Madison Reed

Madison Reed is an at-home, permanent hair dye brand that claims to give you beautiful, natural hair color without harsh chemical additives like ammonia, parabens, resorcinol, PPD, phthalates, and gluten.

Amy Errett founded this hair-dye company after she discovered that the European Union mandated stricter safety policies for home-hair dye than US companies and sought to bring a similar option to the United States.

Today, the company claims to put you and your hair health first by creating healthy, cruelty-free hair care products that leave your hair in better shape than possible with other dyes.

Does this home-hair dye company offer something different than other brands, and is it safe for your hair in the long run? Learn from our analysis whether you’re really getting everything that the brand claims to offer.

Shopping Process

With their product line, Madison Reed home hair dye promises to deliver multi-dimensional color with complete gray coverage.

The company offers more than 50 shades, each of which is purportedly blended with multiple tones to create natural-looking hair coloring.

When you first get on Madison Reed’s website, you’ll answer a series of hair-related questions, including ones about your hair’s thickness and natural texture.

You can also select up to two hair goals like “restore hydration,” “reduce brassiness,” “tame frizz,” and more. Finally, you’ll specify your skin tone, eye color, and whether your hair is currently dyed.

The next step is to select the closest match to your current hair color and specify how much hard-to-cover gray you have. You’ll then share whether you are looking to lighten or darken your current hair color.

At the end of this quiz, Madison Reed will recommend a hair color for you. You can compare online pictures of the color and even upload your own to see how it would look on you. If it’s not your favorite, you can virtually try similar shades to find a better fit.

How to Use Madison Reed Hair Dye

Using Madison Reed hair dye is similar to the dyeing process for any home coloring kit. If you recently chemically treated your hair, it’s best to wait two weeks before coloring. Make sure also that it’s been at least a full day since you shampooed it.

It’s best to do a strand test first to figure out the right timing for your preferred shade. Take a quarter-inch section of underlying hair and tie it off with an elastic band.

Mix one part of the Radiant Cream Color with 1.5 parts Conditioning Color Activator and coat the whole strand. Check the coloring after 35 minutes, and wait longer, up to 45, for a deeper color that better covers any grays.

After you figure out your best timing, you can divide your hair into four sections, using clips to secure them. Color each part individually, using up to half a bottle of the Radiant Cream Color and Color Activator on your roots and combing it down to the ends.

Leave the dye in for as long as desired before washing out the product with the Color Protecting Shampoo and Conditioner.

Note that the Radiant Cream Color is a permanent formula that can stain surfaces and towels. Wipe away any spills immediately and make sure your shower water rinses clear before toweling off your hair. It’s also best to avoid light-colored towels for the first few shampoos afterward.

Analysis of Ingredients

Each purchase of permanent hair dye from Madison Reed includes seven products. Below are the top five ingredients within each (excluding water).

• Radiant Cream Color: stearyl alcohol, propylene glycol, ethanolamine, cetyl alcohol, ceteareth-25, cocamide mea.

• Color Activator: Hydrogen Peroxide, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Propylene Glycol, Dimethicone

• Barrier Cream: Mineral Oil, Glycerin, Pvp, Peg-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Stearic Acid

• Cleansing Wipes: Isopropyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Polysorbate 20, Sodium Cocyl Glutamate, Sodium Lauryl Glutamate

• Color-Protecting Shampoo: Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethionate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice

• Color-Protecting Conditioner: Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearyl Alcohol, Polyquaternium-7, Behentrimonium Chloride

• Pro Boost Seal: Distearoylethyl Dimonium Chloride, Parfum, Isopentyldiol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitol

What can we learn from these ingredients? To start, most act as moisturizers, emollients, agents to help hair accept hair dye, and as nourishing and restoration agents for post-treatment care.

Hydrogen Peroxide is Madison Reed’s main ingredient for lightening hair. It works as a permanent dye to change the hair’s cortex, which is the part responsible for its pigment.

This colorless chemical is considered safe for skin and hair, though it can lead to irritation if you get it near your eyes or breath any in. Likewise, using peroxide will damage your hair’s cuticle, which can lead to breakage and split ends if you don’t deep condition soon after.

What’s also noteworthy are the ingredients that Madison Reed products don’t contain. These include ammonia, PPD, resorcinol, parabens, phthalates, gluten, SLS, and titanium dioxide, which are common in other hair dye kits. This may benefit you in many ways.

First, ammonia is a common hair dye ingredient because it prepares each strand to accept new color pigment. However, it can cause irritation when making direct contact with your skin, especially on the scalp, and the dyeing process often produces ammonia vapors that can irritate your eyes, throat, and even cause breathing problems. It also damages each strand and leads to dryness and frizz.

Likewise, resorcinol is a common ingredient in hair dyes and acne medication because it can break up tough patches of skin and prep hair to accept hair dye. There’s a serious concern that overexposure can negatively affect the nervous system and endocrine system. You’re more likely to be at risk as a hairstylist than someone who dyes their hair every few weeks.

