Going to a salon for professional highlights and hair coloring is expensive and time consuming. You can dye and highlight your hair with a $1 bottle of hydrogen peroxide (3%) at home. Just make sure to go slowly and read all the tips below to be safe. While a salon is THE safest way to dye your hair, it is possible to dye your hair safely at home. Of course, you could also dump a whole bottle on your head and come out with a terrible, blotchy dye job. So read these tips first!
I scoured the web to make this the most comprehensive post on how to dye your hair with hydrogen peroxide.
Is hydrogen peroxide safe?
- Permanent and demi-permanent dyes at the salon and drugstore contain peroxide and often ammonia, so you are putting some of the same chemicals into your hair that you would pay a professional to. The difference is that a beautician is trained in how much to use, how long to leave it on, etc.
- Peroxide in large quantities should not have prolonged contact with skin. Small amounts, however, are not harmful.
- Dye your hair safely by using an old towel, donning an old tee shirt, and wearing gloves (more prep tips below).
- Make sure you are using 3% hydrogen peroxide. Check the “active ingredients” label for a 3% solution.
What color will peroxide make my hair?
The way peroxide reacts to your hair is one of the biggest factors. If you go slowly and test strands to get the color you want, in most cases, the dye will make your hair one or two shades lighter.
Brown hair runs the risk of turning orange. Test a hidden sample first.
Dark brown hair –> likely going to turn chestnut brown. Too much may lead to an orangey brown so stop before it’s too late.
Medium brown hair –> likely going to turn to golden brown hair.
Light brown hair –> likely going to turn dirty blond.
Red hair –> likely going to turn an orange before moving onto strawberry blond.
Dirty blond hair –> likely going to turn light blonde.
Light blonde –> likely going to turn whitish blond (if your hair is already light blonde, why are you dyeing it????)
Should I go to a professional?
The answer is yes, if:
- You have damaged, permed, or color-treated hair
- You want to drastically change the color of your hair
- You hate the results of your DIY job
What you need to dye your hair with hydrogen peroxide
- An old tee shirt to wear
- Old towel to wrap around your neck
- Gloves to protect your hands
- Claw or butterfly clips to isolate sections of hair
- Toothbrush, cotton balls, sponge, or small brush to apply (for highlights)
- Clean spray bottle (for whole head)
- Aluminum foil (for highlights)
- Plastic shower cap (for whole head of hair)
- Bowl to pour small amount of peroxide into (for highlights)
- Hair dryer (optional – gentle heat speeds up the process)
- Cold water for a thorough rinsing after
- Deep conditioner
Prep your hair
- Stop any hair treatments a few weeks before you plan to dye your hair.
- Avoid using extra chemicals in your hair, like hairspray, gel, mouse, and especially stronger treatments like color jobs, straightener, perms, etc.
- No heat. Avoid heating your hair, including using a hair dryer, heating iron, curlers, etc.
- Shampoo and condition your hair, then let it air dry. Start when your hair is damp as you’ll get better results.
- Test a small section of your hair underneath several layers and leave it on for 15 minutes. Rinse with cold water and see if you like the color. Experiment with another discreet strand for more time in 15 minute increments until you get the color you like. Rinse each strand after you’re done.
- Get a buddy. If at all possible, get help from a friend. This will speed everything up (you don’t want one section of your hair to have peroxide in any longer than the rest). Plus, it’ll make applying the dye in the back of your head easier, and if you need a second opinion, voila!
How to highlight your hair with hydrogen peroxide
- Start SLOWLY. I repeat, start very, very slowly. Everyone’s hair will react differently so it’s best to take it slowly at first. If you dive right in and don’t like the color, you’ll either be really pissed at your hair for several weeks or be forced to go to the salon for an expensive fix.
- Tools. You’ll need a new toothbrush, a small bowl for pouring the peroxide into, and a comb with a parting tool on one end to separate minute strands of hair. You’ll also want 5-10 butterfly clips to section off your hair. This is the best way to get an even, professional-looking dye job without paying big bucks! You can unclip each section, then reclip as your work through your head.
