14 Best Curling Irons of 2024, Tested & Reviewed

Table Of Content

• Shop More Beauty Tips From Vogue Shopping
• What to Look for in Curling Irons
• BEST CURLING IRON FOR SHORT HAIR
• Cortex Professional 4-in-1 Pro Ceramic Clipless Curling Set
• Best Gold-Plated: Hot Tools Pro Artist 24K Gold Curling Iron
• Best for Beginners: Trademark Beauty Babe Waves
• FHI Heat Heat Platform Tourmaline Ceramic Curling Iron

Whether you've seen them on TikTok or just admired someone's bouncy, voluminous curls, hair rollers are suddenly everywhere. They're also not the clunky, uncomfortable rollers of yesteryear — today's rollers are easy to use, intuitive, and give you personalized results, whether you want beachy waves or are hoping to simply accentuate your natural curl pattern. With a background in hair dye research and synthesis, Good Housekeeping Institute Senior Chemist, Sabina Wizemann loves everything hair-related. Over her years in the Health, Beauty & Sustainability Lab, she has fashioned lab and consumer studies on at-home hair dyes, shampoos and conditioners, hair serums, hair volumizers, dry shampoos and more. She also tests hairstyling tools like hair dryers and curling irons while continuously checking for the latest innovations in hairstyling. The size of the barrel, for example, can make a huge difference to the size of the curl and how defined it is.

Shop More Beauty Tips From Vogue Shopping

Perfect to create loose beach waves, this Hot Tools model spans ¾-inch to 1 ¼-inches for an undone look and curls that stay put. The lightest of the winners (0.73 pound!), the tool was compact and simple to operate. And I don’t have to worry about accidentally disturbing them before they cool down like with traditional irons." We researched and tested standout sets that promise efficiency, body, and bounce.

What to Look for in Curling Irons

It only takes about 90 seconds to get hot, and then you leave them in for 10 minutes for loose waves and 20 minutes for tighter ringlets. There are a whopping 12 heat settings to choose from ranging from 140F to 230F. Each ceramic barrel is covered in velvet flocking, which we felt really helped prevent tension and snaring. Additionally, we appreciated that the plastic tips kept us from burning our fingers. While it doesn't have all the bells and whistles of pricier options, we loved the design and overall results. We saw bouncy, well-defined, long-lasting curls across a range of hair types and textures.

BEST CURLING IRON FOR SHORT HAIR

We also love that there are nine different heat settings, giving you the opportunity to find the ideal temperature for your unique hair. It also heats up quickly and features an automatic shut-off, nice features to have which elevate the user experience. If you’re looking for a truly high-quality tool that will offer you versatility, this one is worth the investment. If you’re looking for a curling iron that will help you achieve tight, defined curls, the three-quarters-of-an-inch model from Babyliss is a great option. Though it doesn’t have fancy features like a digital temperature display or automatic shut-off, it’s a functional iron that gets the job done at an affordable cost. The clamp is secure which helps you maintain control, but it’s not so tight that it tugs at the hair.

With expertise from a stylist in mind, she compiled our testing insights from The Lab, combed through product specs, pored over user reviews, referenced peer-reviewed studies, and rounded up our top picks. She has tried hot hair tools from multiple brands on this list, including Conair, T3, Remington, and Chi. Ally Hirschlag is a senior beauty editor on the commerce team with extensive experience using curling tools and rollers, including several on this list.

Best Gold-Plated: Hot Tools Pro Artist 24K Gold Curling Iron

If you have long, thick hair, you’re going to want a styler that offers higher temperatures than someone with thin or fine hair. And if your hair is damaged or brittle, you’ll likely benefit from an iron that’s been infused with oils and proteins, or a styler that curls your hair with hot air rather than hot metal. It may seem that curling irons are all created relatively equal, but depending on what style you’re after, your hair type, skill level, and budget, they can vary wildly. What suits one person won’t suit another, and this can make choosing the best curling iron a minefield. While it only comes with eight rollers, there's a lot to love about this sleekly-designed, feature-rich kit. The ceramic barrels are coated with velvet flocking to protect your hair, and the ends have a cool-touch grip to prevent burning.

