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26 Beauty Products That Work Their Magic Just As Well As More Expensive Versions

by Stephen Arnett on July 29, 2023

by Jordan Grigsby

If your aesthetic is baddie on a budget, this $7 swap for the Lancôme foundation is calling your name.

26 Products that work for less BuzzFeed

1. A loose finishing powder by Maybelline — a much more affordable alternative to the popular Laura Mercier powder. It's designed to help control shine and provide a perfect finishing touch to your flawless makeup. It's a look, it's a vibe, it's a mood, it's a match, and it's less than $10.

 2. An ultra soft waterproof cleansing brush for gentle exfoliating and deep cleaning. A rechargeable, affordable alternative to the expensive name-brand ones. Grab one and get your glow for the low!

 3. A Nyx brow pencil that has Anastasia shakin' in her boots because this bad boy rivals the ABH Brow Wiz. This super skinny pencil will allow you to create hair-like strokes to sculpt and fill in any areas that are sparse. One side has a little spoolie anddddd it's like $15 less than the ABH one.

 4. A nourishing, plumping tinted lip oil so you can keep that pout shiny without your lippies getting all sticky. Reviewers are loving this stuff because it gives Dior lip oil vibes without the Dior price.

 5. A hydrating grip primer by E.l.f. that'll keep your makeup in check all day while delivering hyaluronic acid to your skin to help it retain moisture. Reviewers are even comparing it to Milk's Hydro Grip primer!

 6. A Kiss Falscara lash kit for some DIY lashes at home that are waaaay less money and waaaay less time-consuming than getting lash extensions in a salon. Eyelash extensions are like, the price of your car note, so ditch those and get STUNNING lashes that everyone will think you paid hundreds for when you really paid less than $20. No worries! That can be our little secret. 

This kit comes with 10 little lash pieces, an applicator, and a mascara-like bond and glue. Watch TikTok makeup star Mikayla Nogueira review and apply these lashes here. You also can grab other premade lash fans and apply those instead if you prefer other styles orrrr take your fave lashes, cut them into sections, and use those! And if you hate lash glue, try these press-on lashes instead!

7. A buildable Glimmer Glow Stick lipstick that changes colors once it adjusts to your personal pH balance giving you a beautiful, natural, sheer pink lip just as well as the expensive stuff does. And it's sparkly, lol. I'll add anything with glitter to my cart.

 8. A bottle of Maybelline Fit Me matte foundation reviewers are saying is an affordable alternative for the Estée Lauder Double Wear foundation. This stuff will help refine your pores to give you that *I just rolled outta bed* finish. My oily friends, I see your eyebrow raising butttt good news! This little bottle of liquid gold is perfect for oily skin.

 9. A powder blush that rivals the cult-fave Nars blush — an absolute classic. Reviewers are raving about this little baby because the price and quality are truly top notch. This blush ate and left not a single freakin' crumb.

 10. A fabulous lip-plumping gloss set for some seriously luscious lips. This stuff helps to morph your lippies into Angelina Jolie's and reviewer's are totally loving this affordable swap to all those costly name-brand plumpers. Ooh-la-luscious.

 11. A six-pack of beauty sponges at an extremely affordable price. What better than six sponges for half the price of one of the fancy ones?

 12. A rainbow-inspired eyeshadow palette with 40 matte, shimmer, and metallic shades that reviewers are saying is just as good as the James Charles x Morphe Palette and way waaaay less expensive. Just *think* of all the fun, bright, funky looks you'll be able to create with this baby.

13. A tube of Essence Lash Princess Mascara so good, people will ask you "are those your lashes?" This mascara def brings as much drama as Cathy did on Dance Moms.

 

14. An E.l.f. 16-hour wear concealer because sometimes, your money is funny and your change is strange and you can't convince yourself to drop $25 on your fave concealer. Reviewers are praising this little Tarte Shape Tape swap and once you get your hands on this super-pigmented, oil-controlling matte concealer, you'll be singing its praises too.

​15. A gorgeous Nyx Butter Gloss that's under $5 and isn't sticky!! (Because who wants a *sticky* lippie?) Reviewers are lovin' this little affordable alternative to high-end glosses that'll run you, like, $20. Get the perfect pout with this beautiful, creamy gloss. Put it over your lipstick or wear it alone for juicy, glowy lips in seconds.

 16. A set of two super pretty eyeshadow palettes with 18 different shimmery, matte, and glitter colors each that'll seriously make you do a double take because they literally look EXACTLY like the more expensive Huda Desert Dusk Palette and Huda New Nude Palette. And the best part is you get two palettes for half the price of one of the expensive name-brand palettes — now that's a steal.

 17. A Milani Make It Last setting spray that's comparable to the cult-favorite Urban Decay All Nighter spray. It's a 3-in-1 spray that can be used as a primer, finishing spray, and to correct any makeup that's acting a bit wonky. It'll lock down your makeup for up to 16 hours without creasing or smudging. We definitely love to see that.

 18. An E.l.f. Wow Brow to fool people into believing you spent forever perfecting your brows when ~really~ you did 'em easy peasy in 30 seconds. Reviewers say it's a great alternative for more expensive brands like Glossier and Anastasia Beverly Hills.

 19. A set of three — yes three — lip sleeping masks that'll help heal and treat dry, cracked lips by delivering much-needed moisture overnight. Three of these are still $14 cheaper than the beloved Laniege sleeping mask. Now, let's jump around in circles saying *yay* in celebration.

20. An eye primer to help lock down your eye makeup and have it lasting longer than the Energizer Bunny. This base will have your shadow looking as bold, pigmented, and vibrant as ever while putting your more expensive eye primer to shame.

21. A synthetic half wig if you're trying to go for an easy, affordable, protective style and are tired of spending hundreds on human hair wigs and such. Slap this baby on your head and be ready to go in five minutes.

 22. An E.l.f. glitter liquid eyeshadow to take your shadow looks to the next level and totally change your makeup game. You could literally get four of these for the price of one Stila Glitter And Glow liquid shadow. Go ahead and fill your cart up with these, I won't look.

23. A long-lasting Peripera Ink Velvet Lip Tint you actually won't need to touch up every 10 minutes. Your lippies will be silky smooth and suuuuper pigmented without them feeling sticky or clumpy.

 24. Adore hair dye that deliversssss baby — DELIVERS! This dye helps you achieve the brightest mermaid hair colors without developer or chemicals, and it's semi-permanent! Plus, you won't have to spend a whole lotta money to have your hair colored! Myself and over 28,000 others LOOOVE this hair dye.

 25. A lash-lifting kit so you can wake up already looking like you're wearing mascara and avoid salon prices. Your lashes will be lifted to the heavens as if little magical fairies worked overtime to do so. Perfectly curled and can last up to a month! Hey, curl, heyyyy!

 26. A roll-on waxing kit that'll help you save some coin by avoiding expensive salon prices. You can use this on all of your body and the roll on design? *chef's kiss* Genius! You can also easily travel with this in case you need a little touch-up on vacation.

The kit includes a 40W high-power roll on wax warmer, two boxes of wax (honey and lavender scented), six packs of calming oil wipes, and 100 non-woven wax strips.

Jordan Grigsby - BuzzFeed Staff Writer

https://www.buzzfeed.com/jordanagrigs/beauty-products-that-work-their-magic-just-as-well-as

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