10 Vegan Makeup Brands You Should Checkout Now

10 Vegan Makeup Brands You Should Checkout Now

Word Count: 1632

Time to Read: 9 minutes


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There are two primary reasons for taking the plunge and “going vegan”.

On one hand, you have a laundry list of health benefits associated with eating a vegan diet.

Eating vegan affects nearly every part of your body and results in reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, lowers both your cholesterol and blood pressure, and decreases the risk of diseases as varied as osteoporosis to cancer.

On the other hand is the perhaps “pure” reason (or at least the selfless reason for adopting a vegan lifestyle) which is, well, you’re not eating animals.

Stop eating animals and fewer creatures die; in factory farms and otherwise. There has also been massive evidence that meat production has negative environmental consequences.

Of course, perhaps the most authentic vegans of us all take this lifestyle choice a step further.

They’ve abandoned leather, products with gelatin, and made other choices about their consumer footprint.

One such decision is the choice to use vegan bath products, toiletries, and makeup. Interested in trying out some rad cruelty-free looks? Here are 10 vegan makeup brands to get you started.

1) Axiology Lipstick

Axiology Lipstick is a brand that can be commonly found at Free People, a franchise with a sort of Earth-Child wholesome vibe that is brought to you by the same people as Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters.

Axiology is cool because it is kind of a lipstick and chapstick rolled into one. It contains ingredients like organic coconut oil and vitamin E which helps heal and protect chapped lips while providing a vibrant color palette of oranges and pinks.

Even Axiology’s packaging is environmentally-friendly, boasting recycled paper produced in a “woman-owned recycled-paper boutique” from Bali. Woah.

2) Primal Life Organics: Primal Face

Primal Life Organics produces a wide array of personal care and beauty products.

They make just about everything you’d ever put in a toiletries bag when going on a trip, like toothpaste (in powder form), natural deodorant (often in crystal form), body wash and shampoo, and of course, makeup.

Their Primal Face line is no exception to their unique way of producing alternative products for Earth-Conscious people who still care about taking care of themselves.

Primal Face is unique among vegan makeup brands in that it is not only completely organic, it is also suitable for those who follow the Paleo diet or are gluten-free.

3) Hourglass Luxury Performance Makeup

Hourglass is one of several high-end vegan makeup brands that are known for the attention to detail placed in its beautiful packaging.

There are several products that are favorites among makeup artists, like their “Ambient” blush and bronzer collection, as well as their “Confession High Intensity” lipstick, which has an instantly recognizable ultra-slim look.

Though the price of Hourglass (which hovers around the $50 range per product) may turn away your average makeup enthusiast, these products create stunning and dynamic runway-ready looks.

Another highlight of Hourglass is their brushes, which are all 100% vegan and produced with synthetic Taklon hair, a product originally created by Dupont that consists of thermoplastic polyester.

4) Illamasqua

Speaking of runway-ready looks, Illamasqua is another entry in the list of luxurious vegan makeup brands that prides itself on “self-expression through the art of makeup”.

They accomplish this daunting task by providing people with highly specific types of makeup that can be used to create unique and signature looks.

They provide a rich color palette with vibrant colors which are perfect for professional makeup designers.

However, they also sell basic products for everyday use, as much of their makeup has been created with a focus on enhancing natural beauty.

When purchasing an item from Illamasqua bear in mind that not all of their products are vegan. This fact may be reason enough for many vegans not to use any of their products.

After all, if some of their products are not vegan, how can they prove that they are committed to the lifestyle?

That being said, most of their makeup is indeed vegan, with highlights including their Skin Base and multi-color sculpting palette as well as their Hollow Cream Contour which only costs $26; cheap compared with some other brands.

5) Charlotte Tilbury

Perhaps the most popular of the vegan makeup brands in the UK, this is the brainchild of British makeup designer (you guessed it) Charlotte Tilbury.

It is far from cheap, with products like their “filmstar bronzer” costing as much as $91. The quality, though, does not get any better than this brand.

In addition to a wide line of vegan makeup, Tilbury also produces “Take it all Off”, a vegan makeup remover, which is not something that’s come up with other brands.

The mostly used across the pond, those looking to buy Charlotte Tilbury makeup can usually find it at Nordstrom.

6) Juice Beauty

This brand’s mission statement is “We believe in advanced beauty solutions that harness the best of certified organic & natural ingredients to deliver clinically validated results that do not compromise your well-being nor the Earth.”

