5 Best Drugstore Hair Dyes for At-Home
Get salon-quality hair color at a fraction of the cost
Color processing at a salon can cost anywhere from $75 to more than $500 — which can be worthwhile if you want to fully transform your style — but for those who only want to add subtle highlights or touch up those pesky grays for $10 or less, you can do it at home.
Today’s at-home hair color options are simple to apply and provide a quick and economical method to alter your look without the cost and stress of a salon visit. The best at-home hair colors from trusted hair color manufacturers survive through regular shampooing, sun exposure, and hot tool use to keep hair looking bright, healthy, and vibrant.
Following the selection of the best at-home hair dye, there are a few things you should do to keep your color brilliant and true for as long as possible. To begin, we advise cutting back on hair washing as much as possible, because water causes the pigment to drain out of strands. On days when you don’t have time to wash your hair, use dry shampoo, and when you do, use a shampoo and conditioner made for color-treated hair. With an at-home gloss that matches your hue, you can also give DIY hair color a boost to lengthen its life between dye treatments.
TOTAL RANKING
A+
OVERALL GRADE
PROS
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Great value
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Colors gray evenly and resist fading
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Leaves hair shiny
The Bottom Line
The GH Beauty Lab was impressed by a variety of Clairol’s popular demi-permanent drugstore color tones, particularly dark hair colors like browns and reds. When used to cover up gray, the at-home color provided consistent coverage, left hair lustrous, and was fade-resistant in lab tests.
TOTAL RANKING
A
OVERALL GRADE
PRO
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Ammonia-free and non-irritating
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Contains conditioning ingredients
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Pleasant scent
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Resists fading
The Bottom Line
Garnier’s permanent color is a top performer in GH Beauty Lab testing since it contains no ammonia and a high concentration of nourishing oil, making it gentle on thinning hair or hair damaged from treatments like keratin. The solution received great marks for its pleasant non-chemical aroma, ease of rinsing, and lack of irritation, and it did not fade after several weeks of use. “It made my hair feel exceptionally healthy and appear really natural,” one tester exclaimed.
TOTAL RANKING
B+
OVERALL GRADE
PROS
-
Bargain price
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Complete gray coverage
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Maintains shine
The Bottom Line
You can’t beat this deal: The GH Beauty Lab was very satisfied by Revlon’s recipe, awarding this boxed dye excellent ratings in all of our rigorous testing. It completely covered grays, preserved luster, and did not fade after four weeks. Its auburn hue, Burgundy, was a high performer in our Beauty Lab testing, concealing grays nicely, and is great for brunettes and redheads. After numerous washing, the genuine hair it was tested on retained its shine.
TOTAL RANKING
B
OVERALL GRADE
PROS
-
Formulated without certain chemical ingredients
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Cruelty-free
The Bottom Line
Madison Reed is also certified cruelty-free by Leaping Bunny, an international coalition of animal protection groups that have created an internationally recognized standard for identifying animal-friendly products, in addition to boasting an “8-free” formula meaning the brand claims it is formulated without eight of the more controversial or chemical ingredients commonly found in hair color: ammonia, PPD, resorcinol, parabens, phthalates, gluten, SLS, and titanium dioxide.
TOTAL RANKING
B+
OVERALL GRADE
PROS
-
Full coverage for blonde hair
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A natural look that resists fading
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Conditioning
The Bottom Line
Clairol Nice ‘n Easy was the best selection for light hair in GH Beauty Lab tests, with a gentler, more conditioning product. While all of the brands we tested for blonde colors performed only mediocrely (or worse) at covering up gray, Nice ‘n Easy stood out for fade resistance and maintaining its shine. It received great marks in lab tests for providing a natural look; 79 percent of testers said it left hair soft and shining, and 90 percent said it did not cause irritation.
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