The 5 best curlers for short hair to add shape bounce to shorter styles – reviewed by our experts
There's a wand or tong for every hair type, length and budget in our definitive, tried-and-tested guide to the best for short hair
Marrying advanced technology with well-crafted, sleek and tapered designs, the best curlers for short hair are those that make styling shorter length styles an equally sleek and fuss-free process. After much testing from our beauty team, we've whittled down the six top-performing tools – meaning you'll find a great one here, regardless of whether you prefer loose, tousled waves or bouncy barrel curls.
The best curling irons are an at-home styling staple. But as well as creating what is a go-to look for many, some models are also very versatile, styling-wise – and with ergonomic designs that can curl and wave cropped or chopped hair with ease. Not only that, modern technology means these tools also often have ceramic or tourmaline barrels and wide temperature ranges that help to limit damage. Thankfully, tech advancements also mean that quality tools are available at a variety of price points and to style various hair textures, in order to suit equally wide varieties of budgets and hair types.
All that said, a bit of legwork is still required to ensure your final purchase of a curling wand or tong suits your hair and styling preferences. But that's where this guide comes in. After testing an array of tools – covering high-end names like ghd to the more budget-friendly TRESemmé – and assessing their performance and usability on short hairstyles, we've reviewed the best in detail to help you find the best one for you. These are the six we recommend, complete with the specs, user experience and pictures of our styling results – but first, a few deals we've found on our picks...
Best curlers for short hair deals
These deals were last checked on 06/10/26, and we will continue to do so to ensure that all of the products below are still in stock, still discounted and, most importantly, are the very best deals around at the moment.
The quick list: our top 3 curlers for short hair
If you want to snap up your new short hair curler quickly, these are our team's top three picks for various budgets – from ghd, Cloud Nine and TRESemmé.
RRP: £159
With a tapered barrel and ceramic tri-zone technology, ghd's Creative Curl wand is a great choice for all hair lengths, but we ranked it "best overall" for shorter hair after testing.
RRP: £139
With a mineral-infused barrel and speedy heat-up time, this Cloud Nine curler is also one of our top picks – promising easy, no-fuss styling.
RRP: £28
If you prefer to use a traditional curling tong with a clamp, this one from TRESemmé is such a bargain. Though it costs less than £30 (a bargain), we found it still delivers bouncy, professional-looking curls and waves.
The best curlers for short hair, reviewed by our beauty team
Best curler for short hair overall
Reviewed by: Rebecca Fearn, Aleesha Badkar, Emma Stoddart
As most of us expect from the best ghd straighteners, the Curve Creative Curl Wand gets top marks for design and versatility. Its sleek tapered barrel can create so many styles on short hair – from loose wavy hairstyles through to bouncy curls. “Tapered wands will give you different curl size options in one product,” explains Jason Collier, A-list hairstylist and Bblonde brand educator. To create tight curls, I wrapped short hair around the end of the barrel, while for a beachy, undone style I found using the base of the barrel works best.
Styles aside, this high-tech tool also boasts what's called ceramic tri-zone technology, ensuring hair is only exposed to the optimum styling temperature (185°C) at all times – and reaching said optimum temperature takes just 25 seconds. In fact, from start to finish, the entire styling process took me no longer than 10 minutes, which gets a big tick from me.
I also loved the protective cool tip, which gave me more control when curling, something that's especially useful when styling short hair. And while there’s no variable temperature control on offer here, I found that these curlers can create curls that last all day impressively quickly on my shorter hair.
Read the full ghd Creative Curl Wand review here
Best curler for beginners
Reviewed by: Rebecca Fearn, Aleesha Badkar
As more of a curling tong novice, I was happy to find Cloud Nine's was easy to use from the off. It's a simple, straight wand, not a more complicated tong with a lever or clip, which I much preferred (simply wrapping hair around the barrel is a much easier method to get to grips with).
I also love how light it is, making the user experience smooth and comfortable while styling. I did have to hold it on my hair longer than other tools (around 10 seconds on medium heat), but not massively so. The pivoting wire, designed to prevent tangling, was also slightly annoying as the bottom of the handle kept spinning around. These very small factors are by no means deal breakers, though.
All in all, the tool created pretty, medium-sized, loose curls that were ideal for me, as I prefer a beachy wave. I added a little texture spray for a slightly looser style, but I loved the overall effect created by this tool.
Read our full Cloud Nine The Curling Wand review here
Best affordable curler for short hair
Reviewed by: Rebecca Fearn
If you're after a budget-friendly tool that still gets the job done fairly well, this under-£30 option from TRESemmé is the one to go for. While there are no high-tech features – there's just one switch that turns the curler on and chooses one of three heat settings – this tool left me with gorgeous, defined curls on the very first go and was easy to use, even for a beginner like me.
Though this curler has "Advanced Heat Tech" to maintain optimum temperature during use, I couldn’t find details of any other key features that helped to maintain the health of hair (such as a coated barrel, for example). But I was able to style sections effectively in about 10 seconds, so I didn't have to use direct heat on my hair for all that long.
Creating smooth, glossy and defined medium-sized curls that brushed out nicely into loose waves with the help of a little product, this tool is surprisingly versatile. I think the results are great considering its humble price.
