READERS' CHOICE AWARDS 2021
- skin
- splurge
- hair
- steal
- makeup
- new brand
- body
- hall of fame
- clean
- breakthroughs
When many things were out of our control last year, we were also reminded of the power of each vote. While our editors may push through months of testing for our annual Best of Beauty Awards, for the Allure Readers' Choice Awards, your voice — and vote — is the most important. And now, you’ve done your civic beauty duty by choosing the skin, hair, makeup, body, and nail products that brighten up the screen during a Zoom call, double as self-care after a long day, or just look great when paired with a face covering. So, without further ado, behold the 64 beauty products that help make your world a brighter (and shinier andsofter)place.
PHOTOGRAPHED BY RUO BING LI
- skin
- splurge
- hair
- steal
- makeup
- new brand
- body
- hall of fame
- clean
- breakthroughs
READ OUR REVIEWS
Cleanser
Cetaphil
Gentle Skin Cleanser
This soap-and-fragrance-free formula has been coddling sensitive skin for 74 years, contains only eight ingredients, and vanishes from the Allure beauty closet in approximately three seconds.
$10
Tool
Michael Todd Beauty
Soniclear Petite Sonic Cleansing System
No spin here: This vibrating brush draws out deep-seated grime with tiny oscillations, making it more effective than rotating heads that distribute debris around your face. And the antimicrobial bristles help prevent product buildup and breakouts.
$99
Lip Balm
Laneige
Lip Sleeping Mask
The satin top sheet of overnight treatments: Hyaluronic acid and fruit extracts form a light, protective layer over lips while you sleep, creating a creaseless canvas for matte makeup.
$22
Moisturizer
First Aid Beauty
Ultra Repair Cream
Loaded with ceramides and anti-inflammatory ingredients, this calming emulsion relieves dry, prickly skin on our face, neck, chest — and any other parched part that comes to mind.
$36
Exfoliant
The Ordinary
AHA 30% + BHA 2% Peeling Solution
Mimic the effects of a professional peel with this chemical exfoliator. The high concentration of acids is no joke (sensitive types, beware), but neither is the refined texture and dewy glow you'll experience after one dose.
$7
Eye Cream
Ole Henriksen
Banana Bright Eye Crème
With vitamin C and a sunny yellow tint, dark circles will make like a banana — and split.
$39
Face Mask
Wander Beauty
Baggage Claim Gold Eye Masks
An upgrade for your undereyes, these gold crescents brighten and depuff with hyaluronic acid and aloe extract. People will think you're a paragon of sleep hygiene and someone who has never said, "Sure, one more glass!"
$25
Sunscreen
Supergoop
Unseen Sunscreen SPF 40
We feel the same way you do about the weightless, poreless, primer-like finish and heavy-duty protection. What we don't feel? A layer of sunscreen.
$34
Serum
SkinCeuticals
C E Ferulic
It practically takes a chemistry degree to interpret the list of ingredients in this free-radical-fighting serum, but you don't need any honors to understand the result: radiant, stress-free skin.
$166
Acne Treatment
Peace Out
Acne Healing Dots
These small, adhesive patches stick it to zits (even the achy, emerging ones) with a steady dose of salicylic acid, while soothing aloe keeps dryness and flaking at bay.
$19
splurge
Jo Malone London Wood Sage & Sea Salt Cologne is your ticket to the much-needed trip you never got to take last year. It blends mountain and beach notes seamlessly, so there'll be no arguments about the ideal spot for your (virtual) vacation. Readmore.
$142
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Shampoo
OGX
Renewing + Argan Oil of Morocco Shampoo
Rich in omegas and antioxidants, this shine-inducing formula had us lathering, rinsing, and reaping the visible rewards of argan oil after just one wash.
$9
Conditioner
Briogeo
Don't Despair, Repair! Deep Conditioning Mask
Cool things happen on a molecular level when you apply this treatment. Encapsulated lipids attach to damaged areas in the hair shaft, smoothing things over and imparting exceptional sleekness.
$36
Curl Definer
Moroccanoil
Curl Defining Cream
If you hair only craves moisture, we'd slather on some shea and call it a day. But quenching curls without compromising bounce requires a more nuanced approach. One pump of this cream delivers softness, glossiness, and unprecedented springiness.
$34
Hair Color
eSalon
Custom Hair Color Set
What are these "roots" people speak of? With this online service, a box of flawless color formulated specifically for you arrives right at your door, right when you need it (like around month three of a pandemic).
$28
Hair Tools
Wet Brush
Original Detangler
Your hairstylist, your mother, and okay, even Allure have warned against the perils of brushing wet hair. But that was before these flexible bristles started gliding through our tangles — and bending all the rules.
