UPDATE: Benefit has released a couple of new brow products for summer 2023 – the Goof Proof Brow Powder, the Hubba Brow serum, and the Whoa So Soft Brow Oil.
The Good Proof brow powder costs £19.50 and comes in 10 shades, ranging from Cool Light Blonde to Cool Soft Black, and it’s designed to help your eyebrows look fuller.
The Hubba Brow serum costs £58 (!) and promises to improve the appearance of brow volume in four weeks, to leave them looking “fuller, healthier, natural, and nourished.”
While the Whoa So Soft Brow Oil costs £24.50 and has been formulated to nourish and soften your brow hairs to leave them looking shiny and healthy.
We’ve ordered all three products and we’ll give you our verdict once they arrive! In the meantime, keep reading to learn more about the Benefit brand and see our pick of the best Benefit products. We’ve also ranked every Benefit mascara to prove which is best here.
Original Benefit Cosmetics Brand Spotlight continues below
An OG makeup brand, Benefit Cosmetics has been a cult-favourite since 1976. Founded in San Francisco, it is part of the Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) conglomerate and is sold at more than 2,000 counters in over 30 countries. It’s one of our favourite cheap makeup brands and, as a result, it’s the latest to feature in our Brand Spotlight series.
Over the coming weeks and months, we’re shining a light on brands that represent and align with what we stand for at mamabella – brands that offer great products at low prices; brands which champion inclusivity and diversity; clean, sustainable and ethical beauty brands, and brands that are challenging the beauty industry hierarchy.
We’ve previously taken a look at The Ordinary and Carbon Theory, both affordable but science-led skincare brands offering fantastic products. Elsewhere, we’ve taken a look at makeup brands Revolution,NYX, and Sleek MakeUP.
Benefit Cosmetics: A brief history
Formed by twins, Jean and Jane Ford, the pair’s initial business plan was to “make $33 per day to break even” and they set up the Face Place, a tiny original makeup shop in San Francisco’s Mission District. It wasn’t until the 1990s that the face place was renamed Benefit Cosmetics and the brand opened its first Benefit counter at Henri Bendel in New York, followed by one at Harrods in London.
Just two years later, Benefit Cosmetics was bought by LVMH – the world’s leading luxury products group headquartered in Paris and expanded to 2,000 counters in 30 countries.
Such is Benefit’s brow legacy, the brand is in the Guinness World Record Books for the most eyebrow waxes in eight hours by a team, achieved in 2012. There has been some confusion and controversy around whether Benefit is cruelty-free or not and we’ve explained more at the bottom of this article.
Why we love Benefit
Benefit’s prices put it at the top end of what we would deem to be cheap makeup, but it warrants inclusion for a number of reasons.
Benefit led the eyebrow game before anyone else started playing. It’s now renowned for its multiple brow bars in various department stores and boutiques, specialising in shaping customers’ brows and giving them the signature Benefit treatment, and it has helped us learn more about how to do eyebrows and which products to use.
Beyond its brow products, it’s known for its fantastic bronzing and mascara products, we remember it being the first ‘serious’ makeup brand we fully got into. Years down the line there are still products in the range that we still can’t live without.
FURTHER READING: We put every Benefit mascara to the test to discover which is best
Best Benefit makeup
- Gimme Brow+ Volumizing Eyebrow Gel
- Benefit Roller Lash Mascara
- Precisely My Brow Eyebrow Pencil
- Hoola Matte Bronzer
- Boi-ing Cakeless Concealer
1. Gimme Brow+ Volumizing Eyebrow Gel
£22.50 | Buy now from Benefit
https://fave.co/3Ybj0fW
Why we love it: As we’ve explained, Benefit has become a leader in brows and this eyebrow gel explains why. It’s the easy, on-the-go solution to fixing your brows; giving them the right amount of pigment and volume. The brow gel is tinted and is perfect for both slicking those brows back and giving them texture and definition. We would recommend you have one of these in your bag at all times – it will always come in handy, we promise you.
FURTHER READING: How to do eyebrows: A quick, easy way to draw and fill in eyebrows like the pros
Buy now from Benefit
2. Benefit Roller Lash Mascara
£22.50 | Buy now from Benefit
Why we love it: We recently spent a month putting every Benefit mascara to the test to finally determine which is the best and there was a hands-down winner – Roller Lash. As our writer Laura said in her Benefit mascara review: “Having tried everything from lash extensions to lash lifts, falsies and curlers, plus well over 100 mascaras in our time, this is hands-down the best mascara we’ve used. Not just the best Benefit mascara, but the best mascara. Period.” Roller Lash features a plastic curved wand that is easy to get right down to the roots and you only really need one coat, which also makes it a huge time-saver.
