The best hair straighteners to smooth, style and care for all hair types

There are so many of these tools on the market, but the very best hair straighteners should be able to smooth strands quickly and efficiently for lasting results. They are a pricey investment, no question, but one that quickly earns its keep.

Straightening irons have come a long way over the years – and so have our expectations. In the early 00s, the idea that a tool could transform frizzy hair into something sleek and smooth was enough, but now (like the Veruca Salt of beauty) we want it all and we want it now. We want the ability to not only iron out kinks, but to create curls and waves, too. We want to be able to enjoy the best cordless hair straighteners that don't require close proximity a plug. And we really, really don’t want to compromise our hair health. 

So, what should you look for? “Good straighteners are all about technology,” says Zoe Irwin, Creative Director at John Frieda Salons. “They should combine smooth styling plates which glide through the hair with ease, with a heat that’s high enough to create a lasting effect in the hair – but not so high as to cause damage.”

“They should have a range of heat settings to cater for different styles or types of hair,” adds Tyler Moore, Expert Stylist at Live True Salons. “You should also ensure that any straighteners you use have either titanium or ceramic plates, as these distribute heat more evenly and help you avoid any unnecessary harm to the hair.” After years of testing the best straighteners, here are the tools that our beauty team rates the best. 

The best hair straighteners, reviewed by our beauty team

The best hair straightener overall

Ghd is arguably the biggest name in hair straightening, so it seems right that their most premium styler tops our list. If you’re anything like us, i.e. you have been using your straighteners religiously since the early 00s, then you’ll agree that these are the kind of flat irons our singed-haired younger selves would have dreamt of. 

Everything about the ghd Platinum+ is intuitive and easy to use. Instead of a choice of heat settings, there’s just the one, which whizzes up to 185ºC (the temperature the brand recommends for optimum hair health) in a matter of seconds – making a satisfying ding when it’s good to go. The cord is long, with a 360º swivel end that means you can move it around with ease (especially handy when you’re creating curls and waves) without knotting yourself in a tangle of wires. Sounds simple, but for anyone who (like us) finds anything beyond smoothing a struggle, it’s a game-changer. The ceramic-coated plates are “floating”, meaning they have a bit of bounce when pressed together, and glide effortlessly and seamlessly through hair. The floating plates also allow you to create decent tension as you style.

In short, you’d be hard-pressed to find a straightener that’s more of a crowd-pleaser. Among our team, it earns top marks for adding bends, waves and curls to flat and fine hair and extra points for cutting down styling time in hair that’s thick and/or naturally curly, too. The results also have genuine longevity; this isn’t the kind of straightener that will render your styling time redundant within a couple of hours, but rather one that’ll have you marvelling at your hair's smoothness days later. 

See our full ghd Platinum + review

The best hair straightener for thick hair

Personal recommendations are always the best and we first discovered the Cloud Nine Wide Iron Hair Straightener not through a flashy marketing campaign, but via a rave review from our Beauty Editor’s local hairdresser. Cloud Nine may not be as instantly recognisable a name compared to ghd or Dyson, but trust us when we say they more than compete in the performance department. 

If you have thick and/or naturally curly hair, the process of straightening is probably rarely a quick fix. Including drying time (either naturally or with one of the best hairdryers), the styling process can easily take hours. Wide plates, like those on this styler, are therefore appealing, as you can work on much larger sections of hair at a time. And, although the plates are wide, they have very little trim around the edges, so you can still get close enough to your hairline to tackle wispy baby hairs, too. The edges are also curved, which, combined with the extra width, make this the perfect tool for creating looser, more "undone" waves and curls compared with smaller tools.

Those who regularly straighten their hair to the extent that their flat irons would be top of their list of desert island supplies will know that heat damage is the inevitable sharp edge of the styling sword. And, annoyingly, the more frazzled your hair becomes through straightening, the harder is to keep frizz to a minimum. That said, we can genuinely say, hand on heart, that these stylers have left our hair in the best condition of any straightening iron we’ve used. We’re not sure if it’s the way the plates glide through hair, the styler's ability to lower the heat settings or the fact that the results are so long-lasting that you barely need to touch them up the next day –  or a combination of the three. But, regardless, if you’re serious about finding the best hair straighteners for thick hair, these are the ones to try. 

The best hair straightener for smoothing

The Dyson Corrale is undoubtedly two things: beautifully presented and very expensive (in fact, it’s one of the priciest options on this list). But it’s also (as you’d expect from Dyson) brimming with impressive tech and, much like the Dyson Supersonic Dryer and the Dyson Airwrap, puts the focus on hair health.

