25 Epic High Ponytails for All Hair Lengths

That old workhorse—the ponytail—just won’t quit. With its sleek lines and utilitarian edge, it’s topping every summer 2016 trend list out there. The kicker this time around? It’s all in the placement: on or near the top of the head. When worn high, the ponytail becomes flair for your face, like those handlebar streamers that jazzed up the bikes of the flyest kids at cosmetology school. From casual to glam, messy to sleek, short to long, thick to thin, the high ponytail works with what ya got. Below, check out the 25 best high ponytails prancing their way across the Internet right now.

1. Rose Bertram’s Super Curly Messy High Ponytail

Rose looks ravishing here not just due to her bronze, beach-bestowed glow but also because she’s rocking her medium-length, bleached blonde, super-tight curls in a high ponytail. Her exposed roots and the flyaway strands around her face are killing us with their lazy beauty.

2. High Ponytail for Long Dark Brown Hair with Honey Blonde Balayage

Sure, high ponytails are chic and trendy, but they’re also just plain practical. Here, this woman has gathered up her thick, long, deep brown tresses (with some honey blonde thrown in) into a smart high ponytail, putting her in a position to take care of some serious business. The style flatters her high cheekbones particularly well.

3. Dreamy High Ponytail for Long Dark Blonde Hair

We love how this woman’s tousled hair has a bit of a wave to it, how it’s thick and luxurious, how the singed wheat color of her dark blonde locks looks subtle and natural. We’re wondering how she looks so regal even when standing in an empty field, but we’d bet the high ponytail has something to do with it.

4. Straight Messy Super-Long High Ponytail

This high ponytail hairstyle is somehow feminine and pretty even while being bad-ass and edgy. The rumpled quality of these dark locks strikes the DGAF tone, but the height of the ponytail and the length of the hair add girlish elements. Whoever said you can’t have it all in one look?

5. Kendall Jenner’s Disheveled High Ponytail

Kendall’s gorgeous raven-colored long locks are the stuff dark-haired dreams are made of. Her mostly straight tresses have been gathered hastily into the high ponytail, creating a breezy, imperfect look. The strands skimming over her ear are darling.

6. Kat Graham’s High Ponytail with Hair Wrapped Around the Band

Kat’s thick, long, obsidian-black hair looks appropriately glam—it’s shiny, voluminous, and situated high atop her head in a dramatic ponytail. The hairstyle complements her snazzy black dress perfectly.

7. High Half Ponytail for Wavy Ash Blonde Hair

We’ve talked about how much we adore the half-up bun style, so it makes perfect sense that we’d gravitate toward a high half-up ponytail look. This woman’s long, waved, pale-blonde/ash-blonde hair boasts a dynamite platinum sheen, and it looks all the more smashing when half of it is propped up over her head.

8. Long Curly Red High Ponytail with Slight Hair Bump

If you have a massive curly mane, you can’t go wrong by putting it up in a high ponytail. It’ll keep your hair off your face while allowing your spirals to do their thing in back, completely uninhibited. Wear it a bit messy, like this woman, or slick back the front for a more formal occasion.

9. High Ponytail for Super Curly Hair

This woman’s high curly ponytail is perfect for day or night, work or play, couch or cocktail bar. The well-formed spirals give the look a classy, polished feel, while the smoothly brushed-back but slightly messy strands at the front make it feel chill, relaxed, and easy to achieve in a pinch. We’re digging the rosy-bronze highlights in her espresso brown hair, too.

10. Cara Delevingne’s Ash-Blonde High Ponytail

Whatever you want to call Cara’s hair color—nude, bronde, ash blonde—you can’t argue that it’s stunning when put up into a high ponytail. Her barely tousled locks look effortlessly cool. This ‘do would be perfect for a relaxed summer wedding, a graduation ceremony, or a semi-formal evening out.

11. Shay Mitchell’s Wavy Dark-Ash-Brown High Ponytail

Shay Mitchell knows something very important: When you pile your lovely dark ash-brown locks high above your head, the look will show off your impossibly high cheekbones. Letting your hair rock its natural wave and wrapping some strands around the hair band drive home an aura of relaxed beauty. Well done, Shay, well done.

