Giving a vegan lipstick a go isn’t much of a gamble – if you don’t love it just wipe it off and pop on another one. Foundations on the other hand, require a little more risk. If it doesn’t work out you probably won’t have the time to take it off and start again from scratch, leaving you with a less than fabulous finish for the rest of the day.
So, can vegan foundations really be as good as the regular ones we’re used to?
Yes, yes they can. Vegan beauty is booming and the supply has met the demand with luxuriously-formulated, animal-friendly products that are just as good – if not better – than their non-vegan counterparts.
But, like everything in beauty, there’s no one size fits all coverage or finish. For that reason, we’ve ensured there’s all kinds – dewy, matte, full-coverage, lightweight. Whatever you’re looking for, we’ve got you.
Scroll ahead for our 13 picks for the best vegan foundations you can buy in Australia.
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Nude by Nature Liquid Mineral Foundation
Coverage: Light-medium
Finish: Matte
Nude by Nature Liquid Mineral Foundation is chock-full of skin-loving ingredients like vitamins C & E, jojoba, green tea and Australian active ingredients, so it improves skin health while providing lightweight coverage.
Read reviews here…
DB Cosmetics Luminous Hydrating Foundation
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Dewy
DB Cosmetics Luminous Hydrating Foundation is enriched with green tea, hyaluronic acid and aloe vera, to improve the look of skin while giving a radiant glow.
Read more reviews here…
jane iredale Beyond Matte™ Liquid Foundation
Coverage: Medium-full
Finish: Matte
jane iredale Beyond Matte™ Liquid Foundation is a three-in-one foundation, primer and concealer. Minimising the appearance of pores and smoothing out skin tone, this one is perfect for days where you’ll be taking a ton of selfies.
Read more reviews here…
ulta3 Fresh Faced Serum Foundation
Coverage: Light-medium
Finish: Dewy
ulta3 Fresh Faced Serum Foundation feels light on the skin, and is enriched with vitamins E and B5 to nourish the skin while giving a radiant finish.
Read more reviews here…
bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Radiant
bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick (mecca.com.au, $49) has a water-based formula and moisturising ingredients for all day hydration.
Read more reviews here…
Too Faced Born This Way Foundation
Coverage: Medium-full
Finish: Semi-matte
Too Faced Born This Way Foundation (mecca.com.au, $60) has an oil-free formula that’s enriched with coconut water and hyaluronic acid for long-lasting hydration.
Ellis Faas Skin Veil Foundation
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Radiant
Ellis Faas Skin Veil Foundation (mecca.com.au, $113) adds moisture and blurs imperfections, evening out the complexion without being overly thick.
Stila Stay All Day Liquid Foundation
Coverage: Full
Finish: Matte
Stila Stay All Day Liquid Foundation (mecca.com.au, $61) is perfect for those who constantly find themselves touching up on the go. The handy foundation/concealer hybrid lasts all day long without feeling heavy on the skin.
Urban Decay Stay Naked Weightless Liquid Foundation
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Natural
Urban Decay Stay Naked Weightless Liquid Foundation (mecca.com.au, $60) has been created to be as natural as possible while still providing medium-coverage. With 50 shades on offer, there’s one to suit everyone’s skin tone.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Luminous Foundation
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Radiant
Anastasia Beverly Hills Luminous Foundation (mecca.com.au, $70) is long-wearing and lightweight, looking fresh and luminous right through from desk to drinks.
Jouer Essential High Coverage Crème Foundation
Coverage: Full
Finish: Matte
Jouer Essential High Coverage Crème Foundation (mecca.com.au, $58) has been formulated with hyaluronic acid and chamomile, soothing and hydrating while giving an airbrushed finish.
MECCA MAX Life Proof Longwear Foundation
Coverage: Medium-full
Finish: Matte
MECCA MAX Life Proof Longwear Foundation (mecca.com.au, $32) was created for people who want to put on their foundation in the morning and have it stay in place right until they get home (however late that may be). The creamy and buildable formula feels like satin on the skin and won’t get dry or flaky throughout the day.
elf Acne Fighting Foundation
Coverage: Full
Finish: Matte
elf Acne Fighting Foundation (adorebeauty.com.au, $16) covers imperfections while treating acne with its salicylic acid, aloe vera, tea tree and witch hazel enriched formula.
