Best Shampoo for Coloured Hair NZ: Our Colourists' Picks

If you've spent good money sitting in a salon chair for a balayage, a fresh blonde or a rich brunette, the shampoo you use at home is what decides how long it lasts. We see it every week. A client comes back six weeks later and the colour has either held beautifully or gone brassy and dull, and nine times out of ten the difference comes down to what's in the shower at home, not what we did in the salon.

So this is the honest version. These are the shampoos our colourists actually use on clients and recommend day to day, what each one is genuinely good at, and a few we'd steer you away from for coloured hair. Everything here we stock as an authorised retailer of genuine, in-date product, and we ship it anywhere in New Zealand.

What makes a shampoo good for coloured hair?

The short answer is gentleness and balance. Colour fades for two reasons: the dye molecules wash out, and the hair itself gets stressed and porous so it can't hold pigment in the first place. A good colour shampoo cleans without stripping, so you're not rinsing your investment down the drain, and it usually adds a little protection or moisture to keep the cuticle smooth.

A few things we look for, and that you can check on any bottle:

• Gentle surfactants. Harsh sulphates lather like crazy but they're rough on colour. Most quality colour shampoos use milder cleansers that respect the dye.
• A reasonable pH. Slightly acidic formulas help keep the cuticle flat, which means more shine and less fade.
• The right job for your hair. Blonde and grey want a purple-toning shampoo some of the time. Brunettes and warm tones want a colour-lock formula. Bleached or over-processed hair needs something that rebuilds as it cleans.

You don't need a different bottle for every day of the week. One good colour shampoo, the matching conditioner, and a weekly mask will do more than a bathroom full of half-used products.

Our colourists' top picks for coloured hair in NZ

Kerastase Chroma Absolu — the all-rounder we reach for most

If a client asks us for one shampoo to protect their colour and isn't sure where to start, this is usually it. The Kerastase Chroma Absolu range is built specifically for colour-treated hair, and it does the two things that matter at once: it cleanses gently so the colour holds, and it leaves the hair feeling smooth and glossy rather than squeaky and tight.

We notice it most on mid-lengths and ends, which is where colour tends to look tired first. It's a treat-yourself price point, but a little goes a long way and clients tell us their colour appointments stretch further between visits, which is the whole point. If you want the full effect, the conditioner and the in-shower or leave-in treatments in the range are genuinely worth it. Browse the wider Kerastase line-up if you want to build a routine around it.

L'Oreal Professionnel Vitamino Color — the everyday workhorse

This is the one we recommend when someone wants salon-grade colour care without the top-shelf price. Vitamino Color is a proper professional colour shampoo, it's gentle, it protects against fade, and it suits almost everyone with coloured hair regardless of shade. We use a lot of it in the salon because it's reliable and it does exactly what it says.

It's a great daily shampoo for coloured hair that you can use without overthinking it. Pair it with the matching conditioner for the best result, and if your colour is on the warm or red side it helps hold those tones, which are usually the first to wash out. The full L'Oreal Professionnel range has matching treatments if you want to go further.

Pureology — for the colour client who wants clean, vegan formulas

A fair few of our clients ask specifically for sulphate-free and vegan products, and Pureology is where we point them. The whole brand is built around coloured hair, the formulas are concentrated so you use less, and they're 100% vegan, which matters to a lot of people now.

The lather is lighter than people expect because there are no harsh sulphates, and that's actually the point, it's far kinder to colour. If you've made the effort to keep your routine clean and plant-based, this is the colour shampoo that fits without compromising on how your hair looks afterwards. It's especially nice on hair that gets dry or stressed easily.

For blondes: don't forget your purple shampoo

If you're blonde, highlighted or grey, a colour shampoo on its own won't fully solve brassiness. You want a toning purple shampoo in rotation a couple of times a week to neutralise the yellow and keep things cool and bright. Kerastase Blond Absolu is our go-to here, and it doubles as gentle colour care for lightened hair, which always needs a bit more love. Use it like a treatment, not every wash, or you can over-tone and go a touch dull. Our blonde and highlighted collection has the matching pieces.

How to make your colour last longer at home

The shampoo does a lot, but a few small habits make an honest difference. These are the ones we tell clients on the way out the door.

• Wash less often. Every wash fades colour a little. Stretching to two or three washes a week, with a dry shampoo in between, keeps colour richer for longer.
• Turn the water down. Hot water opens the cuticle and lets colour escape. A cooler rinse at the end, even just for the last few seconds, helps lock in shine.
• Always condition. Coloured hair is more porous, so it needs the moisture back. Match your conditioner to your shampoo and use it every wash.
• Add a weekly mask. One deep treatment a week does more for colour longevity than people realise. Our masks and treatments are worth the ten minutes.
• Protect from heat and sun. A leave-in or oil before you straighten or curl shields the colour from heat damage and keeps it from fading at the ends.

If your colour is also bleached, heat-stressed or feeling fragile, a colour shampoo alone isn't enough. Have a look at our damaged and over-processed range, which pairs colour care with proper repair, and the wider colour-treated collection for everything we'd put together for a colour client.

So which shampoo should you actually buy?

Keep it simple. If you want one shampoo to protect your colour and feel a little luxurious, go with Kerastase Chroma Absolu. If you want a dependable everyday colour shampoo at a friendlier price, L'Oreal Professionnel Vitamino Color is the one we hand to most clients. If clean, vegan and sulphate-free is what you're after, Pureology is made for you. And if you're blonde, add a purple shampoo like Blond Absolu to the mix a couple of times a week.

Everything we've talked about, we use on real clients in the salon, so if you're stuck between two we're always happy to point you the right way. These are genuine, in-date products from authorised brands, not grey-market stock, which matters more than people think when it comes to results.

Shop colour-care shampoo at Crew. You can browse our full colour-treated haircare range online and have it delivered anywhere in New Zealand, with free shipping on orders over $99. Whether it's your first salon shampoo or you're restocking a routine you love, we've got the genuine product and the advice to go with it.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best shampoo for coloured hair in NZ?

Our colourists most often recommend Kerastase Chroma Absolu for a luxurious all-rounder, L'Oreal Professionnel Vitamino Color as a dependable everyday option, and Pureology for anyone wanting sulphate-free, vegan formulas. All three are built specifically to protect colour-treated hair and we use them on clients regularly.

Should I use a sulphate-free shampoo on coloured hair?

Gentler is generally better for colour, and sulphate-free formulas like Pureology are kinder to dye than harsh foaming shampoos. The lather is lighter, but that's a good thing for keeping your colour rich and your hair healthy. You don't strictly need sulphate-free, but you do want a proper colour-care shampoo rather than a basic supermarket one.

How often should I wash coloured hair?

Less is more. Every wash fades colour slightly, so we suggest two to three washes a week with a dry shampoo in between. Use cooler water, condition every wash, and add a weekly mask to keep your colour looking fresh for longer between salon visits.

Do blondes need a different shampoo for coloured hair?

Yes, blondes and greys benefit from a purple toning shampoo such as Kerastase Blond Absolu used a couple of times a week to neutralise brassiness, alongside a regular colour-care shampoo for the other washes. Using purple shampoo every wash can over-tone and dull the hair, so treat it like a top-up rather than your everyday.