Compare Our Top 10 Hair Straighteners
Other Straighteners We Tried
Photograph: Kat Merck
Paul Mitchell Neuro Style+ for $150: The latest in Paul Mitchell’s lineup of otherwise standout hair straighteners, this ceramic iron with Paul Mitchell’s new NeutraHeat temperature-regulating technology goes up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and has dual voltage for travel. However, the body feels weirdly cheap and lightweight compared with older Paul Mitchell models, it took over a minute to heat up, and it was not especially effective on my curly hair.
RevAir Reverse Air Dryer for $459: Former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano absolutely loved the vacuumlike RevAir, declaring it faster than a blow-dry brush. However, she did not find that it gave her curls the same silky-straight finish as a straightening iron, so those with stubborn curls will still need to use one afterward. I will also note that the RevAir is similar in price to our top air-powered pick, the Dyson Airstrait, but much bulkier to store.
Photograph: Kat Merck
Vibrastrait Pro Vibrating Ceramic Tourmaline Ionic Flat Iron for $139: Like the Drybar Reserve, above, this is another excellent vibrating straightening iron that runs up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. I admit I was initially skeptical of the vibrating technology’s effectiveness, but I ended up being impressed by how quickly it smoothed my frizz. I’m not sure I necessarily noticed less damage over several weeks of testing, but I definitely would not hesitate to recommend this iron to anyone curious about vibrating flat irons. I tested the 1-inch, but it also comes in a 1.75-inch size.
GHD Duet Style for $429: The GHD Duet Style looks very much like a large flat iron, except that hot air vents are on the center of each arm to dry your wet hair with a single pass. You can stop there, or, if you want to add extra shine, you can switch the Duet Style to Shine Shot Mode. This turns off the air and turns on two thin ceramic plates, thus transforming the Duet Style into a traditional hot-plate straightener. In my time testing the Duet Style, the Wet mode was more than enough to create poker straight styles. The hot plates are what sets the Duet Style apart from the Airstrait, which by comparison only uses hot air, but in terms of usage and design they produce the same outcome. This means your choice will likely come down to price, or brand loyalty. —Victoria Woollaston-Webber
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Photograph: Kat Merck
Conair InfinitiPro for $30: This was former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano’s favorite low-cost hair straightener, and I agree that it checks a surprising number of boxes for the price. It has tourmaline ceramic plates, heats up to an impressive 455 degrees Fahrenheit, and also boasts an encyclopedic 30 heat settings accessible via a small dial on the side. It’s also got a generous five-year warranty. However, it still took multiple passes at max temperature to smooth my blow-dried frizz, which had me worrying a bit near the end of my trial about my hair health, and the iron’s 6-ounce body—half the weight of a pricier iron—felt pretty flimsy. It also took significantly longer to heat up than the 15-second claim on the box.
L’Oreal Steampod for $250: You might think steam would be the enemy of straight hair, but it actually moisturizes hair while the heat flattens it into shape. According to L’Oreal, this feature allows the Steampod to gently dry the outer shaft without drying the core. When you go outside, especially in humid conditions, the hair then doesn’t absorb any of the extra moisture and remains frizz-free. To use, first fill up the built-in water tank. Once it reaches the desired temperature—the Steampod ranges from 356 degrees Fahrenheit (180 Celsius) to 410 degrees Fahrenheit (210 Celsius)–it blasts a flow of high-pressure steam over your hair as the plates clamp around it. My hair was shinier and felt less dry when using the Steampod, and as promised, it didn’t become a frizzy mess after a workout. The Steampod doesn’t quite give the poker-straight style I’m used to from hot plates, and the curls I created didn’t hold as long as they usually do. It’s also a little fiddly to use: You have to always have the comb facing down. Yet it left my hair feeling healthy, soft, and less unwieldy, so I’ll make that sacrifice. —Victoria Woollaston-Webber
GHD Platinum+ for $239: This is a popular iron and a little cheaper than the Chronos models. It’s sleek and comfortable to hold, which makes it great for creating curls and for straight styles. As with the Chronos, it comes with one temperature setting—365 degrees Fahrenheit. WIRED contributor Victoria Woollaston-Webber says it was enough heat for her fine hair, but it didn’t cut it for former WIRED reviewer Medea Giordano’s thick, curly hair.
