Table Of Content
- Best Budget: InfinitiPro by Conair SmoothWrap Hair Dryer
- Best Blow-Dryer Brush: Revlon Salon One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer
- How can you use a blow dryer for a silky blowout?
- Upgrade pick: Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer
- Best Hair Dryers in 2024, Reviewed by Allure Editors
- How do you use a hair dryer diffuser?

This list is comprised of the 20 top performing hair dryers, along with details of our experiences using them. As part of this testing, we also found the best hot air brushes, and best hair dryers for fine hair. The diffuser attachment, which looks like a hand, dried our hair in about eight minutes, which is super fast considering it usually takes us around 20 minutes. Even with the funky lime green hand attachment, the dryer is lightweight and easy to maneuver.
Best Budget: InfinitiPro by Conair SmoothWrap Hair Dryer
While the lower heat setting wasn’t quite as hot as we’d have preferred, one of our favorite qualities of this model was that the body of the dryer didn't overheat, the way so many hot tools designed for curly and textured hairdo. Plus, the easy-to-set temperature made it simple to lock in our settings. Designed as a gentler solution to the typical damage-wreaking dryer, the Zuvi Halo Hair Dryer is our top choice for damaged tresses in dire need of some TLC, delivered in a visually appealing and lightweight package. While the airstream wasn't as concentrated as we might have liked, it nonetheless earns top marks as an option for those struggling with damaged hair, with its intentionally quieter airflow.

Best Blow-Dryer Brush: Revlon Salon One-Step Hair Dryer and Volumizer
They also gave it points for the strategically located control buttons and easy-to-use cool shot button. Though it was loud in Quiet Mark sound testing and is the priciest of the most recent test winners, it comes with a 10-year motor-life warranty and a storage bag. That said, it doesn't include a diffuser, so it may not be the best pick for those with curly hair.
How can you use a blow dryer for a silky blowout?
That's where our Good Housekeeping Institute Beauty Lab scientists come in, rigorously testing hair dryers in the Lab on human hair samples and consumer testers to assess their attributes and performance. Speed and heat are the only features that matter for drying your hair efficiently, and with a 55 mph airflow that exceeds 245 °F, the Rusk W8less Professional 2000 Watt Dryer is one of the fastest and hottest dryers we tested. It weighs less than a pound, it has an 8-foot cord (one of the longest we found), it’s notably comfortable to hold, and overall it has the best combination of features we deem important. The W8less comes with a concentrator, which is helpful for straightening hair, but it does not come with a diffuser.
Cricket Ultra Smooth Professional Hair Dryer
In chemistry from Ithaca College and more than 16 years of experience working in the pharmaceutical and personal care industries. The Conair InfinitiPro SmoothWrap Hair Dryer is slower and has a shorter cord than all of our picks. However, it is lightweight (a pound), and it reaches temperatures above 245 °F. The Conair 1875-Watt 3-in-1 Ionic Styler has a long row of grills (and a brush attachment) instead of a circular nozzle. It gives you no way to attach a diffuser, which means you’re stuck with a single-purpose dryer. Shark has released another hair dryer called the SpeedStyle, as well as a new hair tool, the SmoothStyle (which resembles the Revlon One-Step).

