The 10 Best Curling Irons for Short Hair in 2026

Top 10 Best Curling Irons for Short Hair 2026

1. Best Overall Curling Iron: Kiss Products Instawave Automatic Ceramic Curling Iron

Quick Facts:

• Barrel Material: Ceramic
• Barrel Size: 1”
• Max Temperature: 420°
• Type: Automatic Curler

This automatic curler is a great example of the kind of convenience and quality you can find on the market today. The automated spinner allows you to achieve a fast yet even curl for a consistent result across your entire head.

Barrel Size and Material

The 1” barrel size is a great transitional diameter. It’ll work for hair of all lengths to provide either the perfect beachy wave or, with the high setting, more defined glamorous curls. Combine that with the ceramic material and you have something that’s ideal for all hair lengths and densities. The ceramic will help prevent frizz and breakage while the size offers a variety of styling options.

Heat and Styling Options

With a maximum temperature of 420°, this is one of the few automatic curling irons that is actually hot enough for thicker, coarser hair. Meanwhile, the low setting is safe and effective for fine to average density hair.

In addition to powerful heat settings, you also have a dual direction turning. With this, you can wrap the hair toward your head for a more glamorous, less voluminous look. Alternatively, use the other arrow button to curl it away from your head to add volume and bounce to your hair.

The main drawback to this model is the limited number of heat settings. You can either set it to “high” or “low.” There’s also no turbo heat button so there are some limits to your ability to create more advanced looks. However, for your regular weekend looks, this tool is more than enough to get the job done.

If you are looking for more precision and control, however, you might be better off with this Hot Tools model.

Safety

One of the best safety features built into this curling iron is the auto shutoff. Even if you leave the house and forget to turn the curling iron off, it will turn itself off after 90 minutes.

The automatic curl feature and the placement of the handle also add to the safety of the design. Because of these elements, your hands never have to go near the hot barrel of the curling iron.

2. Best Premium Curling Iron: CHI Spin N Curl Special Edition Rose Gold Hair Curler

Quick Facts:

• Barrel Material: Ceramic
• Barrel Size: 1”
• Max Temperature: 410°
• Type: Automatic Curler

While it is one of the more expensive curling irons on the market, it offers a lot of great features to warrant the higher price. You get all the convenience you expect from an automatic curler along with a little more customizability than you usually see in this type of curling iron.

Barrel Size and Material

This model offers a 1” barrel size. This can serve a wide range of purposes, so it’s a great mid-range size to have. The ceramic wand offers that negative ionization functionality that ceramic is famous for so you can prevent frizz and breakage as you style your hair.

Heat and Styling Options

This automated curler features a 1” wand inside a wide shell that protects your hands from the heat while keeping your hair securely wrapped around the wand. You simply insert a strand of hair, push the button, and allow the iron to wrap it around the wand. There are directional buttons so that you can wrap the hair either towards or away from your face.

Unlike other automatic curlers, however, you get to choose your temperature. The digital display shows you the exact temperature in Fahrenheit rather than vague settings like “high” or “low.” You can adjust to a specific temperature of your choice or use one of the three preset temperature settings provided. This is far more control than you usually have with automatic curlers.

Safety

The most unique safety feature on this curler is the large case that houses the wand. This case stays cool enough to go right up against your head, allowing you to isolate a lock of hair and allow it to wrap around the wand without tangling your other hair or burning your scalp in the process.

There is also an automatic shut off feature that kicks in when the curling iron has been on for an hour. This happens regardless of whether you’re using it or not. So, for most personal uses, that’s fine as you probably won’t spend more than an hour curling your hair. On the rare occasion that you do, you can easily turn the iron right back on again after the auto shut off without losing too much heat.

For professionals, however, this auto shut off feature can be an annoyance if you’ve got a long day of styling ahead of you and you need your curling iron to stay on and ready to go for a full work day. In that case, you might prefer something without auto-shutoff like this BaByliss curling iron.

3. Best Curling Iron for Thick or Coarse Hair: BaBylissPRO Nano Titanium Spring Curling Iron

Quick Facts:

• Barrel Material: Titanium
• Barrel Size: 0.75”
• Max Temperature: 450°
• Type: Wand with Clip

With a high maximum temperature, a lightly textured titanium surface, and a clip to hold your ends in place, this is a salon-quality curling iron that will tame even the unruliest of hair. This is a great option for people who have had little luck with gentler or cooler curling irons.