While nothing here would completely confuse a flat iron first-timer, it’s fair to say the Corrale looks a little different to your average straightener. Where most stylers have a gap between the "arms" of the straightener, Dyson has filled this space with an OLED display control panel that displays the temperature and battery life during use. It is heavier and bulkier than your average iron, but the most notable difference is the lack of a cord; 70 minutes of charge will reward you with 30 minutes of styling (which is pretty efficient among the best cordless straighteners). The flexible plates do produce a slightly unsettling crackling sound and feel as they glide through the hair, but this is down to them applying a spot-on level of tension to reduce damage rather than any actual snagging. 

With three temperature settings – 165°C, 185°C and 210°C – heat control is central to the Corrale experience, with integrated sensors regulating the temperature of the smart plates 100 times per second. This means no hot spots or unwanted temperature spikes. We also found that hair felt cooler to the touch after passing through this iron compared to other straighteners used at the same heat setting. 

As a team, we’re a little divided on this one. Those with fine, naturally straight hair consider it an all-out success, while those with thicker and/or naturally curlier hair found it takes longer to get smooth, sleek results with the Corrale than with other stylers. We’d also say that the end result is closer to a sleek blow-dry than poker-straight and hair retains more volume than normal. Depending on your hair type and desired look, this may be an appealing or unappealing prospect. 

See our full Dyson Corrale Hair Straightener review

The best hair straightener for intuitive styling

T3 is the master of bespoke hair-styling experiences. But how do you get personal with straightening? You create a customized Heat ID profile that the T3 Lucea ID Smart Straightening & Styling Iron remembers, then styles your hair at its temperature sweet spot afterwards. That’s how. 

In practice, this means intelligence is on your side; T3 makes the set-up process as smooth as a sheet of freshly-ironed hair after an at-home keratin treatment. You will need to read the instructions, but these come in a glossy, photography-heavy booklet rather than an infuriating jargon-packed manual. Once you've inputted the relevant info and locked it in via the device’s touchscreen, the styler will remember your ID for next time, or you can switch it up and work in manual mode if you wish. 

Let's not forget the most important bit: how did it perform on our hair? In short, really well. It was straight, glossy and smooth, which is what you want after straightening, and all of the above is achieved quickly thanks to the unusually long plates. One excellent feature is Refresh mode, designed for previously-styled hair, when full-on heat isn’t needed but a little style touch-up might be.

The touchscreen did come with a few warnings about not pressing it in the wrong place at the wrong time, indicating that this may happen accidentally. But we didn't have any issues, so perhaps this was just overcautiousness on T3’s part. This, plus the Lucea ID’s beautiful design, convinced us that it was designed by someone who both understands how we really style our hair day-to-day and that we’d like our tech to look gorgeous and perform. Oh, and that sometimes we need a bit of saving from ourselves in the heat department. 

See our full T3 Lucea ID review

The best hair straightener for simple styling

You probably recognize this one; the ghd Original Styler is undoubtedly the most iconic (and arguably one of the best) hair straighteners of all time, which is why you'll rarely see it in the ghd sales. It’s the flat iron that launched dozens of copycats and convinced us we needed our hair in poker-straight sheets back in the early '00s. Your hair goals may have moved on since then, but there is much to be said for revisiting this classic, versatile hair straightener.

The design is stylish and straightforward – think velvety black casing, matte ceramic plates and a narrow shape that sets it apart from other, chunkier stylers. We found them to be particularly useful on short hairstyles or for creating waves, and they boast a floating mechanism that slips over the hair very nicely, with no snagging or tugging. The controls are simple: one flick of the switch turns on the device, then you allow half a minute for the styler to reach 185°C ("any hotter damages the hair, any cooler and the result is compromised," says ghd). 

Naturally, technology has evolved since the 2001 model, with incremental improvements on everything from the heating-up time, smoothness of the results and safety, leading us to this version. Nifty features like a non-tangling swivel cord –an extra-long 2.7 metre one at that – and the automatic shut-off after 30 minutes enhance the experience and give us real peace of mind. Is the ghd Original IV Hair Straightener the shiniest, highest-spec hair straightener out there? No, but it's a classic, trustworthy and dare we say iconic tool that has stood the test of time. The best ghd straighteners are also built to last (we say that as owners of the "original Originals" who used them every day of the 2000s, never once experiencing a technical glitch).