This is super cool, but what’s even cooler about Juice Beauty is that they sell starter kits with various supplies of makeup essentials.

This is not just a convenient way to get makeup, it is a tried and true way of taking the first step toward living a vegan lifestyle.

In providing these kits, Juice Beauty functions almost like companies who offer entire vegan meal plans. In a sense, brands like these hold your hand and walk across the threshold into a more humane life.

7) Josie Maran

Josie Maran stands out from other vegan makeup brands in that it provides both makeup and other skincare essentials. Its mission is to help you feel luxurious without the guilt of compromised ethics.

Another nice thing about Josie Maran is that their products aren’t all chemicals that happen to be vegan and not tested on animals. They make it a point to use natural ingredients in their merchandise.

When it comes to makeup, check out their Watercolor Eyeshadow (at only 19 bucks) and their Glowing Complexion kit which, much like Juice Beauty, provides several different products in one box.

And when it comes to skincare, make sure to try their line of Argan-based products, including Argan Cleansing Oil and Argan Exfoliating Powder.

Josie Maran even has a line of Argan-based Hair products like a Hot Oil Treatment and Argan Hair Serum.

8) Cover FX

Cover FX is unlike other vegan makeup brands in that its focus is not on being vegan (it just takes that as a given) but on treating sensitive skin.

This brand of concealers and foundations is designed for people who deal with acne and rosacea among other skin conditions.

In doing so, it not only covers up any embarrassing skin problems, it actually treats them and is purposely designed not to aggravate them any further.

Unlike some vegan makeup brands that sell a lot of products that are vegan but not all of the products are, Cover FX is a 100% vegan company.

Also impressive is its color palette, which features 28 different shades of foundation so you can find your perfect match.

9) Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics

Okay, so the name is perhaps not the most sensitive in the world. But it stems from their obsessive commitment to the vegan lifestyle. Like Cover FX, every product in their line is 100% vegan.

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (which from here on out will be referred to as “OCC”) is most widely known for their “lip tars”. This is essentially a pigmented lipstick that, rather than coming in tube form, comes in a little squeeze tube.

These cool lip tars come in a glossy, matte, and metallic finish.

They sell other makeup products too, which are equally vibrant and somewhat eccentric, like a line of nail polishes, makeup brushes, and standard face and eye makeup.

10) Vegan Makeup Brands Hiding in Plain Sight

Many commonly used makeup brands sell vegan products that you probably weren’t even aware you were using. Other well-known brands have dedicated lines of vegan makeup.

L’oreal, for instance, has a line called Urban Decay which features both edgy totally unique looks, and staples for everyday use. Urban Decay also features products specifically designed for oily skin.

Estee Lauder has entered the world of vegan makeup brands as well, with their Too Faced line of products. Too Faced is the yin to Illamasqua’s yang in that it sells natural looks and neutral basic tones. Their products are reasonably priced and come in youthful fun packaging.

Similar to Cover FX, designer Jamie Kern Lima created a line of foundations that are meant to treat sensitive skin issues. The products are so effective that they were quickly snatched up by L’oreal.

With These Available, Why Choose Anything Else?

These vegan makeup brands provide everything you could ever need. From daytime on-the-go looks to back-to-basics pure and natural styles, to runway-ready daring makeup effects, these products provide the quality, price, and variety than even the most experienced makeup connoisseur would be happy to have in their collection.

So the question is, even if you’re not vegan, why not use these products?

If they are equal in every way to brands that test on animals, contain beeswax or gelatin, and just don’t care about their carbon footprint, why not choose these?

These brands reflect the same array of pricing as “regular” makeup. They provide the user with every style they need. Some of them even help with dermatological issues.

But at the end of the day, the most important thing is that they are, in fact, animal-friendly products. So why not make the change today? Need help? There are resources for that.

Start wearing vegan today!

About the author

Julia Ott
Hi! I'm Julia and I'm a vegan recipe inventor, furniture collector and mum to a little boy. I've been a vegetarian for 25 years, and a vegan for 4. I spend all of my spare time visiting farmers markets, searching for antiques at flea markets and cooking up a vegan storm in the kitchen! I co-founded Vegan.io to make the world a better place.

Want to try a vegan diet?

We created a meal planner app to help you! Get your fresh customized meal plan full of delicious, quick, budget friendly, healthy recipes.

GET YOUR MEAL PLAN!