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10 best natural and organic makeup products that your face will thank you for
Rid your beauty routine of chemical nasties with ethical, certified and natural products
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As we become increasingly concerned about the ingredients we’re putting in our bodies, it stands to reason that we are also becoming more aware of what goes on our skin.
As a result, more and more consumers are flocking towards more natural products, and going organic is a common choice.
Like organic food products, organic make-up is created using ingredients which have been harvested without any synthetic chemicals such as pesticides and fertilisers, and have not used any genetically modified crops.
This type of farming is largely considered to be more sustainable due to the lack of chemicals which could be harmful to the environment, however organic products require more land to harvest, which can make them more expensive than alternatives.
Because the price point can be slightly higher, we wanted to make sure that organic make-up products worked just as well as their mainstream counterparts, in terms of formulation, finish and longevity.
We also wanted to test the products for additional sustainable and ethical credentials, including animal testing, packaging, and additional company values.
You can trust our independent reviews. We may earn commission from some of the retailers, but we never allow this to influence selections, which are formed from real-world testing and expert advice. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.
Here are some of the best organic make-up products out there.
RMS ‘un’ cover-up concealer: £34, Beauty Bay
Organic or not, this is absolutely one of the best concealers on the market right now. It falls into the pot concealer category which has been popular for a couple of years, and has the consistency of a cross between Glossier stretch and Nars soft matte complete concealer, which is to say that it has decent coverage even for pretty dark undereye circles and feels moisturising and emollient without making you look greasy or emphasising fine lines.
We found that it worked best applied with fingers and no powder, especially under the eyes. It doesn’t disappear instantly but it keeps a nice fresh look which is easily touched up throughout the day. It also works well on the face to cover slight redness or discolouration, although you might need something with a bit more coverage if you have substantial breakouts to cover up.
The product comes in a thick frosted glass pot with a metal lid, which makes it much more environmentally friendly than a plastic option, which is a nice bonus.
Olio E Osso tinted balm: £27, Naturismo
If you’re into full-on glam make-up this may not be the product for you, but if you’re constantly striving for that simplified no-make-up-make-up look, this could be exactly what you’re looking for.
The product is a tinted balm which comes in 11 different shades and can be used on the lips and cheeks. We’ve found that it’s rare to get a multi-use product that truly does both jobs well, but this one manages.
Applied onto the lips straight from the bullet, it offers a nice moisturising element with just enough tint to enhance the natural lip colour without being so intense that it looks like you’re wearing anything at all – in fact, it can be applied without a mirror to fairly foolproof results.
The colour is always going to be sheer, but it’s just enough to give a healthy, entirely natural-looking wash of colour. It feels nourishing and moisturising but doesn’t leave the lips either matte or glossy – it’s genuinely your lips but just slightly better.
The best way to use it on the cheeks is to use your finger to apply and blend out. This literally takes around 20 seconds and leaves a natural, sheer flush to the skin without staying overly glossy or tacky.
The ingredients are entirely organic, comprised mostly of natural oils and beeswax, although it also contains carmine so it’s not appropriate for vegans. We were also slightly disappointed that it came in plastic packaging, but you get 10g of product, which is around three times a typical cream lip and/or cheek product, so in the long run it will likely be more sustainable.
Lawless the one eyeshadow palette: £47.50, Lawless
Eyeshadow palettes are absolutely some of the most enjoyable make-up products out there. They can be fun, inspiring and entirely transform a look. This is certainly the case with the Lawless palette. You get 18 shades which include a good mixture of mattes and shimmers; neutral and brights; light highlights and dark definers. You can do a simple warm-toned brown lid with one or two of the colours, a full-on purple smokey eye, a fiery orange look or a pretty sparkly pink and gold style. It’s an incredibly well thought out selection.
The formula itself is also excellent. The shadows are soft which makes them very easy to blend, but they’re pigmented enough that they don’t disappear into thin air. They do have a little kick-back in the pan, especially if too much pressure is applied, but surprisingly cause very minimal fallout.
It’s a great all-rounder, especially considering the eyeshadow space is fairly sparce when it comes to clean beauty brands. It’s worth noting it’s not completely vegan, though.
Elate refresh foundation: £25, Elate
Elate claims on its website that it strives to make its products “as organic as possible”, but that Fairtrade takes precedence over organic ingredients. All of the ingredients in the refresh foundation are vegan, cruelty free and “clean”, and everything which can be organic is.
It doesn’t feel accurate to classify this as a foundation as such because the coverage is so incredibly minimal, which is presumably why it’s marketed as a “tint”. But if you were looking for something light for every day with cleaner ingredients than something like the Glossier skin tint, this might be the one for you.
It comes in a thick glass bottle with a bamboo cap and minimal plastic on the pump, which is a shame but does help with application. The consistency is thicker than you might expect for the coverage but it blends out incredibly sheer, which can be helpful if you’re looking to apply quickly with your fingers (brushes and sponges seem to soak up way too much product to get any pay-off at all).
