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Cruelty Free Hair Dye Brands

ByCordelia

Cruelty Free Hair Dye Brands

I wanted to share cruelty free hair dye brands with you today. I constantly get asked for recommendations for hair dye. Brands in bold are the ones I’ve tried.

Cruelty Free Hair Dye Brands

Arctic Fox Hair Dye
I’ve never tried this brand but they make vegan hair dye and they’re big on Instagram.

EcoColors (Leaping Bunny Certified)
This is a non-toxic organic hair color system. I’ve never tried it. It comes in 24 inter-mixable shades complimented by a range of 5, 10, 20, 30 and 40 Volume Gel Activator Developers and Lightener for stunning blondes to gorgeous reds.

Good Dye Young
Good Dye Young is a fairly new brand that looks like they have amazing colors! I would love to try Narwhal, PPL Eater, Blue Ruin and None More Black to see how they perform.

Henna Color Lab (vegan)
Henna hair dye.

Herbatint
A cruelty free box dye.

Jerome Russel Punky Color
Cruelty free and easy to get ahold of.

Light Mountain
It looks like it’s all ‘office safe’ colors.

Lunatik Hair Dye (vegan)
I haven’t tried this but it comes in fun colors.

Lush
Lush has subtle henna hair dyes.

Manic Panic (vegan)
Manic Panic is a brand that has been around for a very long time and they offer bright colors in a semi-permanent formula. I’ve used Manic Panic a ton.

Morocco Method
They have henna hair color.

Naturigin
Natural based permanent hair dye in work safe shades.

Paul Mitchell (Leaping Bunny Certified)
Paul Mitchell is a professional brand and their salons are all over the USA. They have all permanent colors you could want.

Pravana
Pravana is a professional brand. They make permanent, semi permanent and demi permanent colors. They’re probably best known for their Vivids and Neons lines. They’re my favorite of the brands here.

Pulp Riot
Pulp Riot looks amazing! I want to try Aquatic, Jam, Velvet, Powder and Smoke. They look so good!

Smart Beauty
They’re another brand that I haven’t tried but they make ‘normal’ hair colors and some fun ones. They have pastel kits, too.

Special Effects
I have tried this brand. They’ve got great colors. They’re sometimes a pain to get ahold of and people speculate that they try to create artificial demand.

Surya Brasil
They offer henna hair dye. I’ve tried their bath and body products.

Unfortunately, most of the brands you will find at the drugstore have been tested on animals, so I don’t recommend them. Instead, if you’re looking for budget-friendly drugstore prices, try Manic Panic from Sally Beauty Supply.

I’m definitely curious about how well Good Dye Young, Pulp Riot, EcoColors, Arctic Fox Hair dye, and Smart Beauty work.

If you’ve never dyed your hair yourself, I strongly recommend using the salon finders linked above to find a Pravana or Paul Mitchell salon near you and getting it done professionally. You’ll be happier with the results.

If you want to try it yourself, Manic Panic, Jerome Russel Punky Color or Ion Color Brilliance are the best options in my experience.

Of the brands mentioned, my favorites are Pravana, Manic Panic and Paul Mitchell. I don’t believe I’ve ever tried henna, as it’s not as exciting as purple hair is to me. There are definitely more natural, permanent options than I thought existed.

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What’s your favorite brand of cruelty free hair dye?

Cordelia Frost is the creative force behind Phyrra, a treasure trove for cruelty-free indie and goth makeup enthusiasts. She's the author of the game-changing 'Hooded Eyes Makeup Manual' a must-read for hooded eyes makeup.

Cordelia's world is a kaleidoscope of alternative beauty, gothic fashion, and life-enhancing tips, making every visit to Phyrra a journey into a more colorful and inspired self.

26 Comments

  1. Lots of good information. I was wondering do you color your hair or have it done? Do you ever get to the point where you feel that your hair is damaged and want to give it a rest?

  2. I picked up a box or SPLAT hair dye and it claims to be cruealty free, with the bunny ears…So that may be one! I am sad and frustrated that we can actually be deceived by certain claims of non animal testing. I used to use Mary Kay and and Avon but I do not anymore. Also your website is kickin and so chock of info you are a maniac in a fabulous way! Thank u for all your diligence and hard work, and you are beautiful!!

  5. Hi! I love your notes.
    I’d like to go blonde, very blonde… so I need bleach my hair. What brand can you recommend me?
    Thanks!!

    1. I would recommend you go to a Pravana or Paul Mitchell salon to go blonde professionally. It’s very difficult to tone it if you’ve never done it yourself.

  6. I know this is an older post, but I just came across it. I love my bright, red hair and as a newly vegan I was looking for some good dye. Now I’ve heard a lot about Ion colors, which I really want to try. BUT.. I read on a different blog that they use some kind of silkworms. And appearantly, ION doesn’t cound worms as animals and therefore they say that they are vegan. Do you know anything more about this? The post is from 2012, so maybe it’s outdated…

  7. Great article! Is ion color brilliance really cruelty free? How were you able to check? Thanks!

      1. Ion Color Brilliance is not vegan, they are using animal products in the dye. Here is their answer to my question (Jan 31th, 2018):
        “Ani,

        Thanks for checking with us! We allow the following animal derived ingredients in ion™ and ion™ Color Brilliance™ products:

        lanolin, silk, beeswax, carmine, non-human derived keratin and their derivatives.”

        1. They used to have vegan printed on their packaging. I actually just removed them from the list because they are apparently testing on animals now, too.

    1. I would look into a local Paul Mitchell salon. They’ll be able to tell you what will work best with your hair.

  9. Hi! As always, thanks for these lists! Do you have any info about ProColor Master Salon and their products? I’ve been using their color depositing shampoo/conditioners but I can’t find any info anywhere about the company and if they’re cruelty free. Any info would be greatly appreciated! 🙂

    1. Hi! i’ve never heard of them but I’ll see if I can find their website and email them for you.

  10. I know this is late, but I found this list and went all in and got some henna dye from Henna Color Labs. I’ve never colored my hair before this, but I got it in the mail yesterday (wine red) and it’s turned out super well. Not as messy as people say it is, but it might be because I have a pixie cut; I also only used half of a packet! The color hinged on great and I’ve naturally got very dark brown hair so I was really impressed.

  11. I used to use Feria but now I use Developlus’ Satin Color line. According to their website they don’t test on animals and I really love it! I’ve tricked several hair stylists into thinking I was a natural redhead 🙂

  12. I use Jerome Russell Punky Colour in Red Wine to add cooler tones to my dyed red hair. My skin tone is neutral/beige, and I find that veggie dyes help me achieve a hair colour that suits me.

  13. I’ve been on the hunt for a semi-permanent vegan auburn hair dye that is not henna for at least a decade. Back before I went cruelty-free, I used the Clairol Natural Instincts line. The only thing I could find is the Herbatint Vegetal semi-permanent dyes, but I can’t find any reviews for them.

    1. Many of the brands listed above are vegan and they may have the auburn shade you’re looking for. I think Ion has several reds too.

  14. Thank you! I just jumped on the cruelty-free bandwagon in a big way, and I’ve been struggling to find a new haircolor brand.

    1. I know it can be difficult, so I’m happy to help! I get asked about this at least twice a week, so I knew it was something that people were really looking for.

  15. Thanks for this list. I want to replace my L’oreal, but I wasn’t sure where to start. I’m bookmarking this so I can check out some brands before I buy dye again. I have a few of the L’oreal I may as well use up first, so that will give me time to find the right one for me.

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