Best Cruelty-Free Foundation With Reviews [2021]

Are you looking for a high-quality foundation that necessarily will not get off your budget? Well, the foundation is a vital part of every makeup routine.

Having the right cruelty free foundation can boost your confidence. Let’s have a look at some of the best there is in today’s market.

Top Cruelty-Free Foundation Compared

Product ImageProduct NameFeaturesPrice

Milani Conceal and Foundation - Best overall Cruelty-free foundation
  • 45 different long-lasting shades
  • Oil-free, medium-to-full coverage, long-wearing & water-resistant for a beautiful, even skin tone
  • Price: $12.45

Wet n wild Photo Focus Foundation- Best Market Value
  • Color matched for all undertones
  • Formulated with a matte, light-diffusing complex
  • Price: $3.97

Catrice | HD Liquid Coverage Foundation - Best innovative foundation
  • Features a unique dropper applicator for clean & easy application
  • Covers imperfections and mattifies the skin creating a smooth and even complexion for up to 24 hours
  • Price: $8.18

Hourglass Immaculate Liquid Powder Foundation
  • Phytostem Edelweiss provides antioxidants, smooths the look of skin, nourishes the complexion, and protects from free radicals
  • Advanced cashmere kaolinite clay works continuously throughout the day to control oil, while drawing out impurities to keep skin clear
  • Price: $74

L.A. Girl Pro Coverage Liquid Foundation - Best Light Foundation
  • Lightweight, luminous, paraben-free formula
  • Medium to full coverage
  • Price: $13.99

Smashbox Studio Skin Waterproof Foundation
  • Sweat-resistant and waterproof
  • Absorbs oil and shine
  • Price: $38

Silk Crème Oil Free Photo Edition Foundation
  • High pigment formula blends seamlessly
  • Creates a comfortable and flawless cover that lasts up to 12 hours
  • Price: $60

E.L.F., Flawless Finish Foundation
  • Blends Naturally
  • Oil-free formula
  • Price: $6

It Cosmetics Bye Bye Foundation Full Coverage Moisturizer - Best in Hydration
  • Full coverage moisturizer with SPF 50+
  • Ideal for tan skin tone
  • Price: $26

COVERGIRL Advanced Radiance Age Defying Foundation Makeup
  • Long wearing and comfortable
  • Foundation can even skin tone and cover redness
  • Price: $8.94

Herbivore Lapis Blue Tansy Face Oil - For Oily & Acne-Prone Skin
  • Quick-absorbing oil
  • Made with 100 percent natural and pure plant oils
  • Price: $72

COVERGIRL Full Spectrum Matte Ambition
  • Natural matte foundation finish
  • Transfer resistant and provides all day comfort with oil absorbing powders
  • Price: $5.99

Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Full Coverage Foundation
  • Mineral pigments to soothe and soften skin
  • Ideal for oily, dry, combination, and normal skin type
  • Price: $51

Light Illusion Liquid Foundation
  • Lightweight
  • Good Pigmentation
  • Price: $13.99

Reviews of Best Cruelty-Free Foundation Today

1. Milani Conceal + Perfect 2-in-1 Foundation + Concealer – Best overall Cruelty free foundation

This is our top pick product. It features a cruelty-free liquid composition offering full-face coverage and is very convenient and cost-effective.

It is the kind of foundation that will work best for combination and oily skin types.

What Are Buyers Saying?

“I love this stuff! It has good coverage, a very gentle, dewy finish, and it doesn’t exacerbate acne. I’ll buy more!”

Why Buyers Love It

Customers are highly pleased with how well it covers the face and being cost-effective. They also love how it leaves the skin naturally flawless and smooth.

Price: $12.45

Buy on Amazon

2.Wet n wild Photo Focus Foundation, Nude Ivory – Best Market Value

If you’re mainly looking for a lightweight foundation, then this is the one. It offers full coverage and is photo-friendly. The product gives you the natural-looking with a matte finish.

What Are Buyers Saying?

This foundation is so good and so affordable that I had to buy two more. Unlike the others, it does not contain oxides and is very light.

Why Buyers Love It

The foundation looks perfect in both videos and pictures since it features a light-adjusting complex, which does away with the white cast appearance in photos.

Price: $3.97

Buy on Amazon

3. Catrice HD Liquid Coverage Foundation – Best innovative foundation

The ingredients used in this foundation gives your skin a natural finish. It constitutes a vegan formula, which makes it a long-wear foundation that lasts up to 24 hours. It is also ultra-light and gives you comfort all day.