I’ve got that BareMinerals stick foundation on my wish list. I have tried it at a Mecca store, and I loved it. It was light and easy to blend, but still gave great coverage, and felt very hydrating. I’m currently using BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted moisturiser and I love it. I’ve been using it for years.
Interesting list here, I am keen to try the Urban Decay one, have tried Nude by Nature's original liquid foundation and it was a bit patchy on me =(
Oh I would love to try the Anastasia foundation Vegan, fresh, luminous and lightweight sounds perfect to me.
Ive tried the Nude by nature ones and they work well for me. I think my favorite at the moment is a Natio foundation. I dont use foundation very often at this time of year as its just to darn hot and its not like im going anywhere overly exciting anyway.
Some really great Vegan Foundations need to give DB Cosmetics Foundation ago others are so expensive.
The ELF acne fighting foundation sounds great!
I use the DB foundation and it is very good for the price.
Thanks for the article. Nude by Nature Liquid Mineral foundation is now repackaged and renamed to Nude by Nature Luminous Sheer foundation with more shades.
Go DB and Nude by Nature. Great Aussie brands.
Hourglass has a really good stick foundation that’s vegan too
I really want to try that dewy version of the DB foundation. I have the matte one, which is great, but I don't really wear matte foundations anymore
Didn't try any of the listed! So many good choices. Thinking Too Faced or Urban Decay next on the list to try after i use up my current bottle of face paint
I've used the Nude by Nature. I picked up a sample pot of the BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Moisturiser at Mecca yesterday so I'm eager to try that. I'd also like to try the DB Cosmetics Luminous Hydrating Foundation.
Nude by Nature would be my first choice among these great brands.
So many foundations I no want to try. I will look out for the Nude by Nature one to seeif it works well with my skin.
Ooh I'd love to try the Urban Decay, the NBN one wasn't good enough for coverage for me. It gave me a glow, but not an overall "medium finish" which, means the redness in my cheeks etc wasn't covered.
Have just trialled a Nude by Nature one.
Was it the sheer one?
Does vegan mean also natural? All these vegan things and I’m not sure exactly what they mean. So I know it doesn’t include animal ingredients but normal foundation does?
My personal preferred criterian would be:
Matte
Vegan
Animal Friendly/Cruelty Free
SPF30+ atleast but SPF50+ awesome
Water-based
Anti-aging features
OilControl
Just a small list!!
I don't need any foundation at the moment but this will be a good article to refer back to when I'm shopping for a new one
BareMinerals foundation stick looks good, could be used as a concealer too. The other one I'd like to try is Mecca's Matte
I haven’t tried any of these but would love to give the nude by nature one a go and the too faced foundation.
I've been using Mineral Powder for a few years.
Love ethical products and brands!!!
I haven't tried any of these.
NBN and DB are great brands
So many good options
i never knew interesting
I was on the NbN trial recently and didn't know it was vegan. I'd like to try Too Faced and Urban Decay out of these options next
I didn't know that so many brands go vegan now. I was on Nude By Nature trial too. It is beautiful to use , but offers low level of coverage.
I haven't used any of these yet but so many are on my list to try, DB being at the top.
I want to try UD! I always have success with their products.
Thanks for the list BH. I don’t see why any makeup needs animal products in them these days. Having just tried the nude by nature one in a BH trial team I can definitely say there’s no need for animal products in foundation.
I have a sample of Ellis Faas foundation, it is very lovely, light and gives a radiant finish to my skin.
I’m with you on this
I didn’t realise these were all vegan!
Only one I've tried is NBN none of the others.
What a good list, definitely want to try some of these foundations although there is a couple out of my price range.
I am a big fan of nudeby nature.
I haven't had any problems with vegan products so far. I have tried the NBN and I would love to try the Uban Decay, Born This Way and DB.
I've heard mostly positive things about the DB foundation but I'm not sure if it would work for me due to its luminous finish. These types of foundations often sink into larger pores and accentuate them.
Veganism is becoming much more mainstream – so many choices, now.