Beauty around the USA
The most popular beauty brands and products across the country
Everyone has their own personal beauty routine that incorporates the products and brands they love and trust. Beauty routines are so tailored to the individual, that virtually no two are the same. There are hundreds of beauty brands and products to choose from, which we all apply slightly differently in order to match our beauty needs and give us our distinctive personal flair.
Yet, with so many big brands and exciting newcomers in the beauty market, it’s often difficult to get an idea of which brands are the most popular, and which excel in different areas. That’s why we’ve crunched the numbers to find the most popular beauty brands in the country, as well as in every state and the fifty biggest cities.
We’ll be looking at a range of different product types to find the most popular in each category, in each location. From this, we’ll be able to paint you a picture of the beauty landscape all across the USA.
Top ten beauty brands in the USA
1. ColourPop Cosmetics - 6,883,000 annual searches
The most popular beauty brand in the country is ColourPop Cosmetics, having received by far the most searches of any cosmetics company. ColourPop is a brand that offers an expansive range of makeup, skincare, and body care products at an affordable price.
They have frequent collaborations with popular TV shows, movies, and pop culture brands including Barbie, Sailor Moon, and even The Mandalorian. ColourPop even has a dedicated Disney section for crossovers with various Disney movies from Bambi to Frozen.
2. Lush - 5,668,000 annual searches
Lush is a beauty and wellness brand that caters to multiple product categories including bath and shower, hair care, body care, and makeup, while also offering scents and gift products.
Lush has grown incredibly popular for its ethical business practices which include creating completely vegetarian products, most of which are also vegan, and taking a strong stance against animal testing.
3. Glossier - 5,034,000 annual searches
Founded in 2014, Glossier is a relatively young company to have such a big national presence. Their main driving force is to create the products which people wish existed. Glossier has products available across multiple makeup and beauty categories, as well as having a range of clothing products under the GlossiWEAR moniker.
Glossier’s sprint to the top of the table shows that its strategy is working and that people are genuinely interested in a company with a more grassroots approach to product development.
The most popular brands for different beauty products
Next, we’ll take a look at which brands are the most searched-for for different beauty products. From eyeliner to moisturizer, here’s a breakdown of the nation’s favorite beauty brands by product category.
Top ten beauty brands for BB cream
1. Maybelline - 88,200 “BB cream” searches
2. L’Oreal Paris - 39,800 “BB cream” searches
3. Dr. Jart+ - 34,200 “bb cream” searches
The most popular brand for BB cream in the USA is Maybelline, having received a whopping 88,200 searches for it in one year. Fellow cosmetics behemoth L’Oreal Paris comes second place with 39,800 searches, while third place is taken by skincare specialist Dr. Jart+ with 34,200 annual searches.
Top ten beauty brands for blusher
1. NARS Cosmetics - 59,800 annual “blusher” searches
2. Charlotte Tilbury - 55,600 annual “blusher” searches
3. Tarte Cosmetics - 42,000 annual “blusher” searches
The most popular brand for blusher in the country is NARS Cosmetics, with 59,800 annual searches. This is followed by Charlotte Tilbury in second place with 55,600 searches, and then Tarte Cosmetics with 42,000.
Top ten beauty brands for concealer
1. Tarte Cosmetics - 231,900 annual “concealer” searches
2. NARS Cosmetics - 197,400 annual “concealer” searches
3. Maybelline - 161,400 annual “concealer” searches
Tarte Cosmetics takes the top spot as America’s most popular company for concealer products, with an impressive 231,900 annual searches. NARS Cosmetics again finishes very well with 197,400 annual searches, putting it in second place for concealer. Third place goes to Maybelline, who also performed very well with 161,400 searches.
These top three brands outperform their competitors by quite some way, as fourth-place CoverGirl totaled only a relatively small 62,000 searches for concealer.
Top ten beauty brands for eyebrow kits
1. Benefit - 5,340 annual “eyebrow kit” searches
2. Morphe - 4,670 annual “eyebrow kit” searches
3. Anastasia Beverley Hills - 1,410 annual “eyebrow kit” searches
The most popular beauty brand for eyebrow kits in the country is Benefit, having received 5,340 searches in the past year. Benefit has a greater focus on eyebrows than many other beauty brands, so it’s understandable that the public considers them to be experts on the subject.
Morphe is the second most popular beauty brand for eyebrow kits, with 4,670 searches, while Anastasia Beverley Hills came third with 1,410.
Top ten beauty brands for eyebrow pencils
1. NYX Professional Makeup - 62,000 annual “eyebrow pencil” searches
2. Maybelline - 45,000 annual “eyebrow pencil” searches
3. Benefit - 37,800 annual “eyebrow pencil” searches
With 62,000 annual searches, NYX Professional Makeup is the most popular beauty brand for eyebrow pencils in the USA. Maybelline takes second place with 45,000 searches for eyebrow pencils, while Benefit comes third with 37,800 searches.