One tester found that the heavier cord tired out her arms when she was drying the top of her head, though resting the power bar (which most dryers do not have) on the counter helped. The sound the Supersonic emits is a high-pitched whine, with none of the low rattle that other dryers put out. Whether this sound is more pleasant, as the company claims, is a matter of personal opinion, though. As with any dryer, the sound of whooshing air is physically impossible to eliminate. In our tests, the airflow from the InfinitiPro by Conair 1875-Watt Salon Performance AC Motor Styling Tool was faster than that of our top pick at 65 mph, but at 205 °F it was not as hot as the Rusk W8less (which reached over 245 °F).
Best Hair Dryers in 2024, Reviewed by Allure Editors
Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer Review: Everything You Need to Know About the Stylist-Approved Hair Tool in 2023 - Vogue
Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer Review: Everything You Need to Know About the Stylist-Approved Hair Tool in 2023.
Posted: Sat, 16 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]
One editor with wavy, thick and dry hair, who was accustomed to using the highest heat settings, found that this dryer didn’t cut down on her drying time as much as she would have liked. Still, the resulting blowout, which took about 35 minutes, included smooth-to-the-touch tresses and a minimal amount of flyaways. Our one caveat is that the blow dryer wasn’t exactly easy on our arms. While this hair dryer works with all hair types, those with thick hair will especially love the blend of power and performance that this option provides.
However, at over 9.5 feet, its cord ties with that of the Amika Accomplice for the second-longest cord of any hair dryer we’ve tested, and this dryer is especially beautiful. Elchim offers an impressive warranty and repair program that covers all its hair dryers. At 1.2 pounds, however, the Elchim Classic 2001 is heavier than our picks, and we found the handle to be thick and awkward to hold.
If you can’t or don’t want to leave the house with wet hair, you need a hair dryer. Options are seemingly endless on the attachment front, but your hair type will drive your decisions there too. With a super chic vortex design that helps to control airflow and a matte caramel colorway, the Pattern’s good looks are only the beginning of its story as a curl-enhancing hot tool. Designed with "curlies, coilies and tight textures" in mind, the Pattern Blow Dryer absolutely delivers. Conair covers the InfinitiPro with an impressive four-year warranty (PDF).
At 1.3 pounds, it’s noticeably heavier to hold than the W8less, especially after several minutes of drying. Ion technology generates negative ions, which reduces both static and drying time in one fell swoop and our top ionic pick earns the distinction for its noticeable reduction on both counts. If the cord was retractable, we’d say this option is pretty much perfect, especially for someone looking to really increase volume in fine hair. This inexpensive choice does not skimp on value either with a removable filter that will keep the performance high despite how frequently we use it.
Within 10 minutes — even on a low heat setting — our hair was totally dry, smooth, and fluffy in the best way possible. "A high-quality hair dryer usually comes with advanced features that result in faster drying times, reduced frizz and overall improved hair health," says Cynthia Alvarez, a Biolage celebrity hair ambassador in Los Angeles. The Hot Tools Professional Black Gold Turbo Ionic Salon Dryer (DC Motor) is extremely light at only 14 ounces.
Compact yet effective, this blow dryer dried half of our fine hair in just a few minutes, without ever making us feel like we were frying our hair. Even at low speed, it felt pretty powerful, but not like our hair was burning. Our hair dried smoothly, with tons of volume, instead of flat against our head.
We have thin hair, and not a lot of it, so we need our hair dryer to be strong enough to whip up a serious amount of volume, and this little guy did just that. The tool was also lightweight and the attachments are simple to put on and take off, though sound evaluations found it to be noisy. It is “lightweight but powerful, easy to hold and use," one noted. "Gives a great, strong airflow but not overpowering," another said. The tool ranked high for being comfortable to hold and had easy to use attachments and buttons.
That blowing air was around 200 °F (more if we held the dryer in place for a few moments). Although some dryers achieved faster wind speeds than others, interestingly that didn’t end up translating to notably or consistently faster dry times once we used them on our hair. Despite what magazine lists and advertisements would have you believe, most hair dryers are one-size-fits-all. No dryer will make your hair exceptionally more voluminous and glossy than another. What your hair looks like comes down to technique, products, and, in large part, its natural characteristics.
“Cute and compact, yet powerful and well made, it's also light and nice to hold,” one expert evaluator raved. “I like pretty much everything about it," another said, but it does lack a diffuser. The Bio Ionic 10X Ultralight Speed Dryer is a tad lighter (0.92 pounds) than our top pick and has a slightly longer cord. However, the dryer doesn’t have separate wind-speed and temperature-control settings (if you want hot air, it must also be fast). We found that on the top setting, most dryers blew air at about 40 mph as measured a couple of inches away from the nozzle.
Shannon Palus reviewed hair dryers for Wirecutter from 2015 to 2017. We were thoroughly impressed by the blowout produced by the INFINITIPRO SmoothWrap Hair Dryer, transforming our fine, wavy hair into a dreamy blowout in a matter of just 18 minutes flat. Even better, it wasn’t heavy or bulky, and didn’t aggravate our editor’s carpal tunnel. You might be searching for a face cream to address persistent dryness or a new nail product to add to your Sunday self-care routine; you may simply be browsing around for the latest launches to hit the hair market. No matter what you seek or your individual needs and concerns, Allure wants to ensure that you love anything we recommend in our stories.
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