The Ultimate List of Cruelty-Free & 100% Vegan Makeup & Skincare Brands (2023)

The cosmetic world is full of mystery when it comes to the ethical treatment of animals and cruelty-free vegan makeup.

After all, Cosmetics have been tested on animals for years.

We’ve come a long way since the 20th century when tests on mice, rabbits, and guinea pigs were commonplace amongst cosmetics companies. Unfortunately, however, these cruel tests still exist.

Even today, it is estimated that more than 100,000 animals worldwide are used to test cosmetic products every year.

Japan and China, for example, still use animal testing on finished and unfinished cosmetics.

Vegan, cruelty-free makeup brands do not test on animals in the manufacturing of their products. Nor do they use animals products; their ingredients are vegan.

In this post, we take you through a list of cruelty-free makeup brands, known for their commission of animal testing in the cosmetics production process.

Towards the end of this article, we’ll also answer common questions relating to the beauty industry, and the regulation of animal welfare.

How to Know If a Cosmetic Product is Cruelty-Free or Vegan

 

To tell whether or not a beauty product is vegan, it’s important to first understand what veganism is in this context.

The Vegan Society defines veganism as “a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as is possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.”

In the case of cosmetics, this means that a vegan product does not contain any animal-derived ingredients, including honey, beeswax, lanolin, and collagen.

If you’re looking to buy vegan makeup, it’s important to check the ingredient list for words such as ‘cera alba,’ the wax of a honeycomb, beeswax, carnauba wax, and castor oil.

It’s also important to note that many cruelty-free makeup brands are not vegan.

Cruelty-free makeup brands may still have products that contain animal byproducts or derivatives.

For example, a vegan brand would avoid using carmine, a pigment derived from crushed beetles, but a non-vegan but ‘cruelty-free’ brand may not.

Many beauty companies have a huge range of products containing both vegan and non-vegan ingredients.

In these cases, it’s important to check the label as you would when animal testing is concerned.

 

Cruelty-Free Brands to Shop with

 

Now, we’ll take a look at cosmetic brands following best practices in the cosmetics and beauty industry.

We have selected the brands below based on extensive online research in this field.

 

LUSH Cosmetics

LUSH is a well-known beauty brand that specializes in making vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics.

All of their products are handmade with fresh ingredients, which means they don’t contain any harsh chemicals or preservatives.

Some of LUSH’s most popular products include the “Angels Bare Skin” face wash, body lotion bars, and face masks.

NOTE: Whilst LUSH is a brand that sells a diverse range of products that are majority vegan, some of its products may contain traces of animals.

Always check the ingredient list on beauty products before buying!

 

Urban Decay

Urban Decay is an American beauty company that ships all over the world.

It is one of many beauty brands specialising in cruelty-free makeup products, including eyeshadow, mascara, lipsticks, foundations, primers, blushes, bronzers, etc.

Every single Urban Decay product has been thoroughly tested to ensure its safety for its consumers without ever testing on animals or using animal byproducts in their ingredients list.

NOTE: Urban Decay does sell makeup brushes made with animal hair bristles.

 

W7 Cosmetics – Free of All Animal Testing

W7 Cosmetics is a UK-based beauty brand that was founded in 2001.

The company offers a diverse range of cosmetics that include eye shadows, lipsticks, foundations, and more.

The beauty brand also offers a cruelty-free and vegan line of cosmetics.

W7 has been as cruelty-free certified by the Leaping Bunny (as referenced above).

 

Au Naturale

Au Naturale is a completely cruelty-free and vegan makeup brand based in the United States.

They offer a wide range of makeup products, including foundation, blush, and eyeshadow.

They also offer a large range of skincare items, including facial masks, moisturizers, and cleansers.

Their website features their company philosophy as well as the ingredients for all their products.

Au Naturale products can be purchased on their website or at various retailers, such as Ulta and Amazon.

 

Fenty Beauty – One of Rihanna’s Makeup Brands that are Cruelty-Free

Rihanna’s makeup line is also cruelty-free and vegan.

The brand offers a range of vegan products, such as their cruelty-free and vegan Naked Skin foundation.

They also offer vegan makeup brushes.

Fenty Beauty can be purchased online at Sephora and on the brand’s website.

Rihanna launched Fenty Beauty to show the world that “beauty is for all.”

“Fenty Beauty was created with inclusivity and diversity at its core,” Rihanna told The New York Times. “I wanted everyone to feel included, whether you’re white, black, light, or dark.”

