Upgrade Your Makeup Bag With 16 Customer-Loved Beauty Products—All Under $25

Makeup wearers typically fall into two categories: those who buy makeup constantly, and those who haven’t refreshed their cosmetic bags in years. Typically, most makeup lasts anywhere from one to three years, but if you have old, cracked blush and some worse-for-wear eyeliner lurking at the bottom of your makeup bag, it’s probably time to chuck ‘em both. After all, anything that is discolored, or has changed in odor or consistency is likely expired, and expired makeup can undo all the hard-earned efforts of your daily skin routine, causing breakouts or spreading infection-causing bacteria.

Once you’ve sorted through your makeup inventory and ditched the expired stuff, you’re going to need reinforcements. Luckily, replenishing your makeup bag doesn’t have to be expensive; in fact, everything on our list of customer-loved beauty products ranges from $4 to $25. You can shop them all, including picks from beloved brands like E.L.F., Laneige, Rare Beauty, and more, below.

Shop Beauty Products Under $25

• E.L.F. No Budge Retractable Eyeliner, $4 (orig. $5); amazon.com
• Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask Intense Hydration with Vitamin C, $25; amazon.com
• Tower 28 Beauty ShineOn Jelly Non-Sticky Gloss, $16; sephora.com
• IT Cosmetics Mini Bye Bye Under Eye Full Coverage Anti-Aging Waterproof Concealer, $14; sephora.com
• Maybelline Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara, $9.98 (orig. $12.99); amazon.com
• Nyx Professional Makeup Fat Oil Lip Drip, $8.97; amazon.com
• E.L.F. Poreless Putty Primer, $10; amazon.com
• Cosrx Snail Mucin 96% Power Repairing Essence, $17 (orig. $25); amazon.com
• Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, $23; sephora.com

E.L.F. No Budge Retractable Eyeliner

There’s no need to buy an expensive eyeliner ever again—not with this super pigmented and waterproof option that’s only a couple of bucks. Featuring a clean beauty formula that’s also vegan and Leaping Bunny Certified cruelty-free, this creamy retractable liner with more than 11,300 five-star reviews on Amazon goes on so smoothly and easily, you can also use it to paint a full lid of base eye makeup. The pigment power is both pronounced and long-lasting, with many reviewers reporting that it still doesn’t budge even after rinsing your face off with water at the end of the day.

“It’s super smooth and easy to apply exactly where you want it,” one five-star reviewer wrote, adding that it “lasted all day without smearing” and that removing it required oil-based makeup remover. Another shopper who said they were 73 years old and called it “the best I’ve used in years,” said, “I put this liner on at 9 a.m., went to dinner the same night, and it looked exactly the same.” 

Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask Intense Hydration with Vitamin C

Laneige has quickly become everybody’s favorite lip mask—just look at those 21,000 Amazon five-star ratings! Somewhere between lip gloss and skincare, a few dollops of this “mask” provides eight hours of hydration and helps lips feel softer and firmer over time. Not only do shoppers love the fruity scent, but the formula is also outfitted with antioxidants, coconut oil, shea butter, vitamin C, and murumuru seed butter—all of which protect, nourish, and hydrate. This one sells out quickly, so if you plan on adding it to your repertoire, shop it before it’s out of stock.

Tower 28 Beauty ShineOn Jelly Non-Sticky Gloss

Available in 11 high-shine colors and one shimmer finish, there’s a Tower 28 lip gloss for every mood and occasion. Gloss queens know how tricky it can be to find the right gloss with the right consistency, and this best-selling vegan lip jelly is pigmented, shiny, and gummy—but never gluey. Oils like apricot kernel, raspberry seed, and rosehip soothe, smoothe, promote cell regeneration, and protect lips from free radicals, all while giving you a semi-pigmented sheen that’s long lasting.

According to just one of its 3,600 Sephora reviews, it’s “milky” and “glossy” with “no grainy texture.” The same reviewer added that they love how “this looks good even without lip liner on tan skin.” Another shopper wrote that it “has just the right amount of tint,” “smells so good,” and “lasts forever on lips.”

IT Cosmetics Mini Bye Bye Under Eye Full Coverage Anti-Aging Waterproof Concealer

With nearly 70,000 hearts on Sephora, it’s clear that this waterproof formula is the only under-eye concealer you’ll ever need moving forward. It offers dark circles and unwanted hyperpigmentation 24 full hours of full coverage on every skin type, including normal, dry, combination, and oily. The formula is made with peptides, hydrolyzed collagen, hyaluronic acid, and vitamin E—all of which work together to provide anti-aging benefits like reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It visibly smoothes out and firms your skin tone, conveniently hiding imperfections like redness, broken capillaries, and dark spots, along the way.