It does build well and with two or three layers you can get a light coverage which evens out skin tone but is essentially undetectable. This is not a matte base by any means, but depending on what you use to prime the skin you can take it from a natural finish to incredibly dewy, which gives the product nice versatility, although imperfections will show through no matter what.
It’s definitely not the longest wearing foundation, but it wears nicely and evenly and doesn’t seem to go patchy throughout the day.
Axiology lipstick in ‘worth’: £25, Glow Organic
The colour and formula of this product make it feel like a highly versatile product. One swipe over a balm and it offers a nice sheer wash of colour to a glossy lip, but you can also build it up to an opaque semi-matte finish. The orange toned brick colour feels like something that would be flattering on a wide range of skin tones, and it lasts well without drying out the lips while fading evenly. As well as organic it’s also vegan-friendly.
Miild mineral bronzing powder: £43, Klarify
If you enjoy a bronzer that makes you look like you’ve just returned from a month in the maldives, this may the be one for you. The baked formula is warm toned with shimmery gold marbling which comes off as a light dusting of glow on the skin, rather than chunks of glitter. It’s not overly pigmented to where you could risk having huge orange stripes across your cheeks, but it definitely bronzes up the skin noticeably and blends well. We enjoyed the large pan which allows for quick application with a fluffy brush. All the products that can be sourced as organic are, and we enjoyed the cardboard eco-friendly packaging.
100% Pure fruit pigmented ultra lengthening mascara: £25.16, 100% Pure
The first thing that cannot go unmentioned regarding this product is the scent. It has a very noticeably fruity smell, but not in a good way – sort of more like what you would expect apple cores that are going off to smell like. We found this slightly off-putting initially, although the scent doesn’t linger and is something you could probably overlook unless you’re incredibly sensitive.
The natural pigment works well and you do get a nice solid black colour, however this is definitely a more lengthening than volumising mascara. It separates lashes pretty well and makes them appear very long and curled, but it’s really not for days when you’re looking for a lot of thickness. But given that its name is “ultra lengthening”, it does what it says on the tin.
We found that it lasted well, without too much smudging or transfer, even in hot weather used on top and bottom lashes. All in all, it’s a nice everyday product with great ingredients.
Zao refillable liquid brush liner: £18.95, Beautifully Organic
We tested this product out in the intense black shade and were impressed, although for the more adventurous out there they also offer an electric blue, emerald green, plum and brown version. The applicator is a super fine brush which allows for a subtle thickening of the lashline or a more intense winged liner look, and it’s as easy to apply as most other liquid liners on the market. It dries down to a matte opaque black which doesn’t smudge or flake throughout the day.
The sustainability credentials here are great – aside from being formulated with 100 per cent organic natural ingredients, it’s packaged in a refillable bamboo case and a cotton drawsting bag, which is a nice touch. Refills cost £11.75 which makes it very affordable in the long run.
Lavera soft glowing highlighter: £6.15, Ecco Verde
This is a beautiful product if you’re looking for a cream highlighter that’s going to pack a real punch. It’s not a subtle highlight, although the formula means it has a much more natural look than a similarly shimmery highlighter if it were in a powder form. It applies pretty well over any face powder and dries down to a matte finish that stays on the skin all day.
The only downside to this product is that it only comes in two shades: a frosty pink and a very gold-toned champagne. We found that the most natural results on a medium skin tone were achieved by mixing both colours together, which is a lot of effort to go to on a daily basis. But if you don’t mind a bit of extra pigment on the cheekbones, this could be a lovely option. We found they worked well as cream eyeshadows too, and the price is excellent for an all-natural, organic product.
Hynt Beauty lumiere radiance boosting powder: £54, Glow Organic
All of Hynt’s products are cruelty-free, vegan and “organic-based”, which means they use organic products as much as they can. The only non-organic product in their powder is the kaolin clay, which is 100 per cent pure but isn’t field grown and therefore cannot be classified as organic.
The radiance boosting powder didn’t seem to us to do what it said on the tin – but is still a great product. We found that when applied over a dewy base it actually mattified the skin slightly, definitely not giving a full coverage flat look, but not adding much radiance either. The powder is beautifully fine though, making it undetectable on the skin and leaving an incredibly natural looking finish that does add a tiny bit more coverage and prolongs the wear time of the rest of your make-up. It only comes in one shade which is ever so slightly tinted, but goes on essentially translucent, so would work for multiple skin tones.
It does feel expensive for what it is considering there are much more affordable options out there that give a similar result, but if clean ingredients are important to you and you’re looking for a luxury powder, this is a great option.
The verdict: Organic make-up products
If you like a lighter make-up look, the RMS concealer is a brilliant product and achieves a flawless, fresh-looking base. Olio E Osso’s tinted balms are perfect if you’re looking for a versatile product to use everyday. If you only want to buy one eyeshadow palette, Lawless has the perfect option with an incredible range of shades, while for affordability and payoff, the Lavera highlighters were the standout product.