The best hair straightener and dryer

A hair straightener that also dries hair sounds like it could be one of two things: a hair-frazzling nightmare or a genius hack that'll change your styling game forever. Luckily, the Remington Wet 2 Straight Pro Straightener is closer to the latter. Run the plates over towel-dried (not soaking) hair and it'll gently evaporate excess water and release steam through its unique venting system, leaving strands dry and silky smooth in far less time than doing the two separately. In practice, this all works pretty well. However, we found the process wasn’t a speedy one as you have to style section by section. For this reason, it might not be practical for very thick or curly hair types, but it certainly saved our fine, mid-length-haired tester some precious time. It also didn't have any of the worrying "sizzle" or toasting hair smell we half expected initially.

As well as combining two functions, the Wet 2 Straight aims to care for the condition of your hair with auto sensors that adjust the plate temperature with each pass. This allowed us to style at a lower heat while drying before gently ramping things up as we finished our style. There’s also the option of using it in dry mode – essentially your usual hair straightening experience on dry hair. Of the 10 temperature settings available, the hottest is 230°C, which it can reach in 15 seconds. It also automatically shuts off after 60 minutes, which is always reassuring. Titanium and ceramic plates offer even heat, seamless smoothing without snags and reduced heat damage longer-term.

The best hair straightener for damaged hair

Panasonic's straightener looks the part with matte black casing and champagne accents, but its real beauty lies in how it cares for your hair. The key thing you'll notice is the way the 3D flexible plates deliver an ultra-glossy finish, which lasts incredibly well between washes. The plates gently adjust as you straighten to swiftly smooth hair in one shot without too much direct heat, which is great for the overall condition of our hair. We found that the lowest heat setting (150°C) was still effective enough to passably straighten a sizeable section of coarse hair in one go, which will be music to the ears of anyone who usually uses higher temperatures to achieve a smooth finish. This styler also heats up fairly quickly, taking about 20 seconds to reach the lowest of the five heat settings and another 10 or so for the highest. 

Much like the Panasonic Nanoe & Double Mineral hair dryer, this straightener utilises Panasonic's unique Nanoe technology. This takes microdroplets of water from the air, splits them into tinier particles and feeds them back into your hair to hydrate it. This is great news for those with dry or dehydrated hair and anyone who would prefer their hair straightener didn't frazzle their ends (which is everyone, right?). Even better, there's also an intelligent thermal sensor within the plates that ensures the heat is completely even, which does away with damaging hot spots and leaves hair uniformly silky and shiny after use.

The best cordless hair straightener

It’s not strictly true to say there were no cordless straighteners before the BaByliss 9000 Cordless Hair Straightener, but there really weren’t many – certainly not that we rated as highly. So it's no wonder it was met with a glowing reception. Our only gripe is that the charging time is still lengthy, requiring 3 hours of plugged-in time in exchange for 30 minutes of cordless styling. 

This certainly rivals wired stylers in terms of power and results. It runs on a lithium-ion, high-performance battery and is equipped with three heat settings. Because the plates are of the floating ceramic variety, we’re pleased to report that they don’t snag and do heat up quickly, maintaining your chosen temperature throughout. One pass on the lowest setting (160°C) was enough for fine hair to be styled perfectly straight but thicker hair needed a bit more heat (180°C to 200°C). The results were impressive and definitely comparable to corded tools, with speedy styling time and long-lasting shine and smoothness. We’d especially recommend this one if you’re after the best straighteners for curly hair. The only distraction was the occasional clicking noise, which we can only assume was the floating plates adjusting to the thickness of our hair. 

The cordless capabilities are clearly the biggest draw here and will appeal to anyone who carries straighteners with them during the day. The ability to smooth away frizz post-commute or quickly style waves before a night out, without the need for a plug, is a huge pro point. Sure, the Babyliss 9000 is a bit heavier than your average iron (which is common with cordless battery-powered straighteners) and the charging time could be better, but we think it’s more than a fair trade for its performance. 

See our full BaByliss 9000 Cordless Hair Straightener review

The best hair straightener for dry hair

For those familiar with the SteamPod, you’ll know that the 4 is not L’Oréal’s first rodeo when it comes to steam styling. It is, however, its sleekest and best version yet – especially when you remember that earlier versions came with a large connected water tank. 

Let’s start with the concept: Regular straighteners can steal moisture from the hair, which is why you sometimes notice the hair steaming as you style. L’Oréal wanted to change this with the logic that purposely adding steam while heat styling the hair will re-infuse moisture, leaving hair is soft and silky (instead of dehydrated and a bit frazzled) after use. The newest features on version 4 are wider plates, so you can straighten more hair at once, the choice of three different combs for different hair types and curved outer plates that heat to 100°C to help style curls and waves. The latter is definitely a sign of a shift towards consumers wanting their flat iron to do more than simply straighten. 

