20 Brown to Blonde Ombre Ideas for Dimension and Depth

Brown to blonde ombre color is one of the most versatile looks out there. It’s trendy, low maintenance, and universally flattering on all skin tones and hair types.

If you’re stuck on which shades of brown and blonde to use in your ombre, we’ve got you covered! Check out 20 gorgeous brown to blonde ombre ideas in our jam-packed photo guide. 

What Is Brown to Blonde Ombre Color?

• Features brown tones at the roots with blonde tones in the lower portion
• Smooth, blended color graduation from brown to blonde 
• Use 2+ colors, different color placement, and unique shades to tweak the look

Brown to blonde ombre color is one of our favorite looks right now. If you love high-impact color with tons of dimension, depth, and a healthy dose of blonde, a brown-blonde ombre is going to be perfect. This type of color is a more-blended version of a brown to blonde balayage.

Brown to blonde ombre color features a brown hair color on top, usually reaching from the roots down to the midshaft zone. From there, a blonde shade takes over from the midshaft to ends with a smooth, blended transition zone between the two (or more!) shades. 

Your brown to blonde ombre color can be as subtle and natural or wild and high-contrast as you want. It all depends on the colors you choose, where you place and begin your blonde color, and how well-blended the transition zone is! 

Building Your Brown to Blonde Ombre Color

Brown to blonde ombre colors feature 2 or more shades of color for more dimensional looks. You can use a third transition color somewhere between your chosen brown and blonde shades to really blend that area out for a seamless look.

Or brighten up your chosen blonde to a very light level at the ends to bring in another shade! Other ways to tweak a brown to blonde ombre color to make it your own are choosing different color placements and hand-picking shades of brown and blonde that will look great on you. 

Your ombre color placement can change the overall look to make it more brown, more blonde, or roughly equal. You might like an ombre root melt, where the darker shade of brown dominates the root zone and a few inches below before a brighter blonde tone takes over. 

Or maybe a more subtle ombre look is more your style – think sweeping brown color all the way down to the bottom third of the hair, leaving only a small band of blonde near the ends.

Classic 50/50 ombre is always a gorgeous choice, with about half of the hair in your chosen brown shade and the lower half illuminated with blonde. Picking your brown and blonde shades is where the fun begins!

One easy trick to achieving a beautiful brown to blonde ombre is looking for shades that share similar undertones. For example, if you go with a rich chestnut brown as your base shade, you can mirror the auburn undertones in that color by going with a brighter strawberry or copper blonde in the lower portion of the ombre.

Highlight the golden undertones in milk chocolate brown by using a medium or light golden blonde at the ends. See the trend? Another thing to keep in mind when you’re picking out pretty ombre colors is the color temperature. 

Pairing warm shades together (like golden brown and honey blonde) is the most flattering option if you have warm undertones in your skin.

Cool ombre shades (like ash brown and champagne blonde) are perfect if your skin has cool undertones. The exception is when you’re using a neutral shade – a color that has both warm and cool undertones.

You can pair either a warm or cool blonde shade with a neutral brown and end up with beautiful results that won’t clash. Make sure to pick a blonde shade that suits your skin’s undertone for the best results. 

20 Gorgeous Brown to Blonde Ombre Ideas

You might think you’ve seen it all when it comes to brown to blonde ombre colors. But you haven’t seen these beautifully blended color ideas yet! 

From classic medium brown and light blonde looks to edgy, high-contrast dark browns and light blondes and everything in between, you’re about to find an ombre color that speaks to you. 

1. Chestnut Brown to Dark Copper Blonde Ombre

There are so many variations of beautiful blonde shades to use in ombre looks with rich, warm browns like chestnut. Since chestnut brown has a red undertone, it blends nicely with a deep copper blonde tone from the midshaft to ends. 

2. Medium Chestnut Brown and Strawberry Blonde Ombre

Love how rich and radiant red tones look in brown and blonde colors? Then you’ve got to try a nutty, auburn-tinged chestnut brown with a bright and cheery strawberry blonde.

This is a really simple ombre look with chestnut tones reaching the midshaft and gradually-lightened strawberry blonde with copper undertones through the ends. 

