Cruelty-Free Drugstore Brands (Updated for 2019!)
Looking for cruelty-free drugstore brands? This guide has you covered! Many Logical Harmony readers ask for help finding good drugstore products from cruelty-free brands. Many people believe that it’s hard to find cruelty-free drugstore brands, or difficult to find cruelty-free and vegan options at the drugstore. Thankfully, there are now more cruelty-free drugstore brands than ever before!
This guide includes brands that offer cruelty-free brands that can easily be found at drugstores or large chain stores such as Target, Ulta, CVS, Walgreens, Superdrug, Priceline Pharmacy, and more! It’s exciting to see these stores catching on to the fact that people want to purchase cruelty-free drugstore brands and to see them start to carry more and more cruelty-free options.
This is the most recent update of a post I originally published on January 10, 2013.
Shopping online? Sign up for Ebates and get cash back on your cruelty-free purchases from Ulta, Target, and other stores. You can use the Ebates website or the browser extension to get cash back while shopping for cruelty-free makeup at Ulta and more.
Cruelty-Free Drugstore Brands:
The following brands are all cruelty-free and have vegan options. This means that there is no animal testing anywhere in their supply chain, during production, or on the finished products.
Some of the brands on this list are owned by a parent company who tests on animals. This is noted next to the brand names. Brands that are 100% vegan are listed in bold with “100% vegan!” next to the brand name.
- Acure Organics
- Alba Botanica
- Amope
- Andalou Naturals
- Ardell
- Aubrey Organics
- Aunt Fannie’s
- Aura Cacia
- Avalon Organics
- B. Cosmetics – 100% vegan!
- Badger (W.S. Badger)
- Bare Republic (find a list of Bare Republic vegan options here)
- Barry M
- Bliss
- Body Shop, The
- Bonne Belle
- Burt’s Bees – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- Cake Beauty – 100% vegan!
- Certain Dri – 100% vegan! It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- cocokind
- ColourPop
- Conair
- COVERGIRL – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- Crazy Rumors – 100% vegan!
- Crystal Body Deodorant – 100% vegan!
- DefineMe Fragrance – 100% vegan!
- Delectable – 100% vegan!
- Derma E – 100% vegan!
- DermOrganic
- Desert Essence
- DeVita
- Dickinson Brands
- Dr. Bronner’s
- DUO
- ELF Cosmetics – 100% vegan!
- Eco-Dent
- EcoTools – 100% vegan!
- Emani – 100% vegan!
- EO Products/Everyone
- Every Man Jack
- Eylure
- Flower Beauty
- Gabriel Cosmetics
- Garnier – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- Giovanni
- GOSH Cosmetics
- Hand in Hand Soap – 100% vegan!
- Hempz
- Herban Cowboy
- Heritage Store
- Hugo Naturals – 100% vegan!
- Hurraw! – 100% vegan!
- J.R. Watkins
- Jane Carter Solution – 100% vegan!
- Jason Naturals
- Jordana
- Kiss My Face
- Light Mountain Natural
- Lunette
- Michael Todd
- Milani (list of Milani vegan products)
- Mineral Fusion
- Mrs. Meyers Clean Day – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- NatraCare – 100% vegan!
- Nature’s Gate – 100% vegan!
- Nourish Organic
- Now Products (Now Foods)
- NYX (find a list of NYX vegan products here) – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- ORLY
- Out of Africa
- Pacifica – 100% vegan!
- Parissa
- Paul Mitchell
- Personna
- Petal Fresh
- Piggy Paint
- Piggy Polish
- Pixi Beauty (find a list of Pixi Beauty vegan options here)
- Preserve – 100% vegan!
- Profusion Cosmetics
- Pureology – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- Real Techniques
- Reviva Labs
- Rosebud Perfume Co.
- S.W. Basics
- Seventh Generation – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- ShiKai
- Sonia Kashuk
- Swisspers
- Tom’s of Maine – It should be noted that they are cruelty-free, but their parent company is not.
- Ulta Collection
- Vapour Organic Beauty
- Yes to
- Zoella Beauty
- ZuZu Luxe
When it comes to drugstore brands, please keep in mind that their ingredients tend to change more often than higher-end lines. Please be sure to always check the ingredients list before you buy a product. Even if it’s one you have been buying for a long time.