- Avoid skin. Large amounts of hydrogen peroxide that have prolonged contact with skin can irritate or burn the skin. A few drips here and there, however, should not have a harmful effect. (Hydrogen peroxide is used to disinfect wounds, after all.)
- First application. Grab a new toothbrush and dip it into a small bowl of hydrogen peroxide. With a comb that has a pointer parting tool at one end, grab a few strands of hair. Err on the side of fewer strands of hair. Think of taking only a very thing wedge amongst your head of hair.You don’t want your dye job to look clumpy. And you don’t want drastic color changes, which will make your highlights look very unnatural. On second thought, maybe that is the look you’re going for. (See below for dyeing your entire head of hair.)
- Apply heat (optional). Heating your hair with peroxide in it will speed the process. This is optional and if you are not sure how the peroxide is going to affect your hair, I’d hold off on using heat.
- Rinse with cold. Cold water will do the best job of getting the peroxide out and won’t further dry out your hair. Air dry as heat will further dry out your hair.
- Repeat. Each day, follow the above steps to highlight your hair with peroxide. If you are doing your entire head (tips below) wait a week between dye jobs. Slow progress is better for your hair than an intense dye job, which can have disastrous effects on your hair color and quality.
- Enjoy the slow transformation of your hair color. You won’t get sandy blond hair overnight, which is a good thing. Depending on the starting color of your hair, past hair treatments including dye jobs or straightening jobs, and your hair texture, the 3% hydrogen peroxide solution will affect your hair uniquely. So a slow transformation empowers you to stop at any time if you’re unhappy with the results. See below for what color peroxide will turn your hair.
How to dye ALL of your hair with peroxide
- Prep. Read the steps in the section above “Before you dye your hair with hydrogen peroxide”
- Full head, slowly. Once you’ve experimented with very slow application to your hair and are happy with the way your hair reacts, dye your entire head of hair slowly with hydrogen peroxide Grab a small spray bottle and fill half with peroxide and half with water. Spritz your hair a few times every morning. You don’t want your hair to be wet or even damp. Just a few spritzes and that’s it. This is a quick and easy way to get an overall lightening effect but if you put too much in your hair, the peroxide will damage it. Since the peroxide spritz will cover your entire head, don’t expect highlights, but a lighter color everywhere. If you opt to put more than a few spritzes in your hair, see “Full head, fast.”
- Full head, fast. Grab an empty, clean bottle, mix a half cup of peroxide with a half cup of conditioner, then apply to your hair, taking care not to get any onto your face, hands, or skin. Use gloves. Watch this video (one of the better ones I’ve seen while researching this post) during which a girl mixes peroxide with baking soda, shampoo and conditioner, then rubs the gunk all over her hair to dye her entire head of hair a few shades lighter. The results are noticeable, and beautiful.
After you dye your hair with peroxide
- Condition. Massage rich conditioner into your hair. Don’t skimp! The dye will dry out your hair, and depending on how long you left it in, will really need special treatment. Leave on a bit longer than usual, then rinse.
- Skip washes. Shampooing your hair strips it of its natural oils, further drying your hair. Shampoo as infrequently as possible, and use dry powder shampoo when you need to clean it.
- Limit heat. Use a hair dryer, hot curlers, or a straightening iron no more than once a week. Your hair needs to stay as hydrated as possible during and after the dye process, so embrace air drying for now.
- Restore shine. Give your hair an olive oil treatment or a mayo treatment to get your shiny hair back.
- Olive oil treatment. Massage warm olive oil into your hair and scalp until your entire head of hair is moist with olive oil. Wrap your hair in a towel and let it sit for a couple of hours. Wash out with shampoo and conditioner, then enjoy your shiny hair!
- Mayo treatment. Like the olive oil treatment, you can make your hair shiny with a mayonnaise treatment. Massage 1/2 cups of mayonnaise into your hair (more if you have a LOT of hair). Wrap your mayo-y head in a plastic shower cap, then grab your hair dryer and apply heat until your head is warm (a few minutes). You can also pull on a wool cap to heat up your hair. Once warm, turn off your hair dryer and let it sit for at least one hour. The very warm mayonnaise makes your hair very shiny.
