Peyton McKenzie

Walking into a drugstore, you see shelves stacked with makeup from brightly toned blushes to glitter lip glosses. Now more than ever, customers have more options at an affordable price that are worth the money. 

When I first got into makeup in middle school, I thought I needed the same expensive makeup products that social media influencers or celebrities had. As I got older, I learned that I don’t need an Hourglass Cosmetics foundation or Natasha Denona eyeshadow palette to do makeup. As much as I do love occasionally splurging on a fancy foundation or bronzer, it’s not necessary to spend a lot of money to have makeup that looks great.

Inexpensive products with nearly identical quality to luxury items — commonly called dupes — are great choices for makeup lovers on a budget to join in on trends and recreate popular looks from social media. Dupes give makeup lovers the feel and look of a luxurious product without having to stress about the cost of it, especially because makeup expires fast. 

The brand e.l.f. has grown in popularity over the past few years for its dupes of higher-end brands. Over the past year, e.l.f. has skyrocketed 216% in the stock market, signaling the company’s rising popularity. 

TikToker Kelly Strack, who has 644.5k followers, has made several videos about e.l.f. and comparing expensive products to luxury dupes. She has overall positive reviews about the e.l.f. products and has concluded that the dupes are identical on the skin to the luxury versions. 

e.l.f. has consistently released new products within the past few years, which prevents customers from getting bored and forgetting about them. I’ve been using the brand for years and not had any issues, so I trust they will put out quality products.

Here’s some of my favorite e.l.f. dupes that will give you a luxury feel.

Liquid Blush

The $7 e.l.f. Camo Liquid Blush is a great dupe for the Rare Beauty liquid blushes, which are $23.

 I was just able to get my hands on it after going to several stores because it has been sold out everywhere. The product has blown up on TikTok, with 62.4 million views total under the hashtag #ElfCamoLiquidBlush. 

I have the shades Dusty Rose, Pink Promise and Comin’ In Hot Pink. Each shade is strikingly similar to its luxury counterpart, and there is an abundance of pigment and color options. Although nothing beats the original Rare Beauty formulas, I would much rather purchase the e.l.f. products to save money. 

Lip Oil

The e.l.f. Glow Reviver Lip Oil, which is $8, has recently been gaining traction on TikTok as well, racking up 275.8 million views under videos about it. Influencers claim it’s a dupe for the Dior Lip Oil, which is $40. I refuse to spend that much on lip oil, so I can’t confirm, but I have tried a lot of lip oils and this one is great. The shade Rose Envy is a lip product that I often reach for.

Halo Glow Wands 

e.l.f.’s Halo Glow Wands come in highlighter, blush and contour shades, which are each $9. These are also dupes for the Charlotte Tilbury wands, all of which are $49. I have the contour wand in the shade fair/light. I usually don’t like using liquid contours, but this one is really easy to blend and doesn’t look muddy or patchy. If you are a person that likes natural makeup, these products will work well for you. 

If you use any of the expensive makeup products, it’s worth trying the e.l.f. dupes. Although some people online complain about e.l.f. “stealing” brands’ product ideas, there’s always going to be a market for popular expensive products. 

Makeup companies also use similar concepts and ingredients all the time, e.l.f. is just more blatant about it. For now, I don’t think e.l.f. is going to stop creating dupes, and I think customers like me will continue buying them.