Kristin Ess 3-in-1 Hair Straightener for $68: Hair doesn’t come out as shiny—and doesn’t stay straight quite as long—as with the Sutra, above, nor does this iron heat up as fast (about a minute compared with the Sutra’s 23 seconds). But this is an affordable titanium-plate entry that handles tough straightening tasks with aplomb. Be aware that during my testing, the matte-white finish seemed to attract stains rather quickly, from eyeshadow to tinted dry shampoo, but it’s still a great pick for someone with super-curly hair who isn’t ready to shell out $175.
Revlon Double Straight Dual Plate Hair Straightener for $30: If you can look past its slightly odd shape, the Revlon Double Straight’s four-plate design makes a lot of sense. As you pass the Double Straight over your hair, the first two plates straighten, while the second two “reinforce” the style. This effectively allows you to make two passes in one, which reduces both the time it takes to complete the style and the risk of heat damage. I found this to be largely true, although to get the full effect you need to pass it over your hair slightly more slowly than you would do normally, which cuts into the time-saving benefits a little. The plates are also smaller than I had imagined—each one is half an inch whereas standard plates measure 1 inch—but they still cover similar widths of hair as standard straighteners. The biggest downside to the design is that it’s much harder to use these straighteners for curls. Not impossible, but difficult. —Victoria Woollaston-Webber
Hot Tools Pro Artist Black Gold Dual Plate Flat Iron for $130: This iron is very similar to the Revlon above, with the same cut-out look, the same four-plate design, and the same performance. They even max out at the same top temperature of 455 degrees Fahrenheit. Hot Tools bumps the number of heat settings to 30—three times the already impressive 10 on the Revlon model—but it’s almost three times the price.
Hot Tools Pro Artist Black Gold Ionic 1-Inch Flat Iron for $120: This is a great iron with a bevy of features, including an ion generator (see explanation below), a beep when it has reached temperature, and memory of your last heat setting. I also like that you can turn the heat up or down by twisting the end of the handle. However, the plate temperature was surprisingly uneven when I tested it with an infrared thermometer, which is probably why my hair needed multiple passes even at max temperature.
Photograph: Kat Merck
Faszin Hair Straightener for $160: Would I pay the list price of $160 for this Amazon special? Absolutely not. But during a recent several-week stretch while my regular straighteners were out with other testers, I ended up using one of these as my daily driver and was impressed by both its build and effectiveness. Unlike other Amazon models, the Faszin feels more expensive than it is, with a heavy (but not so heavy it’s cumbersome to hold) build and a slick digital LED display atop the handle. It heats up relatively quickly in just over a minute, and the titanium plates made short work of my 3a curls. I would not hesitate to grab this during an Amazon Prime Day or Cyber Monday sale, especially when it sometimes dips below $50.
Revlon Easy Heat Precision Flat Iron for $35: A solid entry-level flat iron, this deep-pink model with easy-read temperature settings feels heavier and more expensive than it is. I also loved that it heats up in 30 seconds—one-third the time of most irons in its price category. However, I was surprised by how ineffective the 1-inch plates were on my curls, even at the iron’s maximum temp of 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Plus, my (barely) straightened hair poofed back up again within minutes.
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Photograph: Kat Merck
T3 Singlepass Smooth X for $160 and T3 Style Max for $160: The Singlepass Smooth X with its extra-long plates and internal temperature-regulating chip was previously our top pick for fine hair. The Smooth X and its regular-plate-length sibling, the Style Max, were perfectly serviceable irons, though they did require multiple passes on very curly hair. However, my long-term fine-haired tester ended up vastly preferring the GHD Chronos Max over the T3s.
Drybar Straight Shot Blow-Drying Flat Iron for $179: WIRED reviewer Brenda Stolyar discovered there’s a bit of a learning curve with this air-powered iron, and that it won’t replace her traditional straightening iron any time soon, but it did help her style her wavy hair quickly and at a fraction of the cost of comparable air tools like the Dyson Airstrait.
Amika the Confidante Moisture Maintenance Titanium Flat Iron for $150: This is an effective titanium iron with a design similar to our Best for Thick Hair pick, the Sutra IR2, right down to its infrared strip. It has a hefty, high-quality feel, and it made short work of curls and frizz. However, the Sutra heats faster and keeps hair smooth longer, and the Kristin Ess 3-in-1, above, does a comparable job for less than half the price.