$8
Volumizer
Living Proof
Full Dry Volume Blast
In order to go big, you have to start small. The lightweight polymers and molecules in this spray nestle into the microscopic spaces between individual hair fibers to create the appearance of thicker, fuller hair.
$30
Dry Shampoo
Batiste
Dry Shampoo Original
This starchy, waterless formula comes in an easy-to-control can. As in, you can zero in on greasy roots and eke a third day from that blowout.
$9
Hot Tool
Revlon
One-Step Hair Dryer And Volumizer
Achieving a full-bodied blowout requires a round brush and a high-powered hot tool. Or, even better, a round brush that is a high-powered hot tool. The mix of natural bristles and nylon pins on this multitasking gadget emits a steady flow of air as you work. And, thanks to the lightweight design, washday is no longer as tiring as a circuit of bicep curls.
$41
Oil
OGX
Renewing + Moroccan Argan Oil Extra Penetrating Oil
A light drizzle imparts shampoo-ad dazzle. Rub this elixir between your hands and skim over damp strands to lock in luster. Or use it on dry hair to settle flyaways.
$10
steal
Vaseline Original Healing Jelly has been around since 1870, and at 151 years old, it's still holding its own: sealing in moisture, defending against the elements, and adding glow to lips and lids. All for $4. Readmore.
$2
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Foundation
Maybelline New York
Fit Me! Matte + Poreless Foundation
Formulated without waxes or oil, this lightweight pigment glides on, rendering a clean, matte finish — never a heavy mask.
$8
Tool
Beautyblender
The Original Beautyblender
With a pointy tip for stippling and a round base for buffing, this teardrop sponge has been nesting in our makeup bag — and nabbing awards — since 2007.
$20
Mascara
L'Oréal Paris
Voluminous Lash Paradise Washable Mascara
Boasting 200 bristles, this fluffy brush amps up every last lash, producing the fullest fan imaginable.
$10
Nail Polish
Essie
Nail Polish in Ballet Slippers
The sheerest pink with the cleanest finish, this repeat winner looks plush on hands and feet, making it the ultimate pas de deux.
$9
Brow
Benefit
Gimme Brow+ Volumizing Eyebrow Gel
The impressive array of 10 shades (including gray) and minuscule spooley guarantee natural-looking heft and depth.
$24
Blush
Nars
Blush in org*sm
This elegant powder with the cheeky name just clinched its 18th win for bestowing a just-pinched flush.
$30
Concealer
Tarte
Shape Tape Contour Concealer
This matte concealer works like magic: The hydrating formula (thanks to mango and shea butters) floats above creases while color-correcting licorice root makes acne and dark spots disappear.
$27
Palette
Tarte
Tartelette in Bloom Amazonian Clay Eyeshadow Palette
These 12 pans of golden metallics, neutral browns, and blush-tinged taupes are your winning lineup in the shadow game. Not a single one is relegated to the bench.
$39
Eyeliner
NYX Professional Makeup
Epic Ink Liner
Not too stiff, not too pliant, the superskinny brush allows easy control: Use a light touch to produce sharp lines and fine flicks; apply a little extra pressure for thicker, inkier swoops.
$9
Highlighter
E.L.F. Cosmetics
Baked Highlighter
Infused with jojoba oils, this condensed powder delivers a radiant sheen that's surprisingly sheer.
$4
Lip Gloss
Fenty Beauty
Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer
One swipe of the oversize wand delivers a dewy wallop of moisture and shine. Boom. Done.
$19
Lipstick
Charlotte Tilbury
Matte Revolution Lipstick In Pillow Talk
This lush bullet drapes lips in the rosy-beige hue of our dreams. (And if when you fall in love with the color, the brand offers the shade in shadows, liners, and glosses.)
$34
new brand
"I would definitely like to say I'm an entrepreneur... but I'm new," Selena Gomez told Allure when she launched Rare Beauty last September. Cheeky, sure — also an understatement. In a world where celebrity brands proliferate, Gomez makes the kind of sheer blushes and dewy glosses that we keep reaching for long after their buzzy launch — and we're in good company: You voted Rare Beauty the year's best new brand for its thoughtful foundation range, its dramatic matte-black liquid liner, and its Soft Pinch Liquid Blush. It's a brand that everyone can experiment with. "I had always wanted the name Rare," Gomez told us at the time. It's a nod to "being diverse and different... I wanted it to feel like you were included." —Elizabeth Siegel Readmore.
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Antiperspirant
Dove
Advanced Care Antiperspirant in Cool Essentials
Any antiperspirant can stop sweat and odor. But this creamy formula goes above and beyond for underarms, ridding them of clingy wetness and shaving irritation by delivering potent moisture in addition to budgeproof protection.
