Need an easy-to-find, reliable eyeliner that won’t make you faint after seeing the price?
We’ve got you.
Practice drawing on your wing-tips in the mirror, because you won’t be without an eyeliner much longer – we’ll help you keep your eyes on point.
This list of best drugstore eyeliner brands ought to help you out.
How We Chose Our Ratings
We paid attention to price, eyeliner type (liquid, pencil, gel, retractable), quality, texture, ease of application, reliability, and longevity.
You’re on the hunt for a cheap and dependable eye-lining friend that does the job without too much hassle. You want it to last without smudging. You want it to be quick and easy to put on. You want it to look good.
We took all of these things into account.
Top 10 Best Drugstore Eyeliner Brands
We understand the desire to make your eyes pop without popping out at those dollar signs or at the frustrating inability to reliably find your chosen eyeliner. We hope these will help make your lives easier and your eyes bolder.
Comparison Table
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Nyx’s Epic Ink Liner is a liquid liner available in black and brown. It has a slender and supple brush tip ideal for nailing those super-sharp wings that will have you sauntering through your day with boundless confidence.
The application is fluid and smooth so you can control the thickness of your lines from thin and natural to bold and thick. It’s waterproof, intensely pigmented, and has a flattering lacquer-like finish.
Quick liquid eyeliner tip if you’re not an expert: put a few dots across your upper lash line and connect the dots to help refine the line of your wing.
Reviewers have said the Epic Ink Liner is comparable to Kat Von D’s Tattoo Liner, a favorite among dedicated cat-eye eyeliner queens everywhere that’s double the price ($20).
It’ll only cost you about $9 to use the Epic Ink Liner to unleash your inner Bond Girl.
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Revlon ColorStay’s Liquid Liner is an easy-to-apply, super pigmented, long-lasting eyeliner for classic cat-eyed Cleopatras.
The liner glides smoothly over your eye so you have the control to draw a slim or bold line depending on your mood. It comes in black brown or blackest black. The formula includes vitamin E and aloe, and it is ophthalmologist tested.
The best part? This liner will stay smudge-free and well-defined for up to 16 hours. Once you put it on, you won’t have to worry about it for the rest of your day. It’s waterproof and yet it still removes easily. It’ll cost you about $6 or $7.
If you feel like this eyeliner is almost what you need but not exactly the right fit, try Almay’s Liquid Eyeliner, it’s incredibly similar to the Revlon but might have something about its application or the physical wear of the product that you personally prefer for whatever reason.
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The Master Precise Skinny Gel Pencil is an eyeliner for the perfectionists out there. You can use the thin lines to give your eyes a subtle definition, or you can use them to fill in the spots along the lash line other pencils can’t reach for a more saturated and perfected finish on a bolder eye.
An automatic pencil with a 1.8 mm micro-tip, this gel eyeliner applies silky smooth so all your lines will be on point – and for only $7.99.
The pencil is available in defining black, refined charcoal, and sharp brown.
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For less experienced eyeliner users who want to try something other than a pencil we have Maybelline’s Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner.
Gel pot eyeliners might look a bit intimidating and take a little finesse to master, but gel is actually easier to control than liquid liners.
Gel eyeliners are thicker and don’t apply as smoothly or as quickly as liquid liners do. They instead allow you to take more control – with gel, you can easily fix your mistakes when you make them. You don’t need the precision or steady hands of a surgeon to apply eyeliner from a gel pot. You have more control over the thickness of your lines and the intensity of the liner color. You can choose different brushes for different outcomes.
This Maybelline Gel Eyeliner comes in four shades – blackest black, brown, charcoal, and eggplant. It’s waterproof, oil-free, smudge-free, and long-lasting for up to 24 hours. The eyeliner glides well and has a nice creamy consistency. It comes with a thin pointed brush for application.
The Lasting Drama Gel Eyeliner is also ophthalmologist, dermatologist, and allergy tested as suitable for people with sensitive skin or eyes in need of a gentle product. Expect to pay around $8 or $10.
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Another great beginner’s product, the Maybelline Curvitude Eyeliner in black has an angled tip for maximum maneuverability when applying your makeup in tight, refined lines.
The angled and ultra-fine tip follows the curves of your eye for maximum definition and a full-lashed look. The tip lets you get to the spaces most eyeliners can’t reach to fill out your lash line. You can adjust the tip to the left or right to find the best angle for you.
The Curvitude Eyeliner will cost you about $8.99.
