When buying eyeliner, whether it's black, metallic, or colored, we're all looking for a few key features: intense color, long lasting power, and ease of application without it smudging. While high-end liners might feel more luxurious, I've found those 3 key things in a few drugstore brands. In fact, some drugstore liquid, gel, and pencil liners perform just as well as high-end ones! There are some real duds out there that shall remain nameless for now, but brands like Milani, Sonia Kashuk, and NYX are some that truly deliver. Check out Milani's Eye Tech if you're looking for the perfect cruelty-free liquid eyeliner! If you want a gel liner, Sonia Kashuk makes a super-black and long-lasting one.
There's another reason why I believe that higher priced eyeliners aren't a must. If you wear eyeliner every day, chances are you're going to run out of products very quickly. So why purchase a 30$ eyeliner every two months if a 4$ product can perform just as well? It's also not uncommon for liquid and gel eyeliner to dry out, and for pencil liners to get germy! These products just don't have a long shelf life. Remember to always screw on the lid of your gel liners as tight as possible to prevent them from drying out!
Do you have any favorite drugstore eyeliners? I'd love to know!
Note: all the products mentioned in this article are cruelty-free. NARS and Urban Decay are cruelty-free, but their parent companies are not.
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This is great. Thanks for the tips. I learned a lot about eyeliner use.
thanks so much for the info! Nyx was recently bought out by L’Oreal so parent company no longer Cruelty-free 🙁 I love the Milani pen liners. I also use elf $1 liquid liner. It works awesome for me. and Physicians Formula gel liners. We are slowly running out of truly cruetly-free options. I’l l have to try SK’s gel liner when I run out of all the liners I own!
Hi Elo! I’ll have to try Physicians Formula liners. Here’s my stance on cruelty-free companies owned by non-cruelty-free ones. I actually give NYX as an example. 🙂