So you want a blowout with that sleek shine and voluminous bounce, but you don’t want to spend 40 minutes (or $40 plus) styling your hair? Turns out, it’s easier than you may have thought to replicate these results at home—and without learning any new techniques.
While blow-dryers and round brushes are great, they certainly require skill to use in a way that results in anything approximating a salon-quality blowout. However, hair-dryer brushes make it so that you don’t need multiple tools or professional-level skills to get the style you want.
Though these hybrid hair tools are often lumped in the same category as heated brushes that simply straighten, they actually do so much more. When used correctly, these convenient hot tools can completely replace your blow-dryer, blowout brush, curling wand, and flat iron altogether, effectively drying and styling your hair at once.
Best of all, hair dryer brushes are super easy to work with, too. That’s because they are made for at-home use, meant to be wielded by those of us who haven’t studied the dexterous movements of simultaneously managing a blow-dryer and a styling brush.
“If you can brush your hair, you can use a brush like this,” says celebrity hairstylist David Lopez, adding that they take the guesswork out of an at-home blowout. His only advice: Don’t start on soaking wet hair, but instead let your hair air-dry about 50 percent before using. The process will be faster and you’ll get a bouncier result, Lopez says.
So, if you’re sick of spending so much time on your look, a blow-drying brush might just be your solution. And because there are a number of options on the market, each with different features and at varying price points, we rounded up the best hair-dryer brushes below. Read on to discover your perfect route to an at-home blowout.
The Internet Phenomenon:
Revlon One-Step Volumizer Hair Dryer ($64; ulta.com)
The Revlon hair-dryer brush isn’t new—it actually launched back in 2016—but it had a resurgence when Dyson launched its tool in 2018. Deemed a worthy “dupe” to the pricey Dyson Airwrap (more on that later), a quick Google search reveals countless reviews praising the way this multitasking tool mimics a salon blowout. (Lopez is a fan of the Revlon hair-dryer brush, too, claiming it’s great for “quickly getting a smooth style.”) The affordable tool creates volume at the root and leaves hair straight and sleek through the ends. You can also use the oval brush to create big, bouncy curls or rounded edges; when hair is slightly damp, simply twist your wrist while gliding the brush through the length of strands.
The Blowdry Bar Brush:
Drybar The Double Shot Blow-Dryer Brush ($150; sephora.com)
You can’t always nab a spot at a blowout bar, so Drybar has provided us with a tool that mimics their results at home. Two types of bristles (nylon and tufted) help grip each strand and provide added control as you brush it through, making this pick choice for all hair types—from fine and straight to thick and wavy and even curly textures. Plus, it uses ionic technology to seal the hair’s cuticle for a style that’s frizz-free and silky-smooth. You’ll also appreciate how lightweight and ergonomic it is, mimicking a design professional hairstylists would want to use.
The Multitasking Splurge:
Dyson Airwrap Complete Styler-For Multiple Hair Types and Styles ($775; amazon.com)
The Dyson Airwrap set is the next best thing to living with your hairstylist. The various brush attachments cater to every type of hair and desired style: There’s a volumizing brush to shape and add body to flat hair; a firm brush to smooth and control frizz-prone hair; and a soft, smoothing brush for fine hair. And that’s without even mentioning the curling attachments. It definitely delivers the fastest results from this list, too, without causing any heat damage. That’s thanks to intelligent heat control technology that measures the air temperature over 40 times a second. So, sure, this product is a (mega) splurge, but loyalists say they’ve cut their blowout budgets altogether.
The Second-Day Star:
Hot Tools Signature Series One Step Blowout Detachable Volumizer and Hair Dryer ($70; target.com)
While, of course, you can use this tool on towel-dried hair (like the others on the list), what we love most about this hair-dryer brush its ability to revive second-day hair. It features activated charcoal-infused bristles that work to neutralize odors and absorb dirt and oil, while silky boar bristles grip the hair to add shine and smooth frizz, making it an exceptional pick for a quick hair-refresh.
The Newbie:
Amika H(air) Blow Dryer Brush ($100; sephora.com)
A few years back, Amika launched a heated paddle brush for straightening and smoothing hair, and they just added this hair dryer brush to their collection of hot tools. The oval barrel is big, making it especially great for thick and long hair, but the brush is ultra-lightweight at just 0.85 lbs. Also noteworthy is that the barrel is coated in tourmaline and emits far-infrared heat, which works to heat hair from the inside out (keeping its essential moisture intact), and negative ions that seal the cuticle for a silky, frizz-free finish.
