15 Best Makeup Brands Available in India

The Indian cosmetics market has recently been crowded with dozens of makeup brands. Choosing safe and good-quality makeup products worth your money can get overwhelming. We’ve researched for you and compiled a list of India’s 15 best makeup brands that uphold themselves to a high standard of quality, formulas, packaging and consumer safety.

15 Best Makeup Brands Available in India

I have enough makeup – said no girl ever! No matter how much makeup you have, you always miss that one lipstick shade or long for that gorgeous new brightening concealer. So, shopping for makeup is always a welcome indulgence!

Having said that, getting your hand on the right colours, formulas, and composition can seem complicated with India’s sheer variety of brands! With the arrival of so many international brands and the springing up of several local brands, making the right brand choice may not be as easy as it seems! That is why we have compiled a list of 15 top makeup brands in India for everything ranging from eye makeup, lipsticks, contours & concealers and even skincare! So if you have been playing tug-o-war in your head between some makeup brands, we are here to seal the deal for you! Read on to know all there is to know about the 15 best makeup brands available in India!

1. MAC Cosmetics

A stalwart in the makeup world, MAC Cosmetics is a brand that is synonymous with high-end, chic and elegant makeup. MAC’s extraordinarily wearable and lightweight formula across its product ranges makes it one of the most coveted makeup brands in India and worldwide.

MAC Cosmetics started in the early 1980s as a Canadian brand but was taken over by the Estee Lauder Group in 1998. MAC made it to the global scene of makeup when Madonna was spotted wearing this brand in the early 90s, and the rest is history.

MAC is lauded to be an ultra-inclusive brand and truly lives up to its tagline of “All Races, All Sexes, All Ages”. This brand has more shades across all product ranges than competitors. From concealers to setting sprays, primers, eyeshadows, makeup brushes, moisturizers, men’s skincare, mascaras and more, MAC is a makeup haven! This inclusive high-end luxury makeup brand is a favourite for makeup artists and regular consumers, making it one of the Top makeup brands in India.

The MAC retro matte liquid lipsticks have been a rage over the past decade and continue to win hearts across the globe. The iconic Ruby Woo shades have won several global awards as the most popular red lipstick ever. With an intense payoff and complete matte finish, the retro matte lipsticks are long-lasting and do not dry out your lips, giving an incredibly lightweight and soft finish all day.

The studio fixes fluid foundation is another super-hit MAC product with a gentle silicone-based, oil-free, non-acnegenic formula with SPF 15. A favourite foundation you will find in every makeup artist’s kit, the MA Studio Fix fluid foundation is like a second skin! With 63 shades in this product range alone, MAC is all for inclusivity!

If you are looking to find your exact foundation shade, head to the MAC counter at Shoppers Stop and trust the beauticians to help you identify the perfect MAC foundation shade for your skin.

2. Maybelline New York

Maybelline is a ubiquitous makeup brand in almost every Indian woman’s makeup kit! This brand, which had the famous tagline “Maybe she’s born with it, maybe it’s Maybelline”, is today an innovative, accessible, effortless makeup brand. From its super stay matte lipsticks to its top-quality concealers and raging Fit-Me foundations, Maybelline seems to have hit the jackpot with each product range!

The secret of this brand’s success and widespread acceptability lies in the fact that it offers simple & easy-to-use products at great prices. Finding a Maybelline product that won’t blow your mind is complex. The most phenomenal thing about Maybelline is that its formula, finish and feel are similar to some of the most luxurious makeup brands, all at less than half the cost!

With over 40 shades in the offering, the Maybelline Fit Me Foundation is easily one of the top-selling makeup products in India. It offers a smooth and seamless finish that isn’t cakey or powdery. Although the foundation promises a minimum SPF of 22, it is always wise to wear a layer of your favourite Earth Rhythm sunblock and apply this effortlessly blending foundation.

The Superstay Matte Ink range of lip colours offers 32 juicy shades that promise up to 12-hour no-transfer coverage. These intensely-pigmented lipsticks give your lips a flawless matte finish and have shade options that are ideal for work and leisure.

