How to Safely Lighten or Highlight Hair with Lemon Juice

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An easy guide to naturally lightening your hair and avoiding damage
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Lemon juice has long been used as a natural hair lightener and can be very effective. After you create your lemon juice solution and apply it to your hair, you have to expose your hair to sunlight, so don’t forget your sunscreen! You will likely see subtle results after about an hour of exposure, and more pronounced lightening after multiple sessions. Read our complete guide to learn how to lighten your hair with lemon juice, how to care for your hair post-treatment, and what side effects you might experience.

Using Lemon Juice to Lighten Hair

Squeeze fresh juice from two lemons into a cup. Add two parts water for one part lemon juice and a little leave-in conditioner. Put it in a spray bottle and spritz all over your hair. Expose your hair to direct sunlight for one hour. Wash the lemon juice out and deep condition to restore moisture.

Section 1 of 6:

Applying Lemon Juice to Hair

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  1. Cut each lemon in half with a sharp knife, then remove the seeds with the tip of the knife. Squeeze each half into a bowl or measuring cup. You may need slightly more or less juice, depending on the length of your hair. [1]
    • One regular-sized lemon contains about two to three tablespoons of juice. [2]
    • If you don’t want to squeeze fresh lemons, use pure bottled lemon juice instead. It might have less acidity than fresh-squeezed juice, however, decreasing the lightening effect. [3]
  2. Transfer the lemon juice into a clean spray bottle. Add two parts water for one part lemon juice. To protect your hair, add a small amount of leave-in conditioner to the bottle—about one tablespoon worth. Replace the nozzle and give the bottle a good shake to mix the ingredients together. [4]
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  3. “You need sun exposure for lemon juice to lighten and brighten hair,” explains professional hair stylist Gina Almona. [5] Make sure that your skin is protected from harmful UVA and UVB rays. Slather a good sunscreen with a minimum of SPF 45 all over your face and body. [6]
    • Bring the bottle of sunscreen with you outside, and reapply it if you sweat or go swimming.
  4. To lighten all your hair, spray the mixture from scalp to ends. Then, give your hair a few light brushes to distribute the lemon juice mixture. Make sure your hair is damp, but not soaked.
    • If you just want to lighten your roots or tips, concentrate the spray on those areas only. [7]
    • For an ombre look, concentrate the spray on the bottom half of your hair near the ends.
  5. Saturate a cotton ball with the lemon juice mixture, then slide the cotton ball down the specific strands you want to highlight. This will create natural highlighted streaks. Keep track of which strands you're working on, since you'll need several sessions to achieve significant results.
    • To make sure you don't double treat the same strands and forget to treat others, wrap aluminum foil around the strands you've already saturated with juice.
    • If you don’t have cotton balls, apply the juice to specific strands with a clean spoolie . [8]
  6. Head outside for a couple of hours so the sunlight can activate the citric acid in the lemon juice, which creates the lightening effects. As the mixture dries on your hair, it will start to feel hard and a bit crunchy. This is normal! Tousle it with your hand, but don’t try to brush through it at this point. [9]
  7. After 1-2 hours of sunlight exposure, head back inside. Hop in the shower and rinse the mixture out of your hair thoroughly. After rinsing, saturate your hair from root to tip with a quality deep conditioner . [10] Leave it on for about 10 minutes (or however long the product specifies), then rinse again.
  8. After the first session, you will already start to notice very subtle lightening effects. If your hair is still feeling a bit dry, apply a moisturizing product like a hydrating styling cream . You can also use a small amount of leave-in conditioner on the ends and to tame fly-aways.
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Section 2 of 6:

What Results to Expect

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  1. Lightening with lemon juice is a process; it takes several sessions to get noticeable effects. Apply the lightening lemon juice mixture on three or four different occasions, waiting about two weeks between each session to minimize damage. [11]
    • Rinse and deep condition your hair well after each session.
    • After three or four sessions, give your hair a break for several weeks. The lightening effects will be subtle but permanent, so work in stages.
  2. It may take a few sessions before you notice highlights or overall lightening and it will usually be about one shade lighter than your starting color. The effects are most pronounced if you have blonde or dark blonde hair. Red hair will gain golden highlights from lemon juice. If you began with brunette or black hair, you may see minimal or no results, unfortunately. [12]
    • Lemon juice doesn’t work well with dark hair. To lighten dark hair, consider going to the salon and having your hair lightened by a professional.
    • If you have black or extremely dark hair, be careful—sometimes lemon juice can make darker shades look brassy (orange-ish). Monitor the color after every session.
  3. 3
    Keep in mind the color change is permanent. The effects of lemon juice on your hair color are permanent—they won't fade away over time. To get rid of lightened hair, cut and re-grow out your hair in your natural color. Or, dye your hair at home or at the salon to darken it.
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Section 3 of 6:

Potential Risks

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  1. Lightening your hair with lemon juice can cause dryness and breakage. Although it’s natural, the acidity of lemon juice combined with excess exposure to the sun’s UV rays can dehydrate and damage your hair. [13] If you do too many lightening treatments, or stay in the sun too long, your hair may become dry and frizzy or experience breakage. [14]
    • “Lemon is very acidic. It can be extremely drying to the hair because it could severely open the cuticle [...] causing porosity, which is the ability to absorb. Porosity makes it tangle and get really rough and dry,” warns master cosmetologist Shun Pittman. [15]
    • Prevent damage by immediately rinsing out the lemon juice, only spending one to two hours in the sun, and deep conditioning after every treatment.
    • Take breaks between lightening sessions to give your hair time to recover.
Section 4 of 6:

Adding Other Hair Lighteners

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  1. Boil one cup of water. Add two chamomile tea bags and let them steep for 10 minutes. Remove the bags and add the tea to the lemon mixture in your spray bottle. Use this spray exactly the same way as before. [16]
    • Chamomile tea works best on light brown or blonde hair.
    • While chamomile is more gentle than other natural lighteners like vinegar or baking soda, its effects are very subtle. [17] Expect a low-key lift of your hair color or an enhancement of your natural highlights.
  2. Cinnamon is a natural lightening agent and may enhance the effects of your lemon juice spray. [18] Create a fresh batch of the lemon mixture, then add about a teaspoon of ground cinnamon to the spray bottle. Shake well and apply as you normally would. [19]
    • Cinnamon may add red undertones to blonde hair, producing more of a strawberry blonde. [20] Do a test strand before spraying your whole hair to see how it affects your hair.
  3. Honey is a natural lightener that can also help condition your hair. This is because it contains a small amount of hydrogen peroxide. [21] After you’ve made your lemon juice mixture and transferred it to the spray bottle, add a small squirt of honey. Replace the nozzle and give it a good shake. Proceed as your normally would. [22]
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Section 5 of 6:

How does lemon juice lighten your hair?

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  1. With sun exposure, the citric acid in lemon juice lightens hair. Think of lemon juice as a natural bleach. The sun’s rays already lighten your hair naturally, but the citric acid in lemon juice amplifies the lightening effect by opening the hair’s cuticles when exposed to heat. [23]
Section 6 of 6:

Frequently Asked Questions

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  1. 1
    How long does it take for lemon juice to lighten hair? It takes three to four individual one-hour treatments in the sun for noticeable lightening to occur. If you have blonde or dark blonde hair, you’ll likely see results sooner than if you have brunette or darker hair. However, each individual lightening session produces subtle results.
  2. 2
    How does lemon juice compare to Sun In and other products? Sun In and similar products use hydrogen peroxide and other lightening agents to oxidize the melanin in your hair, making it lighten. While such products lighten your hair more than lemon juice can, they may be slightly more damaging because their lightening agents are more powerful than citric acid. [24]
  3. 3
    What are the benefits of using lemon juice on hair? The acidic nature of lemon juice can possibly improve your scalp’s pH balance to reduce itchiness and dryness. Because lemons have antifungal properties, lemon juice can also help treat the skin condition that results in dandruff. [25]
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Expert Q&A

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  • Question
    Can lemon juice ruin your hair?
    Laura Martin
    Licensed Cosmetologist
    Laura Martin is a Licensed Cosmetologist based in Milledgeville, Georgia. She has been working as a hair stylist since 2007, and began a career as a cosmetology teacher in 2013. She worked as a teacher at Arrojo Cosmetology School, teaching cosmetology practices, hairstyling, and hair color application. She also brought her cosmetology expertise to her work as a staff writer for fashion blog Style Noted, writing pieces related to hair and fashion. She received an MFA in Creative Writing from Georgia College & State University, where she was also an English Teaching Fellow. Additionally, she received a BA in Creative Writing and Literature from New York University.
    Laura Martin
    Licensed Cosmetologist
    Expert Answer
    Using lemon juice too frequently can dry your hair out, but it won't cause permanent damage. For best results, always condition your hair after applying lemon juice.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
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  • Question
    Can lemon juice grow your hair?
    Laura Martin
    Licensed Cosmetologist
    Laura Martin is a Licensed Cosmetologist based in Milledgeville, Georgia. She has been working as a hair stylist since 2007, and began a career as a cosmetology teacher in 2013. She worked as a teacher at Arrojo Cosmetology School, teaching cosmetology practices, hairstyling, and hair color application. She also brought her cosmetology expertise to her work as a staff writer for fashion blog Style Noted, writing pieces related to hair and fashion. She received an MFA in Creative Writing from Georgia College & State University, where she was also an English Teaching Fellow. Additionally, she received a BA in Creative Writing and Literature from New York University.
    Laura Martin
    Licensed Cosmetologist
    Expert Answer
    Lemon juice can lighten your hair but is not known to increase growth. For a natural hair-growth stimulant, add collagen to your diet or massage your scalp with tea tree oil.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
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  • Question
    Will the effects ever go away?
    Ashley Adams
    Professional Hair Stylist
    Ashley Adams is a Licensed Cosmetologist and Hair Stylist in Illinois. She completed her Cosmetology education at John Amico School of Hair Design in 2016.
    Ashley Adams
    Professional Hair Stylist
    Expert Answer
    As mentioned in the article, dyeing your hair with lemon juice is permanent. You'll have to grow out your hair for it to go away.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
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      Tips