Other natural hair dyes to lighten your hair color
- Lemon. If you’re unhappy with the way peroxide reacts to your hair, or you want a more natural method of highlighting your hair, try squeezing lemon juice into your hair and sitting in the sun. This is a slow, gradual process to lighten and maintain a lighter hair color. Squeeze in enough juice to make your hair very damp, then sit in the sun for one hour. Condition or use one of the restorative treatments below as the juice will really dry out your hair. Repeat regularly.
- Cinnamon and honey and olive oil really do work!
- Henna (no surprise there!)
- Chamomile or black tea
- Baking soda
- Apple cider vinegar
- Lots of sunshine!
Other uses for hydrogen peroxide
Lightening your hair is just one of 25 uses for hydrogen peroxide that we found. It’s also great for cleaning kitchen counters, soften callouses, and freshen musty towels. We were so interested in how to use hydrogen peroxide to whiten your teeth that we wrote an entire post on it.
Welcome to Bargain Babe! I’m Mara, and I’m so glad you’re here. I am an obsessive bargain hunter and penny pincher, and I am determined to live a full life without EVER paying full price.
102 cups of mayo??? Don’t you mean 1/2 cup?
@Bobbi Hahaha! Yes, I meant 1/2 cups of mayo. Just fixed.
Lmao
how long does it take to dye dark brown hair?
@Ellie It really depends, but generally the darker your hair the longer it takes. I’d recommend starting with a few strands that are not visible and testing the solution for 5 minutes. What do the results look like? Wait a week in between applications, then if you want a lighter color, leave it in for 10 minutes. Keep in mind, it’s better for your hair to do weekly applications that are about 10 minutes, than to do one long application.
Let me know how it works!
How long would I keep it in if i have black hair?
@cassidy It really depends on your hair type, but generally the darker your hair the longer it takes. I’d recommend starting with a few strands that are not visible and testing the solution for 5 minutes. What do the results look like? Wait a week in between applications, then if you want a lighter color, leave it in for 10 minutes. Keep in mind, it’s better for your hair to do weekly applications that are about 10 minutes, than to do one long application.
Let me know how it works!
i have super damaged hair, I just went from dark brown to blonde in may. I want like, a white color but I don’t want to bleach my hair with actual bleach. I dye my hair blonde once every two weeks, maybe once every month. I’m terrified to use strong applications because I don’t want my hair to fall out or anything, so if I use peroxide, what do you think would be the outcome?
@Elizabeth I don’t know as I’m not a cosmetologist. What would happen if you tested a very small strand at the back of your neck? Start with a diluted solution for just a few minutes. See what happens. Test a few strands that are not visible to get the results you want before you expand to more hair. Or go to a salon. With super damaged hair, it may react differently than typical hair.
If your hair is super damaged I do know peroxide will make your hair dry an brittle and if it is already damaged I advise you to wait two weeks and condition your hair using deep conditioning treatments 3 times a week. apply conditioner to damp hair put a shower cap over your head an leave on for 45 min to 1 hour 3x a week for 2 weeks. I am a ex hairdresser it can fry you’re hair if it is already damaged. Plus you should never color your hair every two weeks you are over processing your hair. Do root touch up every 4 weeks if you want to change color do not color more often than every 4-6 weeks… Hope this helps
I have to wonder why it says keep it off your skin peroxide is an antiseptic and is also used for acne. It’s safe on the skin.
It is safe for skin….
It won’t kill you if you get the peroxide on your skin or clothes, it won’t bleach skin or clothes. I’ve used peroxide on the arm pits of some shirts to help take any odor out, works like a charm. As far as skin, it’s used to cleanse cuts/superficial wounds.