3. Coffee Brown to Champagne Blonde With Ribbon Lights

You can bring additional dimension up through a brown to blonde ombre with ribbon lights that brighten up the root zone. A rich coffee brown color blends out into a light champagne blonde color with both warm and cool undertones for a high-contrast color that still keeps maintenance to a minimum. 

4. Espresso and Platinum Blonde Ombre

Go ultra-bright with platinum blonde as the bottom color in an espresso brown ombre! It’s a high-contrast look that suits cooler undertones well and gives you a blonde overall look without the headache of maintenance platinum blonde usually requires. 

5. Neutral Brown and Medium Golden Blonde Ombre

Paying close attention to the transition areas is the secret to nailing gorgeous ombre color that looks lavish. The medium golden blonde tones rise up into the neutral brown shade with feathery sweeps of color to keep the transition soft. 

6. Espresso Brown to Ash Blonde Ombre Melt

Making ombre color look a little more artful and blended with colors that appear to flow and melt into each other requires a stylist with serious skill – if you haven’t already, find one!

A neutral espresso brown tone at the roots and just below moves into a cool ash brown tone around the midshaft, lightening up to silvery ash blonde in the bottom portion. 

7. Milk Chocolate to Butterscotch Blonde Ombre

Two rich, warm colors – milk chocolate brown and deep honey blonde – make a gorgeous ombre color pairing with an auburn-tinged light brown transition color. Curls with big volume help smooth the color graduation and give this look a lot of texture.

8. Dark Mocha and Marigold Blonde Ombre

Bright yellow-toned blondes are super trendy right now and this marigold shade fits right in. If you like high-contrast ombre colors, you won’t be able to resist how a dark mocha brown looks with sparkling marigold blonde painted in the bottom third of the look! 

9. Mahogany to Strawberry Blonde Ombre

Unique ombre color combos are our favorite. Sometimes you find looks you never would’ve considered putting together that just…work!

This mahogany brown with violet and red undertones paired with coppery strawberry blonde is a great example. Light chestnut brown fills in as a transition color for smooth color graduation. 

10. Light Brown and Honey Blonde Ombre

Starting off with light brown tones at the roots and deepest portion of the ombre gives you a more subtle color overall with less of a color level difference between the brown and blonde ombre. Here, light honey blonde tones brighten the midshaft and ends of the look with a sun-kissed look. 

11. Cafe Noir to Caramel Blonde Ombre

Rich, dark, and almost black, cafe noir is a sumptuous color that brings instant depth to any ombre look. It looks best with darker blonde tones, and this toasty warm caramel blonde is absolutely perfect to pair with it. 

12. Medium Ash Brown and Golden Blonde Ombre

Ash brown has cool, silvery undertones that are typically paired with a cool-toned blonde in ombre looks. Here, we see a unique color pairing with warm golden blonde tones at the ends. It’s unexpected and works really well to bring a bit of warmth into cool or neutral skin tones. 

13. Milk Chocolate to Medium Golden Blonde Ombre

Two mid-level shades (milk chocolate brown and medium golden blonde) will always give you a good brown to blonde ombre. The contrast isn’t too stark or subtle and the overall warmth of this look is ideal for skin with warm undertones.

14. Milk Chocolate, Copper, and Honey Blonde Ombre Melt

Milk chocolate brown, copper red, and honey blonde seamlessly melt together in this 3-toned ombre look. Starting with a medium shade of warm brown, banding warm copper around the midshaft, and flowing out into a medium honey blonde through the ends gives this color a luxe look. 

15. Light Brown and Golden Blonde Ombre

Light brown color dominates the majority of this look, but the brighter golden blonde shines through at the ends and manages to steal the show. This low-maintenance look is a great way to brighten up a light brown color without all-over highlights. 

16. Medium Brown to Pearly Warm Blonde Ombre

Medium brown tones are perfect for transitioning into a lighter, pearlescent blonde color for extra contrast and brightness. The blonde color is swept up gently into the midshaft to keep the color transition smooth and feathery. 

