Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez debuted in 2020, amidst the chaos of the pandemic, acting as a bright spot for beauty lovers in an otherwise dark time. While many celebrities had come out with their own beauty brands at that point, Selena’s immediately stood out with its vanity-worthy packaging, expansive color ranges, and formulas designed to accentuate (rather than camouflage) the wearer’s natural beauty.
The brand first launched with 14 product categories across color cosmetics, equating to roughly 150 products, given the vast color ranges of each of the SKUs. Since its launch, Rare Beauty has grown its portfolio even further, now selling a variety of face, cheek, eye, brow, and lip products, still prioritizing formulas that accentuate natural beauty.
According to Cynthia Di Meo, the Global Makeup Stylist at Rare Beauty, Selena places such a heavy emphasis on her products and formulas due to her personal experience with beauty, as well as the beauty industry and society at large that she grew up with. “Selena grew up in a makeup chair and she saw society’s impossible beauty standards first-hand, which negatively affected her mental health,” she tells PEOPLE. “She has spoken about how she felt a lot of pressure at a young age to look a certain way which led her to create a brand that changes the conversation around beauty and perfection, and instead celebrates individuality and uniqueness.”
With this in mind, where many brands offer full coverage, ultra-matte finishes, you’ll notice that Rare Beauty opts for medium coverage and natural finishes; and where other brands might launch eye makeup and lipstick in shocking shades, Rare Beauty sticks to the basics with more neutral color offerings that are just as capable of creating stunning makeup looks.
“We’re not here to compete, but rather be included in the discussion,”Di Meo tells us. “Rare Beauty believes in makeup made to feel good in without hiding what makes you unique. This idea is central to the brand because Selena believes that makeup is something to be enjoyed, not something you need.”
Suffice to say, Rare Beauty is empowering — but not just from an aesthetic stance. The brand also supports mental health initiatives. “One percent of all Rare Beauty sales are donated to the Rare Impact Fund to support access to mental health services and resources for young people,” Di Meo shares.
It’s because of this and the overall brand ethos that Rare Beauty is so popular among young shoppers. “Our community is made up of Millennials and Gen-Z who have grown up with Selena,” Di Meo tells us. “Research has shown that these consumers are looking to brands whose values align with their own and with mental-health at our core, Rare Beauty has deeply resonated with this audience.”
Read on for our favorite Rare Beauty products (that this writer has personally tried and stands behind!).
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Sephora
This liquid blush is an absolute dream — just ask the 929,000 Sephora shoppers that have given it their heart-shaped seal of approval. The highly-pigmented (though, buildable) formula blends in smoothly and seamlessly to deliver a gorgeous flush of color. It comes in a glass bottle with a wand applicator that has a medium-sized sponge at the tip (larger than a lip gloss sponge but not huge). My favorite way to apply it is to dot the product along my cheeks and up to my temples — three dots typically suffice — with an extra dot on the bridge of my nose. It blends in just as seamlessly with a Beautyblender as it does your fingers, so it’s one makeup product that anybody can easily apply and enjoy.
Price at time of publish: $20
Formula: Liquid | Shades: 11 | Size: 0.25 oz.
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Rare Beauty
First things first: This concealer is sold in an astounding 48 shades ranging from light to deep. If you’re worried that such a large offering will make it overwhelming to choose a shade, know that Selena thought ahead and actually has a quick Shade Finder quiz to make the process as simple as possible — even online. Shades aside, this concealer is buildable, though, and since it’s ultra-hydrating, it won’t cake up or settle into fine lines if more than one layer is applied.
As far as the application goes, you can dot it anywhere you’d like a little extra coverage. For me, I love the way it blends beneath my eyes, on my forehead, and down the bridge of my nose. In addition to brightening my skin, the formula also works to calm redness (should that be what you’re looking to cover, too) thanks to its gentle, nourishing formula infused with lotus, gardenia, and white water lily.
(Psst: If you’re looking for all-over coverage, the Rare Beauty Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation ($29), which is also a popular fave, is sold in the same 48 shades so that you can find your exact match for flawless coverage.)
Price at time of publish: $19
Formula: Liquid | Shades: 48 | Size: 0.25 oz.
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Rare Beauty
This creamy, weightless lip cream glides on so smoothly that you won’t even feel that it’s there. Thanks to its thin applicator, the lipstick is easy to apply with precision, so you don’t have to worry about smudged or bleeding edges. Best of all, unlike most matte lipsticks, this formula never feels dry or looks flakey, which is why hundreds of shoppers have awarded it 5-star reviews. It’s sold in a dozen colors, including pinks, reds, and nudes. And, FWIW: The Ascend shade is the ultimate Barbiecore pink.
Price at time of publish: $20
Formula: Cream | Shades: 12 | Size: 0.13 oz.
