#1Best overall
Rated 4.8 out of 5 from 268 reviews
travel-size
- travel-size
Best Curling Irons UK 2026
A straightener is chosen mostly by plate material and a hair dryer by motor type; a curling iron is chosen first by barrel diameter, because that single measurement decides the shape of the curl more than anything else on the spec sheet. A narrow barrel, around an inch or under, produces tight, defined curls; a wider barrel closer to an inch and a half produces the loose, beachy wave that a narrow barrel cannot reproduce regardless of how it is used. This ranking orders every curling iron we track on Amazon UK by customer rating weighted against review volume, so a handful of five-star reviews cannot outscore a product thousands of people rated consistently well. We have not tested these curling irons ourselves. The 10 models here range from £36.84 to £261.56 with a median of £89.92, spanning familiar names — BaByliss, GHD, Braun, Philips — alongside Dyson at the top of the range, and barrel diameter is worth checking on the listing before the star rating, since the highest-rated model overall may simply be the wrong barrel size for the curl you want.
Ranked from 23 curling irons listed on Amazon UK. We do not physically test products — see “How we picked these” below.
How we picked these
We start from every curling irons listed on Amazon UK, then rank by a score that weights customer rating against how many people rated it — a 5.0 average from three reviewers cannot outrank a 4.6 average from three thousand, because a handful of ratings tells you very little on its own. The top 12 by that score make this list. We do not accept payment for placement or ranking, and we do not physically test products ourselves: everything above is drawn from listed Amazon UK product data and customer review data, refreshed periodically.
The ranking
Ranked #1 on this list, this is currently rated 4.8 out of 5 across 268 Amazon UK reviews. It is listed at £86.62. We have flagged it here as our "Best overall" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below.
What we like
- Rated 4.8/5 by Amazon UK shoppers
- Listed feature: travel-size
What to consider
- Fewer reviews than most other picks here, so the rating carries a little less weight
Listed feature: travel-size
- #2Vegan pickRated 4.8 out of 5 from 797 reviews
vegan
- vegan
- cruelty-free
- travel-size
Sitting at #2, it holds a 4.8-star average from 797 customer reviews on Amazon UK. It is listed at £122.47. We have flagged it here as our "Vegan pick" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below.
What we like
- Rated 4.8/5 by Amazon UK shoppers
- 797 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
- Listed feature: vegan
Listed feature: vegan
- #3With SPF pickRated 4.9 out of 5 from 84 reviews
This is our #3 pick, rated 4.9 out of 5 by 84 Amazon UK shoppers. It is listed at £98.55. We have flagged it here as our "With SPF pick" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below.
What we like
- Rated 4.9/5 by Amazon UK shoppers
What to consider
- Fewer reviews than most other picks here, so the rating carries a little less weight
- #4Rated 4.5 out of 5 from 481 reviews
Ranked #4 on this list, this is currently rated 4.5 out of 5 across 481 Amazon UK reviews. It is listed at £124.51.
What we like
- Rated 4.5/5 by Amazon UK shoppers
- 481 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
- #5Cordless pickRated 4.4 out of 5 from 745 reviews
cordless
- cordless
Sitting at #5, it holds a 4.4-star average from 745 customer reviews on Amazon UK. It is listed at £80.27. We have flagged it here as our "Cordless pick" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below.
What we like
- 745 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
- Listed feature: cordless
Listed feature: cordless
- #6Rated 4.2 out of 5 from 1,018 reviews
This is our #6 pick, rated 4.2 out of 5 by 1,018 Amazon UK shoppers. It is listed at £145.42. That review count is high enough to trust the rating with reasonable confidence.
What we like
- 1,018 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
What to consider
- A lower average rating (4.2/5) than most others on this list
- #7Vegan pickRated 3.9 out of 5 from 1,207 reviews
vegan
- vegan
- cruelty-free
- travel-size
Ranked #7 on this list, this is currently rated 3.9 out of 5 across 1,207 Amazon UK reviews. At £197.70, it sits at the top of the price range covered here. We have flagged it here as our "Vegan pick" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below. That review count is high enough to trust the rating with reasonable confidence.
What we like
- 1,207 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
- Listed feature: vegan
What to consider
- The most expensive option in this list
- A lower average rating (3.9/5) than most others on this list
Listed feature: vegan
- #8Rated 4.8 out of 5 from 27 reviews
Sitting at #8, it holds a 4.8-star average from 27 customer reviews on Amazon UK. It is listed at £78.23. That is a smaller review base than others on this list, so treat the rating with a little more caution.
What we like
- Rated 4.8/5 by Amazon UK shoppers
What to consider
- Fewer reviews than most other picks here, so the rating carries a little less weight
- #9Most reviewedRated 3.8 out of 5 from 2,514 reviews
travel-size
- travel-size
This is our #9 pick, rated 3.8 out of 5 by 2,514 Amazon UK shoppers. It is listed at £193.61. We have flagged it here as our "Most reviewed" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below. That review count is high enough to trust the rating with reasonable confidence.
What we like
- 2,514 customer reviews — more than most others on this list
- Listed feature: travel-size
What to consider
- A lower average rating (3.8/5) than most others on this list
Listed feature: travel-size
- #10Cruelty-Free pickRated 4 out of 5 from 15 reviews
cruelty-free
- cruelty-free
- travel-size
Ranked #10 on this list, this is currently rated 4.0 out of 5 across 15 Amazon UK reviews. It is listed at £58.75. We have flagged it here as our "Cruelty-Free pick" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below. That is a smaller review base than others on this list, so treat the rating with a little more caution.
