Yes to a glamorous pout, with soft well-hydrated lips in a color of your choosing! A big, bold no, however, to polluting the planet and even more to cruel animal experiments. Does that sound like it could be your mantra next time when shopping for cosmetics?
Table of Contents
- Wait, lipstick is tested on animals?
- Natural lipstick
- Vegan-friendly options
- Best Organic Lipstick Brands
- Best Natural Lipsticks
- Other Natural & Organic Lipstick Brands
- Common Ingredients in Clean Lipsticks
- Final Thoughts on Plant-Based Beauty
When it comes to choosing between regular or organic lipstick brands, we live in a new era. The choices are far from scarce.
On top of that, if you care about animals, it’s really simple: cruelty-free lipstick is a must. While I’m not typically the bossiest person, when it comes to animal welfare, I do tend to get fanatic. #sorrynotsorry
There is no excuse for what the big cosmetic companies are doing to lab animals. Brands that are more concerned with profits than ethics don’t deserve our support. One of the few things in our power to convey this message to them is to take our business elsewhere.
Guess what – organic cosmetics are often not tested on animals either. Double win! Brands that care about the environment and the planet typically also have a heart for animals. That makes sense, right?
Wait, lipstick is tested on animals?
In short: Yes. Most of the A-list brands still actively partake in animal cruelty, even if they tell us they aren’t testing on animals. It’s a dirty little loophole.
Now if on the other hand, you’re thinking “lady, preaching to the choir here, can we get on with it and see these epic organic lipstick brands?”
Sure thing. Let’s check out the goods!
There is a lot of variety in this compilation of natural, organic, vegan, and/or cruelty-free lipstick brands. The abundance of ethical products and the many different colors, textures, and density/coverage they bring to the table are nothing short of exciting.
Natural lipstick
As a matter of personal interest and experience, I’m only including brands here that are more or less natural.
I’m simply not interested in brands that aren’t at all ‘natural’. Besides, there is a lot of overlap between natural cosmetics and other specifics that are even dearer to my heart, such as makeup being cruelty-free and organic.
Non-toxic and/or natural skincare and makeup ingredients are a hot topic these days. So if that resonates with you, great!
Cruelty-free but not natural
It happens to be that a lot of the more natural lipsticks coincide with the cruelty-free ones, whereas the opposite is true for main-stream cosmetics – whether it be drugstore or luxury brands.
Lipsticks that are not very natural but cruelty-free nonetheless are a minority. (All I can think of off the top of my head is the drugstore brand e.l.f.)
There is a logical reason: brands with a strong sense of ethical entrepreneurship, those that care, usually care about the same set of agenda points. It’s a level of consciousness thing!
The typical concerns that go hand in hand: Respect for the environment, the well-being of animals, and advocating an overall healthy lifestyle for humans. For more on this, take a peek here: Are Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Better?
Supporting organic agriculture
It is one thing for brands to use natural ingredients; if they’re also organic, even better. Pesticides pollute the soil and groundwater on a large scale, impacting life today and for generations to come.
Vegan-friendly options
Are any of these lipsticks compatible with a vegan lifestyle?
Definitely, though not all “natural” brands are automatically vegan. Beeswax, carmine, and lanolin are animal-derived ingredients often found in natural lipsticks. Certain brands make it a point to abstain from all animal-derived substances.
The most common ingredients of animal origin used in lipstick are beeswax and carmine.
Carmine
Carmine is a red colorant made from crushed, pulverized and chemically treated beetles. There is no way to make carmine without actually killing the bugs, so it obviously isn’t the most animal-friendly substance.
Do beetles have feelings? Heck, I don’t know – they sure aren’t as cute as puppies and kitties, but who knows what their world looks like? You’ll have to decide whether you’re comfortable with excluding insects from your cruelty-free clause, or not.
Beeswax
Collecting beeswax does not necessarily entail killing the bees, at least not when it’s done properly. Nevertheless, collecting beeswax comes down to politely destroying the bees’ home – one they’ve worked very hard to build. It isn’t a huge stretch to view this as unethical, regardless of the way in which it is done.
Best Organic Lipstick Brands
1. Dr. Hauschka
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: no
- Organic: NATRUE CERTIFICATION LEVEL Natural Cosmetics with organic portion At least 70% of natural and/or derived natural ingredients, where applicable, stem from organic agriculture or controlled harvesting of wild plants.
Dr. Hauschka’s cruelty-free lipstick has long been a personal favorite of mine.
The creme de la creme when it comes to natural, organic, and cruelty-free lipstick, Dr. Hauschka is a very popular brand in Europe, where I used to buy them in stores. In the US, you can find them on Amazon.
Dr. Hauschka is always free of free from synthetic fragrances, dyes and preservatives, mineral oils, silicones, and PEG. What I love most about Hauschka lipstick are its softness and very nourishing texture.
