The 9 Best Hot Air Brushes of 2024, Tested and Reviewed

Best Overall

Shark FlexStyle Air Styling and Drying System

View On Amazon $291 View On Nordstrom $280 View On Ulta $280

Our Ratings

• Drying Ability
  4.5/5
• Effectiveness
  5/5
• Value
  5/5

A truly top-notch hot air brush can bring silky results to all hair types, but this one went a step further. Its ergonomic design, quick dry time, straightforward usage, and accompanying attachments to create a variety of styles earned it the top spot on our list. We partially credit our healthier-looking hair to the tool’s airflow system, which delivers warm air evenly through angled vents instead of blasting it with one stream of damaging heat.

Despite the tool’s seemingly intimidating set-up — it comes with six different attachments, including two brushes and a set of auto-wrap curlers — there wasn’t much of a learning curve and we got the hang of it pretty quickly. Its convenient button placement allowed us to switch between the heat and pressure settings like a pro. Even when we fluffed our bangs with the medium setting and dried the back of our heads on the highest pressure level, we never had to set the dryer down.

While the brush handle is slightly slick, it more than makes up for its lightweight and slim design — two features that helped us get closer to our roots for added volume while making maneuvering around our head with different attachments and settings a dream. 

Heat Settings: 4 | Bristle Type: Boar | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 105 inches | Weight: 1.5 lbs | Barrel Size: 1.25 inches

Best Budget

Revlon One-Step Volumizer Plus 2.0

View On Amazon $39 View On Ulta $57 View On Walmart $37

Our Ratings

• Drying Ability
  4.5/5
• Effectiveness
  4/5
• Value
  3/5

The Revlon One-Step Hair Dryer started the entire category of hot air brushes and with its affordable price point, it’s remained just as popular as the day it launched. Its uncomplicated design makes it a great introduction for beginners who want to cut down their drying time and streamline their styling process.

Even when we picked the brush up for the first time, using it was totally instinctual — we simply attached the round brush to the base, chose one of the four heat settings, pressed the button, and counted down the minutes (typically under 25) until we could see our shiny, straighter hair emerge. 

Thanks to its flexible cord that swiveled with our movements while we worked, reaching every part of our hair, even those pesky damp spots in the back of our heads, was effortless. And we were never left wanting more air pressure or warmth. The hottest heat setting could actually get a little too hot for our taste, but we rarely used anyway because the airflow was so powerful, we didn’t need it. We also loved the strong airstream, which got our hair fully dry, unlike other options where our hair was left slightly damp.

In terms of styling, the tangle-free, charcoal-infused bristles brushed through our hair seamlessly, leaving us with less frizz overall. We did have to run a flat iron over our hair when we sought out a super-straight look, but its reasonable cost and ability to create curly and full-bodied styles made it one of our go-tos.

Heat Settings: 4 | Bristle Type: Charcoal-infused nylon | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 71 inches | Weight: 1.63 lbs | Barrel Size: 2.4 inches

Best Splurge

Dyson Airwrap

View On Nordstrom $600 View On Ulta $600 View On Sephora $599

Dyson’s Airwrap provided everything we needed to achieve full and bouncy styles while ensuring our hair still looked and felt healthy. In fact, after using the multifunctional tool, we questioned if we should ditch our drawer full of other heat stylers in favor of this tech-savvy option. It seemed to be part robot, part hot hair brush, with its wide range of advanced heat controls and speed settings, along with innovative technology that blows negative ion particles out with the airstream to efficiently dry our hair without using the extreme temperatures that make our hair vulnerable to damage.

Navigating the curling, shaping, and smoothing attachments was simple, although mastering the clockwise counter-clockwise motion of the curling wands took a bit of trial and error. 

We were particularly impressed by the Coanda smoothing dryer attachment for how it tamped down nearly every flyaway and saved us from getting a frizzy baby hair halo at the end of a long day. The ballpoint bristle paddle brush was also a standout attachment, leaving our hair looking glossy and smooth. It also comes with a sleek storage case to protect your investment.

