"My lip gloss is popping. My lip gloss is cool." In 2007, Lil Mama gave us the banger "Lip Gloss," not only proving that she had the glossiest lips but also convincing viewers that we all needed to go out immediately and buy lip gloss to sing along to the song while applying. Like many other things, nostalgia has folks looking to the aughts for beauty inspiration, which includes bringing back people's love for glossy lips. The 2010s may have been the rise of matte liquid lipsticks, but the 2020s are the decade of lip gloss.
But now's the time to forget everything you know about lip gloss of the early 2000s because the shiny lip color has literally glowed up a whole lot since then. These modern glosses deliver shine so juicy it's nearly pornographic, offering every imaginable finish and level of pigmentation, plus moisturizing ingredients in a whole new (not to mention less sticky) way — and we're 100 percent here for them. That's not to say we're over some of the original formulas we first fell in love with, like Lancôme's Juicy Tubes (which, if you didn't know, made a comeback in 2020). Clear Lipstick Case
"People like gloss because it's casual, needs no instruction, and is a kind of treat," New York-based makeup artist Tommy Napoli says. There are so many options on the market that it can get overwhelming trying to find the best ones. Are you a fan of shimmers or prefer sparkle-free formulas? Maybe you're looking for a bit more pigment rather than the completely sheer glosses. If you're stuck, Napoli recommends looking for moisturizing ingredients and practical applicators (he's personally a fan of wand applicators).
To make it just a bit easier, we're coming at you with the crème de la crème — or gloss de la gloss — so the next time you're in the market for a new lip gloss, you know exactly the one for you.
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Tower 28 ShineOn Lip Jelly delivers all kinds of shine: It hydrates and soothes lips with apricot kernel oil, and gives them the prettiest glossy finish. There are shades as vibrant as fruit colors, like the bright orange hue Fire (shown above), but if you're looking for something subtler, they have two clear colors — one with shimmer and the other without, plus a few nude shades.
Associate features director Dianna Mazzone loves Nars Afterglow Lip Shine because it's "so comfortable that I often forget I'm wearing it." The nourishing gloss is infused with jojoba oil and raspberry seed oil to soften and moisturize the lips. The sheen this gloss adds is almost blinding, and it's available in shimmer and creme hues, so you can decide how shiny your lips will look.
Pat McGrath Labs products are everything and more. The Lust: Lip Gloss (pictured above in Blitz Gold) get a seal of approval from Napoli and fellow makeup artist Lavonne. She swears it gives the appearance of 3D lips with its color payoff, which can be left sheer or built up for more intensity. The lip gloss is available in shimmery and creme hues, and in colors you wouldn't expect, like Astral Moon Flower, a light blue pigment with pearlescent shimmers.
Napoli's personal favorites are Dare to Bare (a light peach) and Bronze Divinity (bronze with gold and pink pearlescence), the latter of which he says look like "a shimmering neutral on deep skin tones."
If the name wasn't already an indication, this glossy pigment will plump the lips with the help of a peptide complex and without the stinging feeling. Lawless Forget the Filler Plumper + Gloss is also packed with shea butter and rosehip oil to provide moisture. It's available in six shades in the mauve and pink color families.
Rare Beauty Stay Vulnerable Glossy Lip Balm glides on the lips like butter, leaving a moisturizing sheen. The name "lip balm" may feel a bit misleading, but rest assured, this is still very much a gloss. This glitter-free formula is available in five soft shades that span pink and berry hues, like the pinkish nude shade Nearly Neutral (shown above).
Available in over 10 gorgeous shades like Pearl, an iridescent clear gloss, and Crystal, a copper shimmer shade, this drugstore lip gloss by Maybelline New York gives lips a super-shiny finish that's comfortable without ever being sticky. We especially love its large doe-foot applicator. Wear the Lifter Gloss alone or over lipstick — either way, you're certain to love it (and its price tag). Plus, it's packed with hyaluronic acid to hydrate the lips, giving you the benefits of a lip balm with the sheen of a gloss.