Barrel Size and Material

This model features a 0.75” barrel, which is best suited for medium curl sizes on short hair. However, they also offer a variety of size options ranging from 0.75” to 1.5” all at a similar price point so you can get the same functionality at whatever size best suits your hair length.

The titanium wand is built to heat fast and reach extreme temperatures. There’s no anti-frizz or static reducing functionality about it. It’s all about the heat. This is what makes it such a great choice for thick or difficult to manage hair.

However, for finer or even average density hair, this curling iron may be a little too intense and lack the protective features you need to prevent breakage. For those who need something suitable for daily use or just generally gentler on your hair, consider this Remington curling iron with both pearl coating and a ceramic barrel for maximum protection.

Heat and Styling Options

With a maximum temperature of 450° and a turbo heat button, there’s no head of hair too thick or unruly for this curling iron. If the highest temperature still isn’t giving you the definition you want, use that turbo heat button to instantly blast an additional jolt of heat.

This impressive high heat and fast heating time comes with drawbacks, though. For those with fine or even average hair density, this might do some serious damage. Even those with thicker hair should avoid using this hot tool on a daily basis.

If you use it more than twice a week, make sure you follow our damage-prevention tips below for taking care of your hair and minimizing damage.

If your hair is already damaged or dry, you may prefer a gentler curling iron like the Infinitipro, which is made with a tourmaline ceramic blend and offers safer heat levels for your delicate locks.

Safety

There are no real safety features on this curling iron. The design does minimize the need to keep your hands near the heated wand, so there is a lower risk of burns. However, there’s no auto-shutoff feature.

So, if you leave the house with that uneasy feeling that you left your iron on, it’s just going to stay on all day unless you go back to turn it off. You’ll have to be more proactive about remembering to do that.

If your morning routine is too hectic to consistently remember to turn off your curling iron, consider a model that does include an auto-shutoff feature like this curling iron from Kipozi.

4. Most Versatile Curling Iron: 5 in 1 Professional Curling Iron and Wand Set

Quick Facts:

• Barrel Material: Tourmaline Ceramic
• Barrel Size: 0.3”-1.25”
• Max Temperature: 410°
• Type: Interchangeable

This curling iron set includes five interchangeable wands ranging from 0.3” to 1.25” and including a mix of conical wands and wands with clips. If you want to go full glam with perfect ringlets, you can do it with this. If you want loose, textured beach waves, you can do it with this, too.

Barrel Size and Material

The largest three barrels feature clips and a ceramic wand for frizz control and static-free curling.  These are great for loose wave styles or adding volume. The smaller two barrels are conical wands which means you get a range of widths along the length of the wand.

So, even though it features five attachments, it actually comes with approximately 13 different barrel size options when you include the range of widths on the two conical wands. This is about as versatile as you could hope to get with a single curling iron set.

This versatility makes it a great pick for professionals who will be styling a wide variety of hair lengths or for households where more than one person will be using the set.

Heat and Styling Options

The base provided for the interchangeable wands features nine different preset heat settings ranging from 250° to 410°. This range is perfect for customizing it to the exact needs of your hair.

With the five wand attachments, you have a full range of styling options. Anything you want to do for almost any length of hair is doable with this set.

Safety

The only built in safety feature is the auto-shutoff, which kicks in at 60 minutes. This is a good feature to have personal use. With the clip style wand attachments, that’s really the only safety feature you need.

With the two smaller conical wands, however, it would have been nice to see a heat protective glove included. Without the clip, you have to manually hold your hair in place while it’s wrapped around the wand. This leaves you vulnerable to accidentally slipping your hand and burning it.

Consider buying your own heat protective glove to go with this set, or check out a set like the Bestope 5-in-1, which includes a glove.

5. Best Curling Iron with Accessories: BESTOPE 5 in 1 Curling Wand Set

Quick Facts:

• Barrel Material: Tourmaline Ceramic
• Barrel Size: 0.35”-1.25”
• Max Temperature: 410°
• Type: Interchangeable

The gorgeous rose gold wands are a mixture of straight barrel, conical wands, and bubble wands to provide an extensive range of styling options for all hair types and lengths. It’s a beautiful set to keep at home for creating salon-quality looks for those weekends or nights out.

Barrel Size and Material

The five barrel attachments range in diameter from 0.35” to 1.25” so it’s a great selection for those with short to medium hair. You’ll be able to achieve everything from glamorous ringlets to messy beach waves.

Each wand is a tourmaline coated ceramic to provide as much frizz control and static reduction as possible as you style your hair. This means you end up with shiny, soft, and well-defined curls.