Photograph: Kat Merck
Chi Vibes on the Edge Curved Edge Hairstyling Iron for $110: I’m a longtime Chi devotee, having owned and loved the original ceramic flat iron until it broke after a decade. So I admit, I was excited about this new version from Chi’s Vibes line. The 1- or 1.5-inch ceramic plates (I tested the latter) actually curve around the sides of the tool, allowing the user to get closer to the roots of their hair, as well as create crease-free waves if desired. While this feature did actually do an impressive job of tamping down my flyaways (and I appreciated the unusually long 11-foot cord), both I and a longer-term tester thought the construction felt cheap, especially for the price, and we both experienced an alarming amount of movement with the plates.
NuMe Megastar X for $169: This matte-black iron with wide 1.75-inch plates looks much like the Amika Confidante and Sutra with its infrared strip, except it has tourmaline ceramic plates instead of titanium. It was great for imparting shine, but it took at least four passes to de-frizz a section of my hair. That may be fine for easy-to-straighten locks, but you might be better off with the T3 SinglePass Smooth X above, since it’s a similar price and offers T3’s proprietary heat precision technology. The T3’s size is also easier to maneuver than the NuMe, since the plates are longer, not wider.
BondiBoost Aloe-Plated Flat Iron for $119: This iron has ceramic-coated tourmaline plates infused with aloe powder, which “add shine and frizz control every time you swipe down strands,” according to the company. It’s also unique in that it heats to 480 degrees Fahrenheit—hotter than any other iron we’ve tested and beyond the capabilities of most heat protectant sprays. The plates didn’t look or feel any different to me than typical ceramic plates, and the plastic construction felt lightweight and somewhat flimsy for this price point. My hair also poofed up again rather quickly after use. This iron does have many devoted fans online, though, so your experience may vary.
Photograph: Kat Merck
Tymo Ring Hair Straightener Comb for $40: Former WIRED reviewer Brenda Stolyar liked this viral two-in-one hot comb and straightening brush, but it wasn’t a one-stop shop for her hair, and it wasn’t for me either when I tried it. If you know you like using a hot comb, though, this is a much safer version, with the hot teeth safely covered in a plastic overlay.
L’ange Le Duo Airflow Styler for $59: This flat iron features a clasp similar to a curling iron. Most flat iron plates stay apart, and need to be pushed together to use, while this is the opposite. It works just as well as any other iron, and the clasp design and the rounded edges make it easier to curl too. The real draw here is the air vents that blast out cool air to lock your style in. The fan turns on automatically, but there’s a button to turn it off. (Just to clarify, it’s not meant to dry your hair—you will not be happy if you try that.) —Medea Giordano
Sleek’e for $89 and Kosa for $195: These irons are essentially the same tool. Sleek’e confirmed that they are in fact made by the same manufacturer, which is not uncommon. The Kosa felt a little lighter, but neither seemed better or worse to use. They both emit ions and have a strip of infrared lights down the middle of one of the plates, which are supposed to help distribute heat evenly and in a way that won’t damage hair. —Medea Giordano
Brilliance New York Smooth Pro Ceramic Flat Iron for $45: WIRED reviewer and fellow curly girl Louryn Strampe swears by this hair straightener. She impulse-bought it via a Groupon deal in 2014 and still consistently reaches for it, despite having tried several more flat irons since—she even prefers it over the Dyson Corrale. It’s lost some of its heat consistency over the years, and the plates occasionally snag her hair, but it still leaves her unruly curls sleek and shiny, and most important, straight. —Medea Giordano
FoxyBae Tres Sleek Flat Iron for $85: This lightweight titanium flat iron does a fairly decent job at straightening thick, curly hair for the price, though its flimsy-feeling construction and long heat-up time make it less appealing than almost every other straightener we tried at this price point.
FAQs
What Should I Look for in a Hair Straightener?
It’s all a bit confusing. A straightener can be a flat iron, and a flat iron is a straightener, but not all straighteners are flat irons. They come in other forms too, including brushes and combs. No matter which you go with, what you call it, or what your budget is, there are a few things you should keep in mind.
- It should be easy to hold and maneuver. If a flat iron needs all your might to keep the plates closed, you’re going to be in pain by the end of your straightening session.
- It should have a range of easy-to-read temperatures. Dials with no indication of what temperature you’re using are frustrating, and you can end up burning your hair or skin.
- It shouldn’t snag hair. This is a common problem among flat irons, as hair can get caught in cheap plates and pulled out. Look for beveled designs, which help prevent this.
