How to Find the Best Clear Lip Gloss: Our Top Lip Gloss Recommendations

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Vegan Beauty Expert at Glamour n Glow

Juliet is passionate about cruelty-free and vegan beauty. She knows how difficult it can be to find quality vegan beauty products, so she's made it her life's mission to help you discover the best vegan beauty products out there!

But What is the Point of Clear Lip Gloss?

Clear lip gloss helps pump up the radiance of your lips and creates the perfect ‘no-makeup makeup look to help your face glow. Using your favorite lipstick, a clear lip gloss can make your lipstick pop brighter and adds a shimmer to your finished makeup look.

How Do I Know What is the “Best Clear Lip Gloss”?

You want to be looking for products that are:

Moisturizing
Shiny
Long-lasting
Non-sticky
Enhance your make-up look

Where Can I Buy Clear Lip Glosses?

Most of the lip glosses I will be recommending are best bought online and some can only be bought online (ie. Glossier). However, I have put down some drugstore products that are easy to buy online or in-person (ie. e.l.f). Let’s help you find the best clear lip gloss in the market!

Reigning Queen of Clear Lip Gloss:

1. Glossier Lip Gloss

I couldn’t go into a list of glosses without mentioning Glossier’s famous clear lip gloss. With vegan ingredients in this gloss, fans remain impressed with the long wear and ‘pouty’ lips look that Glossier’s gloss achieves. Glossier modernized the once known thick and goopy lip gloss that girls had in the 90s and early 2000s. This soft and hydrating clear lip gloss is a beauty fave.

Glossier? Yes, Glossier is a relatively new beauty brand that cleverly marketed itself as producing effortless and natural looks – perfect for people who want a lowkey makeup look.

As mentioned, Glossier helped reinvent the lip gloss trend to be light and sheer. Even though the product looks pink in the clear bottle, the actual product is clear and has vegan ingredients including conditioning jojoba oil and vitamin E – it’s also alcohol-free. Fans of the product swear by its plumpy but healthy look.

Coming at an affordable £11.00 on their site – this gloss is a steal but keeps in mind the small tube you get for the price.

Pros & Cons

Pros – Not overly sticky, stays shiny for hours and moisturizing with vitamin E
Cons – Expensive for the small amount of product you get

Now Glossier may be the reigning queen but there are others contenders to help you find your perfect clear lip gloss.

Best ‘Non-Stick’ Lip Gloss:

2. Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer

I couldn’t talk about lip glosses without mentioning Fenty Beauty, which has such an amazing range of glosses in its makeup collection.

Fenty Beauty? A fairly new brand to the cosmetic industry, Fenty Beauty has risen above as one of the most popular brands out there for makeup. Launched by superstar style icon Rihanna in 2017, Fenty Beauty has been praised for its inclusivity across skin tones and gender.

Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer has shea butter in its ingredients. In shade “Glass Slipper” this gloss delivers in shine and gives off a peach-vanilla scent – dreamy! Rihanna sings high praises towards her famous gloss bomb saying: “I made it because I wanted the girls to get kissed more.”

Price? Fenty’s gloss is expensive coming at £17.00 on most cosmetic sites. However, you do get a lot of product and it’s presented in a gorgeous bottle with a light pink lid. Fans rave about how ‘non-sticky this lip gloss is – a must-have in your makeup bag.

Pros & Cons

Pros – 100% cruelty-free product, non-sticky, long-lasting, and shiny
Cons – Pricey compared to other products, contains a fragrance which might be off-putting to some users wanting a simple gloss and dries fast

On a Budget?

3. e.l.f. Cosmetics Lip Lacquer

One of the cheapest clear glosses out there! e.l.f Cosmetics Lip Lacquer doesn’t break the bank and offers a clear gloss loaded with vitamin E to soften your lips and vitamin A to hydrate your lips – perfect.

e.l.f? Again another vegan and cruelty-free drugstore brand. This American cosmetics brand has been in the game since 2004 and they include bath and skin-care products alongside their makeup products. e.l.f is short for eyes, lips, face (clever!) and offers reliable, affordable products to those on a budget.

The e.l.f. Cosmetics Lip Lacquer offers high shine and a pigmented finish and has five shades to choose from. Their clear lip gloss is in a simple clear bottle with the e.l.f logo covering most of the bottle. As mentioned its clear lip gloss offers two key ingredients, vitamin A which moisturizes your lips, and vitamin E which softens your lips. However, this low cost does come at a price as the product can feel heavier than other lip glosses and comes out slightly patchy.

Coming at an astonishingly cheap £4.00 (Superdrug), this is by far the cheapest gloss you can get your hands on and works well as a clear lip gloss.

Pros & Cons

Pros – It has vitamin A & E in its ingredients which moisturizes and softens lips, vegan ingredients, cheapest gloss in the market
Cons – Applies a little patchy, jelly-like product, can feel heavy compared to other glosses

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Happy to Break the Bank a bit AND Have Some Multi-Purpose Use?

4. Gucci – Éclat De Beauté Effet Lumière — All Over Face & Lip Gloss

Gucci? Yes! This gloss comes at £18.00 (which is affordable for the luxurious Gucci brand). Gucci is an Italian fashion brand and is known for its high price luxurious items. Its cosmetics line isn’t huge but its gloss is a clear gloss favorite. Now what makes this gloss special is the fact you can use it all over your face too.

Standing out from the rest of the clear lip gloss contenders is Gucci’s circular container for the gloss in a creamy pink color. With its iconic gold-toned GUCCI on the lid, this gloss oozes luxury. Creating a glowing finish, Gucci’s face and lip gloss have a gel texture that provides a dewy finish. It can be used on the lips, cheekbones, eyes, or anywhere on the fact that you want to highlight.