Dr. Hauschka does not test on animals and does not have other parties carry out animal testing on their behalf. This applies to finished products as well as the ingredients used.
The brand works following holistic principles, and many of the botanical ingredients used come from Hauschka’s very own biodynamic garden of medicinal plants in Germany.
Dr. Hauschka does not make vegan lipstick. You’ll notice many animal-derived substances on their labels: lanolin, honey, propolis, beeswax, lactose, and royal jelly. Ethically sourced, but of course, that won’t do if you are vegan.
Ingredients: Water/Aqua, Alcohol, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Root Extract, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Glycerin, Mica, Cetyl Alcohol, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Macadamia Ternifolia Seed Oil, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter), Anthyllis Vulneraria Extract, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract, Fragrance/Parfum (Essential Oil), Geraniol, Limonene, Linalool, Citronellol, Coumarin, Citral, Benzyl Benzoate, Bentonite, Sodium Cetearyl Sulfate, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, Iron Oxides, Titanium Dioxide/CI 77891, Ultramarines/CI 77007, Zinc Oxide/CI 77947
2. Inika
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: yes
- Organic: yes
Inika is certified cruelty-free (by Australia’s Choose Cruelty-Free Organisation) as well as listed with PETA, and on top of that Inika carries the Leaping Bunny logo. The brand is also certified vegan (by the UK Vegan Society) across all products. The UK Vegan Society is one of the world’s most recognized vegan certifications.
Inika is the perfect trifecta of cruelty-free, vegan, and organic, Inika has it all!
My personal experience with Inika’s lip products is very good. One of the first colors ever tried (received in a discovery box) was not flattering. No luck there. The texture was lovely, however.
Inika’s certified organic lip tint is rather sheer and can come in very useful, either for a more natural look by itself or as a second layer over something more pronounced.
The lipstick was awesome. On the dryer end, which made it last longer (as in great staying power, not super nourishing). I lost this one before it was finished, and do still miss it and think of it, which says something. Will have to get a new one – here it is on Amazon.
The little pot I’ve tried as well – it is very nice and has a similar texture, though I much prefer a stick to keep germs and bacteria from finger-dipping at bay.
3. Vapour organic beauty
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: yes
- Organic: yes
Vapour Organic Beauty is awesome. The Aura Multi-Use is richer and more nourishing than a similar product by Inika. It’s velvety soft and moisturizes the lips a bit too, an added bonus you can probably tell by now I tend to appreciate.
Don’t be put off by the strange name – this is really lipstick as far as I can tell. The fact they say it can also be used as a blush and whatnot doesn’t change that.
4. Odylique
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: no
- Organic: yes
Odylique never uses any synthetic dyes. Nor does the brand use carmine for color. Their lipstick is not vegan though; it contains beeswax.
Big fan of Odylique skincare, but I haven’t had the chance to try one of their lipsticks or other cosmetics yet.
5. Honeybee Gardens
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: yes
- Organic: yes
Cruelty-free certified and vegan, as well as gluten-free, non-GMO, and made with lots of organic ingredients, Honeybee gardens is another budget-friendly choice. Honeybee Gardens is very focused on natural ingredients, and this is reflected in its branding and packaging. Budget-wise Honeybee Gardens could be Pacifica’s more natural cousin.
Take a look at this insane amount of colors to choose from! There are nudes, classic red, bright coral and romantic pink, dramatic dark hues, and berry shades.
By the way, did you catch that “yes” for being vegan?
For a brand called Honeybee Gardens, I’d expect them to be centered around beeswax as a natural ingredient – perhaps coming from in-house beehives surrounded by their own gardens. You get the idea. Well, if they have gardens, the bees aren’t at work there for anything other than their own benefit, because Honeybee Gardens is completely vegan.
They have some very yummy tinted lip balm, too. You know, for those lipstick-free days, where something less sticky with just a hint of color is the way to go.
6. Juice Beauty
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: no
- Organic: yes
Most Juice Beauty skincare and makeup products are vegan, but it still isn’t a fully vegan brand.
7. 100% Pure
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: yes
- Organic: partly
Matte lipsticks formulated with vibrant, long-lasting color from real fruit, and a nour… [More]
Anti-aging, super moisturizing lipstick made with pomegranate oil and shea butter to ke… [More]
One hundred percent pure, or 100% pure’s natural lipstick, uses fruit pigments for a vibrant pop of color!
This is totally cruelty-free makeup. The brand is open and honest about its cruelty-free approach and has great explanatory articles on its website, such as this one on how they’re able to sell in China without doing any animal testing at all. (100% Pure ships orders to Chinese customers out of Portland, Oregon. They don’t technically import anything – hence, no lab tests. Eat that, China.)