Heat and Styling Options

The base for the interchangeable wands provides rapid 60-second heating up to 410°. The only downside is that there is no temperature control: it’s just on or off, so you have no choice but to use 410° for all your styling.

That may be a dealbreaker for those with fine hair that shouldn’t be exposed to temperatures above 400° and it does limit your ability to create a variety of loosely and tightly defined curls. For those who need something with lower temperature options, the Conair Instant Heat curling iron with precision temperature control may be a better choice.

However, those with thicker or coarser hair that doesn’t respond to anything below 400° anyway won’t have a problem with this curling iron set.

Safety

The safety features included are a convenient 60-minute auto shutoff and a heat-protective glove. Each wand also includes a larger than average cool tip so that you can hold the top of the curling iron comfortably without burning your fingers.

6. Most Beginner Friendly Curling Iron: InfinitiPro by Conair Curl Secret

Quick Facts:

• Barrel Material: Tourmaline Ceramic
• Barrel Size: 0.75”
• Max Temperature: 400°
• Type: Automatic Curler

This automatic curler for short to medium hair is a great pick for those who want to take the effort and hassle out of styling their hair. It offers a moderate amount of customizability but otherwise the styling process is almost entirely automated.

Barrel Size and Material

The smaller barrel size is ideal for short to medium hair and you can adjust the tightness of the curl by adjusting the time setting. So, those with shorter hair can create everything from glamorous curls to loose waves.

The inner barrel is coated with tourmaline and ceramic that helps reduce frizz and prevent static. So, you end up with a glossy, salon-perfect look without all the effort or expense that entails.

Heat and Styling Options

The curl secret model features an automatic curler and a beep alert when the hair is ready to be released. This makes it the most beginner-friendly and convenient design on the market. All you have to do is separate a 1” lock from the rest of your hair and let the curling iron do the rest.

A key drawback to this model is the lack of precision heat controls. You have just two heat settings available: high and low. There’s also no turbo or quick heat button for a fast blast of heat to add definition to your curls.

For those who need more precision control of the temperature, you might prefer the Hot Tools gold curling iron, which features a heating dial based on actual temperatures rather than vague “high” or “low” settings.

Safety

With the hot barrel safely tucked away inside the case of this automatic curler, your hands are kept away from the dangerous heating elements. There’s no heat protective glove included but there also is no need to use one.

It does have an auto-shutoff feature, though. This feature kicks in after it’s been on for 60 minutes or if it detects any tangling in your hair.

7. Best Curling Iron for Beachy Waves: Conair Instant Heat Curling Iron

Quick Facts:

• Barrel Material: Metal Alloy
• Barrel Size: 0.75”
• Max Temperature: 400°
• Type: Wand with Clip

This is an affordable curling iron that has all the features you need and enough customizability to feel like a professional tool. Its large barrel size is the perfect choice for those looking to get perfect beachy waves.

Barrel Size and Material

The metal alloy is a blend of chromium, nickel, copper, and steel. While these don’t get as hot as titanium, they do heat quickly. The brushed texture of the barrel also adds some grip so that your locks stay in place.

For those with really soft or recently-conditioned hair, trying to keep those slippery strands evenly wrapped around the barrel can be tough. That brushed metal texture makes it easier.

This barrel is 0.755” which is in the middle range of the spectrum you’ll be looking at for short hair. It’s best suited to creating gorgeous, multidimensional waves in above-the-shoulder hair. For tighter curls, Conair also offers this same curling iron with a 0.5”.

Heat and Styling Options

What sets this iron apart from the rest are the 25 heat settings and the turbo heat button. The highest setting is 400°, but the turbo heat button adds an additional 36° blast for extra definition on your curls when you need it.

One feature that is missing, however, is a temperature lock option. The placement of the buttons on the handle makes them easy to accidentally press while you’re styling. So, you need to be careful to avoid going too high or too low as you curl your hair.

If you’d prefer to skip that stress of worrying about accidental temperature changes, check out the Conair curling iron that has a temperature control feature.

Safety

There is a 60-minute auto-shutoff feature and a well-designed handle that keeps your hand far from the heat. However, this curling iron does not come with a glove, and the cool tip is a little on the short side. Fortunately, it’s a clip-style wand, so you have less of a need to hold your hand near the hot wand.

8. Best Curling Iron for Glamor Styles: Hot Tools Professional 24k Gold Regular Barrel Curling Iron