Best Brown Hair Toners for Brunettes - I Tried 6 Treatments from Warm Brown to Cool Ash Brown

If your hair colour is any shade of brown, listen up.

I recently traded in my bright pink hair of five years for a traditional brunette.

I thought having brown hair would be low maintenance and easier to manage... I was wrong.

When you dye your hair brown, there's a good chance it will starting turning a brassy shade of red or orange. And as the brown dye fades, my natural roots are showing and I have some disastrous regrowth.

So now that I've joined the artificial brunette squad, I know your struggles.

The solution to brassy tones and regrowth? Using a toning product. We just so happen to have plenty of options at Adore Beauty.

Whether you are going for a light ash brown hair colour or a cosy, warm brown, I have options for you.

Toning shampoos, conditioners and treatments are colour intensifying products designed to help with hair colour maintenance between salon appointments.

Anyone can use hair toners regardless of whether your hair is dyed or not, but they're especially great at topping up faded colour, getting rid of those unwanted warm orange or brass tones, and adding shine.

There's two categories of brunette toning:

Some products deposit brown colour into your hair like a hair dye does. Others use blue tones to counteract warmness and leave your hair colour looking cooler.

A quick colour wheel refresher: blue and orange are opposites on the colour wheel, meaning they neutralise each other. To get a cool, crisp, gorgeous brass-free colour you need cold blue tones to counteract it.

In short, blue for brunettes is the equivalent to purple for blondes.

However not all the below products are cool brown, some are warm too! I've got you covered no matter which shade of brown you desire.

Colour: Dark ash brown

Perfect for: Covering regrowth in darker brown hair

Spoiler, this is my favourite.

evo fabuloso cool brown colour depositing conditioner 220ml deposits intense brown pigment into the hair. After just one use, I saw a huge difference!

It gave me the strongest colour payoff out of all the brown hair toners I tried. The result came out quite dark, and it evened out my colour completely (regrowth be gone!).

Comparatively, this product is more hard work (but totally pays off). You need to wash your hair, turn off the water and towel-dry your hair before applying the product. The instructions say to leave it on for three minutes, but I leave it on for at least 10 minutes to get the tone I'm after. Then, you jump back in the shower to rinse out.

It's a tad bothersome, but if you can be patient this product is seriously worth it. Especially if you want to cover up uneven or faded colour. Plus, you only need to use it once a week or less for a good result.

Five out of five stars. Will use again.

(Side note Evo Fabuloso comes in 5 colours, including red, which is perfect for cherry cola hair.)

Colour: Light ash brown

Perfect for: Toning lighter brown hair

Davroe Cool Graphite Colour Treatment 200ml is the best for blue toning!

It did a great job of keeping my brunette colour looking cool, fresh and light. It noticeably cooled down my hair and got rid of those pesky orange tones.

If you have intense regrowth (like me) it won't deposit enough colour to hide that (like Evo Fabuloso does) BUT the ashy brown tone was *chef's kiss*.

In terms of application, you can leave it on in the shower for a few minutes, or hop out of the shower and leave it on for longer for more intense colour.

Everything about this product is a vibe, from the packaging to how the Australian made, vegan, cruelty-free formula made my hair look and feel fab.

Colour: Warm brown

Perfect for: Those wanting a glossy, rich brown.

Mr. Smith Pigment Chocolate comes out super chocolatey and thick with intense colour.

I would argue the bougiest option out of them all, it smells like I'm in a salon and feels lovely in my hair.

It contains almond oil, lavender oil, orange peel oil and hydrolysed wheat protein, so you use it in place of your conditioner for hydrated, fresh hair.

You only need to leave it on for for 2-3 minutes, and it lasts 4-6 washes. If you're scared of commitment, there's less pressure, but if you love it, you'll need to keep using it ongoing to maintain the colour (which you will need to with all the products in this article).

This is a great one for those wanting a neutral or warm brown tint. It also comes in 7 colours such as red, blonde, and charcoal, which you can view here.

Colour: Warm brown

Perfect for: Damaged or dry hair wanting subtle toning

It's in the name, the Christophe Robin Shade Variation Mask Warm Chestnut is a mask, so it will leave your hair feeling amazing.

This one did the most for my bleach-damaged hair, improving softness and manageability.

Also good news if you have curly hair, the Shade Variation Mask is free from parabens, silicones and oxidants.

I didn't notice a huge difference in colour with this one, I think my hair may have been a bit dark - so this would be ideal for slightly lighter hair. Or those who only want a subtle tone change and are more focused on hair health.

Colour: Ash Brown

Perfect for: Toning lighter brown hair on a budget

This is the most affordable option on the list at $35.80 forMatrix Total Results Brass Off Shampoo 300ml and $33 for Matrix Total Results Brass Off Conditioner.

This one yields subtle results, it doesn't deposit brown pigment into your hair, rather it uses blue-violet pigments to neutralise yellow and orange undertones.

Disclaimer: I used an previous iteration of this product that is now discontinued on Adore Beauty, called "Dark Envy", so I can't give you a review of Brass Off specifically. But I can tell you that this brand as a whole is great bang for your buck, and I would highly recommend using just the shampoo or both the shampoo and conditioner, as it will have stronger toning capabilities than just the conditioner alone.

It would also be a good one to use if you have balayage since the colour payoff is subtle.

Matrix also has a Colour Protecting range without the blue toning, if you're fresh out of the salon.

Colour: Neutral Brown

Perfect for: Toning darker brown hair

Disclaimer: This one I also haven't tried since it is newer to Adore Beauty!

Pureology Top Coat and Glaze Blue 200ml is actually a gloss treatment with blue toning.

It's formulated with oat milk and camelia oil to nourish, hydrate and soften and is scented with rose, ginger and cedarwood.

This one is a little more time consuming to use. You need to step out of the shower, apply and leave on for 5 to 10 minutes before washing out.

Pureology Top Coat is a great option in between salon visits to keep your hair looking fresh and beautifully toned.

So my personal favourites are Evo Fabuloso for colour depositing and Davroe Colour Treatment for blue toning, but hopefully you can find one that suits your brunette needs.

Before you go, a word of warning: toning products can stain your skin, hands and bathroom tiles.

Most products suggest wearing gloves when applying, which I did not... don't do what I did. The stains eventually came out, but the memories will last forever.

Want more info on these products? A lot of them are featured in the below YouTube video (but be warned, some products from the video have been discontinued).