The best hair dyes for a flawless finish at home

Get brilliant results from your bathroom sink

Best hair dyes 2020

by Aimee Jakes |
Updated on

Investing in the best hair dye for home use doesn't have to be so scary. As much as we love a trip to the hair salon, sometimes forking out money for a cut and blowdry is a bit too much, so that's where our trusty box dyes come in handy. From DIY hair toning to at-home facials, we're basically becoming our own beauty therapists.

We once spent an extortionate amount on a full head of highlights, but now we're looking for alternatives we can master from home. For a fraction of the price as well as a lot more time on our hands, you can get a box dye job that's just as good as the hairdressers. But, don't forget a toner if you're looking to apply a blonde hair dye.

Closer's best hair dyes at a glance:

Best natural colour hair dye: Clairol Nice'n Easy Crème Permanent Hair Dye, £7.97 on Amazon

Best cruelty-free hair dye: Garnier Nutrisse Hair Dye Permanent, £16 on Amazon

Best foam hair dye: John Frieda Precision Foam Colour Hair Dye, £9.49 on Amazon

Best hair dye - Closer
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Plus, even celebs like Davina McCall and Holly Willoughby's hair dye jobs at home look fresh, where these celebs have expressed their love for at-home dye. And we can't deny their 'dos are pretty fab.

The best hair dyes on the market today offer a quick and inexpensive way to refresh your colour -whether you need a hair dye for dark hair, you're looking to cover your greys or even try a totally different look. They also save you mega £££ as the standard box dye will set you back less than £10.

But, be careful; if you have especially thick or long hair, you may need two boxes of hair dye to ensure an even finish.

The results? Healthy and vibrant-looking hair without needing to leave your own bathroom. It's a yes from us. From cult-favourite permanent dyes to a trendy silver hair dye, here are the very best hair dyes to see you through this time in style.

SHOP: The best hair dyes 2024

Best natural colour hair dye

Clairol Nice'n Easy Crème Permanent Hair DyeAmazon
Price: $16.15

Description

Clairol Nice'n Easy Creme gives a natural blend of tones and highlights for a stunning natural finish, so if you're looking for something that's not too intense, this is the one for you. With loads of colours to choose from, whether it's black hair dye, brown, red or blonde, your dream colour is waiting.

Customer review: "Don't usually go for this one but decided to give it a go. Hadn't coloured my hair for about five months, so followed the instructions. Left it on about five minutes longer than it said. End result is a gorgeous light brown colour, unlike some brown dyes that make your hair look almost black. Covered roots and odd grey hair perfectly. Would definitely recommend and will be buying again."

Pros

  • Wide range of colours
  • Natural-looking colour
  • Easy to use

Cons

  • Coverage doesn't last as long as others

Best cruelty-free hair dye

Garnier Nutrisse Hair Dye PermanentAmazon
Price: £16

Description

A nourishing hair dye which promises 100% grey coverage. The Garnier Nutrisse Hair Dye contains four oils to ensure minimal damage - what more could you want? It comes with a whole range of colours from brown hair dye and beyond to choose from, with a 5 oils conditioner that restores hair after colouring.

Customer review: "After going from bleach blonde to darker, my hair went a horrible orange colour. I thought I'd try this as I really liked the colour. I'm very pleased with the colour result. I'm not keen on the smell, but I'm so happy with the colour I'll put up with it."

Pros

  • Wide range of colours
  • Up to 8 weeks of vibrant and intense colour
  • Cruelty-free

Cons

  • Small bottle

Best foam hair dye

John Frieda Precision Foam Colour Hair DyeAmazon
Price: £9.49

Description

A permanent hair dye with revolutionary, non-drip foam which covers every strand perfectly, the John Frieda Precision Foam Colour is one to go for. It also comes with a nourishing, after-colour conditioner for long-lasting colour.

Customer review: "My hair is longer than shoulder length, so I did need to order more than one, even if I didn't use all of the second one. Because I was able to do it all myself because of the foam, it was worth paying that little bit extra, to ensure I wasn't going to have any patches anywhere. My hair feels good after using the conditioner that's provided."

Pros

  • Vegan-friendly
  • Easy application
  • Non-drip foam

Cons

  • Strong smell

Best easy application hair dye

Description

Enriched with pro-collagen and pro-ceramide for a multidimensional colour, the L'Oreal Excellence Age Perfect Hair Dye is perfect for anyone who fancies super natural results. This dark beige blonde is the perfect shade for a layered-tone colour.

Customer review: "Beautiful shade of hair colour, caring while you colour. Made my hair shiny and manageable after use. One of the best hair colours I have ever used. Will buy again."

Pros

  • Easy application
  • Enriched formula for nourishing hair
  • Replenished hair

Cons

  • Hard to cover white hair

Best hair dye for bold colour

Description

A vivid deep red dye which leaves your hair brilliantly shiny. Schwarzkopf LIVE Colour + Lift permanent hair dye is enriched with a completely vegan formula and concentrated pigment mix which can lighten hair up to 3 levels.

Customer review: "I adore this product! Dyed at the beginning of summer and still remains a bright colour at the end. I originally had dark brown hair and it turned bright purple/red/pink. I do recommend if you something unique!"

Pros

  • Long-lasting
  • Lightens hair up to 3 levels
  • Vibrant colour

Cons

  • Might need a few applications

Best creative colour hair dye

Fudge Paintbox Hair ColourantLookFantastic
Price: £9.31 (was £10.95)

www.lookfantastic.com

Description

Change up your style with the Fudge Paintbox Hair Colourant in this vibrant Pink Riot colour, a semi-permanent hair dye that can be applied alone or with other shades to create a customised look. Apply a little or a lot depending on how deep you want the shade to be.