12. Full and Thick Caramel-Bronde High Ponytail

This woman’s gorgeous medium-length caramel-bronde hair has been gifted some intense volume. Not only do we love how the tail end of the high ponytail contrasts with the straight, taut strands in front, but we also love the hair wrap around the band. Genius.

13. Long, Stick-Straight High Ponytail

We’re getting googly-eyed over this woman’s super-long, jet-black hair, which has been painstakingly combed back into a high ponytail. Her adorable baby hairs have been slicked down, and her eye makeup is so on point. All in all, she’s light-years ahead of us in the beauty world.

14. Bella Hadid’s Slicked-Back High Ponytail

Bella Hadid, where in the world are you in this pic? The streets of Paris? A bustling New York borough? An alcove of L.A.? It doesn’t really matter, because her blackish-brown-colored high-ponytail is beyond cosmopolitan. Because it’s so sleek, it’ll prepare her to rock any type of outfit and roll with any setting.

15. Long, Wavy, Fire-Red High Ponytail with Long Bangs

Those long waves. That fire-red color. Those full bangs. That high ponytail. If we had to bet, we’d say this look couldn’t be any more chic.

16. Phoebe Tonkin’s Short Slicked-Back High Ponytail

Phoebe’s messy high ponytail proves that even those with shorter hair can rock the trend. Are you worried you won’t be able to gather all your hair up? Never fear—take your style cues from Phoebe, who’s letting some hair just chill at the back of her neck. This tousled style is perfect for more casual outings or going to the gym.

17. Zendaya’s Sleek High Ponytail

As per usual, Zendaya looks beautiful. But she also looks on trend with her super-dark-chocolate-brown hair slicked back into a high ponytail. It shows off her stunning face, which we think should be highlighted at all times.

18. Short and Spunky High Ponytail

This woman has short hair, but that’s not stopping her from sporting the high ponytail. The tawny-colored highlights against her dark-brown base color look funky and warm up her face.

19. Long, Romantic High Ponytail for Chocolate Brown Hair

This lucky lady has some insanely silky chocolate-brown hair. It’s perfectly combed back into a high ponytail, which has a luster and fullness that’s only matched by her preeminent eyebrows and high-voltage eye makeup.

20. Jennifer Lopez’s Medium-Length High Ponytail

JLo’s sandy-brown, medium-length messy hair looks so fresh in this high ponytail. With her baby hairs framing her face, all our attention has been brought forward, not necessarily back toward the ponytail. As a result, we can appreciate her bold red lip color and thick eyelashes.

21. Lowkey High Ponytail for Long Hair

We’re crushing on this woman’s long, sleek high ponytail. The shorter face-framing strands in front extend down her temples, acting almost like parted bangs. Though she looks trendy, she’s also added classic vibes with a more timeless outfit.

22. Uber-Long Messy High Ponytail

For hair that’s thinner but long and straight, try this chic high ponytail. With its flyaways retained, it has that trendy silhouette, but it’s also so relaxed that it hums with a quiet confidence. We can’t stop gushing about this woman’s lustrous mocha-auburn hair color.

23. Leona Lewis’s Sophisticated Uber-High Ponytail

All rise! Leona Lewis’s thick high ponytail has entered the building. This epic hairstyle is heavy on old Hollywood glam, with a slight wave near the ends, as well as drama and romance. We’re definitely falling for her caramely-peach-colored locks.

24. Another Super-High Ponytail for Long, Straight Black Hair

If this woman’s high ponytail made you think of Pebbles Flintstone, you’re not alone. We love it for that—the spunky quality it has due to the shorter pieces of hair in the ponytail sticking straight up. We’re also digging this woman’s color—a liquidy raven-black hue—and the serious length of her hair overall.

25. Katy Perry’s Straight, Shiny High Ponytail

Katy looks darling with her straight, silky black hair brought up into a high ponytail. It’s one of her more subdued looks, but the hairstyle’s high placement atop her head succeeds in adding an energy to the look that’s uniquely her.