Possible Side Effects

Despite the company’s claims of an all-natural formulation, there are several ingredients in Madison Reed products that are associated with adverse side effects. These include the following:

Propylene Glycol: This synthetic liquid absorbs water and is used in many industrial products, from deicing solutions to pharmaceutical products. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry, some people experience skin irritation from using it.

Cocamide Mea: Derived from coconut oil, this chain of fatty acids is often added to cosmetic ingredients to boost foam and increase viscosity. Though there’s little risk associated with using it on the skin at low concentrations, research from the International Journal of Toxicity found is can create a highly toxic vapor.

Cocamidopropyl Betaine: Common in cosmetics and personal hygiene products, this synthetic detergent was named the American Contact Dermatitis Society’s Allergen of the Year in 2004 because of its ability to cause mild skin irritation.

Behentrimonium Chloride: used as a conditioning agent in hair care products, behentrimonium chloride is considered safe at concentrations between 1–5% but can cause skin irritation when used at higher concentrations or when left on the skin for a long time.

One notable ingredient that didn’t make the top five is ethanolamine. Madison Reed uses it as a substitute for ammonia and states that it gives users “pleasant, predictable results”.

However, research indicates that this ingredient (along with hydrogen peroxide) can damage hair more than ammonia and even lead to hair loss. This is a symptom many Madison Reed customers complained about.

Overall, with the exception of ethanolamine, none of these ingredients are very concerning for the average user. Unless you are using Madison Reed products in ways other than how they are designed, or you have extra sensitive skin, you should be able to use these products without risking any negative side effects.

Pricing

All Madison Reed permanent hair dye kits cost $26.50 for a one-time order, plus $6 shipping.

Along with your choice of hair dye, you can also purchase an optional professional color tool kit for $33, which includes the necessary supplies for a home dye job, including hair clips, a comb, mixing bowl, and a 4-oz color reviving gloss.

You can save money per batch by signing up for the company’s auto-enrollment program. This brings the cost down to $22 per order, and you will receive a shampoo and conditioner welcome gift with the first delivery, valued at $39.

The default delivery period is every four weeks, but you can adjust to anything from every two to every eight. Note that you will still pay the $6 shipping costs per order.

You can cancel your subscription at any point without penalty through your online account.

The company also offers a 100% money-back guarantee. If you don’t love your hair color, Madison Reed will connect you with a professional hairstylist for a consultation so you can figure out what to do next. If you still aren’t happy, they will refund the cost of your first box.

You can return unopened products for a refund within 30-days of purchase by writing “return to sender” on the unopened package and sending it back through the mail.

For more guidance, contact customer service at (800) 463-3339.

Madison Reed vs. Popular Alternatives

For those seeking an ammonia-free at-home hair dye system, other options to consider besides Madison Reed include Naturtint and Garnier Olia. Here’s how they compare to each other:

This chart highlights a few facts. First, Madison Reed costs twice as much as many competing brands, though it contains similar active ingredients.

You get more shades to choose from with Madison Reed, but Naturtint permits you to blend shades together to get your perfect hue. Note: buying more than one dye kit will bring the cost closer to Madison Reed.

None of these brands shared specifics about how long you can expect the color to last in your hair. That depends more on your personal hair type and lifestyle factors – like how often you shampoo your hair – than the dye itself.

Choosing which brand is best for you might come down to how you like to shop. If you don’t mind going to the drug store whenever you need more dye, Naturtint and Garnier Olia should be easy to find, and you won’t have to pay for shipping. This also allows you to compare the colors in person rather than over a screen.

Madison Reed’s subscription program, in contrast, will appeal to those who know exactly how often they need to treat their hair and want to automate the process.

Analysis of Customer Reviews

More than 30 HighYa readers have left reviews for Madison Reed, and these average 1.9 stars, with just 17% saying they would recommend the brand to a friend. You can also read over 20,000 reviews on Ulta, where this hair dye line averages four stars.

What are these reviewers really saying? Here’s a summary of their comments:

Common Compliments:

• Great, long-lasting hair color
• Salon-quality results but at a lower price
• Excellent grey hair coverage

Common Complaints:

• Some users were left with an itchy scalp
• Company has reduced product size
• Some users experienced hair loss
• Color didn’t last long
• Poor customer service experiences due to late shipments and long hold times
• Hair dye wasn’t true to color

The Bottom Line: Is Madison Reed Worth It?

Madison Reed promises its customers an all-natural at-home hair dye solution that will leave them with their dream color. Some seem to think it delivers on this goal, but many others were left unsatisfied with their hair’s final result.

Overall, permanently dying your hair is an invasive process that’s bound to have some unwanted consequences, regardless of your product formulation.

Madison Reed customers have complained about itchy skin, damaged hair, and even hair loss after a home treatment, which is also the most common hair dye critiques for formulas with ammonia.

So, while Madison Reed may be one way to get great hair color at home, we think it’s misguided to think the company’s formula will do much to protect your hair compared to traditional home kits.

As with all hair dyes, aftercare can be even more critical than the brand you pick. Make sure to treat your hair with a high-quality conditioner regularly to treat any damage and keep your hair looking healthy.