There’s a reason why mascara tops so many people’s lists of must-have makeup items. The right mascara can instantly make your lashes look longer and thicker, bringing all the focus to your eyes.
However, there is more to consider than just how the mascara looks on your lashes. If you’re concerned with a makeup brand’s ethical standards, it’s just as important to know that they offer cruelty-free products and don’t perform tests on animals.
Pacifica Aquarian Gaze Water Resistant Mascara
This water-resistant mascara isn’t just cruelty-free -- it’s also 100% vegan. The nourishing formula contains coconut oil, vitamin B and kelp extract to hydrate and strengthen your lashes. It also helps lengthen and separate each lash for beautiful definition.
Wet n Wild Mega Length Waterproof Mascara
This cruelty-free mascara is ophthalmologist-tested, so it’s safe for anyone who has sensitive eyes or wears contact lenses. It helps lengthen your lashes and features a precision comb that helps apply the formula root to tip. The formula is also sweat-proof, humidity-resistant and smudge-resistant.
Sold by Amazon
rms beauty Straight Up Volumizing Peptide Mascara
This clean mascara features a pro-peptide formula that helps strengthen and nourish your lashes while also making them look thicker and longer. It’s smudge-free and flake-free, so it wears all day without making a mess. It’s also vegan and gluten-free.
Sold by Sephora
Hourglass Unlocked Instant Extensions Lengthening Mascara
If you want a mascara that provides lift, definition and length, this cruelty-free formula is for you. It uses film-forming technology to coat every lash with lightweight fibers that fans them out for maximum impact. It doesn’t contain any parabens, sulfates or phthalates for a clean product.
Sold by Sephora, Ulta and Amazon
NYX Worth the Hype Volumizing & Lengthening Mascara
This easy-to-apply mascara can give you fuller, longer lashes in an instant. It’s also buildable, so you can add multiple coats to get the exact look you want. Its brush features a tapered design to make sure even your tiniest lashes get coated.
ILIA Limitless Lash Lengthening Mascara
This clean, long-wearing mascara can lengthen, lift and separate your lashes with its natural formula. It also has a dual-sided brush that coats and separates each lash for the most flattering look. It contains beeswax and shea butter for a flexible hold that doesn’t flake or smudge.
Wander Beauty Mile High Club Mascara
This jet-black mascara can deliver volume and length in a single coat. Its brush features precise bristles that apply the formula to every lash for a bold, dramatic look. It’s also smudge-proof, flake-proof and water-resistant.
Sold by Sephora
Honeybee Gardens Truly Natural Mascara
This lightweight, defining mascara provides clump-free lashes without any flaking or smudging. It’s water-resistant and sweat-resistant, and it features natural botanicals to help condition your lashes. Best of all, it’s made in the USA with certified organic ingredients.
Sold by Amazon
This mascara provides a great, natural look. It boasts a smudge-proof, clump-free vegan formula that provides plenty of definition. It also has a soft, flexible brush that lifts and coats all of your lashes. This mascara is easy to remove for a clean face before bed.
Sold by Ulta
essence Lash Princess False Lash Effect Mascara
You’ll never need falsies again with this intensely volumizing mascara. The brush has a cone shape with fiber bristles that apply plenty of mascara without creating clumps. It lasts all day without fading or flaking.
MILK MAKEUP KUSH High Volumizing Mascara
Featuring hemp-derived cannabis seed oil, this mascara delivers major volume and hydrating ingredients for the lashes. It has heart-shaped fibers that wrap around the lashes to provide a feathery, flirty look. It also boasts an intense black color that’s sure to get your lashes noticed.
Sold by Sephora
W3LL PEOPLE Expressionist Volumizing Mascara
This mascara stands out for its large, dense hourglass-shaped brush that can boost your lashes’ volume in a single coat. The formula is buildable, so you can apply multiple layers without worrying about any clumping. It also contains organic botanicals to condition and nourish your lashes.
Kosas The Big Clean Volumizing + Lash Care Mascara
This clean mascara contains castor oil and moisturizing, repairing provitamin B5 to give you healthier lashes. It helps instantly volumize and lengthen your lashes, thanks to the oversized brush and its firm, spiraled bristles. The mascara is ophthalmologist-tested and hypoallergenic, too, so it’s safe for sensitive eyes.
Pacifica Dream Big Volumizing Mascara
Another excellent volumizing formula, this vegan mascara uses plant fibers to thicken your lashes instantly. Its natural ingredients also help condition and strengthen your lashes with regular use. It also boasts a rich black color.
Fenty Beauty Full Frontal Volume, Lift & Curl Mascara
This versatile, water-resistant mascara can volumize, lengthen, lift and curl your lashes. It features a brush with a fat side to coat and lift the lashes and a flat side to help with curling and definition. It’s a long-wearing formula, too, so you don’t have to worry about smudging or flaking.
Sold by Sephora
PUR On Point Mascara with Hemp
This mascara can lengthen, thicken and separate your lashes without any clumping. It also contains hemp-derived cannabis sativa seed oil and biotin to nourish and strengthen your lashes over time. Its rich black pigment offers a bold, dramatic look for your eyes.
Without any synthetic dyes or fragrances, this clump-free mascara is an excellent option if you have sensitive eyes. It provides up to three times the volume of your natural lashes with a single coat and has a glossy finish for a truly eye-catching look. It also has an hourglass-shaped brush that grabs onto each and every lash.
Sold by Sephora
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Jennifer Blair writes for BestReviews. BestReviews has helped millions of consumers simplify their purchasing decisions, saving them time and money.
