10 of the Most Irresistible Caramel Brown Hair Colour Ideas
Nothing sets brown hair aglow quite like swathes of warm, rich caramel, whether you're flaunting it with babylights, an ombre gradient or painterly strokes of balayage. Caramel highlights are the answer to the most dimensional brunette manes, and with so many ways to wear the look, it’s easy to see why this dream duo is so coveted.
So, let’s take a peek at 10 sensational caramel brown hair color ideas. If you’re searching for inspiration, these are the looks to take to your next salon visit…
How Can I Wear Caramel Brown Hair Colour?
1. Rich Caramel Latte Hair Colour
Image Credit: @danielmbeauty
If caramel latte were a hair colour, it would look like this – a milky brunette with a shot of caramel for extra sweetness. It's a look that proves face-framing highlights can make a big difference. The lightness is focused on the front layers to contrast beautifully against dark espresso hair tones through the base.
Ready to drink this one up? If you are already a brunette, ask your colourist to lighten your hair first using bond-strengthening BlondorPlex. Then, have a toning session with Illumina Color. The permanent colour gives you bright, youthful, natural-looking caramel highlights. A final glaze with SHINEFINITY will lock in extra glow, wrapped up in a zero-damage, zero-lift formula that makes hair up to 250% shinier¹.
2. Brunette Hair with Subtle Caramel Highlights
Image Credit: @pipecasasedu
One of the best things about caramel brown hair is that you control how sheer or bold it goes. You can go for high-contrast highlights or, if you want a softer glow, you can ask your colourist to add a subtle scattering of brightness. The lift in these curls is gentle but bright.
This is thanks to our vegan, ammonia-free Color Touch formula, a demi-permanent hair colour with Metal Purifier built in. The technology neutralises the metals that commonly alter your dream, resulting in true-to-tone, root-to-tip, caramel-rich vibrancy, no matter your hair's condition. Plus, with 90+ shades available, it lets your colourist tailor your shade flawlessly to your skin tone. Finish the look with NutriCurls Curlixir Balm for luminous hair with a beautiful bounce.
3. Dark Brown Balayage Caramel Highlights
Image Credit: @khan_hair_styles_
From the deep, rich brown shade at the base to the warmth of the caramel blonde highlights, this high-contrast balayage takes dark brunette hair to dimensional new heights. Perfect for anyone who loves their naturally dark hair colour but wants to give it a sun-kissed feel, it's a look your colourist can recreate with the help of BlondorPlex.
This is our most iconic pre-lightener that gives you up to 9 levels of lift, allowing even the deepest shades to enjoy a boost of brightness. Plus, because it leaves you with up to 97% less breakage², it makes hair bleaching all the more tempting for first-timers. Finish with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum for the most irresistible caramel shine.
4. Cool-Toned Caramel Brown Hair Colour
Image Credit: @cnstyled
Who said caramel can't be cool-toned? If ashier shades tend to work better with your skin tone, ask your colourist to mix up a cool brunette hue just like this. Earthy shades of caramel lend a soft, sophisticated look, locking in an old money bronde vibe that whispers 'quiet luxury'.
Make sure you have a purple shampoo to remove brassy tones. We suggest INVIGO Cool Blonde Color Refreshing Shampoo. Use it at home to neutralise excess warmth in under five minutes. Simply massage it into wet hair, let it work its magic, and then rinse thoroughly. For a cool-toned caramel on the right side of rich, this is a monthly ritual you don't want to miss.
5. Dark Blonde Hair with Caramel Highlights
Image Credit: @sunkissedbyk_
Bronde hair is huge right now, so why not give it a caramel glow-up? For a lighter take on caramel brown hair, ask your colourist to pair a bronde base with chunky blonde highlights. Koleston Perfect has you covered for a mane this lustrous and healthy-looking, thanks to its Ultra Precision Technology. In short, this means it locks in a pure, beautifully balanced colour and shine from root to tip, while veiling your hair in the most natural depth and dimension.
The colour also harnesses Metal Purifier to remove metals in your hair. Meanwhile, ME+ dye technology reduces the risk of developing a new allergy to hair colour³. So, not only will your hair radiate caramel bronde richness that's beyond irresistible, but you can also enjoy your salon appointment with confidence in the formula.
6. Sun-Kissed Caramel Brown Hair Colour
Image Credit: @danielmbeauty
Long, luscious waves + sun-kissed caramel highlights = total paradise. Every angle pops through this surfer-girl mane, which your colourist can recreate with BlondorPlex and SHINEFINITY. Ask for a balayage highlighting technique to create a rooty, bright finish.
Then, use EIMI Ocean Spritz, a sea salt spray that's ultra-gentle on hair, to add extra texture. Take it home from the salon, and mist it through clean, damp hair before gently scrunching the spritz through lengths. Next, allow it to air-dry or blast with a diffuser, before wrapping a few sections around a curling iron for tousled (im)perfection.
