Highlighter adds a luminous glow to your skin and shapes it beautifully. And wouldn’t it be great to achieve radiant skin with natural plant-based ingredients?
We’ve made a list of the best vegan highlighters that you can order online.
You can find high-quality vegan highlighters in all shapes and forms be it a powder, liquid, cream, or any other kind you prefer.
What Makes A Highlighter Vegan?
A vegan highlighter is free from animal-derived ingredients. Vegan highlighters are also not tested on animals or contain any ingredients tested on animals.
The typical ingredients that make a highlighter non-vegan are:
» Squalene: a moisturizing agent from shark liver oil
» Lanoline: emollient from sheep’s sebaceous glands
» Carmine: red pigment derived from crushed insects
» Guanine: shine agent from the scales of fish
Instead of animal ingredients, vegan brands use plant-based colorings and natural plant oils. Vegan micro-pearls and natural minerals like mica crystals are used for adding shimmer.
Numerous makeup products are still tested on animals or contain weird animal-based components. To be sure, always look for the leaping bunny sticker or vegan society sign when shopping for cosmetics.
What To Look For In A Vegan Highlighter?
The best kind of vegan highlighters can make your skin glow from the inside out.
When possible, avoid harsh parabens and sulfates as well as synthetic fragrance. Instead, prefer vegan highlighters with vitamin-rich extracts to nourish your skin.
If you have dry skin, your vegan highlighter should also include some moisturizing ingredients like jojoba oil, avocado oil, or cocoa butter.
For acne-prone or sensitive skin, less is more. Make sure your vegan highlighter is non-comedogenic and free of rich oils and major allergens like gluten.
Best Vegan Highlighters 2021
Here are the best, most trustworthy vegan highlighters for every type of skin. Hopefully, you’ll find your future favorite vegan makeup highlighter from here.
Becca Ignite Liquified Light Highlighter
Becca’s vegan highlighter is the best. It includes multidimensional vegan micro-pearls to create a gorgeous pearlized glow and all-day radiance.
The highlighter is waterproof and infused with a refreshing scent of pineapple, coconut, and orange flowers. It’s like summer on your skin.
On top of a beautiful result, the vegan highlighter also nourishes and softens your skin with sunflower oil and vitamin E.
We love that this highlighter works for the face and the body. It is also dermatologist-tested, non-comedogenic, and safe for sensitive skin.
Becca is a cruelty-free company from Australia that specializes in complexion makeup. You can find many vegan-friendly products from their selection.
Cover FX Custom Enhancer Drops
Cover FX Custom Enhancer is the most versatile vegan highlighter. Use the drops alone or add them to your foundation or moisturizer for a beautiful glow.
These ultra-concentrated illuminating drops can be used as a buildable highlighter, bronzer, or all-over glow. They are available in seven universal shades.
We love that the vegan highlighter uses natural mica crystals. The clean product is free of sulfates, parabens, mineral oil, fragrance, gluten, and talc.
Based in the USA, Cover FX believes that people can have both – clean ingredients and high performance. The brand is vegan and cruelty-free.
Tarte Amazonian Clay Highlighter
Tarte’s vegan highlighter delivers a radiant glow in a lightweight powder form. It illuminates the high points of the face and works on all skin tones.
Powered by Amazon clay, this highlighter stays on all day, even for oily skin. It also includes mineral pigments to make your skin feel really soft.
Above all, we love how easy it is to use. Just dust the powder onto cheekbones, down the nose and cupid’s bow, and along the brow bone.
Tarte is one of the top cruelty-free makeup brands in the USA. Most of their products are vegan-friendly.
NYX Duo Chromatic Illuminating Powder
This silky vegan powder highlighter from NYX blends like a dream. It’s packed with light-catching pearls to deliver a radiant finish.
Duo Chromatic Illuminating Powder is available in frosty and glowing shades. The warm shades give a gentle blush effect which we love.
It is also simple to use. Just brush this shimmery powder on the highest points of your face. Enjoy the luminous result that looks great from every angle.
NYX is a Los Angeles company that believes that animals belong in our arms, not in a lab. NYX is certified cruelty-free and most of its products are suitable for vegans.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Iced Out
Anastasia Beverly Hills Iced Out Highlighter delivers a stunning wet-effect shine. It is reflective like a liquid highlighter but weightless like a powder.
The vegan highlighter offers a considerable buildable intensity and an icy strobing effect. This pressed powder is free of parabens.
The world-famous Anastasia Beverly Hills is always cruelty-free. But some of its products are not vegan yet. Luckily, this amazing highlighter is.
Lush Feeling Younger Highlighter
With LUSH vegan highlighter, a little goes a long way. Achieve a gorgeous, youthful glow with just one swoop. Their highlighting pigment reflects light brilliantly.
We love this vegan highlighter for its nourishing ingredients. It includes oatmeal, cocoa butter, and jojoba oils that have a calming and soothing effect.
