Brunettes are better shoppers than blondes, a study has revealed.

Researchers found dark-haired women are more decisive, better at finding bargains and more likely to find the item they set out to purchase.

Blondes on the other hand make rash decisions, end up with clothes they don’t like and often buy for the short term rather than ‘investing’ in clothing that will last.

The study, which was commissioned by online market researchers OnePoll, also found brunettes usually spend less on a shopping trip than the average blonde and are far savvier when it comes to the sales.

And brunettes are the more decisive of the two, despite taking shorter shopping trips on average than their fair-haired counterparts.

A spokesman for OnePoll said: ”It’s an age old debate, but perhaps these results can settle the argument.

“Brunettes are perhaps more considered in their approach to shopping, weighing up the value of their purchases, where blondes are more free-spirited.

“Of course, there’s not necessarily a ‘right’ way to shop – but it is interesting that, when looking at hair colour, the results show a clear pattern in the different ways of making a purchase.”

The research examined 500 natural brunettes and 500 natural blondes to determine just who can claim to be the queens of retail.

And a darker head of hair leads to increased shopping success – brunettes proved more likely to find the exact thing they were after and were less likely to come home empty handed.

Brunettes also have the clearer conscience when it comes to shopping and regret fewer of their purchases – with blondes thirty per cent more likely to regret something they’ve bought.

That might explain why blondes are far more likely to buy something they didn’t intend to purchase when they set out – bringing back 2 unplanned items per trip.

It follows then that blondes have returned 23 per cent more items in the last twelve months and are also more likely to suffer a guilt trip over their shopping.

Blondes are likely to spend longer browsing in each shop – averaging a whopping 17 minutes per store.

The fairer heads are also more impulsive – blonde ladies have splashed £143 spontaneously on a single trip, while Brunettes were slightly more restrained with an average of £129.

And the brunettes have a firmer head on their shoulders proving far harder to lead astray – when shopping with friends a brunette will spend an extra £22 on average, but a blonde will happily whack an extra £27 on the bill.

Brown locks lead to increased patience with brunettes happy to wait for the price of an item they like to drop, while 58 per cent of blondes will plunge straight in and purchase without worrying about savings.

It’s no surprise then that blondes are shorter-sighted when it comes to their wardrobe decisions – a quarter say they purchase clothes as a short term fix, rather than something that will last them a long time.