The ghd Air has been around for years. It's one of those dryers that hairdressers recognise by sight — black body, professional motor, the ghd branding that signals "this person takes their hair seriously." On paper, it ticks the right boxes: 2100W AC motor, ionic technology, 3m cord, variable controls. It sits at around £100-120, which puts it below the ghd Helios and well below the Dyson Supersonic Nural, but above the budget crowd.
The problem — and it's a big one — is the weight. At 1,540g, the ghd Air is comfortably the heaviest consumer hair dryer on the UK market. That's nearly 1.5kg you're holding above your head. It's heavier than some cordless drills. And it's the reason this dryer scores a 7 rather than an 8 or 9, because the motor and build quality genuinely deserve better.
Key Specs
| Spec | ghd Air |
|---|---|
| Wattage | 2100W |
| Motor type | AC (professional grade) |
| Weight | 1,540g |
| Cord length | 3m |
| Ionic technology | Yes |
| Temperature control | Variable |
| Power control | Variable |
| Attachments | Concentrator nozzle |
| Diffuser | Not included (~£29 separately) |
| Left/right-handed | Yes (ambidextrous design) |
| Removable air filter | Yes |
| Voltage | 220-240V (not dual voltage) |
| Guarantee | 1 year |
| Price (UK) | ~£100-120 |
| ASIN | B0CWH7H8GD |
What's Good
The AC motor is the real thing
This is what separates the ghd Air from most dryers under £150. An AC motor — the same type used in professional salon dryers — is built for endurance. Where a brushless DC motor (like the one in the ghd Helios) is designed to be lightweight and efficient, an AC motor is designed to run for hours on end without overheating or losing performance. If you're a mobile hairdresser, if you dry multiple family members' hair back to back, or if you simply want a motor that won't degrade over years of daily use, the AC motor is what you're paying for.
The 2100W output is strong enough to dry thick, shoulder-length hair in around ten minutes on the highest setting. It's not the fastest dryer out there — the Helios pushes 2200W — but the difference in real-world drying time is negligible.
Three-metre cord
It sounds like a small thing until you've lived with a short cord. The Remington D3198 has a 1.72m cord, which means most people end up hunched next to a socket or trailing an extension lead across the bathroom floor. The ghd Air's 3m cord reaches comfortably from any normal bathroom socket to wherever you want to stand. Once you've had a 3m cord, going back to 1.7m feels like a punishment.
Removable air filter
Hair, dust, and product residue clog dryer filters over time. A clogged filter restricts airflow, makes the motor work harder, and shortens the dryer's life. The ghd Air has a removable rear filter that you can pop off and clean in seconds. It's a small design choice that makes a genuine difference to long-term performance. Not every dryer has this — some have fixed filters that require disassembly or just get left to clog.
Variable power and temperature controls
Rather than fixed settings (low, medium, high), the ghd Air uses variable controls for both power and temperature. That gives you more granularity. If you have fine hair that burns easily, you can dial the heat down to something gentler without losing all airflow. If you want full blast on thick wet hair, you can have it. The combination of variable heat and variable power is more flexible than the two-heat, two-speed setup on the Helios.
Ambidextrous design
The ghd Air is designed to be comfortable in either hand. The controls, the balance, and the cable position all work whether you're left or right-handed. It's not a feature that gets mentioned often, but if you switch hands mid-dry (which most people with longer hair do), it matters.
What's Not
1,540g is absurd
There's no getting around this. The ghd Air weighs 1,540g. For context, the Remington D3198 weighs 575g. The ghd Helios weighs 780g. The Dyson Supersonic Nural weighs around 660g. The ghd Air is nearly three times heavier than the Remington and roughly double the Helios.
If you have thick or long hair and you're holding this dryer above your head for fifteen to twenty minutes, your arm will ache. That's not hyperbole — it's the most consistent complaint in customer reviews, and it's entirely justified. The AC motor is the reason for the weight, and the motor is genuinely good, but the trade-off is severe. This is a dryer that some people physically cannot use comfortably.
No diffuser included
The ghd Air ships with a concentrator nozzle only. If you have curly or wavy hair and you need a diffuser, ghd sells one separately for around £29. At a £100-120 price point, this feels stingy. The Remington D3198 at £25 includes both a diffuser and concentrator. Asking customers to spend another £29 on top of over £100 for an attachment that should arguably be in the box isn't a great look.
Only a 1-year guarantee
This is baffling. The Remington D3198 at a quarter of the price offers a 3-year guarantee (2 years standard, extended to 3 if registered). The ghd Helios comes with 2 years. The ghd Air, despite costing more than most of its competitors and having a motor designed for professional longevity, only gets 1 year. If the motor is genuinely built to last thousands of hours, ghd should back it with a longer guarantee. One year feels miserly.
It looks dated
This is subjective, but the ghd Air's design hasn't changed in a meaningful way for years. Next to the sleek Helios or the sculpted Dyson Supersonic, it looks like it belongs in a different era. The matte black body is fine, but the overall shape and proportions feel chunky and utilitarian. If you care about aesthetics — and a lot of people who buy ghd products do — the Air looks like it's been left behind by the rest of the range.
ghd Air vs ghd Helios
This is the comparison that matters most, because both dryers carry the ghd name and sit close enough in price that you're likely choosing between them.
| ghd Air | ghd Helios | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ~£100-120 | ~£130-155 |
| Weight | 1,540g | 780g |
| Motor | AC | Brushless DC |
| Wattage | 2100W | 2200W |
| Cord | 3m | 3m |
| Ionic | Yes | Yes |
| Temperature | Variable | 2 settings + cool shot |
| Guarantee | 1 year | 2 years |
The ghd Helios is half the weight. That single fact is enough to decide it for most people. For roughly £30 more, you get a dryer that doesn't make your arm ache, has a slightly higher wattage, a better guarantee, and a more modern design. The Helios's Aeroprecis nozzle is also a step up from the Air's standard concentrator in terms of directional control.
