The world of beauty is a huge one. For a beauty lover, walking into your local Sephora or Ulta is like a opening a whole new world of opportunity and choices. While, yes, it’s great to have thousands upon thousands of worthwhile choices for a new product that you’ll take home with you, it can also be quite overwhelming—especially within the category of lip products.
While things like foundation and coverup are a bit less complicated to find—just find your shade and your desired coverage and finish, and chances are, you’ve narrowed down your choices to about two or three solid picks.
But lip colors? Oh, that’s a whole different story. With lip colors, you first have to know what type of product you’re looking for: lipstick, lip gloss, lip stain, liquid lipsticks, lip balm; the list goes on. Not to mention picking out a color and finish within those categories. Before you know it, your head is spinning in circles.
(Related: Is Wearing Lipstick Every Day For A Week Bad For Your Lips?)
If you’re a beauty lover (which, if you’re reading this, you most likely are), you’ve probably seen liquid lipsticks—an increasingly popular new category of lip products, also known as “lip stains”—all over social media accounts of everyone from your favorite beauty guru to some girl you sat next to in your high school math class. Literally, everyone is obsessing over them, and for a good reason.
Because we live in a world where we’re usually busy, constantly hustling and bustling around the town and always have a to-do list longer than our arms, we need a lip color that will stay put from morning to afternoon and, in some cases, even into the night. Liquid lipsticks are basically the perfect solution to this issue.
These long-lasting, staining lip colors have a much longer staying power than a normal lipstick would but still give the color payoff of your favorite pigmented lipsticks.
Since there are such an overwhelming amount of liquid lipstick choices on the market right now, I grabbed all of those that are hyped up on the web and tested them out for you (I know, what an angel I am). Read below to see which I thought stood up to their claims and which I’d recommend—from one beauty-obsessed gal to another.
Disclaimer: I’m clearly no lip model but bear with me, guys.
Click through to see all the colors and brands I tried out!
Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in “Lolita”
Kat Von D was one of the first big beauty companies to put out liquid lipsticks that straight up sold out all over the world. This shade, “Lolita,” is one of her more popular shades and even this far after it was released, this color is still almost always sold out in stores.
- Pros: This color is amazing. It looks great on every single person on earth, I swear. She has a huge selection of incredible colors to choose from—from everyday nudes to more unique colors like a bright violet or deep black. If you love a matte lip, this formula dries quickly to a super matte look.
- Cons: Because of how matte it is, sometimes it can be a little uncomfortable to wear, so I would definitely make sure to add a gloss on top of it or a little lip balm prior to application. Also, some of the shades are not as full coverage as others, so I would try these on in-store before you take them home.
- Overall Rating: 6/10
Anastasia Liquid Lipstick in “Veronica”
Anastasia started off as Queen of Brows, but in our opinion, she’s just becoming Queen of the Beauty World in general. After releasing her incredible eyeshadow palettes and contour palette (that was a huge success), she took on liquid lipsticks, and all I can say to sum them up is “wow.”
- Pros: Her color selection truly caters to everyone—tons of gorgeous daytime colors, but she also dips into more fun and bold colors like bright pinks, reds, blues, and even black. The formula is SO INCREDIBLY COMFORTABLE, and it dries into a beautiful matte finish. I love the fact that you never get that weird bunching up towards the inside of your lip if you’re doing a lot of talking and such. These are literally the farthest things from a disappointment.
- Cons: Honestly, the only thing I can think of that is disappointing with these liquid lipsticks is that they are only available online or at Macy’s. Anastasia, do you girl a favor and get these babies into a Sephora!
- Overall Rating: 9.5/10
Estee Lauder Pure Color Envy Liquid Lip Potionin “110 Naked Ambition”
Hallelujah, people. I have finally found the most perfect shade of nude lip stain for my complexion. Thanks to one of the most tested and true beauty companies out there, I have found my new go-to lip color.
- Pros: For a stain, these are definitely the most comfortable of the bunch. It feels more like a regular lipstick because it doesn’t dry to that super, super matte finish like most of the others do, but I’ll take comfort over a super matte finish any day. Coming in 12 incredible shades, this is definitely one of those lip stains that you will keep in your purse at all times and instantly reach to when you need a quick dash of color on the lips.
- Cons: If you’re one who wants all things matte, this isn’t your best choice since it dries to more of a satin-matte finish. Also, if you’re looking for more dark colors, stick with either the KVD or the Anastasia since this collection stays to more wearable, everyday shades.
- Overall Rating: 9/10
Sephora Collection Cream Lip Stain in #13
Many people knock the Sephora Collection and compare it to drugstore products. In some cases, yes, that’s accurate, but when it comes to the cream lip stains, I’d definitely have to disagree.
- Pros: Holy stain! If you’re looking for a lip color that will last you from morning until the wee hours of the night, this is a great option. I was so pleasantly surprised by how long this lip cream lasted for under $20. The bottle is a bit smaller than most of the other contenders I’ve spoken about but well worth it if you’re looking for a less expensive lip stain option.
- Cons: These are really matte, and so like many matte lip stains, they tend to get a bit uncomfortable over time. Again, nothing a little lip balm can’t fix. Also, since I work in retail, I’m constantly talking for long periods of time, and so this did ball up a bit on the inside part of my lips and a bit at the corners. To fix this, I just reapplied a bit, and I was good for the rest of my shift!
- Overall Rating: 7/10
Stila Stay All Day Liquid Lipstick in “Venezia”
Stila has had their Stay All Day Liquid Lipsticks out for so long, and I’m constantly grabbing for them when working with clients and for myself.
- Pros: I mean, just look at the name: “Stay All Day,” and they’re not lying. These babies definitely do stay on the lips all day and come in tons of great colors that you can choose from for just about every different occasion. I have to say, I definitely don’t think they’re as drying as the ColourPop or the KVD, so that’s a plus.
- Cons: They just released a few new colors as part of their summer extension to the Liquid Lipstick line (I’m wearing one in the image above!), and I have to say I was definitely more a fan of the original line (which you can still buy at Sephora, Ulta or online, of course). I found that the newer formula wasn’t as full coverage, but I was just so in love with the bright and fun new colors that I got over that real quick and constantly sport this shade.
- Overall Rating: 8/10 (original shades) 6/10 (new summer shades)
ColourPop Ultra Matte Lip in “Bumble”
ColourPop isn’t a brand that is sold at big box beauty retailers, but they’re just as good, you guys! The brand is super popular all over the Instagram world. As a matter of fact, when these lip colors first launched, customers actually crashed the entire website for HOURS.
Pros: For the gal who loves a good nude or neutral lip, this line of liquid lipsticks was straight-up made for you. The color selection is actual perfection. I grabbed six of them (all neutrals), and they’re all the slightest bit different. NOT TO MENTION THEY’RE ONLY $6 EACH!!! WHAT EVEN!!!
Cons: When they say Ultra Matte Lip, they aren’t kidding. These are 100% the most matte of the bunch. So matte that they sometimes get uncomfortable, but if you love a good matte lip, you must try these out. After eating, I did find that these bled a little outside my lips, but I would try a translucent lip liner, and that should do the trick.
Overall Rating: 7/10
(Photo: Instagram/ColourPop)
Iskra Banović is our seasoned Editor-in-Chief at Blufashion. She has been steering the website’s content and editorial direction since 2018. With a rich background in fashion design, Iskra’s expertise spans across fashion, interior design, beauty, lifestyle, travel, and culture.