The only thing we didn’t like was the width of the round brush. It’s not as thick as other options and the skinniness of the barrel caused our fine hair to get stuck a few times while wrapping our hair around it.

Heat Settings: 4 | Bristle Type: Ball-tip | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 104 inches | Weight: 1.5 lbs  | Barrel Size: 1.2 inches

Best for Short Hair

L'Ange 2-in-1 Titanium Brush Dryer

View On Amazon $89 View On Ulta $89 View On Walmart $59

Our Ratings

• Drying Ability
  5/5
• Effectiveness
  5/5
• Value
  5/5

Short hair might already have a reputation for being low-maintenance, but that doesn’t mean it’s not still prone to getting flat or frizzy like everyone else. Luckily, these are two issues that the L’ange hot air brush was designed to tackle. 

As one of the lightest options on this list, we could blast our roots with heat to get a more voluminous finish while the titanium plates, small barrel, and cool shot button helped tamp down on flyaways. Although the air pressure was a little less intense compared to similar options, it didn’t impact the brush’s capacity to dry hair quickly — sometimes even under 10 minutes, especially when we started with slightly damp hair versus sopping wet.

We were equally blown away by its other design features, namely, how the cord stayed out of our way while blow drying (we often forgot it was even there), while the settings dial was thoughtfully placed at the bottom of the handle to prevent us from accidentally pressing the wrong button as we styled. 

The pretty, peppy pink handle felt comfortable in our hands, courtesy of its concave dip and non-slip matte finish to give us a firm grip. Plus, it’s an option we’d feel good about traveling with too since it includes a protective slipcover, a small comb to clean the bristles, and a sturdy storage case.

Heat Settings: 3 | Bristle Type: Nylon and tufted | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 88 inches | Weight: 1.4 lbs | Barrel Size: 3 inches

Best for Volume

Drybar 3-In-1 Interchangeable Blow Dryer

View On Amazon $349 View On Nordstrom $349 View On Sephora $349

Our Ratings

• Drying Ability
  5/5
• Effectiveness
  5/5
• Value
  4/5

The Drybar Reserve Blow-Dryer completely changed our view on what a thick, voluminous blowout looks like. With three attachments, and multiple temperature and power settings, this brush makes it easier than ever to have sky-high light and big, bouncy supermodel hair. 

Throughout the testing period, we found something to love about each of the three attachments: The concentrator dried our hair at record speed, the paddle brush vents distributed air flow evenly for a smooth finish But it was the round brush we kept coming back to for its volumizing magic. When we angled the airflow horizontally at our root, the nearly 2.5-inch barrel and curved edges let us get super close to the root to amp up the volume for hair that looked thick and full and lasted all day.

But no matter what attachment we fancied that day, the nylon and tufted bristles slid through our hair like butter, and the aluminum plates helped maintain warmth without causing the brush to overheat.

We had a little trouble when swapping out the attachments, as we needed to hold down the two side buttons (not easy, especially with long nails) and pull the attachment off at the same time. Although removing the attachments took some patience, once we snapped them in place, they stayed locked in and never wavered during styling.

Heat Settings: 4 | Bristle Type: Nylon and tufted bristles | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 108 inches | Weight: 1 lb | Barrel Size: 2.44 inches

Best for Curly Hair

Bondi Boost Blowout Brush Pro

View On Amazon $70 View On Ulta $70 View On Bondiboost.com $70

Our Ratings

• Drying Ability
  5/5
• Effectiveness
  5/5
• Value
  5/5

Styling curly hair can feel like a chore, and if it becomes frizzy or flat after styling, it’d be easy to wonder if it was worth the time. However, we can absolutely say that the Bondi Boost Blowout Brush gave us the soft, touchable blowout we’ve always wanted. Its powerful airflow dried every inch of our thick, dense hair at a fast clip, and the dual nylon and tufted bristles didn’t snag on our delicate coils. 

