35 Gorgeous Highlights For Dark Brown Hair

Whether you’ve got natural espresso hair or a salon-fresh shade of rich chocolate, highlights for dark brown hair are the perfect way to punch up your sultry strands without going for a lighter color all-over. With so many different shades and highlighting techniques, it seems like there are an infinite number of ways to enhance your dark locks with contrasting colors. We’ve combed through the latest trends to gather 35 of the best highlights for dark brown hair, giving you tons of high-quality hair color options to go crazy for.

An incredibly subtle touch of chestnut ombre highlights Kerry Washington’s dark brown hair in a luxurious yet natural way.

Bold balayage highlights in a warm caramel shade bring a dramatic color contrast when paired with a dark brown base color. If you love high-drama hair color that won’t have you fading into the background, this is an incredible hair color style for any season.

Thin ribbons of golden blonde highlight the outermost layer of this rich, dark brown hair color. Try this style out if you’re looking for maximum impact highlights on a budget, or if you’d like to add some depth to your style with minimal lightening.

Highlighting your intense, black-brown hair with a medium brown balayage adds depth and dimension in the most sophisticated way. Try this option if you’ve been looking for a nice starter highlight that won’t make you look drastically different.

These dusty rose balayage highlights make for a perfect accent over a dark brown base shade, proving that trendy rose gold hair color isn’t only for blondes.

One of the latest hair color techniques, hair strobing aims to highlight your hair in areas where light would naturally hit, and is often referred to as “contouring for hair”. This style shows how a bold color contrast between dark brown hair and ash blonde highlights can look effortless and natural thanks to the strobing technique.

Medium auburn balayage brings a perfect pop of warm color to a dark brown base color with hints of red in it. If you’d like to wear dark brown hair with a very light complexion, these highlights can help to soften the style, and do an excellent job of making green eyes stand out.

Jessica Biel has one of the most enviable heads of hair in Hollywood, with luscious locks that are always on point in terms of both cut and color. These warm caramel highlights create the perfect accent for her natural dark brown hair, and bring out the glowy color in her warm, medium skin tone.

The tiger’s eye hair color trend aims to mimic the rich brown and yellow hues seen in the polished gemstone of the same name. While some color trends can be hard to translate into the real world, especially for anyone with a more laid back personal style, tiger’s eye is completely doable in anyone’s everyday life. This color trend will warm up your dark brown base color with golden browns and blondes, and won’t look like a worn-out fad a few months from now.

Transitioning from dark brown roots to medium and then light blonde, this blonde ombre color melt will completely transform your hair color style.

If you’ve got cool undertones in your skin, these ash blonde highlights might look more natural against your complexion than warmer golden shades. If you’re interested in all-over highlights that begin close to your roots, this color matching with skin tone can make the difference between “so-so” and “so amazing”.

This deep shade of maroon walks a fine line between natural and unnatural looking hair color. It might not occur in nature, but it doesn’t look so out there that professional workplaces would say no to the deep red shade.

Some women find that lighter, warmer hair colors are more flattering against their skin as they age, and these highlights are a great way to take advantage without going completely blonde. These dramatic highlights create a blonde curtain on either side of the face that helps to bridge the gap between a lighter skin tone and dark brown hair.

If your dark brown hair has lots of red tones in it, auburn highlights offer up a natural-looking way to warm up your style. Consider this a softer, less intense version of the pumpkin spice and tiger’s eye hair color trends.