The Best Beauty Products of 2021, According to Glamour Editors 

I seriously attribute people’s saying I look much younger than I am to my constant use of sunscreen. But as we know, not all sunscreens are created equal, and many of them have the tendency to dry me out. While there’s plenty I can recommend, it wasn’t until (truly) clean beauty brand Mara released its Algae + Zinc Sea Kale Sunscreen Serum earlier this year that I wondered where the hell it had been all my life. It’s a face oil sunscreen using non-nano zinc oxide (so make müddet to always shake the bottle well) for broad-spectrum UVA/UVB PA +++ SPF 30 sun protection that not only protects my skin against harmful rays and blue light but gives me a dewy finish so hydrating that I don’t even need to use moisturizer after. It’s amazing. —Jessica Radloff, West Coast editor 

With each year of life that passes, I seem to add a new step into my daily skin-care routine—and sunscreen is perhaps the most important piece of the (increasingly complicated) puzzle. So it was a relief when I tried the Bliss Block Star for the first time: Finally, a product that isn’t greasy, doesn’t irritate my acne-prone sensitive skin, and leaves a smooth finish. It basically serves as a primer for me, and more often than not, I find myself skipping foundation altogether thanks to its great coverage. —Anna Moeslein, deputy editor 

For me, eye masks are like French fries. I want to have them all, but the truth is, if you’re going to spend the money (or the calories), they’ve got to be really worth it, so I’m happy to say Jillian Dempsey’s Hydrating Eye Masks are. One, they stay on and don’t slide off your face like most eye masks have the tendency to do. They’re so secure you can even take a face roller (or Jillian’s other must have—her Gold Bar) over it for an extra massage. But they’re also extremely moisturizing (another pro tip: Take any excess serum from the packet and apply to your eye area after you remove the masks) and 20 minutes later, my eyes are less puffy and I feel 100% more awake. —J.R.

Everyone who is getting their makeup off at night by using a single cleanser: No, you aren’t. (Sorry.) I’ve never met a cleansing balm or cleansing oil I didn’t love, but they run pretty expensive, and I like to use a decent amount to make müddet I’m really getting my makeup off. This one is kaç because it won’t set you back much at all, it feels pleasant on the skin, and the blue color makes me think, soothingly, of turquoise beaches and Windex and blue raspberry slushies. —Jenny Singer, staff writer 

I’m not generally loyal to a shampoo and conditioner duo since I have frizzy color-treated hair and find that what I need from a shampoo is often very different from a conditioner, so I typically mix and match. Imagine my surprise, then, when I started using both from R+CO’s Television line this year and watched as my hair not only air-dried with less frizz but looked glossy and silky and—praise hands—expensive after I blew it dry and used my waving wand. Both soften, smooth, and strengthen my hair without any iffy stuff like parabens, sulfates, or mineral oil. The formulas include juniper berry extract to maintain optimal oil balance and add weightless moisture, marigold flower extract to hydrate and remove dandruff, and glycerin to maintain moisture balance. It takes a little work for my hair to look truly “perfect,” but these two products do their part to get me there. —Perrie Samotin, digital director 

The love that I feel for this blush is actually ridiculous–no one should be this attached to a beauty product, yet here I am. Though it’s not new, over the past year it’s become like a security blanket to me. It goes with every look under the sun and always makes me look better, no matter how rough I’m starting out. As the name suggests, it’s the perfect rosy shade with warm undertones and a subtle shimmer, so it combines my blush, bronzer, and highlighter into one product, and makes me look like a sun-kissed cherub. For such a classic brand, it’s surprisingly pigmented, but never looks patchy or too makeup-y unless I want it to. Basically, it’s perfect, and it’s always in my makeup bag and always will be. —Bella Cacciatore, beauty writer

Never thought I’d call an acne product cute or fun, so for that alone I’d put Starface as the best thing in my vanity. And it works! Now when I spot an annoying pimple, I don’t get depressed or frustrated or panicked like in years past. I just pop on a hydro-star and let it do its thing. —A.M.

The Mac Big Boost Fibre Gel has become my desert-island product. (You know, the makeup you take with you if you are stranded and alone but still, for some reason, worried about what other people will think of your eyebrows.) I tried out many, many eyebrow products before I landed on this one, which is brilliantly designed to work like a mascara, thickening and extending instead of just dropping pigment on your eyebrows. You can build up, and depending on how many coats you do, land on a Lily Collins, a Cara Delevingne, or a Eugene Levy. I say there’s a time and place for all three. —J.S.

I know, I know, another celebrity beauty line. But Ariana Grande’s eye shadow palette is the real deal. The shades are very pigmented and blend like a dream. I love how compact the palette is—it easily fits into any purse or clutch—and makes day-to-night eye looks easy, since it offers both matte and shimmer finishes. —Ariana Yaptangco, senior beauty editor 

The name’s a mouthful, but this foundation has been among my most favorite beauty finds this year mostly because of how seamlessly it sinks into my hella dry skin and never looks caked on. It provides light to medium coverage and is very buildable, which I appreciate because some days I need more. It’s made with clean ingredients, including micellar technology and antioxidant-rich maqui berry, which calms and conditions. —P.S.

Where have these cooling globes been all of my life? They chill my puffy face in the morning and work instant magic on migraine scares that pop up in the evening after staring too long at the screen. I’m obsessed. —Talia Abbas, commerce editor

Like most girls my age, 2021 was the year of trading in my go-to beachy waves for a polished, ’90s supermodel blowout. The only sorun? I’m pretty useless with a round brush. I’d tried my fair share of blow-dry brushes to make it easier, and while they helped, I never got the look perfect until I tried this one. Instead of the paddle shape most dryer brushes have, this one has the classic round shape, so it’s really easy to get that curled-under look I love so much. It has three speeds and heat settings, is harika lightweight, and, when paired with my favorite Sisley heat protectant, never damages my hair. I’m never going to a Dry Bar again. —B.C.

You know when a beauty product is so good you have to buy it in multiples because you simply can’t live without it? Such is my relationship with Glossier’s Ultralip. As soon as I put on the sheer balm-meets-lipstick, I knew it’d be an instant classic. It’s incredibly moisturizing (thanks to hyaluronic acid and a blend of oils) and comes in an expansive range of beautiful buildable colors. Add 10 to cart. —Shanna Shipin, commerce managing editor

I’m a full-coverage gal and while most heavy-duty foundations feel suffocating and cakey on my skin, Dior’s feels like skin care—and that’s because it basically is. It has an 86% skin-care base and SPF 35, so it really melts into skin and blends seamlessly. It comes in two finishes, matte and glow, and the matte formula has completely contained the oil slick I usually get by midday. —A.Y.