The set-up for the SteamPod is slightly more laborious than your average styler, as you need to add water to the tank before you begin. Normal tap water isn’t recommended here (the brand takes no responsibility for damage caused to the tool by scaling). Instead, they suggest you use lime-free, demineralised water. You can buy this relatively inexpensively, but it’s a bit of a faff, so try and stock up in bulk. When it's time to turn your styler on, there’s a choice of three temperatures spanning 180ºC to 210ºC and it heats up quickly. 

There’s no denying that using the SteamPod is clunkier and noisier than a regular straightener, but you can really feel a difference in the texture of your hair. Instead of feeling very dry, our hair felt almost tacky with moisture. This initially mae our naturally curly-haired Beauty Editor recoil – as excess water almost always equals frizz – but it didn’t cause her hair to poof or fluff, it just left it smooth and sleek. 

See our full L’Oréal Professionnel SteamPod 3.0 review

The best hair straightener for adding shine

Every now and again, a beauty product comes along that really surprises you. The first thing you’ve probably noticed about the Revlon Double Straight Copper Ceramic Dual Plate Straightener is that it looks more like a fork than a straightener. Instead of the usual two plates, it has four, with each pair joined together at the top. Forgive our cynicism, but our initial thoughts were that this unique design is purely a marketing gimmick. Surely if this was the optimum shape then other brands would have caught on sooner? Luckily, we don’t mind being proven wrong, because we were – and quickly. 

In a way, we didn’t give the Revlon Double Straight Copper Ceramic Dual Plate Straightener a fair trial as we used it on naturally curly hair that had probably been left to air-dry for too long before blow-drying and without adequate styling products. But it rose to the challenge and then some, leaving hair silky smooth and just-stepped-out of the salon shiny with minimum effort. We'd compare the effect to that achieved with a wide-plated styler, but the gap in the middle of the styler means less heat is coming into contact with the hair – which surely reduces damage, comparatively speaking. Revlon has created this design with the concept that the first plate straightens the hair and the second reinforces its work, like a kind of smoothing tag team. For clarity, it’s not that one plate has different capabilities from the other, so it doesn’t matter which way around you hold or use the styler. 

Another pro for reducing damage is the range of ten different temperatures. These options are broader than any others we’ve seen, spanning 140°C to 235°C. We’d recommend toggling to as low a temperature as possible and our tester found 170°C to be the perfect sweet spot. The final tick lies in the styler automatically heating to the last temperature you used every time you turn it on, saving you precious seconds in the morning. 

While there are several great cordless straightener models on the market, some of which are included in this guide, the Cloud Nine Cordless Pro is the one we would opt for regular travel – and it's all thanks to its light and agile design. 

At only 290g, this is probably one of the lightest stylers we have ever come across, making it a great option both for travel and throwing in your handbag if you're frizz-prone and want a midday refresh. The long-lasting battery also means it will see you through a few hair straightening sessions and the chic charging pod tops up the battery in no time.

Like other Cloud Nine models, this boasts the brand's unique vibrating Revive mode, which limits the plates' contact time with hair to reduce heat damage. Variable temperature control also helps to keep this to a minimum. Our one niggle is the top temperature of 170°C; while that'll keep your strands healthy, it's not quite hot enough to leave a completely smooth and sleek finish on coarse, very thick and/or curly hair. However, it does a great job of ironing out kinks on the go, including baby hairs and frizz, so still has its uses for those hair types. The rounded barrels also mean you can use this styler to add volume or even add a few curls or waves to your hair once you've perfected your twisting action.

The best hair straightener with Bluetooth

There is much to recommend using this straightener: smooth, snag-free styling, a long swivel cord and slimline floating plates that are particularly useful on short hair or fringes. But really, the USP of the Glamoriser Smart Straightener is its Bluetooth connectivity. It links up to an app on your phone, which you can then use to turn the irons on and create customised settings based on your hair type, which it will remember with every use. Possibly most useful of all is that you can adjust the auto shut-off feature from 5-20 minutes to ensure your flat iron isn't frying the carpet while you drive to work. 

Aside from the clever, app-controlled settings, which will appeal to some as much as it'll put other technically challenged types off (you can use it without the app if that's the case), this styler also boasts a digital display so you can keep an eye on heat. These settings come in an unusually large range of 80-200°C. The ionic plates help to smooth frizz and the universal voltage means they'll work wherever you take them. Yes, the app might be a little more complicated than simply plugging your flat irons in and pressing the on button, but the nifty tech will reward you for the extra effort. 