What Are Buyers Saying?

“Get yours today! I highly recommend this foundation. Considering that it comes with 26 shades, it gives me the exact finish I’ve been longing for.”

Why Buyers Love It

The ingredients used are improved to give you a natural finish, even-toned, radiant, and spot-free looking skin.

Price: $8.18

Buy on Amazon

4. Hourglass Immaculate® Liquid Powder Foundation Mattifying Oil-Free – Best innovative foundation

This is an excellent foundation featuring cashmere kaolinite clay, which works all day long. It keeps your skin clear by eliminating impurities. It smoothes your look as it nourishes your complexion, protecting you from radicals.

What Are Buyers Saying?

This is the first high-end foundation I have invested in so far. Its coverage is velvety and wonderfully soft. It would do well for everyone with an oily face.

Why Buyers Love It

Buyers love the product since it comes in handy for those in need of a matte finish with little to endless touch-ups. The ingredients used help to reduce breakouts and acne scars.

Price: $74

Buy on Sephora

5. L.A. Girl Pro Coverage Liquid Foundation – Best Light Foundation

This foundation features a luminous, lightweight, and paraben-free formula. It supports both medium to full coverage with a single layer. The foundation does well in photos and videos since it offers outstanding illumination that is not greasy.

What Are Buyers Saying?

The coverage of the white foundation came out so good. I’m ordering this in my regular color. Highly recommend!

Why Buyers Love It

The foundation offers both medium and full coverage. It is also comfortable to stay with all day long.

Price: $13.99

Buy on Amazon

6. Smashbox Studio Skin 24 Hour Full Coverage Waterproof Foundation

This foundation is sweat-resistant and waterproof. What is more, it absorbs oil and shines accordingly. It is also known to provide a blurring effect to the user. The foundation is free of SLS, SLES sulfates and constitutes less than 1% of synthetic fragrances.

What Are Buyers Saying?

This is the best foundation ever! It is a fantastic product that you only need a dab to spread all over your face. It offers full coverage, and what a matte finish! I love it!

Why Buyers Love It

The foundation is waterproof, has no cakey look, sweat-resistant, and does not cause any breakouts.

Price: $38

Buy on Sephora

7. Silk Crème Oil Free Photo Edition Foundation

This foundation mainly provides you with a flawless and comfortable cover that lasts at most 12 hours. It is made of a high pigment formula that blends seamlessly. It serves both people with an oily and combination skin type.

What Are Buyers Saying?

I honestly express how satisfied I’m with this foundation. It comes in handy, very light, and keeps me comfortable all day long. It’s a worthy investment.

Why Buyers Love It

It is an all-rounded foundation that blends seamlessly, therefore hiding any visible acne scars on your face. It also has a matte finish.

Price: $60

Buy on Sephora

8. e.l.f. Flawless Finish Foundation

Some of the foundation ingredients include tea tree and salicylic acid. They mainly help to prevent and treat breakouts, a perfect choice for skin prone to acne. It is both a semi-matte finish and a medium coverage foundation.

What Are Buyers Saying?

I’ve tried plenty, Benefit and I.T. Cosmetics foundation, and this Elf foundation is right on par with all of them. It is lightweight and doesn’t leave my face oily.

Why Buyers Love It

Buyers love it for its natural and smooth finish. More so, its oil-free formula does restore uneven skin tone.

Price: $6

Buy on Amazon

9. It Cosmetics Bye Bye Foundation Full Coverage Moisturizer – Best in Hydration

This is a full coverage moisturizer with SPF 50+ and is an ideal foundation for tan skin tone. It is designed to help improve and cover your looks, including pores, breakouts, dark spots, lines, wrinkles, and redness.

What Are Buyers Saying?

“I love this product! I am a repeat customer and love the coverage and quality of this foundation. Thank you!!”

Why Buyers Love It

Buyers love the fact that it is useful for all skin types. The seven primary fermented ingredients boost skin absorption and skincare routine efficacy.

Price: $26

Buy on Amazon

10. COVERGIRL Advanced Radiance Age-Defying Foundation Makeup

This foundation gives you a youthful appearance whereby it hides any imperfection or wrinkles in your face. It comes in different shades to provide a radiant finish to all skin types.

What Are Buyers Saying?

