What is lip oil?
Lip oils are multitalented. For one, they give your lips a beautiful, glossy appearance, just like a lip gloss or balm. And they can also add a pop of color to your look, too, if you choose the tinted varieties.
But lip oils are more than just a makeup product—they also help to support your lip health, too. This is because they're often enriched with nourishing ingredients, like hyaluronic acid, plant oils, and conditioning butters.
The best cruelty-free lip oil products
Like all beauty products, lip oils can be tested on animals, so, when you're shopping for the best formulas, it's important to check the brand's cruelty-free status, too.
Dior's Lip Glow Oil, for example, is popular, but Dior is not considered a cruelty-free brand, and neither is its parent company, LVMH.
But don't worry! To save you some extra research time, we've compiled all of the best cruelty-free lip oils below.
Best budget lip oil:
NYX
Fat Oil Lip Drip
$9
| Key ingredients | Squalene, raspberry, and cloudberry oils |
| Vegan product? | Not specified |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | Yes - L'Oréal |
Available in eight different shades, NYX's Lip Drip provides 12 hours of hydration, according to NYX.
That's all thanks to an ultra-moisturizing blend of oils—including squalene, raspberry, and cloudberry—which help to plump and strengthen skin thanks to their fatty acid, vitamin, and antioxidant content.
While this is a hydrating lip oil, it feels a lot like a gloss on your lips (and looks like it, too), so expect a slightly sticky (but not too sticky) texture and a shiny appearance.
Best overnight lip oil:
City Beauty
City Lips Night Oil
$39
This is a sponsored listing.
| Key ingredients | Portulaca pilosa extract, plankton & floral extract, hyaluronic acid |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | No |
When your lips feel dry and look dull, reach for City Beauty's Night Oil, which is designed for use overnight.
The formula—which is ideal for people with wrinkled, thin lips—is infused with ingredients like plankton extract, for example, which may help to reduce the appearance of creases on the skin, as well as portulaca pilosa extract, which is rich in antioxidants. Ultra-hydrating hyaluronic acid is in the mix, too.
This product works particularly well with consistent use. In fact, according to City Beauty, in one brand-conducted study, 91 percent of users said their fine lines were less noticeable after 12 weeks.
Fenty Skin
Cherry Treat Lip Oil
$24
| Key ingredients | Triple cherry extract, jojoba seed, rosehip fruit oils |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | Yes - LVMH |
As you may have guessed, Fenty Beauty's Cherry Treat Lip Oil is a celebration of the lip benefits of cherries, which are rich in vitamins and antioxidants.
It's hydrating, strengthening, and moisturizing, plus it smells delicious, too.
As well as cherry extract, it also contains jojoba seed and rosehip, both of which feel soothing and softening on the skin.
ILIA
Balmy Gloss Tinted Lip Oil
$26
| Key ingredients | Hyaluronic acid and Salicornia |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | Yes - Clarins |
If you're not a fan of lip products that feel sticky, ILIA's Balmy Gloss might be the one for you.
It feels moisturizing and soothing, thanks to the blend of hyaluronic acid and salicornia (which are succulents that grow on salt marshes and in mangrove forests). And even though it's not sticky, it still has a satisfyingly shiny, glossy finish.
The formula comes in six different shades, but if you want a stronger pop of color, you can layer it over your favorite lipsticks and lip stains, too.
| Key ingredients | Jojoba and sunflower seed oil |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | Yes |
| Parent company tests on animals? | No |
When you first apply Rare Beauty's Soft Pinch Lip Oil, it has a jelly-like texture, but after application, it feels lightweight and cooling on the skin.
Choose from eight long-lasting colors, including Wonder, which is a soft rose mauve, and Affection, which is more of a dark berry shade.
Plus, as with all Rare Beauty products, one percent of sales from this lip oil will go towards the mental health-focused Rare Impact Fund.