Napoli recommends this hyaluronic acid-infused lip gloss for its plumping action. Tarte's Maracuja Juicy Lip Plump may look deceiving when you first see it because it resembles a lip crayon. However, once it glides on the lips, you'll immediately feel its glossy finish. It's also packed with antioxidants — specifically vitamins A, B, C, and E.
Back in 2018, Lancôme decided to discontinue its iconic lip gloss, Juicy Tubes. But it's back and better than ever. With over a dozen shade options, it's hard to pick a favorite. Above is the shade Framboise Pop, a reddish hue formulated with festive flecks of gold.
Avocado oil and peptides lend moisturization and plumping action to the Caliray Glazed & Infused Lip Plumper Gloss. There are six mostly muted shades, but former Allure beauty editor Alaina Demopoulos prefers Orchid Ranch, a mauve hue that she describes has that "sort of natural but amped-up look." She originally tried the gloss because her mother gave it her stamp of approval — she said it was "jamming" and made her the hottest person at the supermarket for reference — but the non-sticky, silky texture kept her coming back for more.
We can't talk about lip glosses without including Fenty Beauty's Gloss Bomb Luminzer. Rihanna's beauty brand became an instant hit because of its extensive foundation shade range when she first launched in 2017, but this lip gloss also got its fair share of shine. It's even won two Readers' Choice awards. It's so good, in fact, that it converted associate news editor Gabi Thorne into a lip gloss lover. "Thanks to the shea butter in the formula, my lips always stay hydrated while wearing Gloss Bomb, and the formula doesn't leave lips sticky or tacky like other glosses," she raves in her review of the product.
Besides the hydrating formula, each shade has a soothing, subtle vanilla scent. There are currently seven shades, six shimmery hues plus a clear gloss, so you can choose your own glossy adventure. Thorne is personally a huge fan of the original mauve Fenty Glow and brown Hot Chocolit, which is full of pink shimmer.
NYX Professional Makeup Butter Gloss won not one, not two, but three Readers' Choice Awards, and there's a reason why. The lip gloss has fans enamored because of its moisturizing formula, affordability, and extensive shade options that have practically any hue you could want. Its range of nudes is particularly noteworthy because there are several shades like Ginger Snap (a mauvey brown) and Lava Cake (a dark chocolate) that work for darker skin tones.
Napoli likes Kosas Wet Lip Oil Plumping Treatment Gloss because, in addition to the added moisture, it also doesn't set into your lip lines for a smooth finish. This two-in-one gloss helps plump the lips with the help of peptides. It also has the skin-care powerhouse hyaluronic acid, as well as avocado oil and shea butter to make sure those lips aren't dry. There are eight shades in total that appeal to folks looking for a nude, bright, or clear lip gloss.
Makeup artist Patrick Ta created the universal Beauty Major Glow Lip Shine, which looks beautiful on everyone because of its sheer and shimmery pigment. This shade above, called She's Expensive, is great if you're simply looking to add just a little shine (without added color) to your lips. The formula also makes lips feel hydrated, full, and just as its name suggests, expensive.
Revlon did not come to play with the over 20 shades of Super Lustrous The Gloss. With cupuacu butter and moringa oil, its glossy sheen won't make you sacrifice moisturization for beauty. It's available in both shimmery hues and ones sans sparkle for more options.
Empty Compact Case Napoli gives props to Runway Rouge for its lip products, particularly the Lip Gloss. "The shimmer in these is so finely milled they give lips a multi-dimensional, never flat, modern 'prismatic' finish a la Euphoria and 2000s glam," he notes. These sheer glosses use aloe vera, vitamin E, and jojoba oil to add moisture and soften the lips. There are 13 different shades to choose from, and he names Supermodel (a light peach shown above), Purple Haze (a shimmery pink), and Runway Red (a candy-apple-red) as his favorites.