17. Dark Chocolate to Butterscotch Blonde Ombre

Bringing two wildly different colors together in an ombre color can be a challenge – you don’t want the transition line to be obvious, and you need to seamlessly blend the shades where they meet. This dark chocolate brown tone is met halfway with rich, medium butterscotch blonde color and both share warm undertones. 

18. Neutral Brown and Light Golden Blonde Root Melt Ombre

If you want your blonde to have the biggest impact, go bright and start the color transition a few inches off the roots. This leaves the look with less depth but a brighter and blonder overall color that’s still anchored with some richness at the roots. 

19. Espresso and Marigold Blonde Ombre With Ribbon Lights

Deep espresso brown is neutral with both warm and cool undertones, so it’s a great color to pair with a decidedly warm tone like marigold blonde. In this ombre look, the yellow-blonde color runs up just off the roots with medium-fine ribbon lights for more dimension. 

20. Light Brown, Dark Golden, and Light Golden Blonde Ombre Melt

Three colors give this look a well-blended effect and easily melt the different shades together for a cohesive, more natural finish. Light brown at the roots flows into dark golden blonde around the high midshaft zone. Light golden blonde takes over through the ends to illuminate the look. 

Tips and Things to Consider

Ombre hair color is definitely on trend and super-flattering when you pick out the right shades for your complexion. Ensuring you end up with a gorgeously blended multi-tone color you love is a lot easier when you keep the following things in mind! 

• Don’t try to DIY ombre color. Ombre color looks deceptively simple, but trust us – it’s not! You need to go to a skilled stylist or colorist to get luxe ombre color with a smooth gradient. Since brown to blonde ombre is a double process color, it requires dying the top section your chosen shade of brown then bleaching and toning the bottom blonde section to achieve the look you want. That’s a lot for a DIY job, so trust a pro instead. 
• Mind the transition zone. Ombre color hinges on the section where your shades of brown and blonde meet – a stark line will ruin the look. There are several ways to seamlessly blend out the colors so they blend and transition cleanly. Light, upward strokes with the bleach mixture will feather out the blonde into the brown shade nicely. Some stylists even use a toothbrush to really fade the colors out smoothly! 
• Know the maintenance requirements. Brown to blonde ombre color is much lower maintenance than all-over blonde and even blonde highlights because the lighter sections are done off-root for fewer touch-ups. But it’s not maintenance-free! You’ll still need to tone your blonde and have your brown roots touched up every 6-8 weeks for fresh-looking color. 
• Preserve your color longer at home. While you’ll need to hit the salon every few weeks to tone and touch-up your ombre color, you can take color preservation steps at home to help it last longer. Use purple shampoo on the blonde portion once or twice a week to neutralize brassy tones. In between toning shampoo sessions, use sulfate-free shampoo for colored hair to avoid stripping your brown and blonde color prematurely. Try to wash less often overall to keep your color vibrant! 
• Try cute hairstyles that accentuate your new color. Ombre color looks amazing in hairstyles that accentuate the color gradient and show off the different shades in the hair. French braids, easy updos, half-updos, and textured waves or curls will make your ombre color look gorgeous. Check out cute ideas here: 29 Long to Medium Length Hairstyles to Try in 2022.  

You can totally transform your hair with a vibrant brown base color that gradually transitions into a beautiful, shimmering blonde. The shades, color placement, and level of contrast are up to you, so drop your inhibitions and build a brown to blonde ombre color that feels like you.

You can start off with light, medium, or dark brown color on top and make it as warm, cool, or neutral as you want. Remember – if you want the most flattering result, pick shades that are the same color temperature as your skin’s undertone! 

Finish up with light, medium, or dark blonde color through the ends to make your ombre color sparkle and shine. Go with warm, toasty golden, strawberry, copper, or caramel blondes if your skin has a warm undertone.

Opt for cool, icy platinum, champagne, or ash blondes if your undertone is cool. We can’t think of a better way to rock sultry brunette tones alongside bubbly blonde than a brown to blonde ombre look.

Use the ideas in this guide for inspiration, but don’t be afraid to build a custom ombre color! Prepare for lots of compliments and a few copycats – that’s how you know you’re killing it with your new gradient color.