Buying Guide for the Best Hair Dryers
No home beauty regime would be complete without a hair dryer! Whether you are looking for a dryer to ensure the kids don’t go to sleep with wet hair, to make morning grooming much easier, or for something light to take on your travels, the best suited hair dryer is out there waiting for you. Finding the perfect hair dryer can mean the difference between a frizzy mess and a quick, perfectly-styled ‘do, but with so many brands out there, how do you choose? Don’t worry, we have your back with this hair dryer buying guide designed to get your dry and styled in no time.
Types
Hair dryers differ in their size, features, and where and when the hair dryer is meant be used. The main types of hair dryers include retail handheld dryers, professional hand-held dryers, travel, bonnet, and wall-mounted hair dryers. Choosing between them should not only be based only on budget but also on size and feature needs. Here are breakdowns of each type of hair dryer for you to compare:
Retail Hair Dryers: Smaller and more cost effective, retail hair dryers are aimed for at-home use. Easy to use and easy on the pocket, there are a wide variety to choose from to suit any budget and hair type.
Professional Hair Dryers: Ideally suited for a salon or for someone who wants to bring the salon home, professional hair dryers offer more heat and less RPMs (revolutions per minute). With longer life spans and quicker drying, they live up to their professional reputation.
Travel Hair Dryers: Often foldable, travel hair dryers are light and a lot more portable for easy travel.
Bonnet Hair Dryers: Ideal for style setting, bonnet hair dryers consist of a hood that fits over the head that heats the whole head at one time.
Wall-mounted Hair Dryers: Wall-mounted hair dryers are installed and mounted onto bathroom walls for easy grooming and storage space saving.
What Reviewers Have to Say
Based on all the consumers' reviews we've scanned, these are the top things they mentioned about their new stuff:
- Drying: All reviewers, no matter the hair type, comment on the best reviewed hair dryers that they dry quickly and efficiently. Hair styling is a mammoth task and a dryer that makes that chore quick and easy is rated much higher over other models.
- Frizz: Commenters consider hair dryers that leave hair frizzless after drying to be the best buy. The ideal combination for online reviewers are dryers that leave the least amount of frizz without losing hair volume. Buying a hair dryer specific to your needs will go a long way to ensure you are satisfied with your purchase.
- Build: Hair dryers need to be lightweight enough as to not cause strain while drying and have quality buttons that are well-placed for hassle-free styling. Units that achieve this get the best reviews, while ones that don’t are not reviewed well by consumers.
- Compatibility: Hair dryer owners that bought dryers suited to their kind of hair review their product purchases well. However, owners that didn’t buy appropriately rate their dryers poorer. Checking manufacturer specs as well as online reviews of best brand products will ensure you find a hair dryer suited for your hair and styling needs.
Important Features
- The higher the hair dryer wattage, the hotter it will be and the faster hair will dry. Dryers range from 1300 to 1800 watts on average, but consider a higher wattage for drying curly hair.
- Hair dryers offer different heating technologies and material builds to enhance styling and protect hair. The main types are as follows:
* Hair dryers offering ionic technology will smooth the hair while it is drying and make hair-drying much faster.
* Dryers made of tourmaline also work with ionic technology to add more shine.
* A gemstone coating on a hair dryer seals in moisture and dries quicker, leaving less damage.
* Suitable for all hair types, ceramic hair dryers add shine while preventing frizz and damage to your hair.
- Hair dryers offer a variety of features and accessories specially designed for achieving specific hair and should be considered to make sure you get the most out of you dryer. Here are the main hair dryer features and their uses to compare:
*A high airflow will ensure thicker hair dries quicker. Multiple speed settings will ensure fine hair is not damaged during heating.
* A hair dryer nozzle directs airflow for better styling.
*A hair dryer with multiple heat settings will allow for the low heat needed for styling and high heat needed for drying.
* Cool shot is a feature that allows the hairdryer to blast cold hair onto a style to help set it after drying.
* An auto-shutoff feature will ensure your hair dryer switches off the minute it is put down.
* A cord that swivels will prevent the cord from tangling up during styling.
* A dryer brush is a brush built into the hair dryer for easier styling.
- Not only should you choose a hair dryer (and features) depending on the type of hair, but also consider the type of styles you want to achieve. For example, sleek and straight styles are better achieved by tourmaline and ceramic hair dryers, and hair dryers including diffusers will ensure curly hair is styled perfectly without frizz.
- Hair dryers offering quiet motor technology will reduce operational noise to 60 decibels or less as compared to the 80 decibels a regular dryer produces.
- A hair dryer with a removable air filter will make it easier to clean, which will prevent overheating and hair damage and ultimately increase the lifespan of your dryer.
- Hair dryer holders will enable you to mount a non-mountable hair dryer onto a wall for easier storage.
Top-Rated Brands
Conair:
Conair has been developing and manufacturing health and beauty products since 1959 and is known for their quality hair dryers and other home styling products.
T3:
Since 2003, T3 hair dryers have been revolutionizing the hair dryer industry with their patented series of Tourmaline hair dryers.
Revlon:
Founded in 1932, Revlon have become a household name for quality products. Not only known for their make up, Revlon’s other grooming tools like hair dryers and flat irons are home favorites as well.
BaBylissPRO: A popular beauty appliance brand for decades, BabyLiss Pro products are designed by hairstylists and they specialize in high quality hair dryers, straighteners, and more.