11 best rare beauty products, according to our beauty team
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Over the past year, I've learned that nothing brings generations together like discussing the best Rare Beauty products: The brand is something that I, a millennial, my Gen Z sister, my 11- and 17-year-old Gen Alpha nieces (who, yes, are Sephora tweens and teens), and my baby boomer mother have spent many family dinners bonding over and now regularly text about.
This may not seem exceptional at first, but such universal appeal is no small feat. Rare Beauty is perpetually trending on TikTok — in fact, several of its products, like the Soft Pinch Liquid Blush and Tinted Lip Oil, have gone viral and sold out as a result. While this is the case for plenty of other brands that Gen Alpha adores, there are many that my mom and I wouldn't touch with a 10-foot pole. Similarly, the youths think some of our faves are “old-fashioned" or “uncool.” (Rude.)
So what sets Rare Beauty products apart from the rest, beyond the fact that it's buzzy? The products are actually really good.
I know, I know: I was hesitant at first, too. It is another celebrity-owned beauty brand — in case you're somehow unaware, Selena Gomez is the founder — which is a controversial phenomenon in itself. But Gomez and her team have seriously put in the work, and their products' top-notch quality and universal appeal is proof. Its relative affordability is just icing on the cake.
There's a reason I, a beauty editor, and several other Glamour editors love and use Rare Beauty products on a day-to-day basis. (No, really, we even have the photos to prove it.) But there's one problem when it comes to universally beloved brands: choosing where and how to start.
Fortunately, we've got you covered in that department: US Glamour editors tested and reviewed all the best Rare Beauty products so you don't have to. We even tapped Rare Beauty global stylist Cynthia Di Meo for expert insight and tips on how to use and apply them—plus her viral blush hack—so you'll be a pro in no time.
Get your Sephora carts ready! As Selena's Rare Beauty perfume launches, shop all our favourite Rare Beauty products below.
This article originally featured on Glamour US. Save when you shop for the best Rare Beauty products with these Sephora promo codes.
Rare Beauty's Soft Pinch Liquid Blush is possibly the brand's most popular product, and once you try it, you'll immediately see why. With its showstopping pigment, sensitive-skin-friendly formula, 14 diverse and flattering shades, seamless brush application, and silky-smooth texture that layers well with skin-care and makeup, it's pretty much the perfect blush. We think it's very much worthy of all of its viral fame, and possibly even then some.
Also of note? It comes in both a radiant and matte finish, so you can customise your glam accordingly. Rare Beauty also offers a corresponding Soft Pinch Blush Brush, which simplifies application and blending even further (see its blending abilities in the photo above). Selena Gomez and I both wear the shade Believe, a true mauve, but all the shades are simply to die for, no matter your undertone.
As for how to apply it? “I like to start with one dot, blend on the apple of the cheek up at an angle toward the top of the ear, and add more if desired,” says Di Meo. “It’s mistake-proof, and it layers beautifully over liquid/powder formulas without disturbing makeup.”
A close second to the blush is Rare Beauty's Positive Light Liquid Luminizer Highlight, which, much like the blush, is the best product of its kind. It's bright, luminous, and light-reflecting without looking or feeling heavy or over-the-top. It's ideal for blending and layering (especially with the blush), and can be applied and blended with your fingers. It comes in eight gorgeous shades and instantly elevates any skin-care or makeup look. I love this highlighter so much, in fact, that it inspired me to change how I do my makeup, and since I've started using it, I've leaned into a more radiant, glowy finish compared to a matte one. Selena Gomez is out here changing lives!
“[This is] a silky, second-skin liquid highlighter with superfine, light-catching pearl that creates a subtle buildable glow, and does not settle into fine lines,” says Di Meo. “I love this formula to add highlight around the eye area and top of the cheekbones since it’s flexible and moves with the natural texture on the skin. It's best applied with your fingertips by lightly tapping the product where you want to attract light. It does dry down on its own for all-day wear.”
As for her viral blush hack? “Mix the Liquid Luminizer with your Soft Pinch Blush for an extra glowy look,” she suggests (you know I'm already on that).
US Glamour senior beauty editor Ariana Yaptangco is a major fan of Rare Beauty's best-selling Soft Pinch Tinted Lip Oil. “Upon applying the formula with the doe-foot applicator, I was immediately impressed,” she writes. “The formula felt unlike anything I’d ever tried on my lips. The oil is extremely lightweight—it almost feels as if you’re applying nothing—but creates a gorgeous wash of colour. It’s also buildable, so you can work up the intensity, but a little goes a long way.”
Di Meo thinks of this lip oil when going for easy summer looks. “It’s a jelly that delivers a juicy pop of colour that then transforms from a lightweight oil into a lip tint while staying comfortable,” she says. “It reminds me of a watercolour—the more you layer, the more the colour pops and tints your lip. After the lip oil dries down, I love to top it with a lip balm or gloss for added shine.”
“For the first few minutes Rare admittedly smells a little syrupy and saccharine,” Fiona Embleton writes in her Rare Beauty Perfume review. She was one of the first to try the scent. “But then, it starts to settle on the skin and rather than feel like a fly drowning in honey, I found myself taking in greedy lungfuls as it turned into the ultimate comfort food for my senses.”
