25 Top Hair Color Trends of 2020
It’s 2020: a new year, a new decade, and yet another opportunity to create a new you
Photo: Instagram/dualipa
It’s 2020: a new year, a new decade, and yet another opportunity to create a new you. One of the things we love most about a changing year, or even season, is seeing what trends are popping up in beauty — especially when it comes to hair.
A simple snip of the shears or a perfectly-hued dye can totally revolutionize your look. And you can opt for a subtle change or a drastic one. That’s why every season, and every year, we like to keep you in the loop of what’s going to be the biggest and best, trends in hair color. For 2020, you can expect to see a total warm up of hues (with plenty of ash/cool options for those who love them), “natural” hair color, and chunky highlights. Buttery blondes, vibrant and dusty reds (a la Zendaya), and chocolate-y browns will be among the hues to choose from. Here are 25 trends you’ll be seeing everywhere. As always, find what works best for your hair, skin undertones, and personal preference, and have fun!
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Bronde
An on-trend color choice for 2020 is bronde. This is the pretty color that resides in between brown and blonde. You will see bronde achieved with balayage, lightening, and darkening where needed, for a look that’s perfect for your hair. It’s great for those who don’t want to subscribe fully to either hue, and instead want something new and fresh to try. It also looks more on the natural side, needing less upkeep than more bold hues.
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Chunky Highlights, Especially on Curls
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Expertly crafted curly haircuts have taken over, and the results have been halo after halo of gorgeous, unrestricted curls that are perfectly cut for that specific person. This means a tailor-made look that compliments facial structure and works best with your texture. The next step is adding in highlights that go a step further and literally highlight the curls in the best way possible, allowing them to truly shine. You will be seeing chunky highlights making a comeback, which is great since they are more visible on curls.
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Silver Blonde/White Blonde
For those who do want to go blonde and don’t want to subscribe to the warm color trend for 2020, you’re in luck. Icy silver-blonde, smoky blonde, and a white blonde that shows little to no yellow will also be in for the new year. This striking hue is great for those whose complexion is cool-toned and who want to go radically beyond everyday blonde shades for something edgier. It’s also great for those with naturally gray hair who want something a few shades lighter and bolder.
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Shadow Roots
Remember when seeing your roots was a major faux pas?! Now it’s cool to have your roots showing! Shadow roots allow your own natural color to blend into another color or colors. Or, you can create new roots in another hue. It’s a trend you’ll see around next year. According to Allure, shadow toning adds natural-looking shadows to the hair, making the transition from your natural roots to the rest of your highlighted hair, more seamless. The result adds depth and dimension to your overall hair color. This also means that you can go months without a touch-up.
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Caramel Highlights
Tired of season after season of ash-toned hair trends? Warm highlights will be trending for hair in 2020! These include highlights in rich honey and caramel hues. They’re a great way to add dimension and break up brown hair, without going too light. It’s also a part of the overall warm hair color trend you’ll be seeing everywhere, which is a bold change after several seasons of ash/cool hair ruling what was “cool” on tresses.
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Jet/Ink Black
Jet black, inky hair was trendy in 2019 and is still a thing for 2020. The color is at the other end of the hair color spectrum from icy platinum blonde and just as dramatic. It will allow any makeup looks you create to take center stage (you can get colorful!) while also holding its own as a dark, alluring look in its own right. You will also get a ton of shine from dark hair, which is never a bad thing.
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Twilighting
Another cool trend to try out in 2020 is twilighting. Seen on Selena Gomez, the hair color effect combines balayage and baby lights to create a beautiful golden result on dark tresses. It adds dimension and glow without doing too much or looking too obvious. This year, many hair hues are all about keeping it “natural.” The added bonus of this is that grow outs are less obvious, which means less costly trips to the salon.
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“Natural” Color
Balayage has been in style for a while now, but for 2020, it’s going to look more natural. In fact, “natural” hair color is a big trend for the year, as we have previously mentioned. The idea is to add color and dimension in a way where you wouldn’t know it was created in a salon. It’s supposed to convince folks that it’s the hair color you were “born with.”
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Classic Blue, Denim, and Vivid Hues
Classic Blue is Pantone’s Color of the Year for 2020, so naturally, you’ll be seeing it recreated everywhere — in fashion, beauty, and decor. It’s no surprise then, that classic blue hair has cropped up on Instagram. You will also be seeing different blues trending for hair, like denim. Bold hues, in general, will also be a trend, along with vivid, fantasy colors, allowing so many to happily play with all sorts of fun options.