FURTHER READING: Best Benefit mascara
Buy now from Lookfantastic
3. Precisely My Brow Eyebrow Pencil
£22.50 | Buy now from Benefit
Why we love it: Yes, yes, we know. Another brow product. But if we’re listing two brow products, then surely this confirms Benefit’s position as a brow connoisseur? This pencil offers a precise and natural-looking effect to add to your brows, creating hair-like strokes. Smudge-proof for up to 12 hours and with a twist-up pencil so no sharpening is required. This is the perfect product for anyone wanting to create that blendable colour – start with a few fine strokes and then build up to thicker, bold ones.
FURTHER READING: How to get thicker eyebrows
Buy now from Benefit
4. Hoola Matte Bronzer
£27 | Buy now from Benefit
Why we love it: The award-winning bronzer from Benefit, this box of goodness was included in top bronzer lists in Vogue, InStyle and Nylon magazines. It now comes in a variety of shades too – Lite, Caramel and Toasted are additions to the original product and all share the same soft and blendable formula. Offering a matte finish, are you beginning to understand why this is also the number one selling Prestige bronzer in the UK? Sweep a spot of sunshine and colour onto your cheeks, creating warmth and definition all in one.
FURTHER READING: Best bronzer: Our fave bronzing products to give you that golden glow
Buy now from Benefit
5. Boi-ing Cakeless Concealer
£19.50 | Buy now from Benefit
Why we love it: A seriously underrated product, in our humble opinion. While there are so many cosmetics brands killing it in the concealer department right now, we don’t think we should forget that Benefit is among them. This full-coverage concealer is music to my ears as it successfully hides the dark circles under my eyes – as well as covering any blemishes that have decided to make an appearance. Our favourite of the ‘Boi-ing’ concealer range, this one delivers a smooth and seamless coverage for up to 24 hours and is waterproof too.
FURTHER READING: Best concealer: Discover which concealer is best for your skin
Buy now from Benefit
6. POREfessional setting spray
From £12.50 | Buy now from Benefit
Called The POREfessional: Super Setter, the Benefit setting spray has a microfine mist that promises to lock makeup in place while also blurring your pores. It forms part of the wider POREfessional range, which includes a primer and “rescue gel.” The primer comes in three variants – the standard version, a hydrating version and one with pearl pigments designed to give your skin a natural glow.
It’s currently on sale for £12, for the smaller 30ml version, or you can get a 120ml version for £26. This latter price puts the Benefit POREfessional in the same price range as Urban Decay and Charlotte Tilbury’s own sprays.
FURTHER READING: Setting spray 101: What is setting spray and what does it actually do?
Buy now from Benefit
Benefit Pore Care skincare
In March, Benefit took its first proper foray into skincare with the launch of its Pore Care range.
As an extension of the Porefessional range of primers, every product in the Pore Core range promises to clear your pores and reduce their appearance. We should note that it’s not actually possible to shrink your pores; they’re determined by your genetics (read more here). However, you can reduce their appearance by keeping them clear.
The range includes masks, cleansers, toners and moisturisers with prices starting at £13.50 up to £35. We’re going to be putting these products to the test as part of our large-scale skincare group test and we’ll update this page when we have a more informed opinion of the product line.
If you’re keen to try them yourselves in the meantime, click the link below.
Buy now from Boots
Is Benefit cruelty-free?
We’re big believers in championing vegan and cruelty-free makeup and skincare but it would be remiss for us not to address the somewhat controversy linked to Benefit products.
It’s proud to not test its products on animals, and the brand is committed to eliminating the testing of cosmetics products on animals and is outspoken about how misleading cruelty-free certifications are. However, Benefit has come under scrutiny because it sells products in China. While LVMH products themselves are not tested on animals and haven’t been since 1989, once these products are imported to China, the Chinese authorities do test them on animals.
READ NEXT: Vegan vs cruelty-free: What’s the difference?
This is why Benefit refuses to claim to be cruelty-free, because it would not be “transparent or honest”, but its takes protecting animals seriously and supports the Fund for Alternatives to Animal Testing in the United States. It’s also an active participant in validation studies of new alternative tests in the framework of the European cosmetics association, Cosmetics Europe. It’s also one of the few companies to have its own internal department to test raw materials and ingredients to ensure the quality of its products.
Of course, it could just stop selling in China and be done with the whole thing but until it does that, we’re satisfied they’re doing everything else to live up to cruelty-free standards.
FURTHER READING: Vegan beauty products: The best affordable vegan makeup and skincare brands in the UK
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