Kosas
Wet Lip Oil Gloss
$22
| Key ingredients | Hyaluronic acid, peptides, evening primrose oil, avocado oil, konjac root, shea butter |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | No |
For juicy, plump, kissable lips, you can't go wrong with Kosas' Wet Lip Oil Gloss.
Hyaluronic acid makes for a hydrating formula, while peptides and avocado oil help to create a plumping effect, leaving you with a pillowy soft look and feel. Plus shea butter, konjac root, and primrose oil are softening, soothing, and moisturizing, too.
There are 11 shades to choose from, including three new shades: Champagne Pink Shimmer, Soft Warm Pink, and Creamy Nectar.
Tower 28
ShineOn Lip Jelly
$16
| Key ingredients | Apricot oil, castor seed oil, avocado oil, raspberry seed oil, rosa canina seed oil |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | Yes |
| Parent company tests on animals? | No |
This formula is technically sold as a lip jelly, but because it's enriched with five nourishing, moisturizing oils, we say it still counts in this category.
Depending on the look you're going for, you can choose from either the brand's translucent shades (like the sheer pink XOXO or clear Chill) or its Milky Jellies. And don't worry, the latter are totally vegan. In fact, they're even inspired by the brand's favorite alternative milk products, including oat, cashew, coconut, and almond.
Tarte
Sugar Rush Lip Oil
$18
| Key ingredients | Jojoba oil, hazelnut oil, sunflower oil, orange peel oil, vitamin E |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | Yes - Kose |
For a simple, glossy dash of lip color, which is also nourishing, too, try Tarte's Sugar Rush Lip Oil.
Enriched with jojoba oil, hazelnut oil, sunflower oil, orange peel oil, and vitamin E, the non-sticky formula is vitamin-rich, soothing, and hydrating.
And the best part? It tastes like raspberry sugar cookies. For real.
| Key ingredients | Fruit oils, conditioning butters, coconut water, hyaluronic acid |
| Vegan product? | Not specified |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | Yes - Estée Lauder |
On mornings when you're feeling tired and run down and you just need a pick-me-up, Too Faced's Hangover Pillow Balm is essential.
It's creamy, nourishing, and feels great on your lips, and that's because it's enriched with ingredients like moisturizing shea butter and refreshing, hydrating cucumber fruit extract.
Choose from several different shades, including Banana Kiss, Cocoa Kiss, Mango Kiss, and Watermelon Kiss.
Best luxury lip oil:
| Key ingredients | Saliporine-8, volulip™, viamerine, essential oils, plant oils |
| Vegan product? | Yes |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | Yes - Unilever |
This is one of the most luxurious choices on the list. In fact, it even comes complete with a 24kt gold-plated tip for application.
But packaging aside, this formula is still worth the splurge. It's enriched with 28 nourishing ingredients (hence the name), including essential oils, plant oils, and vitamins.
It also contains ultra-moisturizing viamerine, a vegetable-based alternative to lanolin, plumping Volulip, and strengthening, succulent-derived saliporine-8.
| Key ingredients | Swertian leaf extract, resurrection leaf, sqisandryl, hyaluronic acid |
| Vegan product? | Not specified |
| Vegan brand? | No |
| Parent company tests on animals? | Yes - Puig |
Charlotte Tilbury is renowned for its lip products, and for good reason. This tinted lip oil is hydrating, softening, and glides on beautifully.
But the formula is also effective for lip care, too. It helps to reduce the appearance of fine lines, for example, thanks to the addition of Ayurvedic swertian leaf. It also contains sqisandryl, which helps to plump lips and improve elasticity.
The verdict
While some lip oils are tested on animals, there are also plenty of hydrating, nourishing, glossy, cruelty-free lip oil products on the market. To recap, here are some of our favorites:
Best Budget: NYX Fat Oil Lip Drip
Overnight: City Beauty City Lips Night Oil
Luxury: Hourglass Nº 28 Lip Treatment Oil
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