Let’s not forget the iconic ‘Eyeconic’ Maybelline Kajal that indeed took Kajal to the masses. This bright yellow packaged product made kajal fashionable again in colleges.

All of these popular product ranges come together to make Maybelline one of India’s most preferred cosmetics brands.

3. Bobbi Brown

This luxury makeup brand ushered in the trend of nude and natural makeup at a time when bold and dark colours were in the early 90s. Bobbi Brown is a makeup brand launched by the makeup pioneer of the same name. A few years later, the global cosmetics giant Estee Lauder took over the brand, allowing Bobbi Brown creative rights.

Since then, Bobbi Brown has stood for subtle, light, and natural makeup. Whether it is the foundations, lipsticks, or even the correctors, the formulation of this brand is so delicate and lightweight, you won’t feel like you are wearing anything! It is, after all, luxury for a reason! Interestingly, the Bobbi Brown Longwear Gel Eyeliner is its best-selling product ever. If you have yet to try a Bobbi Brown product, start with the best!

If you find yourself wearing heavy makeup often and for long hours, Bobbi Brown is truly the Best makeup brand for your skin, as this makeup brand will cause no irritation or sensitivity. It is your best bet for long hours of makeup that doesn’t look made up. You can also invest in a Women’s Abril Scarf Hat with UPF 50+ from the Healthy Glow Skin Store that keeps the harmful sunrays away from your delicate skin.

4. PAC Cosmetics

If you are a makeup artist looking to create a wide array of makeup brushes, foundations, tools and more, PAC is your one-stop shopping destination! Launched in 2006, PAC Cosmetics soon became the favourite of makeup artists in India for its professional and affordable range of makeup tools. With over 500 products, PAC is one of the best Indian makeup brands to reckon with. These cruelty-free makeup products include brushes, sponges, eyelashes, skincare, and makeup palettes.

One of the most celebrated features of PAC Cosmetics is that there is something in it for everyone. Whether you are a makeup artist or a regular user, PAC Cosmetics has products that you will definitely fall in love with!

My favourites are the PAC sponges & Elite series makeup brushes, which are so versatile that you don’t need any other brushes! If you are exploring your love for makeup, PAC Cosmetics and Renee Cosmetics also sells individual makeup brushes for the application & blending of eye and face products, both of which are top-quality makeup brushes. No matter which brushes you buy, always clean them immediately after use with gentle shampoo and specialized makeup brush cleaning tools available at PAC Cosmetics.

5. Kiro Beauty

Kiro Beauty is a homegrown clean beauty brand that has recently gained much traction from makeup enthusiasts for its user-friendly makeup that is a breeze to apply without compromising your skin with harsh chemicals.

One unique product from Kiro Beauty’s endeavouring to make makeup more user-friendly is the Longwear Brightening Eye Shadow Sticks for a simple one-and-done eye look. Simply apply these pencils and blend them quickly for a neat, easy eyeshadow look. A great investment for those who cannot haggle with multiple brushes and eyeshadow palettes!

The non-stop airy matte lipsticks are a big hit, especially the nude mocha, which is perfect for Indian skin tones. Infused with plant oils, this lipstick leaves your lips with a gentle velvety texture that’s a saving grace from many drying matte lipsticks. All in all, Kiro Beauty is a great makeup brand to get your hands on for chemical-free clean products that nurture your skin! 

6. Faces Canada

Faces Canada has been a recognised brand in Canada for over 40 years, venturing into the Indian market in 2009. With a range of fun and colourful hypoallergenic cruelty-free makeup, Faces Canada has soon become one of the most recognised cosmetics brands in India.

The Ultimate Pro Makeup Fixer is one of the most celebrated products from Faces Canada. That is a hydrating and long-lasting alcohol-free makeup setting spray. It is a must-have in your makeup kitty if you’re outdoors in hot weather with your makeup on.

While we are busy piling makeup on our faces, we often ignore the importance of cleansing & exfoliation. The Faces Lemon & Walnut Lip Scrub is a unique product offering that gently exfoliates your skin and gives it a glowing. Plump and hydrated finish. If you wear lipsticks daily, having this exfoliator in your makeup kitty will do your lips a whole lot of good!