How we tested the best hair straighteners 

Hair straighteners are an expensive purchase, so you want to know that any reviews you read are reliable. To help you make an informed decision before adding to basket, our beauty team has tried every single straightener on this list – plus extras that didn’t make the final edit. Each hair straightener was used on multiple occasions and, where possible, on several different hair types and textures. When comparing the straighteners, we used the same shampoo, conditioner and styling products to make sure that nothing else swayed the results. While testing each tool we assessed the following  factors.

• How well they styled hair, as well as the condition they left our hair in after use
• Number of heat settings
• Any interesting or unique tech
• Price
• Design
• Ease of use

How to choose the best hair straighteners

There are so many uses for hair straighteners, so a key thing to consider before purchasing is how (and how regularly) you’ll be using them. If you have coily or frizzy hair that you straighten daily, floating plates and customisable heat that protects your hair’s health should be a priority. If you have fine hair and are as adept at how to curl hair with straighteners as you are smoothing, long narrow plates and a curved outer edge will make the process a lot easier.

What to consider when buying hair straighteners

• Price: Some of the best hair straighteners are pricey, but if you're on a budget or have hair that's already closer to straight, you can get away with a simpler (read: cheaper) model.
• Heat settings: Thicker hair generally needs a high temperature for efficient smoothing. If you have fine or damaged hair, look for options with the flexibility to go low.
• Accessories: If you regularly carry your straighteners around with you, then extras like a travel case or heat mat are handy additions.
• Plate size/width: Your straightener should accommodate your hair type – think larger plates for thick, long hair and narrower irons for shorter hair.
• Plate material: Flat iron plates can be made of many materials, with ceramic, titanium and tourmaline generally considered the best for preserving the hair's condition. 

Which temperature should I use for my hair?

Your iron’s temperature should be based on your hair type. The finer your hair is, the lower the heat setting needs to be. Only those with coarse, thick hair will probably need to use the highest settings. To prevent heat damage to your hair, we recommend the following.

• For thin hair types: Set your iron anywhere between 150-180°C.
• For thick hair types: Set your iron anywhere between 180-200°C. 

How can I tell if my straightener is set too high?

Major indications of heat damage in hair include dryness, dullness and split and snapped-off ends. You might not notice these overnight, but within a couple of weeks you’ll likely start to see a change in your hair. An immediate consequence you’ll notice is limpness, which can affect your hair’s ability to hold your desired style throughout the day. If you can help it, reserve your flat iron for special and specific events rather than for everyday use. Turning down the temperature on days when your hair doesn’t need too much styling will make a difference, too. Or, consider investing in one of the best hair straightener brushes, which are often designed to reduce heat damage.

Which hair straightener plates are best?

There are a few plate materials to choose from when it comes to buying hair straighteners. Ceramic plates evenly distribute heat, eliminating cold and/or overheated spots and thereby reducing hair damage. Ceramic-coated plates are similar, and still help with consistent heat across the plates, but can chip and wear out, exposing the metal beneath. 

Titanium irons heat up quickly and stay hot consistently, allowing you to create silky locks in less time. Some titanium also features an ionic charge, which smooths hair and prevents frizz, while tourmaline requires less heat than ceramic and titanium while still delivering similar results. Less heat means less damage down the road.

How often should I clean my flat iron?

We recommend cleaning your flat iron once a month, which may seem excessive but, trust us, is important. Learning how to clean straighteners properly will stop your flat iron from accumulating a gunky combination of build up from heat protection and styling products. This residue can inhibit the effectiveness of your flat iron; the cleaner your iron, the better the styling and the more likely you are to achieve your desired style. It’s that simple.

What type of heat protectant should I use?

As a barrier between your hair and flat iron, the best heat protection for hair comes in the form of products that don’t simply shield but work to condition and strengthen your hair, too. Here’s what to look out for when shopping for a protective product.

• Humectants: These attract moisture and prevent frizz, which is especially important for healthy hair maintenance. The result? Hydrated, shiny, and enviable locks. Humectant examples include glycerin, panthenol and propylene.
• Amino Acids: These work as strengthening and conditioning agents. In the world of haircare, their main function is to supply nourishing antioxidants and repair surface damage. For example, keratin, as a structural protein, makes hair more damage-resistant and revives overheated and overprocessed hair. 
• Natural oils: These seal and protect the hair cuticle while locking in moisture. They add sheen and slip to your hair, too, which is especially welcome when using a heat styling tool. If we’re calling out superhero ingredients, coconut oil repairs split ends and can shield hair from the effects of heat-styling tools. It tends to be good value, too, as a little goes a long way.