It’s important to note that dyeing your hair can cause your strands to become dry and damaged, especially without proper care and maintenance. To counter this, you should be reaching for colour-protecting shampoos. The best colour shampoos will do as their name suggests, they’re typically formulated to be more gentle so as to avoid any colour stripping. The key words to look out for are “colour protecting” or “colour safe”, as these shampoos will help nourish and hydrate damaged hair. Keep in mind that there are also other shampoos that lend colours to your hair to give your hair a vibrant refresh, so give the label a read to ensure that it’s the colour you want.
Here are 17 shampoos specially formulated to help coloured hair last longer.
As the name implies, Aveeno combines oat, blackberry and quinoa protein to care for both the scalp and colour-treated strands against damage and breakage. It is also free of sulfates, parabens and dyes.
Kérastase’s hydrating colour shampoo contains amino acids and centella asiatica to hydrate and soothe post-colour hair and scalp. It is best suited for those with fine to medium hair textures.
Color Wow’s colour shampoo promises to not leave residues that can dull the hair, clog follicles and impede hair growth as it is free of sulfates, silicones, conditioning agents, pearlising agents and other unnecessary ingredients.
For those with thicker or coarser hair strands, reach for this colour-enhancing shampoo that salons use too. It claims to be “as gentle as water”, and uses FadeStopFormula to reduce colour fading and amp up hair’s lustre with every use.
There’s a reason why this British brand has such a huge cult following. Created by hair gurus Adam Reed and Paul Percival, this formula is fortified with sunflower extract and colour-prolonging ingredients such as blue seakale to reduce colour fade and fend off UV damage. The shampoo also contains soothing aloe vera and hydrating coconut water.
Great for dry hair, this 100 per cent sulphate- and paraben-free formula is also vegan and made with purple pigments to counteract brassy yellow and orange undertones that are so prominent in Asian hair to maintain cooler tone and colour vibrancy.
Expertly crafted with the ingredients such as sunflower, linseed extract and hydrolysed proteins, this richly moisturising and sulphate-free vegan shampoo cleanses hair while maintaining colour and vibrancy.
This shampoo also doesn’t contain sulphates and is specially formulated with coconut, corn and vegetable-derived surfactants that work to eliminate build-up on your hair while remaining true-to-hue. It also contains rice proteins and moringa seed to strengthen and combat oxidative damage from UV rays.
If you have bleached your hair blonde, this shampoo touted by Hollywood stylists is said to help banish brassiness while giving your hair a boost of moisture with nutrient-packed argan oil. It’s also infused with a floral fragrance and is free of sulphates, phthalates, parabens, gluten and drying alcohol.
Featuring Shiseido’s unique Color Hold Agent and M Hold Agent, this shampoo delays colour fade by preventing water from being absorbed, thus reducing the loss of dye and melanin pigments.
Whether you’re looking to maintain your new highlights or trying to revive a washed-out balayage, this colour-infusing shampoo is great for toning honey blonde and other warm-coloured tresses. This 100 per cent vegan shampoo also contains no sulphates, parabens or silicone, making it extra gentle on your hair and scalp. Infuse My. Colour also has a range of other colour-infused shampoos to suit your hair colour.
Aveda’s colour shampoo employs various plant extracts such as green tea, bitter orange, pine, grapeseed and more to gently cleanse hair without stripping it of its colour.
Besides cleansing the hair and scalp of impurities and excess oils, the Goldwell shampoo is enriched with keratin and tamanu oil to keep hair looking lustrous and colour looking bright and bold for longer.
If your hair is difficult to style after colouring, the Klorane shampoo prevents colour from fading while repairing the hair fibre. Pomegranate extracts help prolong your hair colour’s intensity and radiance, giving you silky tresses.
Infused with colour-boosting fruit extracts, hydrating African plant extracts and free radical-fighting antioxidants, this gentle Oribe shampoo helps keep your hair colour vibrant and leaves locks smooth, tangle-free and shiny.
Sachajuan employs a trio of technologies – Ocean Silk technology, less wash active ingredients and microemulsion technology – to prevent colour fade while adding bounce and silk to colour-treated tresses.
Silicone- and sulfate-free, Yves Rocher’scolour shampoo contains antioxidant-rich acai pulp to clean hair and protect colour. Agave fructans are also added to boost scalp microcirculation.
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Text: Elizabeth Liew, Additional reporting: Farisia Thang and Ho Guo Xiong.