Pros & Cons

Pros – Has multipurpose use (can be used on lips, cheekbones, or eyes), glamorous packaging, vegan ingredients
Cons – Expensive for the amount of product you get and no gloss applicator

Best for Dry Lips:

5. Tower 28 Beauty Shineon Jelly Lip Gloss

If you suffer from dry lips then this clear gloss is for you. In shade “chill” Revolve offers a gloss that packs a punch of moisturizing ingredients.

Revolve? Best known for being a fashion retailer brand, Revolve offers makeup products too. It has a powerhouse of influencers that showcase its products. But in the clear lip gloss market, they are best known for their super moisturizing gloss.

Known as a “moisturizing lip treatment” this gloss has a blend of 5 nourishing oils, this includes:

Apricot Kernel Oil – nurture and soothes lips
Raspberry Seed Oil – protects lips against the natural environment
Rosehip Oil – that promotes cell repair and regeneration

This gloss has no scent to help promote it specifically as a non-toxic gloss for sensitive lips. Revolve describes this gloss as inspired by the “effortless californian lifestyle” and borrowed the name from a lifeguard tower in Santa Monica. Coming at an affordable £12.00 on Revolve site – this gloss is a must for chapped lips.

Pros & Cons

Pros – Super moisturizing (perfect for dry lips), well-priced, vegan and cruelty-free
Cons – Packaging looks a bit basic, can feel slightly heavy on the lips

Best Shiny Clear Lip Gloss:

6. Kevyn Aucoin Glass Glow Lip Gloss

This ultra-reflective gloss will wow passersby. If you’re looking for a super shiny clear lip gloss then Kevyn Aucoin Glass Glow Lip Gloss is the right gloss for you.

Kevyn Aucoin? Aucoin was an American make-up artist who passed away in 2002. In the 90s he was known as being responsible for the ‘sculpted makeup look of top supermodels like Naomi Campbell and Cindy Crawford, plus made iconic looks for celebs such as Madonna and Cher. He launched his own makeup brand in 2001, which has become award-winning. With such an impressive background, Aucoin’s gloss has to be mentioned in this guide.

To start with the Glass Glow Lip Gloss stands out from the rest with its upside-down bottle and deep sunset red lid. In shade “Crystal Clear” Aucoin’s gloss is radiant, lightweight and according to the Kevyn Aucoin Beauty website, it offers a “three-dimensional” gloss finish. This product is infused with anti-oxidants and the lip gloss favorite ingredient – vitamin E to help to moisturize and keep that shine all day long.

A drawback to this shiny gloss is its price. Coming at a high £20.00 on most cosmetic sites, this gloss is really a splurge but well worth the price when it comes to superstar shine.

Pros & Cons

Pros – Super shiny clear lip gloss, gorgeous packaging and bottle
Cons – Expensive lip gloss

A Quick-Fire Run-Through of the Best Clear Lip Glosses

Here is a short run-down of the top clear glosses I have recommended:

All-round queen of clear lip gloss – Glossier Lip Gloss
Best non-stick gloss – Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer
Great clear gloss if you are on a budget – e.l.f. Cosmetics Lip Lacquer
Luxury and multipurpose use – Gucci – Éclat De Beauté Effet Lumière — All Over Face & Lip Gloss
Saviour for dry lips – Revolve’s Tower 28 Beauty Shineon Jelly Lip Gloss
A shine out of this world – Kevyn Aucoin Glass Glow Lip Gloss

FAQs

Question – Can I Make Clear Lip Gloss Myself?

Answer – Yes! If you want to try making your own gloss then it’s possible. Here are the ingredients to make your own ‘Beeswax’ Clear Lip Gloss (ingredients from WikiHow):
• 4 tablespoons (59 mL) of grape-seed oil or olive oil
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of cocoa butter or shea butter
• 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of cosmetic-grade beeswax
• 3 vitamin E capsules
• Essential oil (optional)
• Lipstick for color (optional)
• Beetroot powder or blush for color (optional)
• Glitter for sparkle (optional)
• Makes 13 to 14 tubes of lip gloss

Question – How Much Should a Lip Gloss Cost?

Answer – Now this varies on how much you are willing to spend but the most affordable clear lip glosses range between £5 – £15.

Question – Which is Better Lip Gloss or Lipstick?

Answer – This depends on what you want out of your lip makeup look. Lipsticks can offer a bold, matt finish which is perfect for autumn and wintertime. Whereas lip gloss is lighter, gives you a glossy finish which is perfect for spring or summertime. While lip gloss offers a more ‘natural’ look, lipstick is known to last longer. However, if you are stuck on which to get then try both out! Clear lip gloss goes perfectly with a bold lipstick look.

Question – Is Lip Gloss Good for Your Lips?

Answer – If you have dry lips then it is important to look out for ingredients like shea butter or vitamin E which moisturises your lips. It is also important to apply a sensible amount of product, otherwise, this can dry out your lips. Make sure to try out the Tower 28 Beauty Shineon Jelly Lip Gloss if you have dry lips.

Final Thoughts

While this list can seem overwhelming – there are quite literally hundreds of lip glosses out there. Finding the best clear lip gloss can be a struggle when there is so much to choose from. However, I have given you my top picks whether you want a no-stick gloss, something luxurious or a gloss that is cheap and does the job.

The reigning queen remains to be Glossier’s clear lip gloss but my two ultimate favorites have to be Gucci’s for its multi-purpose use (hello highlighted cheeks!) and Fenty Beauty’s non-stick gloss bomb due to it being non-sticky.