Want to dye your hair blonde or add highlights? Whether you're looking to permanently lighten your natural shade or use a toner on pre-bleached hair, choosing a hair dye isn't always as straightforward as you'd think. Home bleaching kits are known for being slightly risky, but with a little know-how, you can achieve impressive results.
Can't pick between Garnier Nutrisse, Clairol Nice'n Easy, John Frieda or Schwarzkopf? In this article, we'll break down the decision-making process to help you achieve salon-worthy results at home. From cruelty-free and vegan colour options to ammonia-free kits for covering your greys, we've ranked the best products in the UK to buy at Amazon, eBay, Asda and Boots.
Quick List - Top Blonde Hair Dyes
Umberto Giannini Colour
Vegan-Friendly Dye With Natural Flower Extracts
Garnier
A Conditioning Formula for Bold Colour and Shine
Garnier
A Permanent Option Enriched With Fruit Seed Oils
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Table of Contents
A permanent dye is best if you want to achieve full coverage with beautiful-looking results, especially if your natural hair is a darker colour. Permanent blonde dyes often contain lightening ingredients such as peroxide or ammonia which strip the darker pigment from your hair, making it look wonderfully light and bright.
To achieve a truly striking blonde look, permanent dyes are the most effective option. They should last until your roots begin to show, which is around eight weeks on average. Even then, a good blonde hair dye will still continue to look great on your lengths as it grows out.
If you're not a natural blonde, you're better off relying on the strength of permanent colour as semi-permanent dyes merely cover your natural shade, rather than lift it. That said, semi-permanent colour is gentler on your hair and can be good for experimenting with shorter-lived, livelier shades.
Unusual colours such as yellow or candyfloss pink are fun to try out and will fade away relatively quickly when you start to crave something new. Depending on the formulation, semi-permanent colour can last between 12 to 15 washes, so if you wash your hair daily that's approximately two weeks.
Just looking to cover up your roots? Check out our article on the best root touch up products.
When you're going blonde, ammonia is an ingredient that you're likely to spot pretty regularly on the back of the box. That's because ammonia penetrates to the core of each hair, changing the colour at a deeper level, rather than simply coating the shaft.
However, ammonia can do longer-term damage to the integrity of each strand. Ammonia-based colour may look more professional and impactful, but it tends to come with a side-serving of breakage, brittleness and split ends.
These days, ammonia-free dyes are pretty common and these products may be best for those whose mane has already been chemically treated. But in reality, hair-lightening is rarely effective without the help of one harsh chemical or another. It's really a case of damage control, so treat your locks well for healthy-looking locks.
Keep your blonde locks healthy and looking shiny with a dedicated shampoo for blonde hair.
The best way to keep damage to a minimum is to opt for blonde hair dyes enriched with conditioning ingredients. To give your hair a boost, pick a hair dye with added plant and seed oils such as avocado and sunflower oil.
Other nourishing ingredients to look for are rich emollients such as shea butter and vitamins E and C. Not only are they hydrating, but it's thought that these particular vitamins may even encourage cell regeneration for healthier hair.
Some dyes have nutrients and fatty acids added into the developing cream, to help combat the drying effect of the bleaching agent. We recommend choosing a product that contains a separate bottle of conditioning cream though, as these conditioners are superbly rich and thick ― just what the hair shaft needs after the dyeing process.
Many brands still continue to test on animals or use animal-derived ingredients, which can be off-putting for many online shoppers. Examples of non-vegan ingredients that can be found in hair dyes include mother of pearl extract and glycerin.
Luckily, there are plenty of plant-based hair dyes available, which allow you to lighten your hair in a more ethical way while ensuring no animals have been harmed. To help you shop with confidence, we'll mention in our specification tables whether a product is vegan, cruelty-free ― or both!
It's easier than ever to switch to plant-based hair products, as there are plenty of fantastic vegan shampoos and conditioners to choose from!