The brand’s 40 foundation shades are designed to match a range of skin tones, from the lightest to the darkest.

In an interview with The Cut, Rihanna said, “I was never able to find my perfect match, so I decided to create my own.”

 

E.L.F Cosmetics

The E.L.F in E.L.F Cosmetics stands for eyes, lips, face, which means they sell cosmetics for all of your beauty needs at an affordable price!

E.L.F Cosmetics is based in New York City, USA.

Some of their bestsellers include their Studio line of makeup brushes, their Baked Blush Trio, and their Hydrating Face Primer.

E.L.F Cosmetics can be found in stores like Target and Walmart, as well as online at elfcosmetics.com.

 

Inika Mineral Cosmetics

Inika Mineral Cosmetics is an Australian brand that offers a range of certified organic and vegan cosmetics.

Their products are cruelty-free and many are gluten-free as well.

The Inika brand is popular for its long-wearing mineral makeup that gives a sheer to full coverage finish.

You can find Inika products in health food stores or online at inika.com.

 

Physician’s Formula

Physician’s Formula creates cruelty-free makeup that is extremely affordable for all beauty levels!

They offer vegan cosmetics as well, but their vegan options are mostly limited to nail polish and lipstick.

Their Super BB cream has been featured on TV shows across the Western World, and they have many different foundations for various skin types, colours, and finishes.

 

PRIIA

PRIIA is a makeup brand that offers a range of vegan products for the face, eyes, and lips.

Whilst the manufacturing of their skincare is cruelty-free, their makeup brushes are made with natural animal bristles.

You can find PRIIA products in health food stores or online at priia.com.

 

Sigma Beauty

Sigma Beauty sells cruelty-free makeup brushes that can be used to apply cosmetics from many different brands including bareMinerals, Inglot, and M·A·C cosmetics.

The brand has a large range of vegan options as well.

Their vegan line includes the Vegan Kabuki Brush Set, Vegan Large Powder Brush Set, and the Vegan Travel Brush Set.

You can find SigmaBeauty products in stores like Ulta and Sephora, as well as online at sigmarealbeauty.com.

 

Pacifica

Pacifica is a cruelty-free and vegan skincare brand that was founded in 1997 by Brook Harvey-Taylor.

The company provides cheap vegan makeup made entirely from fresh vegetables.

As certified, all Pacifica products are vegan and cruelty-free.

The company specializes in delivering the best-performing consumer skincare products and sells them in recyclable bags.

Pacifica offers a range of vegan makeup, skincare, and fragrances.

Besides remaining cruelty-free, the sulfates contain no toxic additives. Their products are free from phthalates, parabens, sulfates, and petroleum.

Pacifica is available in health food stores and online at pacificabeauty.com.

 

Atomic Makeup

Atomic Makeup was launched in 2015 by its founder, Rachel Nguyen.

The company was launched after Rachel learned about animal cruelty in the cosmetic industry and decided to do something.

Atomic Makeup is free of all animal ingredients, including beeswax. It is also vegan-friendly, paraben-free, gluten-free, GMO-free, petrochemical-free, cruelty-free, and aluminum salt-free.

Atomic Makeup’s goal is to offer the finest luxury makeup products at affordable prices for everyone.

The products are easy to use and long-lasting, so being beautiful isn’t just a one-night thing but an everyday feeling.

Atomic Makeup is a great option if you’re searching for bright coloured vegan lipgloss and lip shadow. All products are by their professional team members.

Their lush, matte-toned lip products provide great smudge resistance to the skin from glimmer blue and green to glittery pinks and purples for an affordable price!

 

RMS Beauty

RMS Beauty has always been animal cruelty-free since its inception. The animal ingredients that are used in the company’s products are listed at the bottom of each product page.

The company is named after Rose-Marie Swift, who set out to change the beauty industry by providing quality, sustainable, and animal-friendly products.

The products are vegan, paraben-free, gluten-free, GMO-free, petrochemical-free, aluminum salt-free, and safe for all skin types.

This beauty brand strives to provide high-quality makeup for everyone.

There are many vegan options available with the brand’s products including their BB Cream Moisturizer SPF 30. It can also be used as a foundation to enhance natural beauty.

Just bear in mind that RMS Beauty is not exclusively vegan due to the use of Beeswax, which they use in several products.

However, the company uses 100% recyclable or reusable product packaging and partakes in no animal testing on any animal products that it makes.

 

Zuzu Luxe

Zuzu Luxe is another cruelty-free makeup brand that specializes in vegan makeup.