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Dip Dyed Ends
Seen on Demi Lovato’s sleek and also on-trend bob last year (in both pink and neon green), dip-dyed ends are going to be in style for 2020. It’s a great way to refresh the color you have, and/or try out a daring hue without featuring it all over your hair. Added bonus? You only have to focus on your ends, so when you want to change color, it’s an easier change. And if you find that your ends are a bit damaged, you can always get a trim!
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Chocolate Brown
Chocolate brown is always going to be a hit when it comes to fabulous hair colors. It’s on the darker side, but still has that warmth that many folks look for especially during the colder months. This classic is also trending for 2020, so why not go lighter, or darker this year to obtain this sweet hue?
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Red Velvet
Within the red hair color trend that you will be seeing in 2020 is the vibrant hue, red velvet. It is a bold color choice for those who don’t want to go “natural” at all. This is a definite, “look at me” shade that will instantly revolutionize dark hair, or take a light or medium hue to a rich new level.
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Strawberry Blonde
Want to give your blonde hair a fresh, new makeover for 2020? Go strawberry blonde! The warm hue takes blonde and takes it into (light) red territory. It’s great for those who want to try out red without going too bright or rich.
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All Over Color
Balayage has been on trend for what seems like forever now, and we are always going back to highlights of all sorts and varieties. But a concept that will be in style for 2020 is all-over color. Whether it’s rich dark chocolate, a coppery red, or a buttery blonde, many will opt for the same fabulous hue all over their hair.
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Turmeric Latte
Seen on Margot Robbie, turmeric latte lets blonde gals get in on 2020’s warm-color trend and try a specific color trend at once. The hue, which features “hints” of apricot and gold, is great for those who want more warmth than what you see with other trending shades (like icy or white blonde).
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High-Contrast Color/Half and Half/Two-Tone
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Throwback styles are back in fashion, and with them come beauty trends. A ’90s/’00s concept that will be seen in 2020 is the idea of contrasting/half and half/two-tone hair. Dua Lipa is the star everyone is associating with the look. Think a dark hair color underneath, and a much lighter hue on top, or light money piece highlights to frame the face. This fun look lets you rock two colors at once, so have fun with it!
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Tweed Hair
Within the wonders of balayage is the tweed trend. This subtle look starts with a dark blonde or light brown base and weaves in light and dark colors that are within three shades of each other (according to Wella) to mimic the classic fabric.
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Mushroom Brown
Another in-between color you’ll be seeing everywhere for fall is Mushroom Brown. This is a brown that has a big dose of mushroomy grey in it. It’s one of those bronde shades that allows blondes to go a bit darker for fall and brunettes to go a bit lighter.
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Terracotta/Peach
Another warm hue that will be trending that subtly goes into red territory is terracotta or peach. It’s such a fun mix between blonde and red and looks so different from what we usually see on tresses. Similar hues were in style last year, as the Pantone Color of the Year for 2019 was Living Coral.
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Soft Pastels on Platinum
Pastels have been a hair trend for a while, and they’re going strong for 2020. The look this time around, though, is softer. Think soft lilac, whisper pink, and the like.
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Brown Ale
For the past few seasons, we have been seeing hair color trends that are inspired by beverages and food. Think cold brew, espresso brown, champagne blonde, peach cobbler, red velvet, honey blonde, and more. We can add brown ale to 2020’s list of trending hues. The beer-inspired creation, from Colin Caruso, is a mahogany with “swirls” of amber added in.
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Raspberry Bourbon, Cinnamon, Red Wine, and Other Rich Reds
You will be seeing a lot of ravishing reds in hair color for 2020. This includes various shades like full-on copper and deeper reds like raspberry bourbon, as well as reddish highlights woven into brown hair. The main color idea for the year is warmth, which is a stark contrast to the many seasons where we have been seeing cool, ashy tones.
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The Money Piece
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Back in the day, highlights were more obvious, and lighter hairstreaks were often seen on either side of the face. This contrasting hair trend, also known as the money piece, is going to be big in 2020. It will instantly brighten and bring attention to your face — where it should be!
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Buttercream Blonde
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Another fabulous hair color inspired by food is buttercream blonde. It takes its cue from buttercream frosting, which is a pale yellow. The look on hair is equally rich and pretty, and definitely on-trend for 2020.
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Natural Grey
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As we have seen with the stunning results from the ashy and icy hair trends, grey hair is beautiful. It’s so pretty, in fact, that natural grey will be a hair color trend for 2020. Many women (including younger ladies who have gone grey prematurely) have been opting to let their hair shine in its natural state (both color and texture!) which we simply love. And of course, if you aren’t naturally grey, you can always get the look at the salon!