Products | Image | Click to purchase | Key features | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Umberto Giannini Colour Flowerology|10.1 - Extra Light Blonde | ![]() | Vegan-Friendly Dye With Natural Flower Extracts | |
2 | Garnier Olia Permanent Hair Colour|112 - Super Light Beige Blonde | ![]() | A Conditioning Formula for Bold Colour and Shine | |
3 | Garnier Nutrisse Crème|10.01 - Natural Baby Blonde | ![]() | A Permanent Option Enriched With Fruit Seed Oils | |
4 | Garnier Color Sensation|S9 - Silver Diamond Blonde | ![]() | Our Top Choice for a Stunning Silver-Blonde | |
5 | Naturtint Permanent Hair Colour Gel|9N Honey Blonde | ![]() | Cruelty-Free Blonde Dye That's Free from Ammonia Too | |
6 | Schwarzkopf Live Intense Lightener (Pack of 3)|00A - Absolute Platinum | ![]() | Gives You Vibrant Platinum Tresses | |
7 | Schwarzkopf LIVE Ultra Brights|102 - Lemon Twist | ![]() | The Best Semi-Permanent Dye for Eye-Catching Colour | |
8 | John Frieda Precision Foam Colour|10N - Extra Light Natural Blonde | ![]() | A No-Mess, Foam-Based Formula for Lustrous Locks | |
9 | Clairol Nice'n Easy Crème|10A - Baby Blonde | ![]() | Quick and Easy Permanent Colour at Home |
This cruelty-free hair dye smells gorgeous and creates a striking light blonde colour too. Entirely vegan and never tested on animals, Umberto Giannini's Flowerology range has the added bonus of vitamins E and C which have hydrating properties and are thought to encourage cell regeneration.
To completely eradicate your greys, or to lighten hair to its healthiest-looking shade of blonde, simply mix the colourant with the creamy developer and apply a generous dollop of the conditioner included in the box. Superb shine, bright highlights and minimal mess ― what's not to love?
The best thing about this hair dye is that it's packed with plant oils. In fact, they make up 60% of the formulation! The list includes sunflower seed, camellia, meadowfoam seed, and passionflower oil, all of which have softening benefits for hair while providing bold, professional results.
This particularly icy blonde shade evokes a hint of Princess Elsa and maybe even a little Draco Malfoy! So it will probably be better suited to those with cooler undertones to their complexion.
The cream won't drip; simply squeeze directly onto the hair using the bottle applicator. It even comes with high-quality protective gloves which are close-fitting and soft to the touch.
Dreaming of shining silver locks? This long-lasting hair dye could be your best bet. It's incredibly easy to apply and comes with a sachet of protective conditioner, enriched with strengthening ingredients, such as fragrant rose oil and shine-boosting mother of pearl extract. The latter, however, isn't suitable for vegans.
This hair dye has a creamy texture for smooth application, without too much running or dripping. It produces a particularly light, silvery blonde, which should last up to 8 head-turning weeks!
A good reason to plump for this hair dye is that none of its ingredients are tested on animals, nor are they animal-derived. The non-drip gel formula helps to avoid mess and ensures great coverage, allowing you to effortlessly coat your hair with this at-home colourant.
This hair dye contains peroxide, to guarantee a fantastic, fearless shade of blonde. It even comes with a multi-care mask, with hydrating ingredients including quinoa and shea butter, to offset some of the damage.
The top reason to buy Schwarzkopf's Live Intense Lightener hair colour, is the exceptional vibrance of its results. This stunning shade called 'Absolute Platinum' offers a natural shade of blonde, while remaining equally striking and intense.
Ditch brassy blonde lengths and opt instead for fade-resistant, natural-looking colour by choosing this popular dye. Enriched with plant oils like apricot kernel and sunflower seed, it leaves hair feeling protected and silky yet strong.
We love this maxed-out blonde hair dye in a head-turning bright yellow shade. It's semi-permanent so expect it to fade relatively quickly, but that's the fun of this type of formula ― the freedom to experiment without commitment!
This dye is best suited to naturally blonde or pre-bleached hair, as it won't be able to lift your colour from darker shades. The good news is that if you are starting with a blonde base, you can choose between a Gaga-esque canary yellow or a delicate pastel shade by mixing the conditioner with the liquid colourant and developer.
A key element of this particular hair dye is that it's a foam, rather than a liquid dye. This makes it easier to control with no drips or mess, coating each strand of hair for excellent coverage from root to tip.
Although it doesn't contain any oils or hydrating ingredients in the dye developer itself, the included after-colour conditioner boosts shine and leaves your hair feeling silky. On the downside, the non-drip foam formula results in it drying quickly while developing, so it's best to leave your hair in the shower cap while it processes.
What particularly appeals about this blonde hair dye from Clairol is that it produces a blend of tones and golden highlights, rather than an unnatural-looking, heavy block of colour. This can be more flattering for those making a dramatic colour change from brown or black locks.
This product doesn't have any additional conditioners in the colourant formula, which can leave hair feeling dry. However, it does come with a separate conditioner that can last up to three washes, depending on the length of your hair.
Written and researched by Annie Hopkins
No. 1: Umberto Giannini Colour|Flowerology|10.1 - Extra Light Blonde
No. 2: Garnier|Olia Permanent Hair Colour|112 - Super Light Beige Blonde
No. 3: Garnier|Nutrisse Crème|10.01 - Natural Baby Blonde
No. 4: Garnier|Color Sensation|S9 - Silver Diamond Blonde
No. 5: Naturtint|Permanent Hair Colour Gel|9N Honey Blonde
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