How to Avoid Hair Color Fading

Hair color fading is inevitable, but there are ways you can slow it down. How, exactly? By protecting your hair from the (many) daily aggressors that can gradually strip your shade. A consistent routine that shields against heat, sun exposure and mechanical damage is key, while using color-safe shampoos, conditioners and masks that all maintain vibrancy.

So, let's get into your stylist-approved guide to reducing hair color fading, so you can enjoy your beautiful salon shade for as long as possible...

Why Hair Color Fades and How to Prevent It

Hair color fades when water, heat, UV exposure or mechanical damage cause the hair cuticle to lift, allowing color molecules to gradually seep out. You can't avoid fading completely – we all need to wash our hair – but you can take steps to protect your strands, so your shade stays vibrant for longer.

Step one is understanding what causes hair color to fade. Here are the most common culprits:

• Water exposure: Every time you wash your hair, water causes the hair shaft to swell and the cuticle to slightly lift, allowing color molecules to escape.
• Harsh shampoos: Too-harsh shampoos – plus rough handling when massaging it in – can also raise the cuticle, leaving color-treated hair vulnerable to fading.
• UV exposure: Just like UV rays can alter the color of your skin, it can affect both your hair's natural melanin and artificial color, leaving you with brassy tones or a dull finish.
• Heat styling: Without a heat protectant, excess uses of hot tools may weaken the hair cuticle, causing both hair color and moisture to be stripped from strands.

With these causes in mind, you can take the right steps to protecting your strands from everyday fading aggressors. But there's one more factor that affects how long your shade stays vibrant: hair porosity. Let's take a closer look...

How Hair Porosity Affects Color Retention

Hair porosity refers to how well your hair absorbs and retains moisture. If it's highly porous – meaning there may be gaps along the hair cuticle – it absorbs moisture quickly, but also loses it easily.

This affects everything from how your hair reacts to humidity to how well it responds to conditioners and hair masks – and it can also influence how long your hair color lasts. Color molecules can seep out of high porosity hair, speeding up the fading process.

So, if you find your color tends to lose vibrancy quickly, try these tips for caring for color-treated, high porosity hair:

1. Use a Conditioner for Highly Porous Hair

After washing your hair with a color-safe shampoo, apply a conditioner that's specially formulated to care for highly porous strands. ULTIMATE COLOR Conditioner does exactly that, with a rich, creamy texture that helps to reduce porosity, adding moisture and sealing color pigments for a shade that goes the distance.

2. Be Gentle When Drying Your Hair

High porosity hair is more prone to damage, so avoid rough-drying it after washing, and lightly blot lengths dry with a microfiber towel or soft t-shirt instead. Once you've blotted out most of the moisture, so your hair feels damp and not wet, detangle carefully in small sections, starting from the ends upwards. A leave-in will give hair more slip – which takes us to the next tip...

3. Apply Leave-In Conditioners and Masks

Because you don't rinse them out, leave-in conditioners and masks continue working long after application, making them ideal for high porosity hair. To boost moisture and enhance shine without compromising your color, add ULTIMATE COLOR Miracle Leave-In Mask to your wash day routine. Are you dealing with damage? Then apply ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue first. This intensive treatment helps repair damage in 90 seconds¹, leaving you with up to 12x smoother hair² and up to 99% less breakage³.

9 Essential Hair Care Habits for Color-Treated Hair

Now you understand the causes of fading hair color, it's time to upgrade your routine. Incorporate these 9 healthy hair habits to keep color-treated hair looking vibrant for longer.

1. Wait 48 Hours Before Washing Hair After Coloring

To allow the hair cuticles to close up and 'lock in' color molecules, try not to wash your hair for at least 48 hours after coloring. This gives your freshly colored hair time to settle, helping to minimize immediate color loss when you wash it for the first time.

2. Always Use a Color-Safe Shampoo

A color-safe shampoo combines gentle cleansing with nourishing ingredients, so your shade appears shiny and vibrant, without harsh surfactants stripping your strands. Not just any shampoo will do; you need one that specifically states it's for color-treated hair, with rigorously tested claims behind it.