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Rare Beauty
Rare Beauty is renowned for its simple-yet-chic packaging that’s nothing short of photo-worthy — and the With Gratitude Dewy Lip Balm lives up to that reputation. But this cute lip balm tube goes beyond aesthetics alone. It’s designed to lock in place so that it won’t come undone while tossing around inside your bag or wherever you store it. In order to open it, you press the bottom in, which prompts the lip balm to unlock so that you can use it. Smart design aside, the balm is sold in eight creamy colors infused with deeply-hydrating shea butter. The result is a dewy kiss of color that’s comfortable as can be. And since it’s on the sheerer side, you don’t have to meticulously apply it in the mirror.
Price at time of publish: $16
Formula: Cream | Shades: 8 | Size: 0.12 oz.
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Sephora
This tinted moisturizer is buildable and offers light to medium coverage, something that more than 121,000 Sephora shoppers can get behind. It’s so dewy and lightweight that it leaves skin looking even, fresh, and radiant without feeling the slightest bit cakey. As the brand says, it’s “no-makeup makeup in a bottle” — and with a skincare benefit, given it’s infused with SPF 20 protection.
While it applies beautifully on its own (both with brushes and sponges, as well as fingers), it looks especially great applied overtop the Rare Beauty Always an Optimist Illuminating Primer ($26), as it gives it something to grip to while smoothing out the appearance of pores and pumping up the radiance factor. Additionally, if you have a shiny T-zone or simply like to set your makeup, this tinted moisturizer looks lovely underneath the Rare Beauty Always an Optimist Soft Radiance Setting Powder ($22), which is sold in five shades and features a convenient, mess-free lid.
Price at time of publish: $29
Formula: Liquid | Shades: 24 | Size: 1 oz.
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Sephora
Hoping to look like a glazed donut? The Rare Beauty Positive Light liquid Luminizer, which is adored by more than 324,000 Sephora shoppers, will help you do just that. The liquid highlighter (sold in eight colors, including both cool and warm undertones) is ultra-smooth, which allows it to blend seamlessly into skin for a non-cakey application that glows to the high heavens.
Just remember: A little goes a long way with this highly-pigmented highlighter, which comes with a medium-sized doe-foot applicator. I find that two dots is plenty to achieve a natural-looking glow. That said, it’s a buildable formula, so apply as much as you’d like to accomplish your desired look.
Price at time of publish: $22
Formula: Liquid | Shades: 8 | Size: 0.5 oz.
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Sephora
Powder and liquid bronzers and contours can sometimes be difficult to apply, since it’s so easy to get product outside of the desired application zone. With the Rare Beauty Warm Wishes Effortless Bronzer Stick, though, that’s not a problem. The cream stick makes adding shadows and warmth to your face as simple as tracing lines in the appropriate places. Once on the skin, it can be blended in with fingers, brushes, or sponges for a natural-looking contour. No wonder over 210,000 Sephora shoppers swear by these sticks.
Price at time of publish: $23
Formula: Cream | Shades: 5 | Size: 0.25 oz.
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Rare Beauty
The Rare Beauty Kind Words Matte Lipstick is one of the brand’s newer releases and it’s already earned ample accolades (over 100,000 at Sephora alone!) for its creamy, hydrating feel — which is so rare (sorry, I had to) for matte lippies these days. The lipstick, like the lip Balm, has the same click-to-lock packaging, so you never have to worry about it coming undone in your bag.
It’s also worth mentioning that there are coordinating lip liners — the Rare Beauty Kind Words Matte Lip Liner ($15) — which can be bought separately to perfect the edges of your pout.
Price at time of publish: $20
Formula: Cream | Shades: 10 | Size: 0.12 oz.
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Sephora
Wish you could recreate Selena’s stunning signature cat eye? With the Rare Beauty Perfect Strokes Matte Liquid Liner, you can. While it looks like it has a sponge tip, it’s actually designed with up to 800 bristles for an ultra-sharp point that disperses the long-lasting, waterproof liquid liner with care.
Price at time of publish: $19
Formula: Liquid | Shades: 1 | Size: 0.03 oz.
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Sephora
Since Rare Beauty debuted with color complexion products, it’s no surprise that not one, but two blushes are among the brand’s top-selling products. The Rare Beauty Stay Vulnerable Melting Blush is a cream compact blush that can be applied with brushes, sponges, or fingers. Personally, I love the way it melts into skin when applied with the latter. A swipe from my cheeks up to my temples and a dash on my nose makes for the most natural-looking blush application. It melts so fully into skin that it really does make skin look kissed by the sun — not layered in makeup.
Price at time of publish: $21
Formula: Cream | Shades: 5 | Size: 0.17 oz.
Take Our Word For It
Rebecca Norris has worked in beauty and wellness journalism for over eight years. For this story, she spoke with Cynthia Di Meo, the Global Makeup Stylist at Rare Beauty, about the past, present, and future of Rare Beauty. Additionally, she scoured shopper reviews and tested products for herself to determine the best Rare Beauty products.