$5
Hand Lotion
Mary Kay
White Tea & Citrus Satin Hands Nourishing Shea Cream
This intensely hydrating formula absorbs in a snap, softens ragged cuticles, and gives our brittle nails — which have been sanitized within an inch of their lives — an almost-buffed gleam.
$12
Hair Removal
Gillette
Venus Extra Smooth Sensitive Razor
Razor burn is the pits, which is why this tool deserves all the props. Cushioned in light moisture, the springy blades and pivoting head steer around curves and reach awkward angles, so you never have to shave tender skin twice.
$10
Moisturizer
CeraVe
Moisturizing Cream
This plain, white moisturizer is no fuss, all must. Loaded with ceramides (those fatty acids that glue skin cells together), it relieves dryness and tightness by shoring up the protective barrier that locks moisture in place.
$16
Scrub
Dove
Exfoliating Body Polish In Crushed Macadamia & Rice Milk
Cocooned in nutty, buttery goodness, these grains give skin a thorough buffing. Bonus: Your limbs will be transformed into dewy perfection, without costing an arm and a leg.
$6
Sunscreen
Neutrogena
Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunscreen SPF 55
Some sunscreens leave you looking glowy for a hot minute then greasy for hours. This formula delivers undetectable coverage that won't turn slick in the heat, no matter how much you glob on (and you should be layering on a lot).
$10
Body Wash
Dove
Deep Moisture Body Wash
This wash produces luxurious lather — with no compromises. Conditioners leave skin so plump and hydrated, we might just retire our body lotion.
$6
Self-Tanner
Jergens
Natural Glow Daily Moisturizer
We've been building believable color with this lotion for years (and years) and still haven't encountered a weird blotch or telltale streak. If that isn't some kind of record, the 11 Readers' Choice wins surely is.
$9
Toothpaste/Whitener
Colgate
Total SF Advanced Whitening Toothpaste
This paste removes surface stains, can relieve sensitivity, and returns mouths to mint condition.
$4
Fragrance
Marc Jacobs
Daisy
It's been 14 years since this jasmine-and-sandalwood bouquet first started popping up on vanities everywhere. The sunny impression is still playful, tender, and as fresh as the namesake suggests.
$86
Hand Sanitizer
Purell
Hand Sanitizer
Sure, there are fancier hand sanitizers out there, but the goal is to kill germs on contact, not dress them up for dinner and a movie. This gel gets the job done with 70 percent ethyl alcohol.
$4
hall of fame
This year, Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion won our first-ever Readers’ Choice Hall of Fame Award (following 10 previous wins). There is simply no other body moisturizer you love as much as this one. “On an annual basis, we sell 363.8 million fluid ounces of Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion,” a communications manager wrote to us. Every year, the world buys enough of this product to fill more than four Olympic-size swimming pools, the entirety of Iceland’s Blue Lagoon, and nine Boeing 747 jets. It all adds up to 26,452,396 bottles sold a year. Readmore.
$9
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Body Moisturizer
Love Beauty And Planet
Delicious Glow Murumuru Butter & Rose Body Lotion
Spiked with rose oil, this decadent moisturizer transforms garden-variety dullness into dewy perfection.
$7
Foundation
BareMinerals
Original Loose Powder Foundation
It looks like a powder and airbrushes like a powder, but this gossamer-fine formula gives skin the luminous sheen of a liquid foundation.
$32
Concealer
Kosas
Revealer Super Creamy + Brightening Concealer
Pumped with peptides, this hydrating liquid blends seamlessly, disguising circles without settling into lines.
$28
Lipstick
Burt's Bees
Glossy Lipstick
Each botanical bullet saturates lips in color and shine — without turning your mouth into a Venus hair trap.
$9
Mascara
Honest Beauty
Extreme Length Mascara + Lash Primer
This dual-sided wand lifts and separates in two steps: Prime with a glossy base coat, then wait 30 seconds before sweeping on the inky-black pigment. Is the process twice as long? Yeah, but so are your lashes.
$17
Blush
Ilia
Multi-Stick
Infused with organic butters and potent color, this cushy balm melts into the skin, producing a buildable, believable flush on cheeks — and lips.
$34
Sunscreen
Baby Bum
Mineral SPF 50 Sunscreen Lotion Fragrance Free
If it's gentle enough for a baby's bottom, then it's a win for the cheeks on our grown-up faces. This formula is 20 percent zinc oxide, for serious protection from harsh UV rays, with room left over for moisturizers like shea butter and coconut oil.
$14
Body Wash
Dr. Bronner's
18-in-1 Hemp Peppermint Pure-Castile Liquid Soap
Even if you aren't the sing-in-the shower type, this hydrating wash uses peppermint oil to perk up tired skin and get sluggish circulation humming.
$15
Deodorant
Native
Aluminum Free Deodorant Coconut & Vanilla
Coconut oil and shea butter cushion skin, while baking soda and tapioca starch neutralize wetness and odor, providing peace of mind on every front.