It's a warm scent, perfect for the colder months – which won't overpower your colleagues but which will serve a lift that's impactful enough to spike people's interest over a glass of wine in a bar.
“The Rare bottle deserves a special mention, too,” Fiona added. "The first thing you notice is its small, neat size and that it has a large pump dispenser rather than one of those twiddly little misters that you have to swivel the right way to prevent spraying perfume in your eye."
“Put simply, it looks a like a jar of expensive moisturiser. Better still, it's designed to be accessible to all – a consideration that I wholeheartedly applaud as beauty products are rarely designed for people with disabilities to use them.”
Courtesy of Ariana YaptangcoBoth Yaptangco and US Glamour senior West Coast editor Jessica Radloff swear by Rare Beauty's Perfect Strokes Universal Volumizing Mascara. “When I want the look of false lashes without the added effort, this buildable, gorgeous mascara is it,” says Radloff. “While it isn't waterproof, it's the first formula that leaves no residue or smudging under my eyes. 10/10 recommend.”
According to Di Meo, this formula is also super easy to build and perfect for creating lash looks that are weightless with volume no matter your lash type. “I love this formula because it is ultra black, water-resistant, flake-free, and tested for sensitive eyes and contact lens wearers,” she says. “It's ‘Universal’ for a reason.”
Radloff also can't get enough of Rare Beauty's 2023 Glamour Beauty Award–winning Positive Light Silky Touch Highlighter, which is the aforementioned highlighter's powder-based cousin. “I've always wanted gorgeous highlighted cheekbones, but no highlighter has given me that contoured glow like Rare's Positive Light Silky Touch Highlighter in powder form,” she says. “All the shades are great, but Enlighten is my fave. It's now cult status as far as I'm concerned.”
US Glamour editorial assistant Monique Wilson feels the same way. “I love the added shimmer finish that the Rare Beauty highlighter adds on prime areas of my face, such as my cheekbones, the tip of my nose, and right under my brow bone,” she writes in her review of the shade Exhilerate.
Di Meo refers to this as the ultimate highlighter for an instant glasslike glow. “You can apply it with your finger for a softer application or with a brush for an eye-catching look,” she says. “Its unique semisheer base is packed with ultra-smooth, prismatic micro shimmers that sync with your skin to enhance a range of skin tones.” It can also be applied on the cheekbones, eyes, nose, cupid's bow, and shoulders—anywhere you’d like to glow, Di Meo says.
Need a nap? Same, but I have the next best thing: Rare Beauty's Positive Light Under Eye Brightener. “This is my go-to to instantly awaken any undereye,” says Di Meo. “It’s a super-lightweight liquid that instantly brightens, hydrates, and depuffs with a sheer to medium coverage for a fresh, radiant look. You can wear this alone for a no-makeup makeup look, or if you would like additional coverage, I recommend tapping this over your concealer for additional brightening.”
“This is also a wonderful product to use for refreshing your makeup during touch-ups,” she says. And it's true, so I keep it in my makeup bag at all times. Pro tip: Use the Liquid Touch Concealer Brush. It's my favourite brush of all time. I own two of them.
“I've always loved a good hand cream,” says US Glamour commerce writer Andrea Navarro, who now considers Rare Beauty's hand cream to be one of her must-have hand-care products.
“Selena Gomez launched her first range of skin-focused products for Rare Beauty, and while I love the entire collection (the scents are phenomenal), I love throwing the hand cream in my bag,” she says. “It has a unique twist-top opening that doesn't require taking the cap off and locks it back into place, so you'll never have to worry about losing it. The pointed top was also designed with reflexology in mind, so you can actually use the bottle to give yourself a hand massage after applying the lotion (or, you can give yourself a regular hand massage).”
I use Rare Beauty's Perfect Strokes Longwear & Waterproof Gel Eyeliner every single time I'm wearing eye makeup. It's the only nonliquid eyeliner that doesn't make my eyes water and burn, and lasts all day long without smearing or irritating my eyes or skin. It's also super easy to apply and use, and comes with a built-in sharpener you can't and won't lose!
Instagram/@rarebeautyAnother fan (and Selena Gomez) favourite? Rare Beauty's Brow Harmony Flexible Lifting Brow Gel. “This flexible water-based gel builds easily to sculpt and smooth brows for a brushed-up, laminated look,” says Di Meo. “It has a strong yet flexible gel that is waterproof. The clear gel dries to a natural, flake-resistant finish that can be used with other brow products. My favourite feature is the tapered brush that helps create a fluffy brow when using the longer bristles or a laminated brow when using the shorter side.”
As for how to apply it? “I recommend applying your brow pencil first, then sealing with the brow gel for a groomed finish that lasts all day,” she says.
As noted above, I have very sensitive eyes to the point that several eyeshadows have made my eyes swell up before. Fortunately, Rare Beauty's vegan and cruelty-free formula is gentle enough for even my overly emotional eyes. It allows me to create showstopping shimmering eye shadow looks that are so easy to apply (you literally just swipe it on), and it lasts all day long and doesn't smear. I am never not wearing this eye shadow stick. It's life-changing.
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