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The best hair dryers deliver sleek, smooth strands and defined, bouncy curls—minus frizz, flyaways, and heat damage—quickly and efficiently right from the comfort of our homes. To figure out which devices actually live up to their promises, our team tested over a dozen top-rated models across every hair type, length, and texture. After months of drying, diffusing, and de-frizzing, we landed on six standouts that genuinely deliver. We also called in expert backup to break down what separates a great blow-dryer from a mediocre one, and the features that really matter. Ahead, discover our in-depth reviews of the best hair dryers on the market—because good hair days shouldn’t be a salon-only experience.
Best Overall: Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer
The Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer earns our top spot, thanks to its ability to work across every hair type—curly, coily, fine, thick, you name it—plus intelligent heat control that helps prevent damage. Its patented Air Multiplier technology means faster drying time, even though the dryer has a smaller, lighter motor than most of our other picks do. Also, the device measures the air temperature 20 times every second to keep it consistent, which can help reduce heat damage. At the end of your styling session, switch to the cool air setting to lock your style in place all day long.
This is a particularly good hair dryer for those who want something that doesn’t sound like a jet engine taking off in your bathroom. According to Dyson, the Supersonic measures 79 decibels on average and emits less noise than the average hair dryer (some of our other picks can reach 90 decibels).
Best for Styling: Shark SpeedStyle RapidGloss Finisher & High-Velocity Hair Dryer
The Shark SpeedStyle RapidGloss Finisher & High-Velocity Hair Dryer isn’t only compact and sleek—it also delivers polished styles ultra-fast, thanks to some handy accessories. The Turbo Concentrator is a typical nozzle for getting precise airflow to your roots; the QuickSmooth Brush will give you volume and bouncy ends; and the RapidGloss Finisher smooths flyaways for the perfect finishing touch. (You can buy more attachments separately, including a diffuser attachment and a wide-tooth comb.)
This hair dryer is another good option if you’re looking to limit heat damage, as the tool measures the air temperature 1,000 times a second, ensuring it never exceeds 230°F. And unlike Dyson’s lineup, Shark keeps its starting prices refreshingly accessible. Keep tabs on the SpeedStyle, especially around big sales, and you may be able to snag it at a budget-friendly price.
Fastest Drying: L’Oréal Professionel AirLight Pro
The L’Oreal Professionel AirLight Pro is one smart hair dryer. The Professionel AirLight Pro works by using a combination of infrared light in the front (check out that blue glow!) and a traditional motor and coils in the middle. When you turn the hair dryer on, the system pushes already-hot air through the ring of infrared light, making it even hotter. This saves energy, since less heat is lost to the air as you work, and creates less damage, since you don’t need as much heat to dry your hair. Oh, and the whole process makes styling seriously fast, too.
Wondering where all of the settings are? In addition to the dryer’s single button, you can use a handy app on your phone to switch between them.
Best for Textured Hair: RevAir Reverse Air Dryer
If you think the RevAir looks kind of like a small vacuum, you’re not that far off. It uses “reverse air” technology to suction moisture out of hair, instead of pushing hot air at your delicate curls. This way, you can stretch and smooth your texture without needing to use any other tools. Three heat and seven tension settings make it easy to find the right combo for coils, braids, locs, twist outs—even extensions and wigs.
During our testing, we found that the wand was a little awkward to hold, and because the machine is bulky, it’s tough to travel with it. However, it’s unmatched in its ability to gently dry and smooth Type 4 curls. There is no shortage of parts, either: It comes with a heat wand, reverse-air base unit, 5.5-foot hose, detachable wand rest, and mesh filter basket. It understandably weighs in at a bit more than other dryers on our list—8 pounds—but we didn’t feel this was a dealbreaker during testing.
Best for Thick Hair: GHD Helios Professional Hair-Dryer
Another Best of Beauty Award winner, GHD’s Helios Professional Hair Dryer stands out with its beautiful design. But that’s not all: This 2020 Best of Beauty Award winner is incredibly powerful, reaching airflow speeds of 75 miles per hour, and comes with a slim nozzle that allows precise drying and control. It also has an extra-long 9.5-foot cord and promises to give your hair 30% more shine than if you air-dry it.
Best Budget: InfinitiPro by Conair SmoothWrap Hair Dryer
Designed with dual ion therapy, the InfinitiPro by Conair SmoothWrap Hair Dryer emits both positive and negative ions. Positive ions help reduce frizz, while negative ions build volume, so you get the best of both worlds. Inside, ceramic coils cut down on heat damage.
Our testers especially liked how lightweight this hair dryer is, although the shape can be a little bulky. (It’s not our top pick for travel.) It has six heat and speed settings, as well as a diffuser and smoothing attachments.