Our pick: ULTIMATE COLOR Sulfate-Free Shampoo, which gently cleanses while helping to protect color vibrancy, and sets you on the right path to maintaining color vibrancy for up to 10 weeks⁴.

3. Use a Conditioner or Hair Mask On Every Wash Day

Moisture is key to preventing fading hair color, as well-hydrated hair cuticles are usually smoother, meaning color molecules will find it harder to escape. So, after rinsing out your shampoo and squeezing out excess water, apply a conditioner or hair mask that's specially formulated for color-treated hair.

If you prefer a rinse-out conditioner, and you wash your hair regularly (around twice per week), choose ULTIMATE COLOR Conditioner. The creamy formula helps to reduce hair porosity, so pigments are sealed in.

But if you wash your hair more frequently – say every day or every other day – switch to a leave-in, like ULTIMATE COLOR Miracle Leave-In Mask, as this will reduce repeated water exposure. Although it's a hair mask, the moisturizing formula can be used every wash day, giving you shine, UV protection and up to 4x more resistance to breakage² in one.

"ULTIMATE COLOR CELEBRATES THE COLOR: IT'S GREAT FOR VIBRANCY, FOR LONG-LASTING RESULTS, AND AN AMAZING SHINE FINISH."

Jordanna Cobella, Owner of Cobella Salons and Wella Professionals Color & Trend Ambassador

4. Try to Wash Your Hair Less Frequently

Water exposure can speed up fading hair color, try to wash your hair no more than 2-3 times per week. This way, you're not putting your hair through repeated lathering up and rinsing. That said, scalp health comes first, so if your roots tend to feel oily quickly, you may need to wash more frequently to keep your scalp clean and fresh.

5. Turn Down the Water Temperature

They might feel good, but hot showers can strip out your color and leave your hair dry and dull. So, only wash your hair with lukewarm water. Why not cold, you might wonder? Because cold water doesn't effectively remove shampoo and conditioner residue. Warm water is the perfect middle ground, helping to cleanse your hair effectively without the excessive heat that leaves color-treated strands feeling dry.

6. Never Skip Heat Protection

Hot tools can weaken the hair cuticle, leaving color-treated strands more vulnerable to pigment loss, so make sure you use heat protection every time you style your hair.

Pick the best one for your hair type:

• For damaged hair: use a delicate cream that combines repair and shielding in one. ULTIMATE REPAIR 5-in-1 Protective Leave-In is perfect, as it deeply nourishes while protecting against your five biggest hair concerns: heat, UV, mechanical damage, breakage and frizz.
• For dull, frizz-prone hair: a hair oil will smooth each strand's surface, so it's better able to reflect the light. We love ULTIMATE SMOOTH Miracle Oil Serum, which teams heat protection with smoothness that lasts up to 3 days⁵.
• For normal hair: look for protective hair products that won't weigh your hair down. EIMI Thermal Image is a suits-all-hair-types spray that sinks in fast to shield strands while adding healthy shine.

7. Turn Down the Temperature On Your Hot Tools

If your hair dryer, flat iron or curling iron has a temperature dial, adjust it based on your hair type and thickness. Here's your guideline...

• Fine, fragile or damaged hair: 120–160ºC / 250–320ºF. Start low and increase only if needed.
• Medium or normal hair: 160–180ºC / 320–355ºF. A moderate temperature is usually enough to smooth and style without unnecessarily increasing heat exposure.
• Thick, coarse or resistant hair: 180–200ºC / 355–390ºF. You may need a little more heat to style thicker strands effectively, but avoid automatically turning your tool to its highest setting.

8. Protect Your Hair When Swimming

A swim cap is your best protection against the fading effects of chlorine and salt water, but if that ruins your poolside or surfer-chic aesthetic, try soaking hair with clean water before you swim. Add a leave-in conditioner or treatment, like ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue, and this trick can reduce the amount of salt or chlorinated water your hair absorbs.