Its products are available online and in select stores, including Gabriel Cosmetics and specialty stores across the U.K and U.S.

The animal testing policy for Zuzu Luxe is that they do not test on animals at any point during the production of their products or ingredients.

Their vegan makeup line contains no animal by-products, animal oils, animal by-products, or animal fragrances.

They are also against animal testing in general and advocate for animal rights, pushing to end animal testing.

Every ingredient used in Zuzu Luxe’s products is vegan.

 

WELL PEOPLE

WELL PEOPLE is a cruelty-free company and skincare brand.

The company does not test on animals and does not use any animal-derived ingredients in its products. They

Along with their own vegan skincare products, WELL PEOPLE has created a line of makeup brushes that are cruelty-free and vegan.

All of the brushes are made using recycled aluminum ferrules and brown bamboo handles.

WELL PEOPLE offers beauty products for eyes, lips, face, cheeks, brows, lashes, concealers, foundations/concealers, bronzers/illuminators, blush/blushes, highlighters/illuminators/shimmers, primers/anti-aging treatments, moisturizers/skin and treatment oils.

Their cosmetics are constructed without any toxic ingredients such as chemicals or biological contaminants.

 

BARE MINERALS

Bare Minerals is an international award-winning cruelty-free makeup brand.

The company does not test any of its products on animals and does not use any animal-derived ingredients in any of its makeup.

All of their products are vegan (except for their eyeliners, which use beeswax).

Bare Minerals offers a wide range of cosmetics for the face, eyes, lips, and brows.

Their products are made with natural minerals and do not contain any parabens, synthetic fragrances, or sulfates.

Additionally, they are non-comedogenic (which means they will not clog pores) and gluten-free.

 

Hynt Beauty

Hynt Beauty is another brand that offers a diverse range of beauty products that are (for the most part) vegan and cruelty-free.

Although the majority of Hynt beauty products are vegan, not all of them are. Some of them contain honey.

Their diverse range of products includes foundations, powders, blush, eyeshadow, bronzer, and more.

One of the things that set Hynt Beauty apart is its commitment to using only the best ingredients in its products.

For example, all of their products are talc-free, gluten-free, oil-free, and mineral oil-free.

 

Sappho New Paradigm

Sappho New Paradigm is a beauty brand from the USA that offers a diverse range of vegan and cruelty-free cosmetics.

The brand is certified by the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC) Leaping Bunny Program, which means that they do not test their products on animals at any stage of production.

So, it is leaping bunny certified.

Sappho New Paradigm also ensures that none of their ingredients are derived from animal sources, making their makeup and skincare 100% vegan.

 

Wander Beauty

Wander Beauty is a beauty company that offers a diverse range of cosmetics. All of their products are vegan and cruelty-free.

The company is one of the hundreds of cruelty-free brands located in New York City. Their team is made up of beauty experts who have extensive knowledge in the beauty industry.

Wander beauty products are designed to give you a natural makeup look that enhances your features.

Their products are also meant to be long-wearing and lightweight.

You can wear them all day without feeling like you’re wearing any makeup at all.

All of their products are vegan, gluten-free, cruelty-free, and noncomedogenic.

Some of Wander beauty’s most popular products include the On The Glow Blush and Bronzer, Eye Polish Trio, and Lip Gloss.

They are available for purchase on their website or at various retailers worldwide.

 

Cruelty-free Brands: FAQs From Our Readers

As is the case in any industry, there are plenty of resellers online that sell skin care or general cosmetics products that they claim to be cruelty-free vegan, but are not.

Below, we answer some common questions relating to popular makeup brands and the ingredients they use.

 

Is L’Oreal cruelty-free?

In the eyes of a vegan, no, L’Oreal is not a cruelty-free brand.

Although they have stated that they do not test their products on animals, they are not vegan-friendly as they do use animal ingredients in some of their products.

 

Is MAC cruelty-free?

In the eyes of a vegan, no, MAC is not a cruelty-free brand. They do not test on animals, but they are not vegan as they use honey in some of their products.

 

Is Maybelline cruelty-free?

Maybelline is also a non-cruelty-free brand. Like MAC, they also use honey in some of their products.

 

Is Kylie Cosmetics cruelty-free?

It’s unclear whether Kylie Cosmetics is cruelty-free.

The company has stated that they do not test on animals, but it’s not clear whether the beauty products are vegan or not.

 

Is Sephora cruelty-free?