7. NYX Professional Makeup

The name NYX means the Greek goddess of the night, and using this brand of makeup will make you nothing less than a beauty goddess! This affordable makeup brand was acquired by L’Oreal in 2014 and has since been a total rage for the Indian makeup consumer. From concealers to highlighters, primers, contours, makeup kits, and eyeshadows, NYX is a brand that Gen Z loves for its fun summery shades and easy, lightweight application.

The NYX professional makeup soft matte lip cream is certainly one of the biggest hits from the brand. With over 40 shades of creamy goodness, these smooth matte lipsticks are light on the lips and do not dry out your lips, unlike other matte lipsticks. These sweetly-scented, highly pigmented lip creams have a shade for every occasion! Interestingly, the soft matte lip creams are named after famous cities. Some of my top picks from this range include Budapest, Cannes, Amsterdam and Istanbul.

Most of these shades suit Indian skin tones perfectly, making NYX one of the best makeup brands for Indian skin. If you are looking to invest in a few shades from the soft matte lip cream range, head to Boddess beauty store for a selection of NYX products that will be delivered right to your doorstep! This platform usually has the maximum NYX soft matte lip creams in stock compared to the online makeup stores and also offers the best makeup brand deals across different brands.

This brand is also certified cruelty-free by PETA, which is an excellent boon for environmentally-conscious makeup consumers. None of the products are tested on animals by NYX or its allies/subsidiaries. NYX has taken its responsibility towards animals further by introducing Vegan formulas. Keeping up its flagship features of high-pigmentation products, the vegan range is formulated without animal-derived products or ingredients. What’s not to love?

8. Sugar Cosmetics

Sugar cosmetics have taken the Indian makeup market by storm! Started in 2012 by Vineeta Singh, who has emerged as one of India’s most prominent female entrepreneurs, Sugar Cosmetics is lauded for its long-lasting formula across its entire product range. Read on to know my top picks from this raging makeup brand.

The Sugar Cosmetics Dream Cover SPF 1 mattifying compact is one of the best products from this brand. An affordable option under Rs. 500, this compact is worth every penny spent. Infused with minerals & Vitamin E, this compact sets your makeup perfectly, covering up pore visibility and preventing oil secretion for up to 5 hours, giving your skin a flawless matte finish. This super handy compact is ideal for humid and tropical Indian climates where skin tends to sweat easily.

Another grab-worthy product from Sugar Cosmetics is the Ace of Face Foundation stick. For all those makeup novices who still haven’t mastered the art of applying & blending foundation seamlessly with a brush, this foundation stick is a total saviour! With over 18 varieties of shades, you’re sure to find your foundation stick match and get that even tone without having to haggle with a brush!

Indeed, Sugar Cosmetics has identified the pulse of a new-age makeup user who chooses convenience over everything!

9. Iba Cosmetics

Iba Cosmetics is one of the few brands in India that honour religious sentiments and produce Halal-certified makeup products. This vegan, cruelty-free makeup brand is free of all chemicals, alcohol, pig fat, ammonia and sulphates, pampering your skin with only the goodness of natural actives and pure ingredients. A truly unique brand indeed!

Iba Pure Range Moisture Rich Lipsticks is one of the best product ranges from the brand and is certainly worth a try! Enriched with Vitamin E, these highly-pigmented lipsticks give your lips a subtle yet noticeable sheen that is a welcome break from all the matte lipsticks that have been crowding the makeup market in recent years.

The everyday Lip & Cheek tints are also versatile products that give your lips and cheeks a natural and lightweight colour. Wear this formula for both personal and professional settings without having the feeling of wearing heavy makeup.

10. Kay Beauty

When Katrina Kaif talks about makeup, we all sit up and listen! This Bollywood diva launched her makeup brand, Kay Beauty, in 2019, in association with Nykaa Beauty. Despite the pandemic hitting soon after and the steep competition in the makeup market, Kay Beauty has managed to clock in annual revenue of $12 million in 2022. This statistic speaks volumes about the quality and usability of Kay Beauty. Here’s what we love about this brand!