I appreciate the fun spirit of this article, and it is a popular concept. As a stylist, however, I can tell you that these treatments make long hair feel vaguely weak, fuzzy, and too light weight. The damage runs from root to tip, leaving the hair to feel await it does after a perm. So long haired girls are risking tears of growth, while short hair,which is cut more, ,can more successfully use this.
How long will the color last?
Never
Hello, I started the peroxide highlights at home after spending a fortune every six weeks and not getting the look I desired. I wanted several shades of blonde in my dirty Blonde hair. They kept making my hair all one color like a platinum blonde with no undertones. Did not look natural at all. I decided to try it at home. I use a tooth brush and part my hair. Dip the tooth brush in a bowl of 3% solution and within 15 min, my roots are light. I now have several blonde shades that the salon couldn’t achieve at $200 a pop. I get great compliments and love my hair color, not to mention the money I have left to spend elsewhere. I must caution that one should deep condition their hair right after for a silk shiny look. I personally use Fiji Raw organic coconut oil fragrance free and it works better then the olive oil. Have fun….
Exactly I do same thing and Yes organic virgin coconut oil is the bomb!
Can i permanently color my hair after coloring my hair with the peroxide, and how long do I have to wait. Also can I get my hair bleached professionally after I have used peroxide in my hair
What is better to use peroxide or bleach?
@tywaun I’m not sure bc I’ve never used bleach, but I have used hydrogen peroxide. Whatever you do, start very slowly with a small patch of hair that is not visible. I would do more research online until you are confident.
Bleach will burn yours hands, I know for sure. I can’t imagine what it would do to your scalp and around your face.
Can we mix the hydrogen peroxide and the hair color?
@velvetea I’m not sure. I would be very careful, and if you’re planning on lightening your hair with hydrogen peroxide first, and then dyeing it another color, I would do each step separately. Let us know how it turns out!
I have light brown hair and recently decided to go very light blonde. I bought blonde hair dye (not bleach) and pulled my hair through the cap. It turned out real pretty but a little brassy, a few spots (mostly at my roots) and not as light as I wanted it. The next day I tried the hydrogen peroxide and fell asleep waiting(oops). When I got up to look at it I loved it! it toned my hair and although I put it all over my head I still had beautiful highlight from the previous dye experience. My over all hair was lighter. I recommend this over bleach! My hair stayed soft and I was able to stay away from the ends of my hair and still have phenomenal results. I will continue this for a few more shades.
Just do this gradually and you should be ok Plus it is important to condition your hair well so the peroxide will not make your hair dry/brittle. Organic coconut oil is great for your hair..
I highly recommend wearing a towel of bathrobe while you do this to protect your skin, because I have done this before, and yes, achieved great results, but I have not always been careful with keeping it off of my skin and have looked down to see lighter streaks on my stomach and back from where the peroxide dripped from my hair, washing away my tan, and I worried that it might be bleaching my skin. So yeah, definitely use a towel to protect your skin while doing this.
I have light brown-dirty blonde hair (natural); I sprayed the peroxide all over and left it in for about 20 mins – no results at all! Haha, it’s the same exact color after rinsing. 😕
@Carolyn That’s so weird! Maybe mine worked because I spent time in the sun after spraying it. This may not seem like an upside now, but because hydrogen peroxide is such a gentle way to lighten your hair, you have a lot of control over how light you want it to go! I would recommend waiting at least one week, then trying again. Be cautious. Good luck!
Thanks, Bargain Babe, I’ll try that! I live in Seattle, though, so not much sun haha, hence trying this! 💕💕❤
hydrogen peroxide will NOT harm your skin. it was made to put on scrapes and cuts. if you want to lighten your hair, drench your hair with hydrogen peroxide then massage head n shoulders shampooing into your hair. the shampoo will help hold your hair out of your face.
i will let everyone know how mine turns out.
Yes, please report back!
just soak it . Peroxide took about 4 days to lighten my gray hair that was dirty blonde. Try a little place first with straight peroxide. Thats hydrogen peroxide. It also doesn’t burn ski. Its use on wounds to clean them. Its a myth that it disinfects though. Only chlorine bleach disinfects . A doctor told me that and even alcohol didn’t kill germs
@ Jamie I was just wondering how your hair turned out?
