Lip Stains Are The Makeup Saviors Of The Year: Here Are 12 That Won't Dare Budge

In an age full of face coverings, the lip stain sees new life.
Ever spend precious moments finishing up your pout in the mirror, only to find all your precision smudged on the inside of your mask at the end of the night? (Unfortunately raises hand.)
Perhaps you eschew the lip products altogether or mourn the days when a strong, bold lip made all the statements. Oh, wait—hello, lip stains!
Mask gripes aside, stains are the perfect middle ground of all the lippies. If you're looking for the bold pigment of a lipstick but that melt-into-your-lips swipe only your trusty lip balm can bring, allow us to introduce you to the mighty lip stain.
These effortlessly coat on color, giving you that just-finished-off-an-ice-pop pout for all your masked-up ventures.
Below, 12 gorgeous, clean lip stains that won't dare budge.
Bite Beauty Outburst Longwear Lip Stain
This vampy red screams bold. Coconut oil and sunflower seed oil make it buttery and moisturizing (no cracks, here!), and with a satin finish, it looks velvety on the lips.
Outburst Longwear Lip Stain, Bite Beauty ($13.50)

Tarte Lippie Lingerie Matte Lip Tint
Tarte's line comes in a range of nude shades, so you can find your "my lip, but better" color with ease. Soft, matte, and full of butters (mango seed butter, cupuacu butter, and murumuru butter, to be exact), it glides on effortlessly and stays put.
Lippie Lingerie Matte Lip Tint, Tarte ($24)

Elaluz lip & cheek stain
This multiple offers a "just bitten red" to both your pout and cheekbones—bold enough to make a statement, subtle enough to look like you woke up with rosy lips. It has coconut water and prickly pear extract, so any cracks will eagerly welcome the hydration.
lip & cheek stain, Elaluz ($18)

Winky Lux Flower Balm
Here's some science for you: This balm glides on clear, then reacts with your lips' natural pH levels to turn into your perfect shade of pink. Cool, right? Plus, it features a real chrysanthemum inside the bullet—it's one high-tech lippie.
Flower Balm, Winky Lux ($16)

Kjaer Weis Lip Tint
Yep, you can even dabble in bright fuschias without worrying about any transferring onto your face covering. This lip tint is lightweight and creamy, with castor seed oil, shea butter, and jojoba oil to help lips look juicy.
Lip Tint, Kjaer Weis ($38.25)

Juice Beauty Phyto-Pigments Liquid Lip Stain
Petal pink lips in one swipe: Just line your lips with this shea-butter- and grapeseed-oil-filled number, then blot inward to create a subtle, bee-stung pout.
Phyto-Pigments Liquid Lip Stain, Juice Beauty ($24)

Rituel de Fille Enchanted Lip Sheer
Those looking for a wash of subtle color, this is the product for you. It lays on quite sheer (as the name suggests), with just a tap of pink for a flushed finish. The texture, though—oh, is it creamy. Castor seed oil and jojoba oil provide a hit of moisture, while rosemary leaf extract imparts antioxidant and antibacterial benefits1.
Enchanted Lip Sheer, Rituel de Fille ($25)

Milk Makeup Glow Oil
Another glowy multiple, this shimmery oil leaves a subtle tint that lasts all day—simply glide on the stick and blend with your fingers to build the ice-pop-stain pigment (the color payoff increases the more you blend!). Rice bran oil is the star moisturizer, which also has antioxidant capabilities and absorbs into your skin with ease.
Glow Oil, Milk Makeup ($23.18)

WLDKAT Cupuacu + Mango Butter Lip Balm
Another lippie with pH-matching technology, only this one leaves more of a glossy finish. With cupuacu and mango butters, it simultaneously softens the pout while tinting it a custom-made shade of pink. It's also charged with 50 milligrams of broad-spectrum CBD, which can help ease cracked, inflamed lips.
Cupuacu + Mango Butter Lip Balm, WLDKAT ($16)

Amuse Makeup Dew Tint
This K-beauty brand's tint is the definition of juicy lips. It's formulated with 35% water, which keeps the application lightweight and hydrating (and offers a subtle sheen). Mango extract also moisturizes and softens, while antioxidants from apple extract and vitamin E help protect from environmental aggressors. And it all comes in a bold, crimson red. What's not to love?
Dew Tint, Amuse Makeup ($20)

innisfree Vivid Cotton Ink
Another ruby red, this ink never dries caky. No, with avocado oil, apricot oil, jojoba oil, and mango extract, it's super moisturizing and keeps the lips looking like velvet. It has a fluffy texture to it (thanks to cotton seed) but delivers a soft, matte finish. A dream, really.
Vivid Cotton Ink, innisfree ($15)

mented Cosmetics Liquid Lipstick
If you're looking for longwear, look no further than liquid lipstick. It sinks into your lips as soon as you swipe it on, in a matte finish that looks like you just finished a bag of cherries. It dries on smooth and lightweight, and it'll look lush all night.
Liquid Lipstick, mented Cosmetics ($20)


Jamie Schneider is the Beauty Editor at mindbodygreen. She has a B.A. in Organizational Studies and English from the University of Michigan, and her work has appeared in Coveteur, The Chill Times, and more. In her role at mbg, she reports on everything from the top beauty industry trends, to the gut-skin connection and the microbiome, to the latest expert makeup hacks. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York.