Maybelline Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara

Every makeup aficionado knows that when you find the “right” mascara, you usually don’t deviate from it, which is exactly why this hero product from Maybelline has a 4.5-star rating and more than 64,600 five-star ratings total. It’s available in several dark shades, but the shade “Blackest Black” seems to be the most popular thanks to its super buildable formula that’s as highly pigmented as it is volumizing, lengthening, and curling. The formula is infused with bamboo extract and fibers that more prominently define and elongate each lash from root to tip.

One shopper who gave it a five-star rating called it a “necessary” purchase for anyone struggling with runny mascara, adding it’s “basically permanent” until you take it off. They continued that it “stood up to lake days, hot tubs, cold weather, sweat, you name it.” Another five-star reviewer said it’s “the best mascara if you have short, sparse lashes” that “won’t hold a curl.” They added, “This stuff is a miracle. No clumping. My lashes look long and full. It even gets the tiniest little corner lashes.”

Nyx Professional Makeup Fat Oil Lip Drip

More than 9,370 five-star ratings certainly indicates that there’s nothing glossier than this under-$10 lip oil from Nyx. The moisture and shine payoff is out of this world in each of the eight shades, and it delivers up to 12 hours of hydration after the first application. While the sheen is the real star here, you also get a hint of tint that’s just enough to appear natural.

“It’s hydrating, it’s smoothing, nonsticky and really conditions my lips,” one five-star reviewer wrote. They “paired mine with a brown lip liner and it looked great,” also noting that the “sheer wash of color… surprisingly lasted a decent amount of time.” Another shopper said, “I hate lip gloss, but I love this lip oil. It’s smooth, it’s not sticky, [has a] cute light color, and it smells great. I will be buying more. It makes my lips feel hydrated and cute.”

E.L.F. Poreless Putty Primer

Ideal for normal, dry, and combination skin types, this velvety primer is infused with squalane to provide better, longer-lasting hydration. With more than 32,670 five-star ratings, it has become known for its ability to subtly blur out imperfections as much as it hydrates. One five-star reviewer called it “magic cream,” and lauded the product for its ability to “blur lines and age spots just enough so I don’t look like my foundation is caked on.” Shoppers also love how the $10 primer evens skin tone, making pores look barely noticeable.

Another shopper who said they had combination skin that is “a hard thing to balance out” since it “is dry in patches” but has “oil run-off in others,” ultimately called this product a “tiny tub of angel kisses.” They continued, “It turns into a smooth and light texture almost like a gel lotion,” adding that they “actually saw my pores disappear and my texture was velvety without feeling oily and/or sticky, which I’ve found some primers made for mixed skin do.”

Cosrx Snail Mucin 96% Power Repairing Essence

If there’s room in your makeup bag for only one skincare product, more than 56,350 Amazon shoppers seem to recommend making space for this 3.38-fluid ounce bottle of snail mucin. Hailed as “a true skin savior” and “nothing short of miraculous” by one five-star reviewer, it’s no surprise that more than 100,000 Amazon shoppers purchased this repairing essence in the past month. 

The serum absorbs well into the face, resulting in added hydration, plump, and glow in the skin. The same reviewer noted the product’s “multitasking abilities,” in being able to “address dullness” and “tackle fine lines and wrinkles with impressive efficacy.” They also said their skin “looks and feels noticeably smoother” and that the “overall texture has improved dramatically.” 

Another five-star reviewer who said they used the repairing essence for a full year before reviewing wrote, “I can wholeheartedly say it’s like discovering ‘Botox in a bottle.’” They added, “This product is a marvel in skin transformation,” that their “skin has never looked better—hydrated, radiant, and healthy,” and that it “firmly established itself as a non-negotiable in my daily routine.”

E.L.F. 16-Hour Camo Concealer

For full coverage for the under-eye area, blemishes, and beyond, more than 33,610 five-star reviewers agree that this E.L.F. concealer provides. With up to 16 hours of matte, highly pigmented, crease-proof coverage that conceals, corrects, contours, and highlights, shoppers love that it’s ideal for all skin types and that it’s quick-drying. Also enriched with avocado oil (so it won’t dry out your skin in flaky patches) and kaolin clay (for oil and shine control), this concealer manages to perfectly toe the fine line between good coverage and overall cakiness. Since it dries quickly and doesn’t settle into fine lines, wrinkles, or creases, it provides the coverage the wearer needs, while still appearing subtle and natural.