Okay so my hair dye hasnt been staying in and i thought MAYBE it was because i didnt bleach it enough. So my hair is a pinkish purpleish blonde color. Is it safe to use peroxide?
Yes, definitely safe! Skin exposure is okay as long as you rinse it off. Hydrogen peroxide is used to disinfect wounds so it’s not as if it’s going to do immediate, permanent damage. You just don’t want a puddle of it sitting on your skin for a long time, which could essentially burn you.
That said, I can’t say how your hair will react. Just follow the most important of instruction of all: go SLOW.
My stylist is amazing and went through several steps to get my hair to the platinum silver gray .. I already had a good bit of gray and it turned out beautiful. I have short hair that I love to play around with color and styles and she does all kinds of cool things to accommodate me.. !
Well she told me if I wanted to put a LIGHT purple or blue that I could use a couple drops of my temporary color ( that I got from Sally’s beauty supply..) and mix it in my conditioner or shampoo for a couple minutes then rinse with cool water ..then condition and rinse .. I did this a couple days ago and it’s still really pretty.. It’s not completely covered in the light blue and the platinum silver shows here and there.. I love it but here’s my question…
It seems that a little bit of the platinum against the blue looks alittle (very little..) blonde and not the silver platinum I had in beginning . Is it the contrast between the two colors that makes me see it as more of a light blonde than platinum and would the peroxide method on those “light blonde” places work for me.? Sorry to ramble.. Wish I could put pic … My stylist is amazing as I said before .. Just wondering yalls opinion and if this is an easy inexpensive fix I could do here at home myself . And one more question.. Is it ok to leave conditioner in your hair for 30 minutes or more just to help keep it soft and healthy…I love Moroccan oil and use that too. Just wondering mostly about the peroxide on the pieces that seem light blonde and not siver platinum . Just comments from a different more experienced group on this would help..!!!!
Thanks…!!!
@Tina I think the peroxide should help but do this gradually. Yes it is actually great for your hair to leave conditioner on your hair for 30-60 min. If your hair is fairly healthy do this twice a month. Also every time you use hair dye or peroxide leave conditioner in for 30 min afterwards to keep your hair from becoming dry/brittle. Moroccan oil is good but Organic coconut oil is actually better. You can also apply a small amount size of a dime if your hair is short in between shampooing days to keep hair soft,silky, freeze free and shiny.. it is also great for your skin..
I know it’s an old comment but to the person asking about bleach.
When it comes to hair, bleach is a verb , not a noun. You’re not bleaching as in adding Clorox but bleaching as in washing out the color (which by the way is why bleach is called bleach).
NEVER USE CHLORINE BLEACH ON YOUR HAIR!
Thank god there’s at least one person who gets it!!!! Lol 😛
@ Maggie Rv exactly I am glad you get that…
regularly soaking my head with hydrogen peroxide just made it whiter but it looked better than gray. I was dirty blonde until 60. So I diodnt dilute or anything just soaked it and let it dry on the pillow. I hguess everybody is different.
ok so i have already used peroxide, lemon juice and even dye to bleach my hair. i liked the results of the the peroxide but i’m scared with all the things i’ve put in my hair that it will fall out plz tell me what i should do
I just bleached my hair using a box kit but because my hair is thick it is super uneven. I was wondering how long do I have to wait before trying this method? I wanted to dye it red before halloween! 😀
i got the hydrogen perioxide and drenched my whole head in it and not a single difference in color i followed all the directions. My scalp itches pretty bad. Did i do something wrong or what?
Overall the idea is good for people with brown , black hair not already blondes looking for white blonde.
I think you’re probably right – the most dramatic effects will be seen on people with darker hair. I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you! I hope your scalp feels better soon.
I have dark brown hair and eyebrows and put a lot of hydrogen peroxide on for 1 hr and not a bit of color change. It’s the normal 3% solution. Why didn’t it work?
Wow, I have no idea! I have never heard of that happening. Maybe try a different bottle?