The highlighter fits all skin types. And the shimmer is 100% plastic-free.
LUSH is a British cosmetic brand known worldwide for its natural handmade products. They’re cruelty-free and most of their products are vegan.
Jeffree Star Cosmetics Skin Frost
Skin Frost is a great long-wearing vegan highlighter. Use it on your body, face, and eyes, and enjoy an intense, high-pigment frosted glow.
The texture of this powder vegan highlighter is smooth and velvety. That allows you to easily adjust and build the intensity however you prefer.
We love that The Skin Forst line offers really special colors in addition to blue ones, such as green, blue, and deep pink.
Jeffree Star is an American cruelty-free brand. Some of their products contain animal ingredients but you can find many vegan-friendly options.
Best Vegan Highlighter Palette
Milani Stellar Lights Highlighter Palette
This beautiful vegan highlighter palette includes a complementary trio of buildable pressed powders. We love how seamlessly the shades blend leaving you with a luminous finish.
Best Vegan Highlighter Stick
Hourglass Vanish Flash Highlighting Stick
Hourglass has created an innovative vegan highlighter stick that adjusts to the body temperature. It blends effortlessly with hollow microspheres for a truly weightless feel.
Best Vegan Powder Highlighter
This vegan powder highlighter from Milk is infused with a cool micro-shimmer for the most radiant result. It also includes mango butter, peach nectar, and avocado oil for hydrating and nourishing benefits.
Best Vegan Liquid Highlighter
Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer
You’d love a dewy glow? Try this amazing vegan liquid highlighter from Rare Beauty. The luxurious formula features light-reflecting pearl particles with a floral blend of lotus, gardenia, and white waterlily.
The liquid highlighter collection has a variety of shades and colors. Even copper, which has slightly red undertones. Go for a natural or try an edgy look.
Best Vegan Cream Highlighter
For a vegan cream highlighter, we recommend the E.l.f. Jelly Highlighter. The multi-use highlighter can be worn alone, over makeup, or mixed into foundation. It goes on wet and creamy but delivers a radiant, long-wearing finish.
Best Organic Vegan Highlighter
Mom’s Secret Organic Multi Cream Stick
Mom’s Secret is a small natural cosmetic company founded in the USA. And they have made the perfect organic vegan highlighter. These creamy shimmer sticks use natural ingredients and are safe for sensitive skin.
Best High-End Vegan Highlighter
Ilia Liquid Light Serum Highlighter
If you are looking for a luxury vegan highlighter, try this one from Ilia. It gives your skin such a smooth, dewy glow thanks to a high-quality gel formula. This highlighter also protects you against free radicals and UV light.
Best Affordable Vegan Highlighter
Wet n Wild MegaGlo Loose Highlighting Powder
Wet n Wild MegaGlo is the best affordable vegan highlighter on the market. The bestselling highlighter achieves a luminous glow with micro-fine pearl pigments. The loose powder formula is super lightweight and blends well.
PS Not everything from the Wet N Wild MegaGlo range is vegan since some shades contain carmine. Luckily, the loose powder is 100% vegan.
Best Vegan Highlighter Brush
Sephora Collection Pro Highlight Brush
This vegan highlighter brush is superb. It has a small dome-shaped brush for precise application. Plus, it fits all face shapes. The highlighter just glides on effortlessly.
PRO Brush Collection has thirty brushes with high-quality hand-shaped vegan synthetic bristles. It’s one of the most preferred brush sets in the makeup community.
FAQ About Vegan Highlighters
Highlighters can be vegan but some are not. The typical ingredients that make a highlighter non-vegan are animal-derived squalene, carmine, and lanoline.
100% vegan highlighter brands include KVD Beauty, Cover FX, E.l.f, and Hourglass.
The most popular vegan highlighter is Becca Ignite Liquified Light Highlighter.
Shimmering vegan eyeshadows make a great highlighter replacement.
For a natural outcome, choose a highlighter that is two shades lighter than your skin color. For an edgy result, go for a highlighter with unique undertones such as yellow, red, blue, or purple.
Summary
We hope you found your match from our favorite vegan highlighters.
A good vegan highlighter both highlights your best features and your good heart. Thanks for caring about animals and the environment by choosing vegan makeup.
The variety of vegan highlighters is pretty impressive. From highlighting powders to creams and liquids, there is that perfect highlighter for everyone.
In the future, we’d love to see more vegan highlighter pens and pencils. Sadly, the KVD Beauty Metal Crush vegan click-pen highlighter was discontinued. Hope to see a new and improved one soon.
We’ll keep our eyes open for new vegan highlighters and vegan highlighter brands. If we find more great products, they will be added to this list.
See also: Vegan Makeup, Vegan Mascaras, Vegan Lipsticks, Vegan Foundations, Vegan Concealers, Vegan Makeup Brushes, Vegan Setting Sprays, Vegan Primers