9. Apply Sun Protection for Your Hair

Just like your skin, your color-treated hair needs protection in the sun, as UV rays can disrupt the cuticle and speed up fading. You don't need a dedicated product; ULTIMATE COLOR Miracle Leave-In Mask is a great multitasker, as it moisturizes hair, protects your color's vibrancy, adds shine and offers built-in UV protection, all in one creamy treatment. Apply it after washing your hair, before blow-drying, to keep strands safe from sun exposure.

3 of the Best Products for Color-Treated Hair By Color Type

For Blonde Hair: Focus on Nourishment & Repair

Lightening can leave hair more porous, which affects both the condition and appearance of your color. So, give blonde strands extra nourishing support if you've had highlights or balayage. For this, we love ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue, a supercharged leave-in treatment that repairs hair damage in 90 seconds¹, giving you up to 99% less breakage².

For Brunette Hair: Focus on Richness and Shine

For brunettes, fading color usually means dullness and a loss of shine, so give it back its glow with ULTIMATE COLOR Shine Spray. The fine mist instantly gives brown hair a glossy, lustrous sheen, while leaving strands up to 4x smoother⁶, so they can better reflect the light. Apply it to dry hair in between washes for instant, healthy-looking shine.

For Red Hair: Focus on Color Vibrancy

Red hair colors can be particularly prone to fading, so you need hair products that don't just protect vibrancy but refresh it, too. Color Fresh Mask is for you; a color-depositing treatment that tops up your tone in up to 10 minutes, so you can refresh your red shade in between salon visits. Choose Copper Glow for warmer, richer reds and Red for brighter and/or cooler hues. All you do is smooth it through clean, damp hair, let it develop for up to 10 minutes, then rinse thoroughly. Red = revived.

FAQs

Why Does Hair Color Fade So Quickly After Just One or Two Weeks?

If your color is fading after one or two weeks, it may be time to adjust your washing schedule. Water exposure can speed up the fading process, so make sure you wait at least 48 hours before washing your hair after coloring. Then, try to add a day or two to your usual gap between washes, and make sure you always use a color-safe shampoo. ULTIMATE COLOR Sulfate-Free Shampoo is our pick for gentle, effective, color-friendly washing.

What is the Best Shampoo for Color-Treated Hair to Prevent Fading?

The best shampoo for color-treated hair is one with mild surfactants, hydrating ingredients, and specialized technology to remove the dulling metals that accumulate in your hair. ULTIMATE COLOR Sulfate-Free Shampoo ticks all the boxes. Use it as part of the full ULTIMATE COLOR routine, and you'll enjoy up to 10 weeks of color vibrancy⁴ – just the right gap between salon visits.

Does Water Temperature Really Affect Color Fading?

Yes, water temperature does affect color fading. If the water is too hot, it can cause the hair cuticle to lift, making it easier for color molecules to escape. Hot water can also strip moisture from the hair, leaving color-treated strands feeling dry and looking dull. For best results, wash your hair with lukewarm water instead: it's warm enough to cleanse effectively without the excessive heat.

Can Heat Styling and Sun Exposure Cause Hair Color to Fade Faster?

Yes – both heat and UV rays can accelerate fading hair color. Excessive, unprotected heat styling can weaken the hair cuticle, making it more vulnerable to pigment loss, while sun exposure may leave your shade looking overly warm or brassy. Use a hair product that protects against both, like ULTIMATE REPAIR 5-in-1 Protective Leave-In, and apply it every time you use a hot tool, whether that's a hair dryer or flat iron.

Now that you have all the tips you need to build your color-treated hair care routine, explore the complete ULTIMATE COLOR regimen. For every shade, every hair type and every texture, it's your answer to salon-fresh vibrancy for longer.

¹ When using ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue.

² Vs. non-conditioning Shampoo.

³ When using ULTIMATE REPAIR Miracle Hair Rescue instrumental test vs. non-conditioning Shampoo.

⁴ With regular use of Ultimate Color regimen from salon to home.

⁵ If unwashed for 3 days vs. untreated.

⁶ Vs. untreated.