One shopper, who said they used this concealer after having over a dozen facial stitches removed, gave this concealer a perfect five-star rating. “I’ve purchased a lot of different concealers to cover the scar up until it’s mature enough for plastic surgery,” they explained, saying, “so far, this has worked the best.” They continued that they were “super surprised with the coverage” and that “you wouldn’t notice the scar unless you knew to look” since the stitches “only came out about five weeks ago, and it’s covering it super well.” 

Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm

This silky, tinted lip balm hydrates, softens, relieves, and soothes dry lips with plant-based waxes and shea and murumuru seed butters. You can apply it quickly throughout the day for a boost of moisture or wear it as an overnight lip mask; both ways will result in shinier, more hydrated lips that are less likely to dry out or crack, even during the colder winter months. With more than 1.7 million hearts on Sephora, buyers also love the tint and smell it provides.

Essence Lash Princess Mascara

It’s the best-selling Amazon mascara for good reason. Hundreds of thousands of reviewers—about 244,920 to be exact—are obsessed with this mascara’s conically-shaped fiber brush that is designed to push lashes up and into place where they give off a longer, fuller appearance. The result is more voluminous lashes that are long-wearing and dramatic—at an unheard-of $5 price point. 

One shopper says the mascara “stays on pretty well during an eight-hour work day” and that they find themselves “doing a tiny touch-up after six to seven hours.” They added that it “does not irritate my eyes” and that “it makes my lashes long and lush.” Someone else who gave it a perfect five-star rating said, “This is the only mascara that has never once smudged with my eye type.” They added that even though this formula isn’t waterproof this mascara is so good, “that [it’s] worth the risk of a good ugly cry.”

Nyx Professional Makeup Ultimate Shadow Palette

With 16 complimentary shadows, ranging from matte and satin to shimmery and metallic, this eyeshadow palette of warm neutrals has everything you need to create a natural eye look that compliments nearly every skin tone and eye color. Each shadow is super velvety to the touch and very pigmented—with limited to no fallout during application—and wearers don’t have to worry about smudging or fading no matter how long it stays on. Maybe that’s why more than 5,000 people have bought this palette in the past 30 days.

One reviewer with green eyes said they “love the versatility of this palette for both everyday and special occasion makeup” and added that it’s good for “subtle color or for a smoky, dramatic eye.” They also mentioned that “all eye colors would look beautiful with this palette as the shades seem universally flattering and high quality.”

Another reviewer said, “The pigmentation is strong on all of these, they blend just fine, and I have used them with and without a primer successfully.” They did mention that using “a white primer” beforehand actually “made [colors appear] even bolder” and they added that “the glitter is super fine and not obnoxious, so it’s very everyday or work-wear appropriate.”

Laneige Glowy Lip Balm

Highly rated by more than 746,000 Sephora customers for its smell, overall satisfaction, and hydrating qualities, this lightweight lip balm from Laneige is good to keep on hand for emergencies. It may not make it onto your makeup vanity per se, but leave one of these pocket-sized prods in your purse, one in your car, and you’ll always have an emergency lip balm on hand whenever you’re in desperate need of moisture (and a little tint).

Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush

Beloved by more than 2.5 million on Sephora for its pigmentation and color options, this liquid blush is quickly becoming the go-to blush of Gen Z. Nine shades come in a radiant finish while four are matte, but all provide long-wearing medium coverage that builds and blends beautifully for a softer, more natural-looking complexion. (No stark blush lines here!) Even the matte shades provide a somewhat dewy, youthful-looking finish that’s more like a “natural flush” than a put-on blush.

One Sephora reviewer said the “Lucky - Dewy Hot Pink” “shade is perfect for darker skin because of the pigment.” Another called it their “go-to” and said, “liquid blush is definitely harder to blend, but totally worth it” as “the product shows and lasts all day.”

Gaoy Rose Garden Jelly Gel Nail Polish Six-Pack 

For just $14, you can get a gel manicure at home that rivals that of your local nail salon in both price and quality. This six-piece gel polish kit—which has been bought 5,000 times in the past month—comes with transparent “jelly” nail polish colors in a “Rose Garden” color scheme that build pigmentation as you add more layers. Cure it with an at-home UV light for about 60 seconds to professionally dry, then you’re good to go. With proper buffing and the addition of both base and top coats, this mani could last for up to four weeks, so you can get the most bang for your buck. (And it’s pretty, too!)