Customer review: "I left mine on (shade Pink Moon) for two hours rather than following the instructions and ended up with a gorgeous hot pink colour. It wasn't patchy or streaky. Pardon the pun, but I was over the moon with it."

Pros

  • A semi-permanent hair dye
  • Enriched with keratin proteins
  • Ammonia and peroxide free

Cons

  • After a few washes colour can fade easily

Best metallic hair dye

Schwarzkopf LIVE Urban Metallic Vibrant Permanent Blue Hair DyeAmazon
Price: £7.50

Description

If you're committed to the blue crew, you'll want to go down the permanent hair dye route, and no one does that better than Schwarzkopf. This Blue Mercury shade has a beautiful metallic tinge that shimmers in the light.

Customer review: "I wish I'd found this a long time ago! This is fantastic stuff. The photo on the box actually is not as pretty as it turned out on my head. I actually got a really nice cobalt blue. I was not expecting that, and I'm absolutely delighted by it! I've just bought my second box too, and will be continuing with this product from now on!"

Pros

  • Built-in metallic shine booster
  • Infused with coconut oil
  • Vegan formula

Cons

  • Works effectively only on bleached hair

Best trending hair dye

Description

Shake it up with a new 'do. Whether you're already blonde or used bleach to lighten your locks, this Garnier Olia 9.11 Silver Smoke Permanent Hair Dye from Garnier will improve hair quality at the same time as colouring it. Free from ammonia and oil potent, your hair will feel smoother and look better than ever before. If you're a fan of subtle lavender hair dyes as well, this will be your ideal mixture of the two.

Customer review: "I don't normally write reviews but I felt I must for this hair dye! I was quite worried when it was applied as it went bright purple but don't panic! It does wash off! It's left my hair a beautiful lavender silver which I absolutely adore! Top tip! Make sure your hair is light enough before applying and if your roots are freshly bleached then apply the colour last so it doesn't stick so much. Make sure you leave it for the allotted 30mins otherwise, it might be patchy! If I'm doubt, do a strand test to see what it looks like

Pros

  • Layered tones
  • Ammonia free
  • Can be used as a toner

Cons

  • Slight lavender hue at the start

Best semi-permanent hair dye

BLEACH LONDON Awkward Peach Super Cool ColourCult Beauty

Description

If you fancy trying something different, we love Bleach London's Super Cool Colour hair dye. Available in 13 shades from perfectly pastel to something more bold, this semi-permanent dye will last between 2-10 washes, so it's ideal if you're looking to switch things up.

Customer review: "Used slime light for the first time, and it's INCREDIBLE! I didn't expect such colour. It's got a completely different texture from the other colours I've used; this is a lot runnier. "

Pros

  • A wide range of bold colours
  • Vegan-friendly and cruelty-free
  • Allows you to get chameleonic without the colour commitment

Cons

  • For best results, apply on very light blonde, bleached hair

Best henna hair dye

Rainbow Research, Henna, Hair Color & Conditioner Medium AuburniHerb

Description

If you're wanting to Rainbow Research Henna Hair Colour from iHerb has this brown hair dye that we just can't resist. This pure natural henna plant powder is free from all chemicals and can even supposedly be used to cover greys. as well as add body and shine to all hair types. We're snapping this one up.

Customer review: "This is the only plant based nontoxic cruelty free hair color treatment I've ever found. I really didn't expect much. I used two teaspoons of powder (only a small portion of the entire container) as I started with only the top area and bangs. Mixed it as advised with a plastic spoon in a glass, with some hot black tea and cider vinegar, and left it on for an hour, keeping it warm with a cap and blow dryer, as instructions say it's heat activated. It's scented like some fresh hay, which rinsed out completely. Wow it turned out brilliant Bright auburn, as the hair I applied it to was pretty much silver white. Very pretty, and left my hair soft, manageable, and thicker fuller texture. Application directions say it will fade out over six weeks or so. I expect it to look very nice as it fades."

Pros

  • Vibrant colour
  • Free of all chemicals, preservatives and dyes
  • Worked on greys for some

Cons

  • May fade quickly

FAQs

How to keep your coloured hair fresh and long-lasting:

Now, when it comes to making sure that fresh dye stays fresh, that can be a pretty hard job to maintain. Make sure to follow these tips to ensure a smooth and long-lasting process:

1. Limit your hair-washing days. Aim to wash your hair at least every other day if you are guilty of overwashing, as this can fade the colour, especially with red hair dye.

2. Try a dedicated colour-locking shampoo or conditioner. If you use a blonde dye, a purple shampoo for blonde hair will keep your hair non-brassy.

3. Turn down the water temperature when shampooing. Hot water can make dye bleed from your hair prematurely. Turn it to cold if you can handle it!

Remember, avoid getting dye on your skin. But if you do, don't worry just follow this quick easy guide to on how to get hair dye off skin.

Is hair dye safe?

Yes, almost all at-home box hair dyes are completely safe to use on your hair at home. What you want to ensure that you're doing is doing a patch test at least 24 hours before, especially if you have a particularly sensitive scalp.

Most box hair dyes will have patch test instructions inside the box. If you're not sure, all you need to do is mix up the dye and then place a little bit behind your ear and on a strand of hair to test the results.

What this will do is make sure that both your skin and hair can handle the chemicals in the pack. If you see any reaction, including red patches, itchiness or hair loss, remove the patch test immediately and consult a GP.

Aimee Jakes is the shopping editor across heat and Closer. As well as mainly writing about skincare launches, high-street fashion and gym bag essentials, she also regularly chats to celebs about their wellness routines for heat's Self-Care Sunday.

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