Best curler for beachy waves
Reviewed by: Rebecca Fearn, Aleesha Badkar
Not only did I fall head over heels with the design of this very stylish wand from Hershesons, I was also pretty impressed with its results, too. Styling at 150°C and holding hair around the tool for 10 seconds, I didn’t see much of a difference, but with hair held it a little tighter to the wand, it's a dream. Nailing the technique does take a little time, however, so it's probably not the best option for beginners. That said, once I'd mastered it, I was left with gorgeous loose, tousled, beachy waves that I loved.
I found it best to use this tool on clean hair with minimal product, as this is when I saw the most effective results, but a little texture spray can go a long way in finishing the beachy look. However, if you're looking for something that'll create slightly tighter curls, this might not be the one for you – the vibe is looser and beachier.
Read our full Hershesons The Wand review here
Best curler to create tight curls for short hair
Reviewed by: Emma Stoddart
If super defined and tight curls is your favourite look, meet the most recent addition to ghd's Curve collection. With an ultra-slim 14mm barrel, this wand creates bouncy spiral curls on all hair types and lengths – including shorter styles.
I found this one extremely easy to use; simply wrap a small section of hair around the barrel and hold it in place for a few seconds (the barrel has a handy cool tip) before releasing. Following Collier’s expert styling advice, we found that alternating directions led to a more natural-looking, tousled end result.
As with other ghd tools, this curling wand heats a safe-to-hair (yet effective) temperature of 185°C that’s consistent across the entire wand thanks to the brand’s single-zone technology. What this means is that you get perfectly even curls. Additional features include a built-in safety stand, automatic sleep mode (after an hour of no use) and a long swivel cord. Because I worked in small sections, styling did take a little longer than with other tools– but the results last for hours, so it's a worthy trade-off.
How we tested the best curlers for short hair
To be able to write a truly comprehensive guide to top tools, we tested dozens of tools across various price points. Our experts tested each contender several times to comprehensively assess all of its features and each tester used the tools across different points of their hair wash cycle. During the testing process, we took the below factors into account as part of our overall assessments.
- Design, size and weight
- Number and range of heat settings
- Key features and tech
- Cord length
- Ease of use
- Styles created
- How long curls lasted
- Extras (e.g. travel case)
- Price and value for money
How to choose the best curlers for short hair
- Barrel size: “The first thing to consider when choosing the best curlers for short hair is the barrel size. Too big and you won’t be able to wrap your hair around it," says Jason Collier, A-list hairstylist and Bblonde brand educator. "But if you go straight for the smallest size, you’ll be limited to creating tight curls.” He recommends choosing a barrel size of between 19mm–24mm.
- Wand vs tong: Curlers tend to fall into one of two categories: a wand, or a tong or iron with a clip. This choice is key to mastering curling your hair: “If your hair has enough length to be wrapped around a wand, this is a good tool for natural-looking, undone curls," Collier explains. "But for very short hair, this is more difficult, so a tong with a clasp is better for control.”
- Temperature: Adjustable settings are ideal, as styling your hair on a lower heat setting where possible is better for your hair's overall health. “One of the main challenges of curling short hair is the fact that heat damage is harder to hide,” says Collier. He recommends heat protection spray as well as a tool with multiple heat settings that can be adapted to your hair texture.
How to use the best curlers for short hair
To master how to curl hair with the best curlers for short hair. follow Collier’s step-by-step process below. If your hair has any level of curl to it naturally, you'll need to have first smoothed it out beforehand, either just by blow drying or with the best hair straighteners, before adding in your loose curls.
But first and foremost, “Hair is best curled when it hasn’t just been washed, so try using curlers the day after wash day – this will help the curls to hold better.”
- “It’s essential to prep the hair with a heat protectant, as heat damage is more apparent on short hair vs long hair.”
- “Take a hot barrel curler and wrap 1–1.5-inch strands of your hair around it, letting the hair loose after a few seconds.”
- “Keep curling in sections, working from the top down. Don’t stress if they’re slightly uneven; the more dishevelled they are, the more modern it will look. For natural-looking waves, leave out the very ends of your hair.”
- “Next, apply your favourite texture spray for extra hold and to add definition. I recommend the Jerome Russell Bstyled Wave & Salt Spray.”
- “Flip your head forward, shake your curls, and run your fingers through them to loosen up the curl pattern.”
- “Work a pea-sized amount of hair oil or serum through curled hair to diminish frizz and add an injection of moisture.”
Our expert panel
Rebecca (best known as Becky) has 10+ years of experience in the industry and has worked for big brands including Glamour UK, Eliza, Bustle and Space NK, where she stayed on top of every new beauty release and tested and compared everything there was to test. Having had her signature bob for years, Becky has reviewed numerous hair tools for woman&home, from curling tongs to hair dryers and straighteners.
Aleesha was formerly Beauty eComm Editor at woman&home, where she shared her expertise on everything from the best beauty techniques and hair tools to the latest product launches. Though her hair is very long nowadays she used to have shorter hair and some of the curlers here got her through her "lob" phase. This and her years of experience reviewing hair tools means she knows what makes a good one.
Emma has worked in the beauty industry for eight years for some of the UK’s top women’s titles, including Net-A-Porter, Stylist and Grazia. During that time she has tested hundreds of beauty products and tools, and kept up-to-date with all the latest innovations in beauty tech. She has contributed to woman&home since 2020 and has reviewed dozens of beauty tech tools for the brand.
Jason is an award-winning hairstylist who has worked with extensive celebrity clientele throughout his years in the industry. He has advised woman&home on how best to curl short hair, what to look for when choosing a curler for short hair and his favourite tools to use on his clients.