@ Elise get some organic coconut oil and apply to your scalp because the peroxide can dry out your skin as well as your hair. Do this a couple times a week and that should help stop the itching. How long did you leave the peroxide on your hair?
I did this, but I mixed baking soda with peroxide. Great Results! It lightened it to almost what I wanted. I plan to do it once more, but my mom and sister say not to. They said I was more “stunning” with my medium brown hair and blue eyes. My mom made me by my own peroxide and I would like to do it again. I agree with their “stunning” argument, but I want a change.
But basically what I’m asking is, how long does it normally take to restore original color? Any comments are appreciated. Thanks!
Since gray or silver hair is very porous, it absorbs color from any yellow-toned oils that you put on it. Stay with white, or completely clear oils, or you risk adding the brassiness that you are trying to get rid of.
Mine’s an unusual problem, but here goes. I have solar urticaria (allergic to sunlight) and I can’t go out in the sun, and can’t really use any chemicals because of my crazy sensitive skin. That means I can’t bleach my hair, and I’m leaning towards peroxide for some highlights. I’ve got really dark brown hair, and it’s so drab :(. Any ideas on how not to ruin my hair (it’s finally waist length and I don’t wanna cut it)?
That’s tough! I think I would do some test strands on the underside of your hair to see how it reacts to the hydrogen peroxide. Maybe look for some Youtube videos on using hydrogen peroxide for highlights? I would think that actually seeing someone do it would be very helpful.
Can I reduce the percentage that is 6% peroxide to 3% by using half water + half peroxide?
Can i mix hydrogen peroxide with box dye?
I don’t particularly want to follow the peroxide thread, but I like the way you write and respond. I would like to follow your blog or website. Thank you for the practical information.
Thank you!
Jewell
I want a platinum blonde color, what can I add to the peroxide? Like the other girl I didn’t see any difference in my hair.
When I did this, it made my hair quite copper/red. After I half lightened my originally brunette hair, I purchased Wella Toner. I bought Wella Toner T11. But I believe that Wella Toner T18 will give you platinum blonde. BTW the toners are about $5- $6. Walmart (online) usually has a good deal. The toner removed the copper/red color and left me with a lighter blonde. I would look into Wella’s Toners. The only down side to it is that it smells pretty bad so you’ll want to be in a well ventilated room. Also, I used baking soda and peroxide. Just mix enough peroxide to the baking soda to form a thick paste. Apply it and don’t let is sit any longer than 45minutes. Though doing this makes your hair a lot lighter, it turns kind of red. So that is why you should buy the toner to get rid of the red. Hope this helps!
i have light bright blonde hair and i just bought some real human hair extentions from a friend that are kind of like a caramel blonde and i’m wanting to lighten them to my color for prom right around the corner the cheapest way possible, would hydrogen peroxide do the job to lightening my extentions in a fast amount of time without damaging them too much?
Hydrogen Peroxide is not really “harsh enough” to ruin the hair. For me anyway, it was taking too long of time to get a color difference, using peroxide. Instead, I mixed peroxide and baking sode to make a paste; great results. The only downside is that it was slightly red/copper.
For you, I would Google “how to bleach hair”. Considering the circumstances, that this is actually not permently attached to your head, I would find some good reviewed “how too’s” stating how to bleach your hair.
Personally, I would attempt bleaching the extensions. Then condition them with conditioner afterwards. Some people even will use eggs, mayo, and honey to condition.
Hope some of this info is of use to you!
Jolene Holmes
Hi, I am Asian and have pure black hair. I am wondering if this will still work. I have 2% hydrogen peroxide, and I think it works according to other website. But I’ve been doing it for a while now, and my hair hasn’t changed color. Should I buy a 3% bottle? Also, How much hydrogen peroxide should I put on my hair? Until it’s drenched? Or just a little?
Does peroxide blonde hair show more skin imperfections than darker hair…im like a strawberry blonde/red mix at the moment..i really don’t want to make the mistake of going peroxide if it’s going to make me self conscious