100% Pure fruit pigmented cruelty-free lipstick is on the pricier end but 100% pure lipsticks have rave reviews all across the board from thousands (!) of customers. I can’t believe I haven’t tried any of these yet – a situation to be remedied soon.
They are completely vegan and made with candelilla wax instead of beeswax. Cocoa butter and other natural ingredients help to moisturize and soften lips, which is great since I get dry lips often. Looking at the full ingredient list, it seems 100% pure would be a great fit to keep lips soft and moisturized all while wearing makeup.
Oddly enough, 100% pure does not flaunt being an organic brand. They do use some organic ingredients though, which is why I’ve included them with the organic lipstick brands.
This statement from the official website speaks to their high standards: “We strive to live with compassion, kindness and empathy; to be environmentally sustainable and to improve the lives of 6 billion people and animals while also being charitable and giving back to our global community.”
And check out this line-up of ingredients! That’s what a beautiful natural lipstick looks like:
- Theobroma Cacao (Organic Cocoa) Seed Butter
- Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter)
- Extracts of Prunus Cerasus (Cherry) Fruit
- Prunus Domestica (Plum) Fruit
- Vitis Vinifera (Cabernet Grape) Fruit
- Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Fruit
- Vaccinium Angustifolium (Blueberry) Fruit,
- Rubus Fruticosus (Blackberry) Fruit
- Prunus Persica (Peach) Fruit
- Prunus Armeniaca (Apricot) Fruit
- Solanum Lycopersicum (Tomato) Fruit/Leaf/Stem
- Punica Granatum (Pomegranate)
- Cacao (Chocolate)
- Rosa Centifolia (Rose Petals) Flower
- Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower/Leaf/Stem
- Oryza Sativa (Rice Starch)
- Tocopherol (Vitamin E)
- Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax
- Silica
- Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract
100% pure makes a few different non-toxic lipsticks. The Fruit Pigmented® Cocoa Butter Matte Lipstick is the one mentioned above.
The Fruit Pigmented® Pomegranate Oil Anti-Aging Lipstick is very similar but contains Shea butter.
That’s all as far as the 100% pure lipstick range goes. Other options include a Fruit Pigmented® Lip Glaze (for a natural “wash” of color), a Fruit Pigmented® Lip Gloss, and something called Lip Caramel (which looks like a liquid lipstick). Both these last two, as well as the two lipsticks, have won an award.
Anti-aging, super moisturizing lipstick made with pomegranate oil and shea butter to ke… [More]
While I am still very happy with my Inika lipstick, these are definitely on my wishlist! Unfortunately, at the time of writing, more than half of the available shades are completely out of stock.
Amazon comes to the rescue… Check out 100% Pure Lipsticks on Amazon. (Tip: some shades are significantly cheaper here, especially when you set up a one-time subscribe-and-save deal! Hurray! Did you know you can subscribe to something just to snag the discount and promptly unsubscribe?)
Best Natural Lipsticks
While these aren’t organic lipstick brands, they are more-or-less natural lipstick brands that use mostly clean ingredients. I’ve had good experiences with the brands below.
Each one is definitely a step up from conventional lipstick – the kind that often contains heavy metals, endocrine disruptors, artificial dyes, coal tar, or other toxic ingredients. Let’s just say if for whatever reason you can’t get organic lipstick, these brands are very decent alternatives.
8. Bellapierre
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: no
- Organic: no
Bellapierre lipstick is made with mineral pigments and without harmful ingredients. I found it very moisturizing, and the color is so vibrant! Staying power is rather impressive as well. I used a brighter hue of pink and a hint of color always seemed to stay behind after most of the application had worn off, which was quite flattering.
This mineral makeup brand is not vegan or organic, but nice nonetheless. Buttery soft, and highly pigmented, here is a peak at the ingredients, starting with non organic castor seed oil and sunflower seed oil.
While it does contain candelilla wax, a plant-based wax often used by vegan brands, beeswax is also in the mix, further on.
INCI: Ricinus Communis (Castor Oil), Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Candelilla Cera (Euphorbia Cerifera), Castor Isostearate Succinate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Cera Alba (Beeswax), Copernicia Cerifera Cera (Carnauba Wax), Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Oil Seed, Lonicera Caprifolium (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Lonicera Japonica (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Phytosterol, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (Vitamin C), Vanillin.
So Bellapierre is not vegan and doesn’t appear to be doing anything special for the environment, animals, or people, either.
Check out the best price for Bellapierre Lipstick on Amazon.
It makes for a decent lower-budget lipstick, though – a fairly natural and cruelty-free option that is enjoyable to use. I liked the taste – a sweet, vanilla-like flavor. It’s just that there are so many other great brands to discover and try out… but may still buy again.
