hair can purchase a smaller round brush attachment separately at BestBuy.com for an at-home round brush blowout.
Editor testing and review notes: “During the six-month testing period of the Shark FlexStyle, I found myself reaching for each of the attachments for different looks and occasions — this tool is so much more than a plain old hair dryer brush. It works as a travel hair dryer, straightener, and curling iron, depending on the attachment you click onto the tool, all of which are seamless to click into place and intuitive to use. Some of the FlexStyle attachments, primarily the oval brush head, add noticeable weight to the device. However, the tool’s powerful airflow cuts down the amount of time it takes to style your hair. Those with long, thick hair may experience some snagging where the attachment meets the FlexStyle’s nozzle, so it’s in your best interest to properly section your hair while using the hair styling tool.” — Sullivan
Shark FlexStyle Air Drying and Styling System $299.99 Buy Now at Amazon
Shark FlexStyle Air Drying and Styling System $299.99 Buy Now at Sephora
WWD Shop editor Claire Sullivan uses the Shark FlexStyle with its oval brush head attachment in our New York City office.
Related: Shark SpeedStyle Review
Best Hair Dryer Brush for Long Hair
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