Having tangled hair can be painful and time-consuming, so a good detangling regimen is key if you’re tangle-prone. Fortunately, there is a slew of tools designed to help alleviate the detangling process for all hair types. In addition to using products like conditioner and detangling sprays, using a good detangling brush can help ease the frustration of pulling your tresses. We spent hours researching to find the top detangling brushes available, rating each one according to the quality of their bristles, their versatility in terms of detangling all hair types, and how comfortable they were to use. After looking through hundreds of reviews and considering a multitude of options, we landed on these top picks.
I. What To Look For In A Detangling Brush
The process of washing, detangling, deep conditioning, and styling your natural hair can steal hours of your day. During this multi-step process, detangling is perhaps the most dreaded part. Not only do coils and curls get tangled up in scrunchies and rubberbands, but they also entangle with one another, resulting in knots of all different sizes. Therefore, the detangling brushes, which are strong enough to brush through your natural hair with minimal pain and hair loss, play an important role in your “wash day”. These are the things you should notice when looking for a detangling brush.
1. Bristles
To make sure your brush helps with tangles, opt for wide-spaced bristles with flexibility. These assert to give the hair strand more space to detangle and separate.
2. Material
Choose a brush with nylon or plastic bristles if you intend to use it on wet hair. It will still assist in untangling all of your stubborn knots, but won’t leave you filled with worry about ruining the brush in the process.
3. Design
Since combing out knots is typically a lengthy process, pick a brush that fits comfortably in your hand. An ergonomic design or a comfortable handle are both great options.
II. 7 Best Detangling Brushes To Prevent Excess Damage
Most of the brushes on this list are pretty similar because there are time-tested features that are proven to work for naturally curly hair. All of them have flexible bristles that are sufficiently dense to comb through every hair, yet sufficiently spaced apart to prevent damage. With one of the seven brushes below, your “wash day” might turn into a “wash afternoon”.
Christophe Robin is known for (admittedly pricey) artisan-made products that may nurture both the scalp and the shaft of the hair. It, therefore, comes as no surprise that this award-winning brush was designed to accomplish both. Made from 100% pure boar bristles, this detangling brush claims to soften and strengthen hair while simultaneously boosting shine and removing product buildup from the scalp.
Hair Type: All | Shape: Paddle | Bristle Material: 100% boar | Wet or Dry: Dry
This brush from Tracee Ellis Ross’s haircare line quickly and easily untangles curls and coils. It’s a great option for those who want more volume because it has nylon bristles and an ergonomic design that is able to clump curls for more definition and shape. Reviewers with frequently tangled hair noted that it made their wash days much easier and cut their detangling time in half.
Hair Type: Curly, coily | Shape: Paddle | Bristle Material: Nylon | Wet or Dry: Wet
Try this recommendation from Dae if you’re looking for a brush that can be used for both detangling and styling. It has vegan boar bristles with ballpoint tips that work through tangles and massage the scalp to create a sleek, styled finish. We also love that it works on all hair types and textures.
Hair Type: All | Shape: Paddle | Bristle Material: Vegan boar | Wet or Dry: Both
This brush doesn’t have a handle at all. You can nestle the knob on the back in between your fingers and turn this brush into an extension of your hand, which is supposed to make the detangling process as easy as running your fingers through your hair. The flexible bristles – they move 360 degrees to fully contour to the shape of your head – help, too. The delicate bristles on the Manta brush allow you to exfoliate the scalp while washing your hair and evenly distribute conditioners. Removing build-up, eliminating flakes, and providing a deep cleanse can result in shinier, more manageable, growing, healthier hair.
A comfortable rubber grip and flexible head ensure ease of use for this wildly popular (and highly reviewed) brush, best used on curly, kinky, and natural hair. It works on wet or dry hair and even those with tight coils have found that it glides through hair easily.
Hair Type: Curly, coily | Shape: Paddle | Bristle Material: Nylon | Wet or Dry: Both
A brush with a flexible back can make all the difference in gently detangling hair. This dual detangling and massaging brush from The Hair Edit has a flexible back combined with flexible bristles that prevent the brush from snagging and pulling hair strands. “It’s also nice for gently massaging the scalp.” A reviewer adds, “I have thick hair with INSANE tangles after every shower and this brush glided through my hair like nothing.”
Hair Type: Thick Hair | Shape: Rectangular | Bristle Material: Nylon, Ball-tipped | Wet or Dry: Wet
Light in weight and featuring flexible, extended bristles, this pretty wood-handled paddle brush from Aveda may tackle even the most distressing snarls and knots. However, there’s some strategy involved: Aveda hair pros recommend keeping the tool vertical as you brush to detangle. To add shine, keep it horizontal.
Hair Type: All | Shape: Paddle | Bristle Material: Plastic | Wet or Dry: Dry
III. Final Word!
Detangling brushes are specifically created to untangle hair and minimize breakage. Compared to regular hair brushes, they usually have thinner, more flexible bristles that won’t pull too hard on snagged hair strands. After all, we hope this post will help you find the best hair products for your money.