“This foundation is unbelievably great! I’m a cosmetologist, and I’m really in love with its results. I would add it to my everyday routine.”

Why Buyers Love It

Buyers find it very comforting and lightweight. It covers the redness and provides you with a blank canvas for bronzer, highlighter, contour, and blush.

Price: $8.94

Buy on Amazon

11. Herbivore Lapis Blue Tansy Face Oil – For Oily & Acne-Prone Skin

This foundation is made with 100% natural and pure plant oils. It is a skin-clearing oil that mainly eradicates congested pores and softens and smoothes your face to give a glowing finish. It hydrates the skin without clogging your skin pores.

What Are Buyers Saying?

I’m not typically one to leave reviews, but this face oil deserves all the praise! It has a good smell, and so far, it has helped me clear my adult acne.

Why Buyers Love It

Buyers love it due to the systematic oil concentration, effective moisturizers, and the ability to last for long. It hydrates the skin giving it a shimmering glow.

Price: $72

Buy on Sephora

12. COVERGIRL Full Spectrum Matte Ambition

This is a natural matte foundation finish. It constitutes oil-absorbing powders that are transfer-resistant, hence providing all-day comfort. Some of the benefits you get from this foundation include a matte finish, all-day comfort, and consistent oil-absorbing.

What Are Buyers Saying?

Incredible! I couldn’t recommend any other foundation better than this. I have been using it for days now, and I love the results already.

Why Buyers Love It

Buyers love this product due to its transfer-resistant resistance and the ability to provide you with all-day comfort.

Price: $5.99

Buy on Amazon

13. Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Full Coverage Foundation

This foundation is a non-caking and comfortable formula. It is oil-free and mainly for a vegan with a coverage of up to 12 hours. The Amazonian clay, the primary ingredient, and vitamins act as an antioxidant and a soothing emollient.

What Are Buyers Saying?

This is the best foundation I’ve used. I have hormonal acne and had to stop using a CC cream because the serum was inflaming my chin acne. This is a GREAT alternative.

Why Buyers Love It

Due to its soft texture and great coverage, everyone finds this foundation a superb choice. If used with a full brush, it gives you sheer excellent coverage.

Price: $51

Buy on Sephora

14. Light Illusion Liquid Foundation

This is a breakthrough foundation that is lightweight and blended with breathable formula. It mainly provides you with both medium and full coverage, which leaves your skin perfect and smooth.

What Are Buyers Saying?

This is the best foundation I’ve ever used. I’ve tried a pretty expensive foundation because I always thought you get what you pay for. Wow, this is an exception, so perfect for me.

Why Buyers Love It

Buyers love the perfecting veil of its coverage and the ability to give the skin a unique natural complexion.

Price: $13.99

Buy on Ultra

Best Cruelty-Free foundation Buying Guide

Since there are varieties of these products in the market, you might find it overwhelming to choose the best product for yourself.

You can, however, do this if you have the right knowledge on what to look for. Here are but a few.

Consider your skin type

This is very important. It would be best if you went for that foundation that matches your skin type. If you have oily skin, choose which adapts to it and keeps you cool all day.

Ingredients

Check on the ingredients used just before you purchase your cruelty-free foundation. This is to help you identify anything that you may be allergic to.

Or rather, if you’ve been using a particular foundation, check to see if they have added any ingredients.

Coverage

Are you looking for medium coverage or full coverage? If you’re looking for a better-airbrushed look, go for medium range and complete coverage if you purposely want to cover everything.

Formula

Don’t just be pleased with whatever is written in the bottle; instead, check the formula that goes hand in hand with your skin. Suppose your skin is dry choose that foundation that easily sticks.

FAQs

How do we know cruelty-free foundations are safe without animal testing?

There are better ways of testing ingredients, an example, in vitro testing, which is more effective than animal testing.

How do I identify which foundation is best for me?

If you haven’t tried any foundation yet, you might consider your skin tone, ingredients, and the formula used.

What is the difference between vegan and cruelty-free?

Vegan means the foundation includes no animal ingredients while cruelty-free is that which does not test on animals.

Do I need to moisturize my face before applying a vegan foundation?

Most of this cruelty-free would need you to moisturize your face before applying. However, this will also depend on your skin type.

Summary

It is imperative to invest in a fair and trusted cruelty-free, vegan foundation. There may be various brands out in the market, but the cruelty-free/vegan foundations mentioned above are some of the best you’re likely to find out there, all of which use vegan formulas.