What Is Purple Shampoo and Who Is It Meant For?

No, purple shampoo won’t dye your hair purple. If you see these enticing bottles of colorful shampoo on the shelf, you might feel tempted to try it without knowing what it does.

Want to know if purple shampoo can benefit your hair type? We’ll let you in on all you need to know about purple shampoo, and tell you how you can use it effectively.

What Is Purple Shampoo and What Is It Used For?

Purple shampoo is exactly what it sounds like—it contains purple pigments that give the shampoo a purple hue. However, it’s not just purple for aesthetics.

Since purple is right across from yellow on the color wheel, that means it can act as a toner for your lightened hair. If you have blonde hair, whether natural or dyed, you might notice that it develops an unpleasant brassy hue over time.

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In colored blonde hair, the ashy toner that your hairdresser uses eventually fades out, leaving you with mustard-colored hair. Your natural or dyed blonde hair can also get discolored thanks to environmental factors and certain hair products.

When you notice brassiness, you might think about returning to the salon to get a touch-up. Little did you know that purple shampoo can help you in the meantime. Purple shampoo works to neutralize yellow tones, bringing your hair from yellow-blonde to a cool-toned blonde.

Can Brunettes Use Purple Shampoo?

Purple shampoo isn’t exclusively for blonde hair. Brown hair can benefit from purple shampoo too, but it won’t have an effect unless you have lightened portions of your hair. Purple shampoo can also restore vibrancy to black or silver hair, whether it’s lightened or not.

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If you’re a brunette with highlights, a balayage, or ombre you can fall victim to brassiness. Unfortunately, the lightened sections of your hair will eventually get a copper or yellow tint. You can use purple shampoo to combat this issue and bring back your highlights’ lovely cool tones. Just remember that it won’t affect the dark portions of your hair—it will only tone the lightened parts.

Alternatively, blue shampoo can help brown or black hair with lightened strands. Blue shampoo is specifically formulated to tackle the faded, orange tone that comes along with lightened dark hair. In other words, you might want to go with blue shampoo if you have more orange, than yellow strands.

How Often Should You Use Purple Shampoo?

You probably want to get rid of your hair’s brassy look right away, but you won’t achieve your ideal tone if you use purple shampoo every day. Using too much purple shampoo will actually give your hair a light purple tint!

Start by using purple shampoo once per week, and slowly graduate up to twice per week. If you overdo it and start noticing a bit of purple in your hair, don’t worry. A quick wash with a clarifying shampoo should fade any funky colors.

Whichever purple shampoo you choose, make sure to follow the directions on the bottle. Some might tell you to leave your purple shampoo in for several minutes, while others will advise you to rinse right away. Either way, you can still expect to restore your beautiful blonde hair or highlights.

Are You Ready to Start Using Purple Shampoo?

Say goodbye to yellow tones, and fall in love with your stunning ashen or icy blonde strands. Purple shampoo can save you from costly trips to the salon. More importantly, it can keep your hair looking fresh.

Although color-treated hair fades with time, certain habits can make it fade even faster. Learn the most common mistakes you might be making when caring for colored hair.

Emma Roth

Emma is a staff writer at Modern Ratio. Not only is she an avid writer and tech geek, she's an expert in makeup, skincare, and fashion. She's based in Connecticut.