The Best Lip Masks of All Time Our Beauty Editor Can't Stop Using for a Hydrated Kissable Pout
They’re the perfect cheap beauty gift — I promise!
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Dry, flaky lips are inevitable during the harsh winter season — but lip masks are here to save the day. These incredibly hydrating balms are specifically made for the lips and are super helpful to apply before wearing lipliner and matte lipstick. Our top-rated lip mask picks make excellent last-minute beauty gifts for Valentine's Day, birthday presents, and self-care gifts just because you deserve to have soft, pillowy, flake-free lips all 2024.
But what should you consider before gifting lip masks? As Best Products' beauty editor and resident lip mask obsessive, I consulted one of my most trusted dermatologist sources about all things lip masks. She and I also shared our favorite lip masks. A bonus: They start at just $7, so you can gift some to your friends, family, and yourself without exceeding your budget.
Best Lip Masks
- Best Overall: Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask
- Best Budget: e.l.f. cosmetics Holy Hydration! Lip Mask
- Best of Celeb Beauty: JLO BEAUTY Beso Balm Lip Mask
- Best for Clinically-Proven Results: fresh Sugar Recovery Lip Mask Advanced Therapy
- Best Under $10: Milani Rose Butter Lip Mask
What to Consider
NYC-based dermatologist Dr. Hadley King, M.D., FAAD, likes lip masks because they typically have a higher occlusive content than lip balms. Occlusives are hydrating ingredients that form a protective barrier between the lips and elements that prevent moisture loss, similar to slugging for the lips.
Some lip masks, such as the Byroe Mojito Lip Mask, contain mild exfoliating ingredients to help smooth the lips, but there is also the potential for irritation. Luckily for your gift recipient, I am a fan of that lip mask and offer a handy tip for using it safely. As for the other lip masks on this list, they're filled with hydrating ingredients that shouldn't cause any irritations to their lips.
Best Ingredients
To simplify shopping for lip masks, here's a quick rundown of common occlusive ingredients broken down by categories.
Types of Occlusives:
- Fatty acids: Linoleic acid, which is found in argan, sunflower, and grape seed oils
- Silicone derivatives: Dimethicone
- Oils and waxes: Squalane, lanolin, shea butter, mango butter, beeswax, carnauba, paraffin, and petrolatum
Types of Humectants:
King also enjoys lip masks containing humectants because they attract water and surge your giftee's lips with much-needed hydration.
- Some common humectants are hyaluronic acid, glycerin, amino acids, peptides, and honey.
- Fun beauty fact: Hyaluronic acid is a next-level moisture magnet that can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water, so it guarantees your giftee's pout will be well-moisturized. It's found in several of our must-have lip masks, including the Best Tested Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask, Milani Rose Butter Lip Mask, and LAWLESS Forget the Filler Overnight Lip Plumping Mask.
How We Chose
These gift-worthy lip masks are all highly rated and available at your most trusted beauty retailers, including Sephora, Ulta, and Amazon. Some are favorites of King and myself due to their impressive ingredient list and results. I carefully vetted the other lip masks and considered their key ingredients to ensure they were made with a healthy balance of humectant and occlusive ingredients.
Regardless of which lip mask you order, your giftee will love how soft and supple their lips feel. And given their entry-level price point, you can afford to treat yourself to a lip mask (or a dozen!) because you also deserve a little self-care gift!
Nicole Saunders is the beauty editor at Best Products with over seven years of experience researching, writing, and editing lifestyle content. She specializes in breaking down complicated topics, like high-frequency wands and microcurrent devices, into easy-to-understand guides. She takes great pride in heavily researching and testing featured beauty products, — such as hairdryers and foundations — on our site, and spotlights her all-time seasonal favorites in her quarterly column Best New Beauty. And she tests quite literally thousands of launches for our Beauty Awards package.
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