$12
Facial Cleanser
Youth To The People
Superfood Cleanser
With antioxidants and phytonutrients extracted from spinach and kale, this nourishing gel cleanser targets dehydration, dullness, and damage, enabling dry skin to turn over a new leaf.
$36
Facial Moisturizer
Biossance
Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil
Pressed onto bare skin — or drizzled into foundation — two drops of this dreamy elixir bestow a supple glow, while plant-derived squalane and vitamin C brighten and smooth over time.
$72
Shampoo
Briogeo
Be Gentle, Be Kind Banana + Coconut Nourishing Superfood Shampoo
This hydrating shampoo is basically what happens when a juice bar meets a protein bar meets a blowout bar. The fruity, fortifying co*cktail helps strengthen fragile strands with vitamins and fatty acids.
$28
Conditioner
Briogeo
Be Gentle, Be Kind Banana + Coconut Nourishing Superfood Conditioner
The conditioner is the ideal match for the shampoo with banana, acai, coconut, and mango. It's like a hydrating smoothie for your hair.
$28
Eye Shadow
Ilia
Liquid Powder Chromatic Eye Tint
Each water-based cream drapes lids in a wash of creaseless, ceaseless, metallic color.
$28
breakthroughs
You voted on the most revolutionary new beauty products — and we learned that it took hundreds of rounds of trial and error to reach perfection. “Spectacular failure” is no insult when it leads to four of the most exciting launches of the year. Readmore.
Neutrogena
Hydro Boost Night Pressed Face Serum With Hyaluronic Acid
This novel nighttime treatment has hyaluronic acid to attract water molecules to the surface of the skin, plus beeswax to help seal them in. It’s also got the added benefit of being a joy to use: The formula is thick and bouncy in the jar, but melts into skin.
$17
Benefit
Brow Microfilling Pen
Microblading is trendy, but tattooing semipermanent arches onto your forehead isn’t for everyone. So Benefit set out to create the same kind of naturally structured look without the needles — and wound up with this three-prong applicator and a formula that's “sheer and watercolor-like, but long-wearing and smudgeproof.”
$25
Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare
Alpha Beta Exfoliating Body Treatment
When Dennis Gross, a dermatologist in New York City, launched his Alpha Beta Peel in 2000, it helped ignite the category of at-home peels. Now, he has a body version. But skin on the body is two to three times thicker, so Gross added bromelain and papain enzymes to boost his signature formula.
$58
Dyson
Corrale Straightener
After seven years and thousands of designs, Dyson has given us the cordless Corrale. The plates are made from a flexible manganese-copper alloy coated in friction-eliminating titanium nitride and nickel, and the heat control results in 50 percent less damage to hair than with other flatirons, according to the brand.
$499
introducing our first-ever
readers' council
We tapped five industry experts (and Allure readers!) to help celebrate our annual Readers’ Choice Awards. These pros helped us answer your most-pressing hair, makeup, and skin-care questions.
David Lopez
Hairstylist
No-product-required styling tip: “Set realistic expectations and love your hair as it is.”
Jkissa
Beauty Content Creator
Favorite beauty advice: “If you want to try something new but are feeling a little apprehensive, wear it around your house and catch yourself looking amazing in the mirror.”
Grace Ahn
Makeup Artist
Favorite Allure memory: “Definitely Kevyn Aucoin’s column in the ’90s. It was my Bible, and I never missed an issue!”
Caroline Robinson
Dermatologist
No. 1 skin-care tip: “Stop overexfoliating and focus on moisturizing. Many people are afraid to liberally moisturize because they have oily skin, acne, or simply hate the feeling of product on their face. The skin functions optimally when it is hydrated."
Canishiea J. Sams
Nail Artist
Ticket to manicure success: “Moisturize hands and cuticles. Nail breakage and cracked cuticles are usually due to lack of hydration. This also helps the longevity of your manicure.”
PHOTOGRAPHED BY: RUO BING LI
STYLIST: RACHAEL WANG
HAIR: ERIC R WILLIAMS
MAKEUP: MARLA BELT
MODELS:
MARI TAYLOR @ INDUSTRY
ERIN ELIOPULOS @ NEXT
PRODUCTION: SAINT LUKE ARTISTS
SELENA GOMEZ: MICAIAH CARTER FOR ALLURE PICKUP: GETTY IMAGES
PRODUCTS COURTESY OF THE BRAND
DAVID LOPEZ: COURTESY PHOTO
GRACE AHN: COURTESY PHOTO
JKISSA: CHRISTIAN HENRY SMITH
CANISHIEA J. SAMS: DANIELLE EVANS
CAROLINE ROBINSON: AYAKA SANO