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Burt’s Bees Nourishing Eyeliner Pencil is an ideal choice for people who have sensitive eyes.
Instead of undesirable substances like parabens, phthalates, SLS, petroleum, and synthetic fragrances, Burt’s Bees uses natural ingredients like jojoba, mango, and meadowfoam seed oils to keep your skin and eyes healthy while you wear your makeup. The pencil itself is made of responsibly-sourced cedar wood for environmental sustainability just as the natural products keep you safe while using them.
The eyeliner pencil is ophthalmologist tested to be suitable for contact lens wearers and folks with sensitive eyes. The product is fade-proof, smudge-proof, and it gives your eyes a healthy definition.
The pencil comes in three colors – soft black, midnight gray, and warm brown. You’ll pay $10 for this eyeliner.
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Deemed one of the best eyeliners for folks with hooded eyes, L’Oréal’s Never Fail Eyeliner is long-lasting, fade-proof, and creamy. For up to 16 hours, the rich and creamy product from this mechanical pencil eyeliner will grace your lash lines without flaking or fading.
The Never Fail Eyeliner is also quite versatile – it glides on easily and evenly so you have the control to create classic or bold lines. It has a built-in smudger for even more eye makeup possibilities. It’s also got a built-in sharpener for the pencil so you don’t have to worry about having a separate sharpener for this product.
It comes in black, black brown, brown, carbon black, navy, slate, and white for all your neutral-toned eyeliner needs. They’ll cost you $8.95 a stick.
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For a great creamy eyeliner that also boasts great longevity throughout the day, check out Rimmel’s ScandalEyes Waterproof Eyeliner.
It’s got a great amount of pigment that you can easily blend or smudge initially to give yourself those stylish eyes you fell in love with on Pinterest.
It’s waterproof, sweat-proof, smudge-proof, heat-proof, and humidity-proof. Rimmel’s ScandalEyes would be a great summer eyeliner to survive swimming in the sun or just sweating out in the heat. It’d probably be a good gym eyeliner as well, if you ever find yourself having to wear makeup to work out.
It comes in black, sparkling black, brown, nude, and deep blue. It’ll cost you around $4 or $5 depending on where you find it.
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L’Oréal’s Voluminous Smoldering Liner is ideal for dramatic eye looks that take advantage of its dark and intense kajal-inspired colors.
The eyeliner’s conal tip gives you an easy glide when applying it. The product smudges a bunch on purpose to easily transform your makeup into a smoky eye or rock-and-roll grunge-y style depending on the vibe you’re feeling on a particular day.
The liner is available in black and brown and will run you about $8.95. It’s a fantastic product for achieving specific smudgey styles – if you’re not a fan of making up your eyes that way, this isn’t the eyeliner for you.
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Nyx’s Vivid Brights Liner collection is for you if you love color and you’re not afraid to stand out.
This Nyx liner is highly pigmented. Some customers complain about the texture being flaky if you use too much or wear it for a while. The bottle doesn’t always match the actual color you’re getting, but the eyeliner’s true color doesn’t disappoint either.
For $7, you can get this eyeliner in vivid blossom (pastel lavender), delight (muted orange), envy (muted turquoise with green undertone), escape (pastel lime green), fire (light red), halo (pastel yellow), petal (pastel pink), sapphire (sapphire blue), or violet (deep purple).
Buyer’s Guide
When deciding on the eyeliner for you, consider the color you want as not every brand has the same color selection. Also pay attention to the type of eyeliner you prefer, liquid, pencil, gel, or retractable, and get that type.
Know how steady your hands are, so you can pick a more mistake-friendly eyeliner if you’re prone to sudden unexpected movements.
Check whether or not the liner is waterproof – this will matter to you when you find yourself crying, sweating, or unexpectedly pushed into a backyard swimming pool.
How does it hold up in different weather conditions? Is it constantly raining where you live? Will the heat and humidity of a Texas summer melt the eyeliner right off your face?
Will you need to be wearing this eyeliner for a long time? If so, you’ll want to make sure it holds up throughout the day – you don’t need a coworker informing you about your raccoon-eyes when you already feel tired enough.
What’s the style you’re looking to achieve with your eye makeup? Do you want a fierce cat eye? Wing tips so on point you’ll fly away? Do you want your eyes smoky and smudged, or with perfect and well-defined lines? Are you going bold or natural? Need a pop of color to match your fun-loving personality?
Alright, now it’s time for you to decide which product is the best drugstore eyeliner for your needs.
Happy hunting!
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Last update on 2023-12-04 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
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