The unique proposition of Kay Beauty is the blend of glamour and care. So while each product is designed to deliver a high-performance finish, it also has a formulation packed with ingredients that care for and nourish the skin, which explains the apt hashtag #MakeupThatKares.

My favourite is the Kay Beauty Crème Blush which comes in a handy tube, making it so easy to get the perfect finish on the first try. Many people struggle with getting the blush identically applied on both cheeks. If you’re a newbie makeup user, surely you have struggled with uniform blush application on both cheeks. The Kay Beauty Crème Blush is a welcome relief thanks to its easy tube applicator that helps achieve a uniform look on both cheeks.

If you want to buy Kay Beauty products, Nykaa Beauty is the best portal. Kay Beauty offers exclusive sales and offers on Nykaa now and then. Since it was launched exclusively on Nykaa Beauty, Kay Beauty has the most available shades on this portal.

11. Just Herbs

If your idea of makeup is pure, organic and products free from harmful chemicals, Just Herbs should be in your shopping cart! These certified organic products rely on the principles of Ayurveda while leveraging modern techniques to deliver wholesome products.

Just Herbs believes in safety, honesty and effectiveness. As its products are free from sulphates, parabens, GMOs, bleaching agents and other harmful chemicals, trust that you are giving your skin and hair a burst of pure goodness! With every ingredient mentioned on the packaging, Just Herbs achieve honesty and believe that each product is designed to deliver maximum effectiveness and work on delivering desired results.  

I fell in love with the Beauty Essentials Makeup Kit that’s got everything you need to sort your lookout in minutes. A great travel-friendly makeup kit that includes a primer, foundation, cheek & lip tint, a nourishing kajal and my absolute favourite Sapta Jal toner + Micellar Water.

The Sapta Jal toner + Micellar Water is a nutritive blend of vegetable oils and plant waters including Chandan, narangi phool, jasmine, wheatgerm and gulab. That’s the best of Nature’s goodness for your skin! It hydrates and nourishes pollution-stressed skin by drawing out impurities and deeply hydrating your skin. It is the first ever Ayurvedic Micellar water to hit the Indian markets. It has taken the makeup & skincare world by storm! If there’s one product you want to start with from the Just Herbs family, I would recommend the Sapta Jal toner + Micellar Water. Try it to believe it!

12. Revlon

We have seen Revlon products have been around for decades, decorating our mother’s makeup shelves and captivating our imagination as children. From 1995 to now, Revlon is one of India’s most popular Makeup Brands. Throughout the 20th century, this brand has clocked in the most significant cosmetics sales, only second to Avon. Even today, Revlon is a preferred choice among Indian women for various products, including lipsticks, nail polishes, eyeliners, eyebrow enhancers and more.

The iconic Revlon lipstick shades are products that Indian women have invested in for decades, and that, for me, is easily the most popular makeup range from Revlon. The classic black and gold packaging of Revlon lipsticks is the stuff of legend. Some of the most popular lipstick shades from the 90s that have a huge fan base even today are Rum Raisin, Toast of New York, Coffee Bean, and Black Cherry. These soft browns and nude shades are an ode to the 90s style of bold dark lips and wild hair. What’s more, they go perfectly with the Indian skin tone. So although fashion trends may come and go, these timeless lipsticks are part of my classic stash even today!

Another classic Revlon range of products is the triangular bottle nail enamel which has always been lauded for its gorgeously smooth finish and a wide variety of colours. Go with these Revlon products and feel like a diva from the golden era of the 90s!

13. Gush Beauty

Here’s a makeup brand catering to millennial users through its range of chemical-free and cruelty-free products that are easy to use and carry! This vibrant makeup brand offers everything from nail lacquer to blush, eyeshadows, pimple patches, matte lipsticks and more.