What we like
- Listed feature: cruelty-free
What to consider
- Fewer reviews than most other picks here, so the rating carries a little less weight
- A lower average rating (4.0/5) than most others on this list
Listed feature: cruelty-free
#11Sitting at #11, this is a newer listing with no customer rating on Amazon UK yet. It is listed at £137.85.
What to consider
- Not consistently listed as in stock
#12Best budgetThis is our #12 pick — an Amazon UK listing that hasn't accumulated a customer rating yet. At £22.99, it is the most affordable option on this list. We have flagged it here as our "Best budget" pick, based on the criteria in the methodology below.
What we like
- The most affordable option in this list
Compare all 12 picks
| # | Product | Price | Rating | Reviews | Key feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Braun Frizz-Control Curling Iron | £86.62 | Rated 4.8 out of 5 from 268 reviews | 268 | travel-size |
| 2 | Braun Professional Curling Iron | £122.47 | Rated 4.8 out of 5 from 797 reviews | 797 | vegan |
| 3 | Braun Curling Iron 2-Piece | £98.55 | Rated 4.9 out of 5 from 84 reviews | 84 | — |
| 4 | Philips Frizz-Control Curling Iron | £124.51 | Rated 4.5 out of 5 from 481 reviews | 481 | — |
| 5 | Dyson Curling Iron | £80.27 | Rated 4.4 out of 5 from 745 reviews | 745 | cordless |
| 6 | Dyson Smoothing Curling Iron | £145.42 | Rated 4.2 out of 5 from 1,018 reviews | 1,018 | — |
| 7 | FOREO Curling Iron | £197.70 | Rated 3.9 out of 5 from 1,207 reviews | 1,207 | vegan |
| 8 | Braun Curling Iron | £78.23 | Rated 4.8 out of 5 from 27 reviews | 27 | — |
| 9 | Dyson Repair Curling Iron | £193.61 | Rated 3.8 out of 5 from 2,514 reviews | 2,514 | travel-size |
| 10 | Braun Nourishing Curling Iron | £58.75 | Rated 4 out of 5 from 15 reviews | 15 | cruelty-free |
| 11 | ghd Repair Curling Iron | £137.85 | — | — | |
| 12 | Remington Curling Iron | £22.99 | — | — |
What to look for
Pick the barrel diameter for the curl, not the rating
This is the one spec that cannot be substituted for by a better rating or a bigger price tag. A narrow barrel makes tight, defined curls that hold their spiral; a wide barrel makes loose waves that a narrow barrel physically cannot reproduce. Decide the result you want first, then compare ratings only within that barrel size.
Clamp versus clampless changes technique, not just feel
A clamped iron holds the hair section in place, which suits more controlled, uniform curls and is generally easier for a first attempt. A clampless wand wraps hair by hand, giving more variation in the finished texture at the cost of a slightly steeper learning curve — reviews mentioning ease of use are worth reading against your own experience level.
Barrel coating affects glide more than colour claims
Ceramic and tourmaline barrel coatings are built to glide through hair with less snagging and more even heat than a bare metal barrel, which matters most on longer or thicker hair styled section by section. A barrel that snags mid-curl is a common source of uneven results regardless of how the iron is otherwise rated.
Variable temperature control matters more than the maximum
As with straighteners, most hair does not need the highest setting a curling iron offers. Fine or colour-treated hair styles well at a lower, adjustable temperature; a model with only one fixed high setting removes that choice, so a clearly marked adjustable range is worth checking for even on a highly-rated model.
Weight decides whether a good curl is comfortable to hold
Holding a curling iron at an angle for a full head takes longer than a single downward stroke with a straightener, so weight matters more here. A lighter iron is easier to hold section after section without arm fatigue, which is worth weighing against the barrel size and heat range rather than treated as a minor detail.
Frequently asked questions
- Have you tested these curling irons yourselves?
- No. We do not use or test hair styling tools ourselves; the ranking below reflects customer rating and review volume on Amazon UK, alongside the barrel diameter and other features each listing states.
- What barrel size should I buy for loose, beachy waves?
- A wider barrel, generally closer to an inch and a half, produces the looser wave most people mean by "beachy". A narrower barrel under an inch will curl tighter and hold a more defined spiral, which is a different look rather than a worse one — match the size to the result you want rather than the highest-rated model overall.
- Why does a budget curling iron rank close to a premium one here?
- Because the ranking is built from customer rating and review volume, not price. A well-built iron with the right barrel size for its buyer can rate highly without the extra weight-saving or heat-recovery advantages a premium model offers, particularly for occasional or shorter-hair use.
- Is a clampless wand harder to use than a clamped curling iron?
- Generally yes at first, since a clamp does some of the work of holding the section in place while a wand relies on technique. Many reviewers describe a learning curve of a few uses before results become consistent, regardless of how the specific model is rated.
- How is this different from the curling irons category page?
- The category page lists every curling iron we track with filters for price and features. This page is a ranked shortlist of 10 with a buying guide focused on barrel diameter, coating and weight rather than a full browsable catalogue.
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Last updated 8 August 2026. Prices and availability are accurate as of that date and are subject to change on Amazon.