For the perfect lip look, you’ll need to find the best lip liner on the market — that’s easier said than done. The quest to find one that matches your natural lip shade or even your favorite lipstick can be just as hard as matching your foundation or finding a sunscreen that doesn’t leave a white cast. Luckily for you, I’ve been testing all of the above and, of course, lip liners, too, so you know you can trust me. Bookmarking every lip-liner–and–lip-gloss pairing I see on TikTok, I have worn them through meals, masking, and daily shenanigans.
Here are the ones that go on easily, rarely need to be reapplied, and almost never have to be sharpened.
SO YOU NEED A NEW LIP LINER?
➼ Our top picks
➼ More tried-and-true options
➼ Our experts
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Our Top Picks:
The Best Liner-and-Lipstick Pairing
Type: Pencil | Colors: 6 | Cruelty free: Yes
Outside of the fun bright-blue packaging, this is a very good liner and probably one of my favorites. The shade Riche is the perfect nude and has a smooth matte but not flat finish. The brand takes some of the guesswork out of liner-and-lipstick combinations. I recommend splurging on the lip compact, which includes a moisturizing primer and pigmented lip color that pairs perfectly with the liner shades.
The Best Nude Shades
Type: Pencil | Colors: 5 | Cruelty free: Yes
With by far my favorite range of pink and brown nudes, this sculpting liner is perfect for shaping the lip or adding color all over. It comes equipped with a smudger on one end, but I find it easier to blend with my fingers or just by rubbing my lips together. I keep at least one of these liners in my bag.
The Best Luxe Liner
Type: Twist-up | Colors: 3 | Cruelty free: Yes
When it comes to lip liners, makeup artists really get it, and this one from Isamaya Ffrench’s line is no exception. The liner has a superthin tip, making it easy to line the lips precisely and allowing the formula to apply without dragging. I find this is best for a more dramatic lip line, but there are more subdued shades if you prefer a different look.
The Best Multitasking Liner
Type: Pencil | Colors: 6 | Cruelty free: Yes
Since this is an all-purpose product, its formula is smooth, creamy, and very blendable. The shade range is small but full of shades you wouldn’t mind putting on other parts of your face, including pinky nude, taupe, and chocolate brown.
The Best Liner and Lipstick
Type: Crayon | Colors: 17 | Cruelty free: Yes
While this chunky liner is easy to pair with Haus Labs’ lip glaze, it works really well on its own. It’s on the thicker side, with a precise pointy tip to help you shape your lips and fill them in. The formula is lightweight and semi-matte without looking or feeling too dry.
The Best Natural Liner
Type: Pencil | Colors: 5 | Cruelty free: Unclear
This is the best “your lips but better” option, with five nude shades that flatter any skin tone and make it easy to line (or overline!) your lips. A brush on one end helps you blend out the liner for the most natural look.
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More Tried-and-True Options:
The Drugstore Favorite
Type: Pencil | Colors: 24 | Cruelty free: Yes
NYX’s affordable pencils are just as good as M.A.C’s, and the brand may even have a dupe of your favorite shade. As the name suggests, this one is long wearing and easy to blend, and NYX probably has one of the best shade ranges out there, with nearly 30 to choose from.
The Fan Favorite
Type: Pencil | Colors: 19 | Cruelty free: Yes
Ask anyone which lip liner they like and they’ll probably pull a gently used M.A.C in Cork out of their bag. Cork is a muted brown that fits most skin tones, and the formula blends easily and lasts all day. M.A.C offers a range of liner colors from very muted browns to bright, pigmented pinks and reds.
The Cult-Favorite Liner
Type: Pencil | Colors: 19 | Cruelty free: Yes
This velvety liner is another fan favorite. Pillow Talk is the viral pink-nude shade that fits most skin tones, but there are a handful of other shades to shop, from rich browns to berry pinks. It’s likely you’ll find a your-lips-but-better nude, and if you do, this is probably one of the best for overlining and wearing all over.
Another Good Drugstore Option
Type: Pencil | Colors: 8 | Cruelty free: Yes
If you don’t want to spend a lot, you don’t have to. At just under $10, this is a good, easy-to-use, classic pencil liner. It comes in a couple of long-wearing shades, including one that reviewers say is a close match for Charlotte Tilbury’s Pillow Talk.
The Best Liner Under $10
Type: Gel | Colors: 5 | Cruelty free: Yes
I’d argue that Wet n Wild is one of the most underrated drugstore brands; the discontinued Mega Last Lip Color was one of the best lipsticks I’ve ever tried. This liner is pretty good too. If you’re over pencil liners (and having to find a sharpener), this is a great option.
The Best Shade Range
Type: Pencil | Colors: 47 | Cruelty free: Yes
Long before ColourPop made its way into stores, I was compiling lists of its vast collection of viral liners and lip colors to buy online. Like NYX, the brand has a solid range of shades to choose from on its site and even more lipsticks and glosses to pair with them. Retailers like Ulta have a good amount of nudes. At just under $7, it has an easy-to-blend, creamy formula, and if you’re willing to spend a little more, you can buy every shade for just under $100. The only caveat is I find it difficult to sharpen.
The One We’ve Been Waiting For
Type: Pencil | Colors: 5 | Cruelty free: Yes
Anyone who has used Ami Colé’s cult-favorite lip-treatment oils has been asking — well, begging — the brand to introduce lip liners to pair with the glossy lip formulas. Now they’re here. Available in five shades, the pigmented, precise, and waterproof pencils are perfect for sharp lines and blend out just as easily.
The One That’s Back and Brand-New
Type: Pencil | Colors: 8 | Cruelty free: Yes
A favorite of our fashion writer Asia Milia Ware. Back by popular demand, these easy-to-use lip liners have been reformulated to be super-creamy and moisturizing. They also come with a smudger and a sharpener for the most precise application.
The Allover Lip Liner
Type: Pencil | Colors: 12 | Cruelty free: Yes
Ilia’s newest launch is likely to become another cult-favorite product. This thick crayon is moisturizing, pigmented, and long-lasting. It saw me through most of a work dinner without reapplying or smudging everywhere. The only issue you’ll likely have is needing to buy a new larger pencil sharpener to keep it in shape.
The Long-lasting Lip Liner
Type: Pencil | Colors: 22 | Cruelty free: Yes
Most of the liners listed here are long-wearing, but this one has some real staying power. In 22 pigmented shades, it goes on smooth and lasts literally hours. This liner has outlasted dinner, drinks, and the summer heat and stays on even longer than my lip oil most days.
The Plumping Lip Liner
Type: Twist-up | Colors: 9 | Cruelty free: Yes
One of Cut staffer Morgan Evans’s new favorites, this liner from Tarte features ingredients that help smooth and plump lips, such as hyaluronic acid and vitamin E. It also comes in a nice range of pinky, peachy, and brown shades if you want a your-lips-but-better look.
The Best Hydrating Lip Liner
Type: Pencil | Colors: 8 | Cruelty free: Yes
Behold senior shopping editor Bianca Nieves’s favorite lip enhancer: Glossier’s newest nudes. From the brand known for its barely there, glow-y makeup, this pencil is the perfect addition to your routine, with nude shades for all skin tones. The water- and smudge-resistant liner is perfect for going just outside the lines for a fuller look.
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Our experts:
- Chinea Rodriguez, the Cut’s shopping writer
