The Top 15 Best Japanese Henna Hair Dyes to Buy Online 2020 - Tried and True!

Henna hair dye is a method of dyeing hair with pigments made from a family of soybeans called henna. Henna leaves are powdered and mixed with hot water to make a paste, which is then applied to hair. The pigment, called Lawsonia, reacts to proteins in the hair and create a coloring effect.

Henna is also said to have healing, detox, and antibacterial properties. Note, however, that some people may be susceptible to allergic reactions even with henna hair dyes that use all-natural ingredients. If this is your first time using henna hair dye, do a patch test first.

We checked the ingredients list to verify how much natural henna and what kind of additives were included. Then, based on how they performed on our tests, we ranked the top 15 Japanese henna hair dye available online.

※ Prices shown for some of the products are Japanese prices but have been converted into USD for your convenience.

And why they didn't quite make it.

Sanbo Trading's Tenstar Fine Henna 6P Dark Brown required three applications for the color to really stick. Unfortunately, it resulted in a stiff, rough texture overall. We even felt a few rough patches in the hair.

Green Note's Henna Organita Deep Brown dyed firmly overall, but the hair ended up feeling rough, dry and hard. 

SimSim Japan's Madame Henna Dark Brown didn't dye the sample hair very well. Multiple grey hair strands were still very visible on our sample. The good news is that this product achieved the highest texture score in our testing.

Art Being's Maharani Herbal Color Series 5 Dark Brown was also pretty much in the same boat, with plenty of grey hair still conspicuous and visible on the sample. After three applications, the gray hairs became reddish browh. Hair felt smooth to the touch, but not as much as Madame Henna.

Naiad's Henna + Tree Indigo didn't do a good job of dyeing the sample, with plenty of grey hair still visible even in indoor conditions. By the third application, all the gray hair finally disappeared. There were some rough spots when we tried evaluating the texture of hair treated with the product.

Inochi's Heart Heart Henna Dark Brown also didn't quite dye the sample as well, with bright grey hair strands still clearly visible even in indoor conditions. Hair was rough to the touch, with even rougher patches here and there.

Iyashi Honpo's Henna turned grey hair orange. The texture was smooth, but there we found plenty of broken hair on the sample during evaluation. We did not see a marked improvement in the dye color even after the 3rd application.

Our editing department applied the dye three times to the sample and recorded the results after each application. Aside from objective friction testing with an actual measurement device, they also ran their fingers through the sample to evaluate its smoothness and texture after application of the dye. 

Our goal was to find a product that not only dyed well, but also felt smooth to the touch.

Our first order of business was to test the finish of the dye. We used only dark brown as the test color in order to eliminate any potential differences in dye ingredients. We also used only products that were a mix of henna and indigo in order to eliminate any differences in dyeing capability.

The hair we used for dyeing was black hair mixed with grey hair. We compared the quality of the finish by checking how well the grey hair was dyed and how conspicuous the dyed hair was compared to the black hair. We then took these results and ranked them accordingly.

And since henna dye isn't as potent as regular dye, we performed our evaluations after the first and after the third application.

In our tests, we found that products that contained more indigo (indigofera leaves) than henna resulted in in a darker finish. It's a good idea to check not just the color, but the ingredients list as well especially if you're aiming for a darker finish. Choose a product that contains more indigofera leaves. 

Other ingredients to keep an eye out for would be natural seeds such as coffee extract and brown pigment. 

Our next order of business was testing texture.

We attached a fine-grained comb to a device that measures pressure and combed the dyed hair samples to measure frictional resistance. Assuming that the samples with the smaller resistance values would be smoother, we gave the samples with the lowest resistance the highest scores in texture.

In our texture tests, we found that products containing amla fruit and guar gum tended to result in better hair texture.

Amla fruit contains large amounts of vitamin C and plyphenols and said to have antibacterial properties as well. Guar gum is a natural polysaccharide obtained from guar beans and is often used as a thickener in food items. In hair products, guar gum is said to give hair firmness and gloss.

There are other plant ingredients that may be included in henna hair dye, but these are the ingredients to watch out for if you value texture.

There are four points you should consider when buying henna hair dye.

Some henna hair dye achieve their dyeing effect through henna alone, while others use a compound of plant materials to adjust the hue. Choose your color according to your preference.

If your goal is to naturally hide gray hair, choose products that contain plant-based dyes such as indigo and henna. Indigo is often used in henna colors to to expres sshades such as brown or dark brown.

Some products with dark colors have henna powder pre-mixed with indigo, while others only have the henna base and must be mixed with indigo. Mixing henna and indigo dye is both time and labor-intensive, so you might be better off going with a pre-mixed solution if you're going for a darker hue.

The Lawsonia dye in henna is a red enzyme-based dye, so using only henna on gray turns it red-orange.

For people with less gray hair, we recommend dyeing with 100% and styling it in such a way as to reduce visual focus on the gray hair. 

Some prodcuts may contain chemical dyes despite claiming to be made of henna. Check the ingredients list to be sure.

Typical chemical dyes include diamine inks, basic dyes, and tar-based dues. Avoid components products with ingredients that contain the word diamine in them, such as paraphenylenediamine, and toluene2,5-diamine. Likewise, names such as basic blue 7 and red 277 are dead give-aways.

Also, henna doesn't have the power to color black hair, so if you notice that your black hairs look a bit lighter, then there's a chance it contains decolorizing chemicals.

While henna color does improve hair quality, repeat applications can leave your hair feeling rough due to henna's astringent effect. 

To avoid this, choose a product that contains herbs and plant-based ingredients that have a healing effect. Examples include hibiscus and acacia concinna fruit extract.

Henna does not fade very quickly once used and does not require frequent re-application. As a general rule, if you are trying to mask gray hair, you'll only need to dye around once or twice a month. For semi-long hair, the standard amount to apply is around 50g to 70g.

One con with using henna is that henna is rather difficult to apply. Make sure to go through the following points to ensure a smooth and even dyeing.

When dissolving henna in hot water to make a paste, don' make it too thin! Try to aim for mayonnaise-like consistency to make it easier to dye. For semi-long hair, use around 50 to 70 grams of henna and dissolve in hot water of around 113°F.

Upon achieving mayonnaise-like consistency, apply the paste while it is still warm. Cooling it makes it sticky and difficult to apply. You may need to re-heat the henna before applying if necessary.

After applying the dye, wrap your hair and dry off with a dryer for 2 to 3 minutes. Afterwards, wrap with a towel to preserve warmth and leave on for 30 to 60 minutes.The curing time varies depending on the product, so check the instruction manual for more details.

When washing the henna off, don't rinse all of your hair immediately. Rather, let the henna get a little wet and massage into your scalp for a few minutes. Gently wash off the henna afterwards, then shampoo. The color should settle 48 hours after dyeing.

Henna dye should be left to cure for an hour after application. Only use henna dye when you have the luxury of time to do so.

Depending on the ingredients of the henna dye, your hair may develop a green hue immediately after dyeing. This is normal. The color should stabilize after 2 to 3 days, so make sure you take this into account.

Our editorial team purchased the top-selling Japanese henna hair dyes available online and tested them all. There are a few factors to consider when purchasing henna hair dye, such as the ingredients list and curing time, among others. We hope that our results help you pick out your ideal henna hair dye.

Author: Kano Ichiyama/Translation: Jamie Martin/Photos: Yuuki Inagaki, Koichi Miura

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