Top ten beauty brands for eyeliner
1. NYX Professional Makeup - 130,600 annual “eyeliner” searches
2. Maybelline - 75,600 annual “eyeliner” searches
3. Urban Decay - 45,000 annual “eyeliner” searches
The most popular beauty brand in the USA for eyeliner is NYX Professional Makeup, with 130,600 searches in the last year. Having also won the eyebrow pencil category, NYX is clearly considered an authority on eye makeup by consumers across the country.
Making another appearance in the top three is Maybelline, coming second with 75,600 searches, while Urban Decay takes third place with 45,000 annual searches for eyeliner.
Top ten beauty brands for foundation
1. NARS Cosmetics - 337,000 annual “foundation” searches
2. Maybelline - 250,800 annual “foundation” searches
3. Estée Lauder - 247,500 annual “foundation” searches
NARS Cosmetics is the most popular beauty brand for foundation, having had 337,000 searches in the last twelve months. This is considerably higher than second-place Maybelline, which received 250,800 foundation searches. Closely following is Estée Lauder, with 247,500 searches for foundation in the last year.
Top ten beauty brands for hair oil
1. Ouai - 64,700 annual “hair oil” searches
2. Moroccanoil - 62,000 annual “hair oil” searches
3. Olaplex - 15,020 annual “hair oil” searches
The most popular beauty brand for hair oil in the country is hair care specialist Ouai, with 64,700 annual searches. Moroccanoil, an expert in hair and body oil, comes a close second with 62,000 searches while another authority in hair care, Olaplex, comes third with 15,020.
Top ten beauty brands for lip gloss
1. Glossier - 159,800 annual “lip gloss” searches
2. Fenty Beauty - 65,500 annual “lip gloss” searches
3. NYX Professional Makeup - 51,200 annual “lip gloss” searches
Glossier is the most popular beauty brand for lip gloss with a huge 159,800 annual searches. Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty comes second with 65,500 yearly searches, showing that celebrity brands have the potential to wrestle with big established brands, while NYX Professional Makeup takes third place with 51,200 searches.
Top ten beauty brands for lipstick
1. NYX Professional Beauty - 113,200 annual “lipstick” searches
2. Maybelline - 85,200 annual “lipstick” searches
3. NARS Cosmetics - 67,600 annual “lipstick” searches
NYX Professional Makeup has the most lipstick searches of any beauty brand in America, with 113,200 annually. Maybelline takes second place with 85,200 lipstick searches, while NARS Cosmetics takes third place with 67,600. Revlon just missed out on a podium position, having gained an impressive 67,200 lipstick searches and finishing in fourth place.
Top ten beauty brands for makeup palettes
1. Morphe - 13,220 annual “makeup palette” searches
2. Tarte Cosmetics - 5,620 annual “makeup palette” searches
3. Too Faced - 4,110 annual “makeup palette” searches
Morphe is the beauty brand with by far the most searches for “makeup palettes”, having received 13,220 in the last year. Tarte Cosmetics comes second with 5,620 annual searches, while Too Faced comes third with 4,110.
Top ten beauty brands for mascara
1. Maybelline - 516,900 annual “mascara” searches
2. L’Oreal Paris - 334,500 annual “mascara” searches
3. Lancôme - 193,400 annual “mascara” searches
With 516,900 searches in the last year, Maybelline is the most popular beauty brand for mascara in America. The second most popular is another huge brand, L’Oreal Paris, with 334,500 annual searches, while third place goes to Lancôme, which is actually owned by L’Oreal, with 193,400 searches.
Top ten beauty brands for moisturizer
1. Clinique - 151,600 annual “moisturizer” searches
2. Neutrogena - 132,500 “moisturizer” searches
3. Olay - 84,900 “moisturizer” searches
Clinique is the most popular beauty brand for moisturizer, with 151,600 annual searches, Neutrogena takes second place with 132,500 searches. In third place is Olay, which has had 84,900 searches in the last twelve months.
The most popular beauty brands in every state
Here we’ve taken a closer look at the data to see which brands are the most popular for each product type in all fifty states. See below to find the biggest beauty brands where you live!
Methodology
We wanted to find out which are the biggest beauty brands in the USA. To do this, we looked at the same extensive list of several hundred beauty brands that were used for the Cosmetify Index and used Google Keyword Planner to collect the number of annual US searches for each brand. This allowed us to rank them in terms of most-searched, which we used as a measure for popularity.
We then wanted to look at the popularity of beauty brands from a different angle. We took the top one hundred beauty brands for national search volume and collected search data which combined the brand name with a product type. This allowed us to see which brands are the most popular across different product types, providing insight into why people search for different brands.
Next, we wanted to explore how the beauty brands compare when analysed on a smaller scale, such as by city or state. To do this, we collected the search data for each brand and brand-product combination for each US state as well as for the 50 most populous US cities. This was then presented in a visual format so that we could reveal how beauty preferences differ around the country, from state to state and city to city.