      • If you apply the juice to only your natural highlights, you will get streaks. If you saturate your whole head, it will lighten with full coverage.
        Thanks
        Helpful 38 Not Helpful 5
      • Be patient! You will need to do this several times to see a big difference.
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      • For kids and young teens who want to lighten their hair with lemon juice, ask an adult or guardian for help.
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      Tips from our Readers

      The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
      • Deep condition your hair weekly when using lemon juice to combat dryness. Also, trim your split ends after finishing the process. Consider safer lighteners like Sun-In, which works well with blow drying instead of sun exposure. Either way, space out treatments to limit hair damage.
      • If you carefully follow directions, DIY lemon lightening is usually quite safe. Know your hair's limits, don't overdo treatments, and take proper precautions. Sun-In is still readily available in stores, too. It works similarly but may create less damage.
      • When applying lemon juice to just the bottom layers for ombre coloring, concentrate on the last 5 inches or so. Mix one lemon's worth with water and conditioner, sit out for 1-2 hours max, then rinse. You'll end up with beautiful, subtle highlights.
      • Heads up — lemon lightening can sometimes turn brown hair slightly brassy. This happens when the acidity strips out green and yellow pigments, leaving a subtle red tone. However, this is temporary and will wash out over time.
      • To safely strip stubborn green chlorine stains from hair, add lemon juice to your regular shampoo and wash as normal. Rinse thoroughly. It brightens color beautifully, but avoid overuse to prevent damage.
      • For a subtle ombre look, put clean hair in a ponytail, then dip only the ends into lemon juice. The lighter tips create a fun, summery style. Just don't leave the juice on too long to prevent brassiness.
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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/beauty/hair/a33209588/how-to-lighten-hair/
      2. ↑ https://www.allrecipes.com/article/how-much-juice-is-in-one-lemon/
      3. ↑ https://livingthenourishedlife.com/how-to-naturally-lighten-hair/
      4. ↑ https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/lemon-juice-in-hair
      5. ↑ Gina Almona. Professional Hair Stylist. Expert Interview. 12 February 2021.
      6. ↑ https://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-prevention/sun-protection/sunscreen/
      7. ↑ https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/lemon-juice-in-hair
      8. ↑ https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/beauty/hair/a33209588/how-to-lighten-hair/
      9. ↑ https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/lemon-juice-in-hair
      1. ↑ https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/beauty/hair/a33209588/how-to-lighten-hair/
      2. ↑ https://youtu.be/6geWDix5ALw?t=146
      3. ↑ https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/lemon-juice-in-hair
      4. ↑ https://health.clevelandclinic.org/best-ways-to-protect-your-hair-from-sun-damage
      5. ↑ https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/lemon-juice-in-hair
      6. ↑ Shun Pittman. Master Cosmetologist, Global Salon Educator & Author. Expert Interview. 11 May 2021.
      7. ↑ https://youtu.be/6geWDix5ALw?t=230
      8. ↑ https://www.elle.com/beauty/hair/a27257537/how-to-naturally-lighten-hair/
      9. ↑ https://www.tymestyle.com/blogs/lifetyme-blog/your-ultimate-guide-on-how-to-lighten-hair-without-bleach
      10. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pg4-OV1v7Y8
      11. ↑ https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/beauty/hair/a33209588/how-to-lighten-hair/
      12. ↑ https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3504486/
      13. ↑ https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/beauty/hair/a33209588/how-to-lighten-hair/
      14. ↑ https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/lemon-juice-in-hair
      15. ↑ https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/how-to-lighten-hair-at-home
      16. ↑ https://www.goodnature.com/juice-archives/does-lemon-juice-lighten-your-hair

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      To lighten your hair with lemon juice, first mix together 2 parts water and 1 part lemon juice. If you have dry hair, you can use 3 parts lemon juice and 1 part leave-in conditioner instead. Pour the mixture into a spray bottle. Then, wet your hair so it's damp, but not soaked. Spritz the lemon juice mixture into your hair, then go outside in the sun for 1-2 hours to activate the citric acid in the lemon juice and lighten your hair. Make sure you wear sunscreen! Finally, wash your hair with shampoo and conditioner to remove the lemon juice, and enjoy your new sun-kissed hair. If you have dry hair, keep reading to learn how to use lemon juice without harming your hair.

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