Best Standing Hair Dryer 2022 – Buyer’s Guide
You have probably seen vintage scenes in movies where ladies are sitting under a steaming helmet with their curlers on. You guessed it right! Those are nothing but hairdryers on a stand. But how are they any different from the conventional hairdryers? As much as handheld blow-dryers are more popular in our homes, salons, and parlors are still using standing hair dryers in a large scale alongside professional handheld blow dryers.
Standing hair dryers are also known as hooded hair dryers, sit-under hair dryers. Although these dryers are more popularly used in hair salons, they can also be installed in homes. If you are a salon owner, a professional or someone who knows hair care well, a standing hair dryer can be the right tool for you.
A Quick Review
| Rank | Product | Picture | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Babyliss Pro Ionic Hard-hat Dryer Check Price |  | $$$ |
2 | Nova Microdermabrasion Professional Adjustable Hooded Floor Hair Dryer Check Price |  | $$$ |
3 | Pibbs 514 Kwik Dri 1100W Salon Dryer Check Price |  | $$$ |
Standing Hair Dryer – Buyer’s Guide
What is a standing hairdryer exactly?
A standing hair dryer is a hair appliance that has a helmet-shaped hood on top supported by a stand. In the hood, there are ventilators and chambers that allow it to blow hot or cold air depending on the settings.
How does a standing hairdryer work?
Hooded hair dryers do have some basic similarities with handheld ones. Through the chambers in the hood, they blow the air and the hood is plugged with a wire to connect to electric supply and operate likewise.
It has a wide range temperature setting and has a timer attached to it that you can set. Just set your hair dryer to your preferred options and grab a good magazine or a book and there you go! A great stress-free hair drying and styling experience that would keep you shining all day long!
Are you the right person to go for a standing hair dryer?
Although these dryers are what professionals handle better, it will work perfectly fine if you are an informed consumer of hair products. You can easily install a standing dryer in a convenient corner of your house and voila! You do not need to visit the salon too frequently to get that perfect look anymore.
You can sip your coffee and skim through the pages of a good book, perhaps do your nails and let the dryer standing on the floor do its job on your hair. And you do not need to be a celebrity stylist to achieve that!
How are handheld blow-dryers and standing dryers different?
Before buying a useful but expensive hair gear like this, you should know whether it can make much of a difference in your hair-drying experience compared to conventional handheld dryers. Both handheld hairdryers and standing ones have one good job to do, that is, dry your hair as finely as it can. Then, how are they distinct? Well, there are a few major differences between conventional hairdryers and hooded hair dryers.
Firstly, the size of a handheld blow-dryers is more compact comparing to standing hooded dryers. Standing dryers are bigger in size and are more complicated in terms of installation. But hooded dryers really live up to its capacity. You can put your entire head in, even with a set of curlers and your head will fit right in.
Secondly, standing hair dryers are hands-free and will cozily dry your hair without you having to flex any muscles! Whereas, handheld dryers would require you to twist and turn your wrists in the correct positions to get the best results which will strain your muscles if done too frequently. Therefore, in terms of comfort, hooded hair dryers definitely win!
Thirdly, hooded hair dryers with stands take longer to dry than most handheld blow-dryers. Although time-consuming, this slow drying is healthier and allows your hair to set perfectly.
Finally, this works great with hair treatments! If you have color treated your hair or have applied a hair conditioning mask, the next best thing to do is to sit under a hooded hair dryer with low heat and speed settings and let it do its magic! It will open your hair cuticles and let the nutrients get into your hair and give stunning results. This works similarly great for hot oil treatments!
Are there any varieties of standing hair dryers?
Yes, there are three types of standing hair dryers which are: traditional hooded dryers with a stand; Movable hooded dryers with wheels attached and standing hooded dryers with built-in char.
Traditional Hooded dryers with a stand
Traditional Hooded dryers come with hoods and a stand which will work better if installed in a fixed and convenient corner of your room, or salon. For home use, this can be a good option since it will usually not require you to move it around much. However, as much as these dryers can be great technologically and give your hair the healthy drying, in terms of convenience and mobility, they are not the best type and thus not ideal for salon use.
Movable Hooded dryers with wheels attached
These standing hair dryers the best varieties, since they can give you the salon grade drying and styling facilities and allow you to move them conveniently because of the attached wheels to it. If you are a hairdresser and always have customers coming in, it will allow you to do the juggling smoothly if you can handle them properly.
The wheels make them partially portable which is convenient enough for salon hurdles. Make sure you have a hard floor and not a carpet, this will help the wheels do their job properly. If you want portable hooded dryers you may want to try soft bonnet hair dryers which you can pack and move after use.
However, soft bonnet hair dryers and standing hair dryers are not the same since there is no support for it to make it stand on the floor.