Best for Beginners: Trademark Beauty Babe Waves

Can we honestly deem a high-end diffuser worthy of your hard-earned cash if it’s never been tested on curls? We’re proud that our staff spans a wide range of ages, skin tones, hair textures, genders, and backgrounds, which means that we are able to fairly assess any beauty product that comes into the beauty closet. Automatic curling irons are relatively user-friendly (but read the instructions, no matter what!) and have small springboard clamps that wrap the hair for you. Then, there's the Marcel iron, which Santiago says is mostly for professionals as it has a manual handle that's not as user-friendly to the masses. Somehow, we always end up losing a few good strands to deadly clamps, but with the T3, our hair never once got stuck. We also loved the huge variety of heat settings, so we didn’t have to settle for too-hot temps, which diffused evenly down the barrel (no fried ends!).

As for features that add to the value, we were really impressed with the digital temperature dial that’s simple to use and makes seeing what temperature you have the iron on easy. The barrel is pretty long which is great for those with long hair, plus, the tool is lightweight and has a soft-touch finish that prevents it from slipping out of your hands. Lastly, it has an automatic shut-off, so you’ll never have to panic if you think you left it on.

Hot Rollers 2024 - Forbes Vetted - Forbes

Hot Rollers 2024 - Forbes Vetted.

Posted: Mon, 27 Nov 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

This can be used on all hair types but our research showed it works best on longer hair. But with such a wide variety of options, it's hard to know where to start and which hair curlers to use to get the texture you desire. We hit up a few hairstylists to find out just how to navigate the wonderful world of curlers, so you don't get lost in the sauce when you're at the beauty supply shop, IRL, or online. While we haven't formally tested this exact model in the Lab yet, Drybar's curling wand has performed well in our Lab tests, so it's no surprise this three-in-one pick is a fan favorite. The only downside is that, since the curlers are made of sponge, we don’t think they’re a forever product.

Unlike many other options, Dyson taps air instead of a heated surface to curl the hair, and to our delight, we experienced zero heat damage, even when we used it several times a week on bonded hair extensions. With the Airwrap, we didn’t have to get super close to our scalp and risk the integrity of the bonds in order to get our extensions to support a curl. It’s also worth noting that we used the second generation Airwrap that comes with barrels that allow you to switch the direction of the airflow. Although it's a small detail, it had a big payoff because it made it super easy for us to ensure our curls were all facing the right direction. Our curls held well, though on finer hair, the larger barrel resulted in more of a bouncy blowout effect than a true curl.

We used the tool across every hair type in our New York City-based Lab, as well as in our own natural hair for two weeks. We also considered the way our hair looked overall after each styling session. After compiling and evaluating all the testing data, we ranked each curling iron, and the highest scoring tools are featured on this list. If you have fine or damaged hair, or you’re concerned about damaging your hair, we recommend checking out this curling wand that claims to limit and prevent it.

Aside from the heat-protecting feature, we really like that it’s a wand-style iron with a cool-touch silicone grip that you can use to secure the ends of the hair to guide you as you style it. Though not necessary, this little feature can be useful, especially for beginners. It also has an automatic shut-off feature, and most importantly, it works to create smooth, lasting curls. This curling iron uses patented temperature technology which ensures it’s safe to use on all hair types. We also have a panel of testers try them out at home and report back on how well the curling irons create curls, how long the curls last and how easy and comfortable the tools are to use. Testers said, "the barrel is smooth and clip works well," though some found the thumb clamp tricky to press.

Especially good for those with textured hair that’s prone to dryness, its infrared technology also helps to prevent moisture loss. The best hair curlers will give you effortless beachy waves in minutes, and crucially, without damaging or singeing your hair. If the hair curlers have any advanced features, such as cordless battery life or quick-heat settings, then we'll try these out to test if they work and if they're worth you spending extra money on.

Every story we publish has been thoroughly researched and vetted by our team of beauty editors and industry experts. These no-fuss, self-gripping rollers are great for adding lift to bobs and other shorter hairstyles. Catherine Hufton is a London-based lifestyle journalist and has been a contributing writer and editor for Byrdie since 2022. She digs deep into all things fashion and beauty to find the very best shopping must-haves—from the most effective collagen serums to the best drugstore makeup essentials. With a background in hair dye research and synthesis, Wizemann loves everything hair-related.

Testers also loved that the digital display shows the temperature and type of hair it's suitable for and also reflects any changes in temperature during styling. Once this portion of the test was complete, we sent each curling iron to three editors, each with a different hair type and texture, to incorporate into their hair styling routine over a two-week period. During this portion, we evaluated each iron for ease of use, the shape and endurance of the curls, the heat damage it caused (if any), and the overall quality of the final look. At the end of the two-week test, we compiled and digested the data from each editor, and then ranked each iron accordingly. Our very favorite curling irons earned the highest marks, and are featured on this list.