All Blondes Have To Try This $12 Purple Shampoo for Cutting Brassiness (2024)

Blonde hair is a commitment, especially when it comes to maintaining a specific hue that doesn't look too yellow-ish or brassy. Basically, every unnatural blonde knows the struggle of keeping those tones at bay. "Hair can turn brassy for a number of reasons including environmental factors like chlorine, pollution, hard water, natural oxidation, or even product build up," explains celebrity colorist Rita Hazan (the woman responsible for keeping so many A-listers blonde fresh, including Beyoncé).

The solution? A purple shampoo. Similar to how you use a green makeup primer to cancel out redness, purple is directly across from yellow on the color wheel, which means they work to cancel each other out. "Violet shampoos can counteract any brassy yellow or orange tones that can happen over time," says Hazan. And while you may love the results, you won't want to overdo it. "The only danger is that people love the result so much that they use it too much and then their hair gets a violet tint to it," warns David Adams, color director at FourteenJay Salon. He recommends only using a purple shampoo once a week or saving it for whenever your color starts to look dull.

Wondering if purple shampoo is a treatment you really need? Well, good news. The product can address a number of hair concerns, not *just* blonde hair that needs extra oomph. "Purple shampoo can also be used for anyone with highlights that need toning or whose hair naturally has a warm undertone who prefer their color to look a bit more cool," explains celebrity hairstylist Ryan Richman. "I like to think of it as putting a filter on a picture. Most filters change the tone of your picture from cool, to warm, to green, to pink, and so on."

Now that you're a pro on all things purple shampoo, you miiight be in need of a li'l product inspo. Here are 20 purple shampoo favorites worth lathering up for, according to editors and experts alike.

I'm obsessed with this super light brightening shampoo by Playa. Not only does it smell ah-mazing, but it also leaves your hair lighter, bouncier, and hydrated post-wash. Plus, the cone-shaped lid allows you to put the product in targeted scalp sections while you shower.

PSA: This tone-correcting Moroccanoil-based shampoo not only gently cleanses your hair, but also removes brassiness from blonde, lightened, and gray hair shades. Just massage the product onto your scalp, leave in for three to five minutes, and boom, your color gets a little boost.

Yes, this product is on the expensive side. But with AVEDA, you know you're getting a large quantity of high-quality product. (The bottle is almost 34 ounces!) This Blue Malva shampoo neutralizes brassiness in all hair types, and will leave your color-treated hair looking brighter and with the brand's signature just-left-the-salon scent.

Colorlast shampoo is your tone correction BFF. If you want a high-end drugstore option that won't break the bank, you're going to get a lot for your money in this sitch. With ingredients like fig, castor oil, and orchid, this shampoo will rid your hair of brassiness for a brighter shine.

"This product is sulfate free and boosts hair color vibrancy while reducing unwanted brassiness, leaving the hair soft and shiny," Richman explains. Wondering how to use it, exactly? "Emulsify in the palms of your hands and apply from root to ends. Leave it in for one to two minutes or more depending on how cool or violet you want your hair, and rinse."

Use this cleansing wash *once* per week for brighter, blonder-looking hair. The purple pigment will cancel out any dullness in your strands and, yep, you can buy this product for just under nine dollars. Win!

Along with its violet hue, this cleanser uses wild cherry bark extract to help smooth and add shine and avocado oil to nourish strands with vitamin A, D, E, B6, amino acids, folic acid, and minerals. Disodium EDTA (admittedly not the sexiest ingredient name) is also used in the formula to help counteract the dullness that build-up from hard water can have on your color.

Silk proteins are the secret ingredient in this plum shampoo. Not only do they make hair—you guessed it—silky, they also help strengthen your strands which are usually a little weaker if they're being bleached.

The super rich purple pigments in this shampoo help it work even harder to brighten up strands. Do a double cleanse and leave it on a few minutes longer the second time around for even more of a color boost.

The purple hue combined with lemon extract helps brighten highlights while chamomile extract helps boost shine. On top of that, your hair will also get in its protein thanks to added keratin which will help to hydrate strands as well.

This shampoos aims to keep hair strong with its use of quinoa and purple rice. Not only do these ingredients help to protect strands, they also add shine and moisture for a silky, smooth, healthy finish.

Get the power of purple without breaking the bank. Created by celebrity hairstylist Kristin Ess, this rich formula also boasts coconut oil and pea protein to keep your hair strong and hydrated on top of brightening your color.

Already have a favorite shampoo? No problem. Pretend you're back in art class and add a few drops of this purple pigmented booster to your cleanser, conditioner, or mask of choice. Just keep in mind that the more drops you add, the more powerful it will be. We suggest using no more than four.

This purple shampoo works for all color-treated hair to help enhance your hue. A blend of sunflower seed oil, vitamin B-5, and flaxseed oil also help to nourish and strengthen strands to help hold onto color longer.

Aloe leaf extract, jojoba leaf extract, and rosemary extract work alongside the purple tint to help keep strands hydrated and shiny—two things that most blondes have a hard time maintaining.

This shampoo may not be quite as pigmented as the others, it still packs a brightening punch. It uses a natural mineral pigment rather than synthetic to help eliminate brassiness along with coconut acid to help cleanse your strands without stripping them of your color or your hair's natural beneficial oils.

This luxe shampoo not only uses its purple hue to brighten, it also calls on a blend of lemon, ginger root, and chamomile extracts to help boost color and shine. Another problem blondes can face: Frizz. This shampoo helps fight that as well thanks to jojoba and olive oil esters.

Violet rice is one of the key ingredient in this purple shampoo though it’s not the reason for the periwinkle tone. Instead, it’s used to soften and protect your hair. Another bonus: It’s cruelty free.

Hyaluronic acid is a go-to hydrator for skin, but this shampoo uses it to strengthen hair while the rich purple pigments cancel out yellow tones. Edelweiss flower is also on the ingredient list and works as an antioxidant to help protect from environmental stressors that can dull color too.

Swap out your usual shampoo for this purple, hibiscus-infused one instead. The flower has a plethora of benefits including hair growth, frizz control and shine.