Hooded standing dryers with built-in chair
This particular variety comes with a built-in chair which seems to give an all in one solution. With the ideal hair drying and styling features, the chair is a bonus. However, if you are not a salon owner and not willing to invest a good amount, you should go for the simpler varieties since it can get clumsy and hence is not the perfect tool for home use.
What hair drying technologies do the best standing hairdryers support?
The best of standing or hooded hairdryers are mainly available with ionic and tourmaline technology. Other technologies have not yet mastered in this variety of hair dryers.
Ionic hooded hairdryers are designed to emit tons of healthy negative ions into your hair speed up the drying process way faster than non-ionic hooded dryers would. Therefore, ‘hooded dryers are slow’ is not an entirely true statement, as technological advances have allowed it to evolve into a more effective hair drying gadget.
Tourmaline infused hooded hair dryers on the other hands are incorporated with both ionic and tourmaline technology which gives even speedier results than pure-ionic hooded hairdryers. Tourmaline basically is a semi-precious gemstone which is a crystal boron silicate compound mineral and is rare to find.
Tourmaline hooded hair dryers have their internal parts molded or coated with crushed Tourmaline which gives a therapeutic healing to your hair and works as a relaxing spa treatment. Tourmaline produces tons of negative ions and releases far infrared heat to seep up the drying process furthermore. It also seals the chipped hair cuticles and strengthens the integrity of the hair cells.
However, the hooded hair dryer with ionic technology has proven to be robust and sturdier for both salon and home use. Although tourmaline ones sound promising, they still have miles to go to establish their effectiveness in this particular type of hairdryer.
Are there different standing hair dryers for different hair types?
There aren’t any specific standing hair dryer on the market that works for specific hair types. In fact, these are professional tools and are designed to suit a wide range of hair types. The settings may vary depending on the types of hair, but the internal engineering is built for versatile use.
What are the must-have features in a good standing hair dryer?
If you are looking for a good standing hairdryer whether, for your home or your salon, some options are pretty much mandatory. Following are the features that a good standing hairdryer should have.
Variable heat settings: This is vital for a good standing hair dryer. Increased or decreased heat is what makes differences in the final result on the hair. Also, heat should be adjustable depending on the types of hair it is supposed to dry. For thinner hair try low heat settings and higher heat settings for thick and curly hair
Variable speed settings: Just like adjustable heat, the variable speed settings will help you choose the correct airflow depending on your hair type. Finer hair would require slow speed. Same applies for severely damaged hair. Slow airflow adjusts well with these hair types. The thicker the texture of the hair, the speed should increase accordingly.
Wattage: Standing hair dryers are available with wattage ranging from 800 to 2500. However, for it to give a good salon grade service, it is recommended that you choose one that has a range of 850 to 1600 wattage and above to keep up with the heavy duty usage.
Timer: How long you or your client would be sitting under the hooded hair dryer should be checked properly. For thin hair, set it to 15 to 20 minutes, for normal/thick hair set the timer for 20 to 25 minutes. Curly and coarser hair would need 25 to 30 minutes or more depending on the volume. But before you start to use it in full swing, it is a better idea to just set the timer for 15 minutes on the first go and see for yourself.
Anti-staining coat in the interior of the hood: For professional or informed users, the anti-staining coat in the interior of the hood is essential since chemicals used in hair may cause the interior stains that you would not like.
Size of the hood: For versatile use, with or without curlers and for customers’ convenience, you should be choosing a hair dryer that has a large enough hood to fit all types.
Heat Shield: This option protects the neck, ears, and face from heat and burns which is built-in with some professional dryers and is essential.
Cool shot option: This option is very important to set the hair in the desired style. Especially in the case of curls, it is essential. It locks the curls just right!
Height adjustment options: Professionals own chairs that can level the heights. However, a good standing hair-dryer itself has the height adjustment options in it. It is an essential feature that allows you or your customer to sit comfortably underneath for as long as it needs without hurting your neck or shoulders.
Attached wheels: Wheels allow you to move around with this heavy tool more conveniently. If you own a salon or if you prefer something movable for your personal use, you must consider buying a standing hair dryer with wheels attached below.
Set of rollers: Many good standing hairdryers offer a set of rollers with it. Although not essentials, this is a bonus and can save you a few dollars.
Salon use vs. home use of standing hair dryers
Salon hair dryers are supposed to be stronger, heavy duty and have a solid interior and exterior to catch up with the commercial use of it. These usually have more settings than those that are built for lighter duties. If you want more committed salon use, you might want to go for the one with built-in chairs. The chairs would be of better quality depending on price. Pricier ones will have better back support and cozy seat cushions.
For home use, it is better to go with the simpler forms with stands with or without wheels unless you are a lot more ambitious than average home users.