For only having one attachment, this no-frills choice still packs a punch and is a great brush option for curly hair. The three-inch barrel is the perfect size to style various looks, while the curved handle lets you maintain a tight grip so you can create the amount of tension you need to straighten your curls.  As a bonus, it never once overheated during our weeks of testing.

We were shocked and over-the-moon happy to see our drying and styling time cut down to just a half hour. We also appreciated how long our smooth finish lasted — it even survived nights we didn’t sleep on our silk pillowcase or have a flyaway serum on hand. We attribute the long-lasting finish to the blast of cool air to set our style in place, but we wish the cool shot was a button, rather than a setting on the twist-style dial, to make it easier to reach.

Heat Settings: 3 | Bristle Type: Nylon and tufted | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 115 inches | Weight: 2 lbs | Barrel Size: 3 inches

Best for Fine Hair

Hot Tools Gold One-Step Blowout and Volumizer

View On Amazon $29 View On Ulta $80 View On Walmart $29

Our Ratings

• Drying Ability
  5/5
• Effectiveness
  4/5
• Value
  5/5

Design details, like the innovative boar tech bristles and an extra wide barrel brush, helped this tool transform our fine hair into the full, luscious locks we typically only see in a salon mirror. 

Although this brush is pretty no-frills, the nearly 3-inch wide barrel brush delivered definition and volume to our hair with ease. We were also grateful that the barrel was thick enough to allow us to wrap our fine hair around it without catching or getting stuck in the bristles.

While we initially eyed the gorgeous 24K gold design on the barrel surface, we loved it even more once we saw how the gold-plated material helped distribute heat evenly for a faster, more efficient blow dry. We oohed and ahhed over how healthy and shiny our hair looked after each use, especially our ends, which never looked shredded or split.

Although this brush did get quite hot on the highest setting, it didn’t reduce the look of our glossy finish or cause errant flyaways, but it’s something to bear in mind if your scalp is sensitive.

Heat Settings: 3 | Bristle Type: Boartech, charcoal-infused | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 96 inches | Weight: 2 lbs | Barrel Size: 2.8 inches

Best for Shine

Drybar Blow-Dryer Brush

View On Nordstrom $155 View On Ulta $155 View On Sephora $155

Our Ratings

• Ease of Use
  4.6/5
• Design
  4.4/5
• Drying Ability
  4.4/5
• Effectiveness
  4.2/5
• Durability
  5/5

There's no doubt that Drybar completely changed the name of the game when it comes to a quick blowout. After opening up Drybar salons nationwide, the brand has brought styling home with their Drybar Double Shot hot air brush device. We loved this option for its larger, round brush head, the variety of bristles, and the shine factor, too.

We found the Double Shot brush easy to maneuver, likely due to its flatter and wider head. We also appreciated that the tip of the brush head was a non-heating portion, so we were able to hold onto it to help guide and roll the brush up to the shaft and pause to create a tighter curl. It wasn't as lightweight as others on this list, but it was comfortable to hold.

We absolutely loved how shiny and silky our hair looked after each blowout, courtesy of the tool's ionic technology, which also helped us achieve a completely frizz-free style. The combination of silicon and nylon tufted bristles latched firmly onto our hair as we moved the hot air brush around and provided the perfect amount of tension to create long-lasting styles. The highest heat setting did get a little too toasty for our preference, although it didn't damage our hair. We'd recommend using a heat protectant before picking up the tool, just to be on the safe side.

If you're looking for a hot air brush to add a bit of shine, the Drybar might be your best pick. Alternatively, if you have really coarse, curly, or natural hair, one of the other options in this lineup might suit you best.

Heat Settings: 3 | Bristle Type: Nylon and silicon | Cool Shot: Yes | Cord Length: 108 inches | Weight: 2.6 lbs | Barrel Size: 2.44 inches