Home / Health & personal care / Hair dryers / For thick hair

Best hair dryers for thick hair

Our top pick is the Shark SpeedStyle. Thick, long hair needs real airflow, or drying takes forever. We favor powerful dryers that experts timed as fast and owners say cut their drying time.

If you only read one thing

Our top pick for thick hair is the Shark SpeedStyle: it suits you if you want one tool for drying, smoothing and volume.

Questions people actually ask

What is the best hair dryer for thick hair?

The Shark SpeedStyle. It suits you if you want one tool for drying, smoothing and volume.

Based on: Highest score of the 6 hair dryers we rank for thick hair.

How much should I spend on a hair dryer for thick hair?

The top-rated ones start around $169 and go up to about $570. The Shark SpeedStyle is the lowest-priced of the leaders.

Based on: US prices quoted in expert reviews and at Amazon.com for the six highest-scoring models.

What should I look for in a hair dryer for thick hair?

Thick, long hair needs real airflow, or drying takes forever. We favor powerful dryers that experts timed as fast and owners say cut their drying time.

Based on: What expert reviews and owners stress for this need.

The leaderboard

60% overall score · 40% fit for this need
  1. 01Shark SpeedStyle

    Shark SpeedStyle

    A fast, gentle all-in-one dryer that takes some practice

    EXPOWNREL87
    85 for this need2 of 7 expert reviews recommend it for this100% of owner mentions are positive
  2. 02Dyson Supersonic r

    Dyson Supersonic r

    Featherlight, fast and quiet, but you pay dearly for it

    EXPOWNREL80
    84 for this need5 of 8 expert reviews recommend it for this96% of owner mentions are positive
  3. 03ghd Helios

    ghd Helios

    A seriously fast, smooth-finish dryer that keeps things simple

    EXPOWNREL75
    82 for this need3 of 3 expert reviews recommend it for this85% of owner mentions are positive
  4. 04Dyson Supersonic

    Dyson Supersonic

    A light, fast, hair-friendly dryer that costs a small fortune

    EXPOWNREL80
    77 for this need6 of 16 expert reviews recommend it for this90% of owner mentions are positive
  5. 05Dyson Supersonic Nural

    Dyson Supersonic Nural

    A fast, quiet, scalp-friendly dryer with a steep price tag

    EXPOWNREL84
    74 for this need2 of 7 expert reviews recommend it for this88% of owner mentions are positive
  6. 06Shark FlexStyle

    Shark FlexStyle

    A capable, well-built dryer and styler that saves money over pricier rivals

    EXPOWNREL83
    71 for this need1 of 3 expert reviews mention it as a strength89% of owner mentions are positive

Fit = share of expert reviews that recommend it for this, plus what owners report on the related topics. How we score.