- Flat irons should never be used on wet hair. Only style wet and damp hair if the tool is made for that, like a blow-dry brush or Dyson’s Airstrait.
What Do Ionic Straighteners Do?
A lot of hot hair tools, including most on our list, claim to release negative ions to protect your hair. I used to chalk this up to marketing-speak, but hairstylists I spoke with say ions are helpful.
London-based hairstylist Hollie Rose Clarke says ions in hair tools keep the cuticle layer of your hair smooth, so you’ll get a shinier, frizz-free result. “Think of a strand of your hair as being the size of my arm, covered in fish scales (the cuticles),” she says. “When the hair is damaged, they open slightly, resulting in dry, frizzy, and weak hair. When the hair is healthy they are closed, resulting in your hair feeling smoother and stronger.”
Abra McField, founder of Abra Kadabra Hair and Healing, says hair is usually positively charged due to its water content, and the negative ions these flat irons generate can help dissipate that water. “You get controlled application of the heat you are applying, and you are able to use only as much heat as you need to smooth and straighten your hair, which can prevent damage.”
Ionic hair dryers are similar, with some caveats. “If you have finer hair and you are wanting as much body and volume as possible, the ionic dryer may not be the best,” McField says. “So generally it’s best to get a dryer with an ionic option that can be turned on and off.”
Do I Want Ceramic or Titanium Plates?
Most flat irons come with plates made of either ceramic or titanium, with little explanation on or within the packaging of the differences between the two. Luckily, we’re here to help.
Ceramic plates heat up gently and evenly with fewer hot spots, usually maxing out at a lower temperature than titanium. This makes them less damaging to hair that’s thin, fine, breakable, or color-treated. However, they take longer to heat up than titanium, and because they don’t get as hot, they usually need more passes to get hair perfectly flat. This isn’t a problem for hair that’s relatively easy to straighten, but those with especially stubborn curls or texture may find that using ceramic plates makes the whole process take too long, thereby exposing their hair to more heat. Some ceramic plates are also coated or infused with tourmaline, a mineral that emits negative ions to supposedly cancel out the positive ions that cause frizz; copper, which is known for even heating; or aluminum for higher resistance.
Titanium plates heat up much more quickly than ceramic (though typically not as evenly), and they usually can reach a higher temperature—typically 450 degrees Fahrenheit. An iron with titanium plates needs fewer passes to get that perfectly straight look, but the higher heat can inflict more damage. Titanium plates are best used by those with thick, coarse, or stubborn hair, and while flat-iron users should always use a heat protectant before straightening, those using titanium plates should definitely use one. See below for some staff favorites.
How Often Can I Straighten My Hair?
It’s important to remember that flat irons can cause heat damage–especially if you’re using your straightener often. Straightening it not only dries out your hair cuticle (the outermost layer of your hair) but also alters the structure of your hair proteins. This type of damage can materialize in the form of breakage, split ends, rough texture, frizz, or super dry strands. So, it’s best to try and limit how often you reach for your flat iron.
As Byrdie points out, the general rule (regardless of hair type) is to limit it to two or three times per week. But for specific hair types, the frequency varies. For curly hair, you should only straighten it a maximum of two times per week. With coily, wavy, and straight hair, it’s best to use a straightener as little as possible. As Byrdie notes, you can apply a higher heat setting (between 400 and 420 degrees Fahrenheit) to coily hair while a lower temperature setting should be applied to straight hair (between 350 and 380 degrees Fahrenheit). The temperature range is a bit wider for wavy hair. You should keep the straightener between 250 degrees and 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
How Do We Test Hair Straighteners?
Photograph: Kat Merck
For each hair straightener, I start with freshly washed hair, blow-dried with a heat protectant (see our guide to the Best Heat Protectants for a list of favorites). I then straighten my hair from roots to tip in sections, keeping mindful of how long an iron takes to heat up, whether it feels heavy, what features are helpful, and how many passes it takes to turn my frizzy locks shiny and smooth. I ensure the temperature is consistent on all parts of the plate by using an infrared thermometer. I then go about my daily activities, including walks in my humid Pacific Northwest neighborhood, to see whether my hair stays straight or puffs up again immediately. I then use the straightener for daily touch-ups until it’s time to wash my hair again.
WIRED chooses hair straighteners via research on popular or trending brands or models. All hair straighteners are either samples provided by the companies or purchased myself from retailers like Amazon and then expensed. Picks are held for long-term testing, other models are donated locally upon testing completion.
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