Cruelty-Free and Vegan Makeup: What's the Difference?

Designed to satisfy vegans, animal lovers and makeup aficionados, cruelty-free makeup is the ultimate way to express yourself without hurting our animal friends. With an extensive range of vegan makeup products available to buy, you can stay ahead of the trend and true to your beliefs all at the same time!

When you buy vegan makeup online, you can be confident that the products you’re purchasing are free from any animal-derived ingredients. Many non-vegan makeup brands hide sneaky animal ingredients in their cosmetics, from carmine to keratin to lanolin and more. Even many makeup ranges that don’t contain these ingredients are still tested on animals, making them decidedly not vegan. The world of vegan makeup can be a tricky one to figure out, which is why we’ve created this handy little guide to our favourite vegan and cruelty-free beauty staples.

Vegan Foundation

Helping you achieve flawless skin, the Barry M’s All Night Long Foundation Stick is a popular choice with all skin types. Easy to blend and enriched with Vitamin E, it can be used as a standard foundation or to contour and highlight your features.

To ensure your vegan foundation stays put, the Barry M Setting Spray is a must-have. Use this ultra-light mist after applying your makeup or throughout the day to give you that dewy glow when you need it most. If dewy isn’t quite your look, there’s also a Matte Finish and and and Illuminating spray to choose from!

Vegan Eye Shadow

For a great selection of vegan eye shadows, it’s hard to beat the BWC Natural Range. Colour sets include Ultramarine, Purple Passion, Rich Tamarind, Juicy Plum, Moonlight   and Everglade — and each contains two mesmerising shades that you can blend to create your own custom hue. If you’re looking for a vegan eye shadow palette in natural shades, the Pacifica Enlighten Eye Brightening Shadow Palette is a winning choice every time.

Vegan Eye Liner

Achieving a smoky eye couldn’t be easier with than with a Barry M Kohl Eye Pencil. Available in black, brown, copper, bronze and white, you can create the perfect look with this range of cruelty-free eyeliners. 

If you’ve got a steady hand, the Beauty Without Cruelty Ink Liner is one of the most popular vegan makeup products on the market. Offering exceptional quality and a stunning finish, you can then enhance the effect with your favourite vegan mascara.

Vegan Highlighter

To enhance your complexion and showcase your best features, try VE Cosmetics Unicorn Tears. Available in Liquid Gold or playful Drunk Unicorn, these drops are designed to make you shimmer and shine! A little goes a long way, so you can add just a drop or two to your cheekbones and lips for an amazing effect that leaves you positively glowing.

Alternatively, Pacifica Beauty Golden Lotus Highlighting Powder is another vegan highlighter which offers a sheer glow and unlimited radiance. If you’ve been looking for a vegan alternative to mineral powder, this is certainly it.

Vegan Lipstick

Whether you’re looking for a pillar-box red or a natural nude, there’s a vegan lipstick in every shade. The BWC Everyday Range Moisturising Lipstick is perfect for work or play, and you’ll find over 20 different shades to explore. 

For something a little more daring, Barry M Gelly Hi Shine Lip Crayons offer maximum impact. With highly pigmented colours and effortless sheen, you can combine deep shades with ultra-glossiness.  

No matter what’s in your makeup bag, you can enhance it with this fantastic range of vegan, cruelty-free makeup. With an endless array of products to choose from, you’ll be spoilt for choice when it comes to finding vegan makeup online.

It’s important to note that if a product says it’s vegan, it contains no animal ingredients. If it says it is cruelty-free, it wasn’t tested on animals. A truly vegan product would not contain animal ingredients or undergo animal testing, but unfortunately many non-vegan brands don’t label their products that way. So you must double and triple check your products to make sure they’re both vegan and cruelty-free. 

The amazing thing about shopping with TheVeganKind Supermarket is that you don’t have to do that — we do all the hard work for you before stocking anything, putting your mind at ease whilst shopping that everything you’re browsing is kind to the animals.