Top 3 hooded standing hair-dryers for both home and salon use
Keeping the essential features and technological advantages in mind, we have picked three best standing hairdryers that can suit your professional demands as well as home duties very well. Also, these hair dryers are versatile in terms of their effect on hair types. Which means, they work equally great on all hair types. All you need to do is choose the correct settings. E.g. ‘Low’ and ‘Medium’ heat/speed settings for fine hair and ‘High’ settings for thick, coarse, curly or African American hair.
BaByliss Pro Ionic Hard-Hat Dryer
Ranking Position: 1
Our Opinion: Best wheeled standing hair dryer for salon use
This BaByliss Pro hooded hair dryer is a perfect fit for salon duty. It has its wattage ranging up to 1600 watts which ensures its capacity for frequent salon use. It is incorporated with ionic technology which is enabled with a switch that will release tons of negatively charged ions to your hair allowing it to dry quicker than non-ionic ones. It is proven to be effective on damaged hair and controls frizz like a pro!
It has adjustable heat settings that allow three heating options: slow, medium and high. Use slow and medium for fine and medium thick hair. You may want to use the high heat settings for thick and curly hair. Its hating is very even and thus the whole experience is relaxing.
It has a sleek interior that can be easily cleaned after chemical hair treatments. Also, it has an adjustable height leveler for people as tall as 6 feet 3 inches! It also has five wheels which allow it to be moved from one place to another. Two of these wheels can be locked so that they do not move when in use. Overall, it is perfect for salon use. It is also great for home use.
Features Of BaByliss Pro Ionic Hard-Hat Dryer
- Technology: Ionic Technology
- Wattage: 2000W
- Voltage: Single Voltage
- Weight: 16 pounds
- Speed & Heat Settings: 2 Speed / 3 Heat Settings
- Attachments: Not Available
- Cool shot Facility: Available
Nova Microdermabrasion Professional Adjustable Hooded Floor Hair Dryer
Ranking Position: 2
Our Opinion: Best Salon-grade Home Hair Dryer
This Nova Microdermabrasion standing hairdryer is also an excellent hair tool to dry your manes perfectly and quickly, but as this dryer doesn’t come with an ionic technology like the BaByliss one, it ended up being our second favorite.
Moving on, this Professional Hair Dryer is the perfect choice to use at your hair salon as it comes with a variable timer (starting from 0 to 60 minutes), multiple temperature settings (ranging from 0 to 167 F) and a 20 inches deep hood to suit a wide range of customers with different type of hair out there. From fine to thick and straight to curly, this hooded dryer is suitable for everyone out there. Such deep hood also ensures that you can sit under it with a head full of hot rollers without any difficulties.
Moreover, the hood has a swivel feature (unlike many of its competitors) which enables it to be positioned as desired over your head for a more convenient and effective hair drying experience.
Another great feature that makes this dryer an excellent option for hair salons is its portability; with 5 smooth-rolling wheels, this tool can be moved from one work station to the other effortlessly and quickly.
Features of Nova Microdermabrasion Professional Floor Hair Dryer
- Technology: Ionic Technology Not Available
- Wattage: 1300 Watt
- Voltage: Single Voltage
- Weight: 20 Pounds
- Speed and Heat Settings: Multiple Heat Settings, Speed Settings Not Available
- Attachments: Not Available
- Cool Shot Facility: Available
Pibbs 514 Kwik Dri 1100W Salon Dryer
Ranking Position: 3
Our Opinion: Most Durable Professional hooded dryer for Salon Use
This Pibbs 514 Kwik Dri hooded dryer is strongly built and robust great for salon use. Its interiors and exteriors are high quality and made in Italy which makes it quite durable. It comes with a wattage ranged up to 1100 which is great for a salon hairdryer.
It has a 0-60 minutes timer and a temperature control dialer that give scope to professionals to use its settings with more versatility and meet the customer’s needs.
It has a height adjustable stand with five wheels making it easy to move around. It’s 13” x 16” base keeps it steady when in use. Its attached dryer head visor protects your neck, face, and ears from heat and burns.
Overall, its durable exterior interior, adjustable settings, and quick drying mechanism have made it popular among salon professionals and informed home users.
Features Of Pibbs 514 Kwik Dri 1100W Salon Dryer
- Technology: Not Available
- Wattage: 1100W
- Voltage: Single Voltage
- Weight: 25.9 pounds
- Speed & Heat Settings: Not Available
- Attachments: Not Available
- Cool shot Facility: Available
Final Verdict
Standing hair dryers may not be as popularly used as hand-held dryers. However, these hair dryers can be used greatly to enhance the quality of your hair. No wonder salons are still making a great sustainable use of them even till this day.