7. Copper Meets Caramel Blonde Highlights
Image Credit: @jeremy.colorist
If you like a little spice with your caramel, try this copper blonde ombre, which sees chocolate brown roots melt into lighter, brighter, red-toned ends. A Color Touch Melt service at your nearest Wella salon will unlock this gorgeous gradient. It's our exclusive technique that involves melting up to five low-contrast colours through your lengths for seamless dimension.
And the hero of the look? Color Touch, with its true-to-tone vibrancy and shine. After pre-lightening your hair, your colourist will paint it through your lengths to unlock a copper blonde-brown that's irresistible. Maintain it at home with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum, a shine serum and sumptuous oil in one.
8. Dark Brown Hair with a Caramel Face Frame
Image Credit: @dereqc
Set dark brown hair aglow with caramel tones that light up the face frame. The chunky highlights at the front graduate into a high-contrast balayage that adorns the rest of the hair beautifully.
Illumina Color is the toner behind this look: glowy, radiant, and 100% natural-looking. Ask your colourist to use it for hair that's luminous in every light, thanks to the Microlight Technology. This dullness-defying tech helps to protect cuticle clarity and allows light to enter your hair, so each strand appears illuminated from within. And who wouldn't want that?
9. Caramel Brown Hair with a Dark Root Melt
Image Credit: @dereqc
This blondish beauty is a show-stopper in all the right ways. Rich, radiant and dimensional, the lustrous highlights enhance mid-lengths and ends, while a dark root melt gives the look a lived-in feel. Perfect for brunettes who want a low-commitment approach to caramel blonde tones, it guarantees easy-to-maintain regrowth from one salon visit to the next.
Try it on an already-dark base. Your colourist can add highlights with BlondorPlex, teaming up to 9 levels of lift with up to 97% less breakage². Then, a zero-lift, zero-damage SHINEFINITY Color Glaze delivers shine you can feel, in a translucent veil of colour that leaves hair up to 50% softer and smoother.
10. Subtle Caramel Highlights Through Dark Brown Hair
Image Credit: @tuliorodriguees
If you want subtle caramel tones that gently lift your dark brown base, chat to your colourist about the possibility of using a high-lift colour. These two-in-one products combine lightening and toning in a simple step – something that can be achieved with Koleston Perfect's Special Blonde shades.This means less processing for your hair, less time in the chair, and delicate ribbons that make strands appear lit-from-within. We especially love this look for brunettes with virgin hair, as it lets you discover caramel blonde tones on your terms.
How Do I Maintain Caramel Brown Hair?
1. Up the Shine with Smoothing Hair Care
Caramel brown hair is at its most lustrous when it's smooth, nourished and frizz-free. So, reach for colour-safe hair care products that are all about locking in that glow. We love the ULTIMATE SMOOTH regimen, as each product in the range is packed with Squalane and Omega-9, two ultra-caring ingredients that nourish each strand from the inside out.
So, start with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Shampoo for a shine-enhancing wash. The gentle formula sets all hair types up for the kind of frizz-free smoothness you see in hair commercials. Then, for lightweight yet creamy care, follow with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Conditioner. Or, if it's hair mask day, treat mid-lengths and ends to ULTIMATE SMOOTH Intense Mask.
Follow with ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum – the hero of your hair care regimen. A shine serum and luxe oil in one, it nourishes hair in 30 seconds for smoothness that lasts up to 3 days⁴. Apply the sumptuous formula to damp or dry hair, anytime, anywhere. On wash days, it paves the way for your best-ever blow-dry, then keeps it intact on the days between.
2. Use a Colour-Depositing Mask to Top Up the Tone
Keep caramel highlights sweet with Color Fresh Mask in Caramel Glaze. It's a zero-damage, semi-permanent, at-home gloss that revives your tone in just 10 minutes. Simply smooth it through clean, damp hair, let it develop while you do a face mask, and then rinse thoroughly. The hint of caramel maintains that salon-fresh feel until you're back in the chair.
3. Always, Always Use a Heat Protectant
There's a reason ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum is called a miracle. The multi-tasking shine serum-meets-hair oil doesn't just fight frizz, but it also acts as a heat protectant. So, whether you're blow-drying, using your flat iron or curling your hair, a few drops will shield your strands while locking in that coveted glass hair shine.This step is essential for colour-treated hair – especially when your shade has a warm undertone – as heat protection safeguards strands against shade fade and brassiness. The result: rich, radiant caramel hair for longer.
¹ Versus untreated bleached hair.
² When using Wellaplex N°2 with Blondorplex, versus Blondorplex alone.
³ FOR PEOPLE NOT ALLERGIC TO HAIR COLOURANTS
Although the risk of developing a new allergy is reduced, there remains a risk of allergic reaction that can be severe. Always ask your stylist to perform an Allergy Alert Test 48h before each colouration. Strictly follow safety instructions. If you have ever experienced an allergic reaction to hair colourants, you should not colour. ME+ is present in specific shades of Pure Naturals, Rich Naturals, Vibrant Reds, Special Blondes and Deep Browns of the Koleston Perfect brand.
⁴ When using ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum, if unwashed for 3 days, vs. untreated.