Non Toxic Makeup Brands You Need to Try in 2023

When it comes to makeup, non-toxic is the way to go. We use makeup every day, and it’s very, very intimate with our skin. Which means the ingredients need to be safe for us (and, relatedly, for the environment). With the emergence of the non toxic beauty movement – which used to mean homemade, handmade, amateurly packaged products, but now includes the top luxury makeup brands enthusiastically marketing glamorous ‘clean makeup’ – the beauty industry is undergoing a much-needed upgrade. Not only are there recognizable beauty brands, but there are enough to compile a long list of the best non toxic makeup brands in the market!

TL;DR: Try these brands for non-toxic makeup!
Axiology & Erin’s Faces – for cruelty-free, affordable makeup
Ilia Beauty – for working with TerraCycle’s Zero Waste Box to prevent landfill waste
NOTO Botanics – for making their products in small batches with a refill program
Lily Lolo – for vegan makeup brushes!

Table Of Contents

Defining Non Toxic Beauty

So, for our purposes here, what is a clean beauty brand? The brands listed in this post are cruelty-free, use natural and organic ingredients, do not use toxic ingredients (such as parabens, pthalates, etc), use sustainable packaging, and preferably have some trusted certification vouching for it (such as the EcoCert COSMOS seal, the Made Safe certification, the B-Corp certification or the Sephora Clean Seal). So, you can safely limit your makeup options to just the brands on this list, knowing that they are non-toxic and clean (both of which mean the same thing).

If you want to explore other brands, and find out for yourself what the safest makeup brand is, understanding the brand’s intentions is vital (and it’s usually apparent when you dig a bit). You don’t want a brand that’s great at marketing, but is actually cutting corners with the ingredients’ safety aspect.

When in doubt, head to the EWG website to search for the ingredients. And do look out for the reviews, whether on the brand website or on Amazon. Thanks to the collective feedback system that is the online product reviews, we don’t need to make mistakes when we can learn from others’.

What Are the Best Non Toxic Makeup Brands?

Which is the safest makeup brand? Brands that your grandma would be happy to use in her beauty routine. Let’s get down to listing out 29 of the best brands that are safe for you and the planet.

Update: This list earlier had brands such as Bite Beauty, RMS Beauty, Rodin, and Vapour Beauty. But sadly, they seem to have gone out of business. So, we’ve removed them from the list, and added new entrants into the non toxic beauty industry.

1 // 100% Pure

Recycled packaging | cruelty-free

Price: From $22

2 // Alima Pure

Certified B Corp | Cruelty-free | 1% For The Planet

Price: From $18

3 // Au Naturale

Ingredients Standards | Recyclable packaging | Cruelty-free

Price: From $28

4 // Axiology

Eco-friendly packaging | Recycling program | Cruelty-free | Palm oil-free

Price: From $14

5 // Balmyard Beauty

Gluten-free | cruelty-free

Price: From $32

6 // Burt’s Bees

Recycling program | cruelty-free | Carbon Neutral-certified

Price: From $5

7 // Erin’s Faces

Cruelty-free | Vegan-friendly

Price: From $8

8 // Fitglow Beauty

Vegan | cruelty-free

Price: From $24

9 // Grown Alchemist

Plant-based extracts

Price: From $59

10 // Henne Organics

Created in-house in N. Carolina | Ethical & Cruelty-free | USDA-certified

Price: From $19

11 // Ilia Beauty

Recycling with TerraCycle | 1% for the Planet

Price: From $28

12 // Jillian Dempsey

Clean ingredients

Price: From $28

13 // Jones Road

Cruelty-free | Recyclable FSC-certified post-consumer packaging

Price: From $18

14 // Juice Beauty

Juice Beauty Standards | Local sourcing | Recycled packaging | Cruelty-free

Price: From $22

15 // Kjaer Weis

#enlightenedbeauty

Price: From $30

16 // Kosås

Eco-friendly packaging | cruelty-free

Price: From $20

17 // Lawless Beauty

Clean AF

Price: From $21

18 // Lily Lolo

Exquisite vegan brushes | Recyclable Packaging | Vegan-friendly

Price: From $18

19 // Living Libations

Gluten-free active ingredients | Vegan | Fair Trade

Price: From $15

20 // Love + Sage

Antioxidant-rich, natural formulations

Price: From $12

21 // Manasi 7

Sustainably produced | Small batches | Supports small-scale organic farming

Price: From €36

22 // Merit Beauty

Sustainable packaging | cruelty-free

Price: From $24

23 // NOTO Botanics

Sustainable packaging | Cruelty-free | Small batch | Refill Program

Price: From $19

24 // Olio E Osso

Sustainable, in-house production | Supports local communities

Price: From $28

25 // P/Y/T

Beauty without the BS

Price: From $16

26 // Rituel de Fille

Leaping Bunny-certified | Produced in-house in LA | Ethical sourcing

Price: From $26

27 // Tata Harper

Natural luxury skincare | GMO-free

Price: From $34

28 // Tower 28 Beauty

Formulated for sensitive skin | Cruelty-free | Vegan

Price: From $20

29 // W3ll People

Makeup with nothing to hide | EWG verified | cruelty-free

Price: From $20

THIS POST CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS. PLEASE READ MY DISCLOSURE FOR MORE DETAILS.

Buy Affordable, Non Toxic Makeup Brands Online

These aggregator websites curate the best clean makeup products:

1 // The Detox Market

Check out The Detox Market’s Brand List for Makeup for luxe as well as affordable non toxic beauty products.

2 // Credo

3 // Sephora

4 // Target

5 // Follain

6 // Integrity Botanicals

Which Beauty Brand is Chemical-free?

What is the healthiest makeup to wear? When it comes to beauty brands and skin care products, there is good news and bad news. The bad news is that the beauty industry is unregulated. This means that beauty brands do not legally need to disclose their ingredients to us (including any toxic ones). So, harmful and even cancer causing makeup brands have had a free rein for far too long.

The good news is that consumers have wised up over the years, and the numerous trailblazing new clean beauty makeup brands are open about their ingredients and particular about using only organic, non toxic ingredients to begin with. Take a look at some of the best non-toxic personal care products, and cruelty-free personal care products, as well.

But definitions are vague, and not legally enforceable. So, “organic” could mean one thing to you and another thing to me. Same with “natural”. To avoid this (and to avoid having to vet every single ingredient listed on the bottle – as well as worrying about those that haven’t been listed), my strategy was to just go for products that have only a few basic, clean (i.e. non toxic to us) ingredients along with relevant certifications, and brands that clearly state their philosophy of being mindful of the environment and of our health.

Look out for The Dirty Dozen, namely:

BHA & BHT, Parfum – aka fragrance, Coal Tar Dyes, Petroleum, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, DEA & related chemicals, Dibutyl Phthalate, Parabens, Siloxanes, PEG Compounds and their contaminants, Triclosan, Formaldehyde releasing preservatives.

Cancer Causing Makeup Brands

You’ll not be surprised to know that some of the most popular makeup brands are not good for our health. These gorgeous, expensive makeup brands contain toxins, unfortunately:

Here’s a more complete list of toxic makeup brands to avoid.

Use the Think Dirty App to scan products for toxic ingredients before buying. Check out the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics for updates on the clean beauty industry, and guidelines to avoid greenwashing.

If you don’t want to buy from brands with hefty marketing budgets, try out local small businesses that use safe ingredients and where you can actually talk to the makers of the product! You can find them on Etsy or in your local markets. Remember to find out the ingredients in their products as well, and ask them to clarify any doubts you have.

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