A unique offering from Gush Beauty that caters to the new-age makeup user is the Super Stack Matte Liquid Lipsticks, which has 4 stunning colours in an easy-to-carry stackable design. These lippies are infused with high saturation pigment for maximum colour pay-off without drying out your lips! This range makes for a tremendous first lipstick for college girls who are just getting introduced to lip colours and would enjoy wearing something light and easy. This PETA-certified & sulfate-free product is ideal for the Indian skin tone. Just slip this Super Stack Matte Liquid Lipstick in your handbag for your on-the-go makeup kit that can take you from desk to dinner all in one compact product!

Gush Beauty is also one of the few makeup brands to introduce Dart Its pimple patches. Let’s face it – We all find these annoying pimples springing up on our faces occasionally. What better way to ward them off than with a pimple patch from a chemical-free makeup brand that is hypoallergenic, barrier-protecting, anti-inflammatory and suitable for all skin types? Gush Beauty is a brand that has winning products, making it one of the best makeup brands in India at the moment!

14. L’Oreal

We all remember L’Oreal as the iconic beauty brand that carried advertisements featuring the gorgeous Aishwarya Rai. This classic cosmetics brand began operations in India in 1994. Ever since, it has been a go-to cosmetics brand for Indian buyers, and with good reason!

L’Oreal Colour Riche lipsticks with velvet matte finish have been the rage over the years. With 43 gorgeous shades suiting Indian skin tones, these lipsticks are my go-to for affordable everyday wear from desk to dinner. With pure pigments and ultra-comfortable wear, these lipsticks don’t dry out your lips no matter how long you wear them. Some L’Oreal Color Riche lipstick shades aren’t introduced in the Indian market, especially the ultra-luxurious BALMAIN X L’Oreal Paris Color Riche range. If you’re in the mood to indulge yourself, order these beauties from Harvey Nichols, and you’re guaranteed to turn heads wherever you go!

15. ColorBar

Colorbar has been a steadily popular makeup brand in the Indian market since its launch in 2004. This Indian-bred makeup brand has everything from face & hair makeup, fragrances, accessories & brushes and much more!

Two products that stand out in the ColorBar range are their collection of nail lacquers and lip primer. The colour bar has some rare and attractive colours in nail lacquer, including matte finish, glossy finish, glittery and more. The quality and durability of the nail lacquers, especially the glittery range, are truly commendable. Coming to the lip primer is a great affordable investment for anyone with naturally pigmented lips or dull lips. This primer helps the colour of any lipstick show out better, giving your lips a uniform and full-pigmented colour.

If you have never tried ColorBar products to date, there’s always a first time! Head to trykiya, a product discovery platform that provides customers with a digital sampling experience for the best consumer brands. They also have some great cosmetic brands, coupons and discounts if you shop above a certain limit. Happy shopping!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Which is the no 1 makeup brand in India?

Lakme is India’s number 1 makeup brand due to its excellent formulation, affordability and high suitability to Indian skin tones. Lakme is India’s oldest cosmetics brand, with products that suit oily and dry skin. Lakme has a wide product offering, from eyeliners to foundations and skin care products. The Lakme 9 to 5 range of products is popular among working women for its high pigmentation, long-lasting colours and easy application.

Which Indian brand foundation is the best?

Maybelline New York Fit Me Foundation, Lakme 9 to 5 Foundation, L’Oreal Paris Infallible 24H Matte Cover Foundation and Lotus Makeup Perfecting Foundation are some of the best Indian foundations. It is always advisable to consult a beautician or cosmetics expert and choose a foundation shade closest to your skin tone to leverage the maximum benefit of a foundation.

Which is a clean makeup brand in India?

Clean makeup refers to products that are chemical-free, cruelty-free and vegan. Juicy Chemistry, Just Herbs, Daughter Earth, Raw Beauty Wellness and Vilvah Store, are some clean makeup brands in India that use all-natural organic ingredients.

Which colours look good on Indian skin?

Indian skin is best suited to earthy tones such as peach, corals, browns, nudes and jewel tones. Avoid dark/neon tones in lipsticks and eyeshadows as they do not complement typical Indian skin tones well.

Which is the most used makeup product?

Mascara was the most used makeup product globally, followed by foundation, eyeliner, lipsticks and eyeshadow. Mascara can be used for both day and night makeup and is one of the most effortless makeup to apply, suiting all skin tones.