Even though you may skip over many of the mainstream drugstore brands, there’s no reason to feel like you are missing out on anything. L’Oreal, Revlon, Maybelline, Almay, and Rimmel all test on animals as do a lot of other drugstore brands. However, with more and more brands stepping up to offer quality items and a larger range of items, my guess is that you won’t miss these brands at all!
What are your favorite cruelty-free drugstore brands? Which drugstore beauty products do you love?
Editor’s Note: By using the affiliate links contained in this post you are helping to support Logical Harmony as we may receive a commission on purchases made (with no added cost to you). This helps keep Logical Harmony running, and we appreciate your support.
When did Revlon start animal testing? It was my understanding that they were one of the first ones to stop years and years ago, along with Mary Kay. This is a huge bummer, I love their ColorStay foundation. Can you show me some evidence that they test?
Hi Pisa,
Revlon has been testing on animals “as required by law” for several years now. Mary Kay also tests on animals. In regards to evidence, if you email the brand or ask their customer service team they will tell you that they do not test on animals unless required by law.
These companies (and a couple others who I forget now) were the first to stop testing on animals…right up until they had an opportunity to sell cosmetics in China, a huge market they didn’t want to miss and one that still requires animal testing on cosmetics. So they test on animals for any product going to China.
However, out of all of the companies that had completely stopped animals testing until the market in China opened up, Mary Kay is the only one providing money and information to one of China’s leading universities so that they can learn how to test cosmetics without using animals, and hopefully change their rules.
Sonia Kashuk(Target), and Hard Candy(walmart) too right? Oh and Nuance (Salma Hayek’s sold at CVS)
Hi Heidi!
I have read on other lists that those brands are cruelty free, however none of them have replied to my inquires. I only promote brands that I am positive are 100% cruelty free and have vegan options. Since I cannot be sure of this with these brands, that is why they are not included.
Is NYX cruelty-free? I love their stuff! I always use Physician’s Formula bronzers.
Yes – http://logicalharmony.net/nyx-cosmetics-is-still-cruelty-free/
I believe Prestige cosmetics are cruelty-free as well. They have some great new eyeshadows and liners!
Hi Rachel!
Unfortunately, I’ve been unable to get a response from Prestige about their cruelty free stance.
Thank you for making this list!
Thanks for the helpful post! Its fun to get cheap stuff from Walgreens and know which displays I can pick from. Many indie brands are not literally AT drugstores but many of their prices are just as low if not lower, and the quality is amazing! (I’m talking to you Fyrinnae, Darling Girl, Silk Naturals and…?)
i love ELF brushes and makeup removing wipes.
There are many more brands like NYX, Sleek and MUA (those two are UK brands but still..), L.A.Colors, L.A.Girl and Essence (we got that in Europe, not sure about USA). Too bad there’s not many vegan options, except homemade stuff from Etsy or local people who that that for a living or an active hobby..
I just wanted to update you – I received an unclear answer about their cruelty free status and was also told that no items are considered vegan. Because of this, I will not be adding Essence to my list. Only brands that are cruelty free and have vegan options (or are 100% vegan) will be added.
almay? I trough they didn’t I use they deo , for this reason and also cause it is the only one that goes with my sensitive arm pits
I like the cruelty brands you mentioned. But Wet and Wild is not really available on the island just 2 supermarket and one drugstore sell it amd not the whole collection
only the outdated ones, forget the special collections and the mega last
I like the idea of the mega last but they just don’t sell them here.
physician is not available at all on the island, I got one bronzer on a give away and I glad I got it I like it very much.
Milani : I just use the eyeliner it is pretty good don’t know about the rest of stuff
la colors and la girl are also cruelty free right?
Unfortunately, Almay does test on animals. Their parent company, Revlon, also tests on animals.
I have reached out to LA Colors and LA Girl several times and never received a response, so I am unsure about their cruelty free status.
I feel sorry for you in America as it’s the opposite way around in the UK – drugstores have a range of cruelty-free make-up brands but it’s the high end companies you have to watch (essentially we have Illamasque and then the rest are the big international chains that sell in China). Hair care is drugstore tends to test and high end doesn’t.
High end doesn’t test on animals? I hate the whole situation, M not in america or Europa so we don’t have much choice it is pretty frustrating want to make 100% transition cruelty free + vegan on products but it is really hard