In the eyes of a vegan, no, Sephora is not a cruelty-free beauty brand. They have stated that they do not test on animals.

However, they still use some animal ingredients in some of their beauty products.

 

Is the Kat Von D beauty range cruelty-free?

Yes, Kat Von D beauty products are very much vegan and cruelty-free.

They have never tested on animals and only use synthetic ingredients in their beauty products. 

 

Is Benefit Cosmetics cruelty-free?

Benefit Cosmetics is not considered to be cruelty-free because it has been known for selling beauty products in China, where animal testing is required by law.  

 

Is the Rimmel London Beauty Range vegan friendly?

No, Rimmel beauty products are not vegan-friendly. 

They do sell beauty products in China where animal testing is required by law.  

 

Is Anastasia Beverly Hills cruelty-free?

Although they have never tested on animals, Anastasia beauty products contain some ingredients that are derived from animals, such as beeswax and carmine.  

Unless the company can provide a verifiable statement saying that these ingredients will be completely swapped with synthetic alternatives and production will never occur in countries where animal testing is legal (China), Anastasia beauty does not meet international standards for vegan beauty brands.  

Therefore, it cannot be Leaping Bunny Certified.

 

Are all-vegan cosmetics cruelty-free?

If a brand is truly vegan then it is cruelty-free.

However, not all beauty products that claim to be vegan-friendly or cruelty-free are truly so.

As PETA notes: “Just because a product has a ‘Natural’ or ‘Organic’ label on it does not mean that the brand is cruelty-free.”

“It’s important to double-check every beauty brand and every beauty retailer before making a purchase.”  

 

What major makeup brands are vegan?

Some of the most popular vegan beauty brands include Anastasia Beverly Hills, Kat Von D, and Benefit Cosmetics.

These vegan makeup brands are known for their high-quality products and their dedication to being cruelty-free.

If you are ever interested in knowing whether your favourite ‘vegan makeup brands’ test on animals, just check to see if they are Leaping Bunny Certified before purchase.

 

Organisations to Look out for When Shopping for Cruelty-Free Makeup Brands

Below, we’ll take a quick look at the labels you should look out for when shopping for cruelty-free brands.

If the brand you’re spending your money with is working with either of the below organisations then you can be sure to trust that animals have not been used in the manufacturing process.

Alternatively, if they are, it is not carried out cruelly.

 

Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC)

The Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC) is an organization that serves as a portal for beauty companies to find out which beauty and beauty suppliers use animal testing.

It also provides beauty companies with the opportunity to publish the results of chemical safety analyses, before they are available to other organisations or agencies.

Additionally, it provides beauty brands with information on how to remain cruelty-free by making sure that any beauty products are not tested on animals, nor contain ingredients derived from animals.

It also conducts undercover investigations of cosmetic companies throughout the world that are said to be part of animal testing practices.

 

International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)

An agency commissioned by the World Health Organization, IARC tests products for carcinogenic risks to humans.

To ensure the product is tested safely on animals, beauty brands must join the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR).

This ensures that no animal testing will be conducted on beauty products containing ingredients that may cause cancer.

 

The Leaping Bunny Program

The Leaping Bunny Program is an internationally-recognized cruelty-free certification program.

The program is administered by the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC).

It requires companies to meet a set of standards to receive certification, which includes a pledge not to test products or ingredients on animals, and a commitment to source ingredients only from suppliers that don’t test on animals.

When purchasing nail polishes, hair products, or any skin care products, be sure to look for cruelty-free certifications such as the Leaping Bunny Certification.

It is one of the only ways to know if a certain product produced by makeup brands is completely vegan.

 

Summing up What we Know: Cruelty-Free & Vegan Makeup & Skincare Brands

We’ve covered a lot in this article. Let’s summarise some of the main points.

• There are a number of vegan and cruelty-free makeup and skincare brands available on the market.
• Not all brands that claim to be vegan or cruelty-free are truthful in their claims. Check to see if the brand has a Leaping Bunny Certification.
• It’s important to do your research before purchasing any beauty product from an ‘ethical brand’, whether it is from a major beauty retailer or an independent brand.
• Some well-known vegan and cruelty-free beauty brands include Anastasia Beverly Hills, Kat Von D, Benefit Cosmetics, and NYX.

We hope this article is useful to you and that you now have more clarity relating to where to shop for your beauty products.

The beauty industry is not all about animal testing. There are beauty companies dedicated to their beauty products being vegan-friendly and cruelty-free.

The key to finding these beauty brands is knowing where to look!