9. Lily Lolo
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: no
- Organic: no
Lily Lolo uses beeswax, carmine, and lanolin in lipsticks. They have vegan products (for example the BB cream) but as a brand, Lily Lolo is not vegan.
Lily Lolo eye shadow is lovely, but I can’t yet speak to the lipstick.
10. Pacifica
- Cruelty-free: yes
- Vegan: yes
- Organic: no
There clearly are enough luxury cruelty-free lipsticks to splurge on, but what if you’re looking for an affordable one? Pacifica is a cruelty-free cosmetics brand (they do both makeup and skincare). As the cherry on the cake, Pacifica is also completely vegan. Ready for some shopping that is both animal and budget-friendly?
Other Natural & Organic Lipstick Brands
So far the first organic and non-toxic lipsticks.
Here are a few others I’m looking into, trying out, or have on the wish list:
- Neek Skin Organics (vegan)
- Ere Perez (all products are vegan, except the mascaras, which contain beeswax)
- PHB Ethical Beauty (PHB stands for Pure. Handmade. British. and the brand is completely vegan.)
- Rituel de Fille (natural ingredients, but uses carmine)
- Ilia (not vegan: beeswax)
- RMS (not vegan: beeswax)
- Jane Iredale (a luxury brand, not vegan)
While I am not vegan myself, I wanted to make sure to include the distinction. If the one thing most important to you is whether your cosmetics are made with vegan ingredients, my goal is to save you time and be very clear about vegan options.
Common Ingredients in Clean Lipsticks
Let’s take a quick peek at some of the most commonly used ingredients in natural and organic lipsticks.
Jojoba Oil
A carrier oil with a very stable shelf-life, jojoba oil is technically not an oil but a liquid wax ester. Either way, it is widely used in the cosmetics industry and you’ll often see jojoba oil used in organic lipstick brands. It has many wonderful nourishing and healing properties.
Castor Oil
Castor oil or ricinus communis is another one of the natural oils often found in clean beauty products – especially lipstick. It is a natural moisturizer that deeply penetrates the skin, making it soft and supple. It is also known for its anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties, which can help soothe and heal various skin conditions. Additionally, it is rich in fatty acids, making it an excellent choice for nourishing and protecting the skin.
Coconut Oil
Coconut oil has moisturizing properties that can help nourish and hydrate the skin. It also contains anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties that may aid in treating various skin conditions. Coconut oil can clog pores, but nobody has acne on their lips so for lipstick it is perfect regardless!
Grape Seed Oil
Grape seed oil or vitis vinifera contains proanthocyanidins, polyphenols, flavonoids, and anthocyanins. All of these are potent antioxidants that help to mitigate the effects of environmental stressors on the skin.
Pomegranate Oil
Pomegranates have that mythical aura of eternal youth for good reason. Pomegranate oil is high in antioxidants, which can help protect skin from environmental stressors and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It also has anti-inflammatory properties that can soothe and calm irritated skin. This oil is a key ingredient in the the Fruit Pigmented® Pomegranate Oil Anti-Aging Lipstick.
Cocoa Butter
Made from the cacao plant – theobroma cocoa, meaning literally “food of the gods” – cocoa butter is not only delicious to eat, but it is also a natural emollient that is high in fatty acids, which can deeply moisturize and nourish the skin. It can also improve skin elasticity, promote collagen production, and reduce the appearance of scars and stretch marks.
Argan Oil
Argan oil is rich in vitamin E and fatty acids, which can deeply moisturize and hydrate the skin. It also has anti-inflammatory properties that can soothe irritated skin and may help to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
Final Thoughts on Plant-Based Beauty
As you see, many plant-derived ingredients have similar properties. While their specific chemical profile is different for each oil, most will have at least some beneficial effect – especially on the lips.
Not only are the brands mentioned here safer products in general, but they also contain some great anti-aging, soothing, and nourishing ingredients for your skin.
A concoction of mineral oil, with a smidge of some toxic chemicals and synthetic preservatives, does not have that effect on the skin, by far.
When using luscious botanical ingredients like cocoa butter, shea butter, and fine oils, they don’t merely lay on top – I can really feel my skin soak them up. Oh yeah, and they don’t taste like plastic, either. Yuck.
By the way, these awesome ethical and safe lipstick brands pair really well with other clean cosmetics, such as:
- Cruelty-Free Mascara: Top Brands Under $30
- Cruelty-free Powder Foundation
- 10 Best Organic Tinted Moisturizers w/ SPF (Real Reviews)
If you can choose, why not give your skin the highest quality personal care products? Safe cosmetics, that are made with natural ingredients not only look dashing but pamper your skin at the same time. Long-lasting color is included in the price, we don’t have to do any concessions there. That’s a no-brainer, don’t you think?