The Air wins on motor durability and variable controls. If you're a hairdresser running a dryer eight hours a day, the AC motor's endurance matters. The variable heat and power controls give you finer adjustment than the Helios's two fixed settings. But for someone drying their own hair at home a few times a week, the Helios is the better buy in almost every way.
Honestly, the Helios has made the Air a harder sell. The weight penalty is too steep for what you gain in motor lifespan, especially at home-use levels.
ghd Air vs Remington D3198
This is a value question. The Remington D3198 costs around £25. The ghd Air costs four to five times that.
| ghd Air | Remington D3198 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ~£100-120 | ~£25-35 |
| Weight | 1,540g | 575g |
| Motor | AC | Standard |
| Wattage | 2100W | 2200W |
| Cord | 3m | 1.72m |
| Diffuser | Sold separately (~£29) | Included |
| Concentrator | Included | Included |
| Ionic | Yes | Yes |
| Heat settings | Variable | 3 fixed |
| Guarantee | 1 year | 3 years (if registered) |
The Remington wins on weight, price, attachments, and guarantee. The ghd Air wins on cord length, motor quality, ionic output, and variable controls. In daily use, the Air produces a noticeably smoother finish — the ionic output is stronger and the variable controls let you fine-tune the heat in a way the Remington's three fixed settings don't allow. The 3m cord versus 1.72m is a genuine quality-of-life improvement.
But you're paying roughly £80-90 more for those differences, and the Remington still dries hair well. If you use a dryer a few times a week and you aren't bothered about cord length, the D3198 does the core job for a fraction of the cost.
Who Should Buy the ghd Air
Buy it if: you're a professional hairdresser or you dry multiple people's hair regularly. The AC motor is built for that level of use, and the 3m cord, variable controls, and strong ionic output make it a proper working tool. It's also worth considering if you've already decided you want a ghd but can't stretch to the Helios — the Air is the cheaper entry point into the brand, and it'll outlast most dryers at this price.
Think twice if: you have fine arms, wrist problems, or shoulder issues. 1,540g is a lot to hold overhead. Also think twice if you need a diffuser — adding £29 on top of the dryer price pushes the total close to Helios territory, where you'd be getting a lighter dryer with a longer guarantee.
Skip it if: you're buying for home use and comfort matters to you. The ghd Helios does the same job at half the weight for about £30 more. Or skip it entirely and grab the Remington D3198 at £25 if you don't dry your hair every day and don't care about the brand name.
The Verdict
The ghd Air is a good dryer held back by its weight. The AC motor is genuinely durable, the 3m cord is practical, the variable controls are useful, and the ionic output smooths hair better than anything else under £120. It's the kind of dryer that'll still be running fine five years from now, long after cheaper options have burned out.
But 1,540g is too heavy for comfortable home use. The ghd Helios does the same job at half the weight, with a longer guarantee, for £30 more. Unless you specifically need an AC motor for professional-level endurance, the Helios is the better ghd in 2026. And if budget is the main concern, the Remington D3198 gets you 80% of the way there for a fifth of the price.
The Air isn't a bad dryer. It's a good dryer from a different era, when weight wasn't the priority it is now. For the right user — someone who values motor longevity above all else — it still makes sense. For everyone else, the market has moved on.
Browse all hair dryers we track on Amazon UK to compare live prices, or read our full best hair dryer UK roundup for more options.
ghd Air: Frequently Asked Questions
Is the ghd Air worth buying in 2026?
It depends on what you need. The ghd Air has a genuine salon-grade AC motor, a 3m cord, variable controls, and ionic technology — all solid. But at 1,540g it's the heaviest consumer hair dryer you can buy. The ghd Helios does the same job at roughly half the weight for around £30 more. If motor longevity matters more than comfort, the Air still makes sense. For everyone else, the Helios is the better ghd.
Why is the ghd Air so heavy?
The weight comes from the AC motor. AC motors are heavier than brushless DC motors but last significantly longer under continuous use. Professional salon dryers use AC motors because they can run all day without overheating. That durability comes at a weight cost, and 1,540g is a lot to hold above your head for fifteen minutes.
Does the ghd Air come with a diffuser?
No. The ghd Air comes with a concentrator nozzle only. ghd sells a compatible diffuser separately for around £29. If you have curly or wavy hair and need a diffuser in the box, the Remington D3198 at around £25 includes both a diffuser and concentrator.
How long does the ghd Air last?
ghd provides a 1-year manufacturer guarantee, which is shorter than most competitors. However, the AC motor itself is built for longevity — AC motors are the standard in professional salons precisely because they handle thousands of hours of continuous use. With normal home use, the motor should last well beyond the guarantee period.
Is the ghd Air better than the Remington D3198?
The ghd Air has a more durable motor, stronger ionic output, a much longer cord at 3m versus 1.72m, and variable temperature controls. The Remington D3198 is lighter, cheaper, includes a diffuser, and has a longer guarantee at 3 years versus 1 year. For occasional use, the Remington is the smarter buy. For daily use where cord length and motor longevity matter, the ghd Air justifies the price.