Katie Thomas
There are times in life when you need your lips to pack a proper punch—with the colour and the staying power. In such instances, even the best liquid lipstick or best glossy lipsticks just won't cut it. What you need is a product that provides long-lasting colour that won't budge no matter what you throw at it—drinking, eating, even kissing. What you need is one of the best lip stains the beauty industry has to offer.
As someone with very pale lips, I refuse to leave the house without some sort of colour on them. But even with a liner, lipstick, and gloss combo on, I'm often back to my ashy (and slightly sickly) natural shade by lunchtime. Thankfully, lip stains have come on a long way in the last couple of years, and I have discovered several lightweight yet pigmented products that keep a wash of colour on my lips all day long.
A lip stain looks and acts very much like your favourite lipstick, you just don't have to top it up as often. In a way it's a pretty handy money-saver, and it means you don't have to cart your various satin lipsticks and best lip liners around in your handbag for regular re-applications. These are my tried and tested favourite lip staining products that can last through pretty much anything, and most of them deliver on hydration too.
1. Wonderskin Lip Stain
If our Wonderskin Lip Stain review hans't convinced you that this is a must-have product, allow me to do the honours. It has gone viral on TikTok and amassed tens of thousands of rave reviews, and I can report that it really does live up to the hype. It acts like a mask, so you apply the product to your lips, wait up to 45 seconds, and then wipe it off. What you're left with is the same colour payoff you would get from a lipstick, and it clings all day long.
What I love about this product is that you can layer your other lip products on top of it without interfering with the colour—I like to wear a glossy lipstick or lip oil over the top for some extra shine. The only problem I have noticed is that it sometimes feels slightly uncomfortable on my very dry lips as it dries down, and rubbing the product off can irritate them slightly. But this is no dealbreaker, as I just apply one of my best lip balms over the top and all is well. It's also great if you only like to wear lip balm during the day but still want an opaque colour—apply Wonderskin in the morning and top up with your balm all day for hydration.
2. Fenty Beauty Poutsicle Hydrating Lip Stain
If you like the sound of the Wonderskin stain but want something more hydrating that doesn't need to be wiped off, you'll love Poutsicle. It's a liquid product with a glossy finish, formulated with Squalene to lock in moisture. Similar to Wonderskin, you can apply it like a mask and wipe off if you want a more subtle colour, or you can leave it on for the shiny finish—I think both look equally as gorgeous.
There isn't a huge shade range on offer, but the pinky berry hues are pretty universal and can be made more neutral with lighter application. You also get the look of a lipstick and lip gloss in one with this product, and again I have found that it stains the lips all day. The glossy finish does slightly wear off after eating and drinking, so you can reapply if you want that to last, but the wash of colour can survive a full day in the office.
3. Benefit Bene Tint Rose Tinted Lip & Cheek Stain
Benetint is a classic beauty product that most of us have probably tried at least once in our lifetime, but I have recently rediscovered its impressive staining powers and there's no going back. This is my top recommendation if you want a natural finish lip stain that dries down quickly and can be layered with other lip products. It's also ideal for travelling with as it can be used as a cheek stain for a healthy rosy flush. I love how easy this tint is to blot on my lips for a natural flush, but it also stays put without budging or smudging. It instantly adds life to my lips and takes a mere second to sweep on, so it's low maintenance and reliable.
4. E.l.f Glossy Lip Stain
By far one of the most affordable lip stains on the market, e.l.f's Glossy Lip Stain is seriously underrated. Similar to the Fenty Beauty stain, it has a gloss-to-stain finish that provides a juicy sheen on the lips and leaves behind a wash of colour that lasts. It straddles the line between lip oil and lipstick, so if you often layer the two, this is the only lip product you'll need. I love how comfortable it is on the lips, as well as how gracefully and gradually it fades after a long day. I've noticed that the glossy finish does disappear after eating and drinking, but the colour sticks around, which is what I'm looking for.
5. Milk Makeup Cooling Water Jelly Tint
You probably know the Milk Jelly Tint as one of the best blushers on the market, but did you know it can be used on the lips too? Imagine using watercolour paint on your lips and you're pretty close to how this product looks and performs. It lives up to the water jelly name, gliding onto the cheeks and lips with minimal effort required. If you hate the feeling of heavy or matte lip products, you'll love this.
Although it has a slightly wet finish when first applied to the lips, it very quickly dries down into the most beautiful stain that sticks around all day. But be warned—it doesn't give you much time to play around before it sets, so you'll want to work quickly. My only issue with this product is that it does cling to the drier areas of my lips so the colour stays opaque there and fades gradually on the rest of my mouth. However, I don't think it's noticeable to anyone but me, so I can't take off any points for that.
6. Dior Addict Lip Glow
Now, I have to start by telling you that this is not a lip stain, however it doesn't perform dissimilarly to one. I have chronically dry lips so I'm always looking for lip balms that hydrate whilst adding that little something extra to my makeup look, and the new Dior Lip Glow has really pleasantly surprised me. It's a 48-hour hydrating balm that is colour activated by the pH in your lips, so it offers everything I need for day to day.
I have been wearing the shade Berry for the last couple of weeks and have found that the colour lasts beautifully on my lips, fading out to a your-lips-but-better shade that I'm always searching for after several hours. If the idea of a traditional lip stain intimidates you and you're after something more natural that still provides lasting colour, this is the lip product to go for.
7. 19/99 Water Colour Tint
The 19/99 brand as a whole deserves much more love in my humble opinion, but the Water Colour Tint is particularly worth shouting out. Functioning as a blush and a lip tint, it's another multi-tasker that delivers a hit of colour where you need it. I love the balmy, liquid water-based formula that is so comfortable to wear and easy to blend as well as build up when you want more colour.
On the lips, it leaves a wash of colour with a satin finish—it's basically a better lasting and more pigmented gloss. It has a more subtle staining finish than the Wonderskin or Poutsicle stains, so it's best for those who want a very natural finish that will perform better than a lip balm but not be as heavy duty as a mask.
