Glossier redefined the beauty game when it entered the scene back in 2014. Founder Emily Weiss made it clear that Glossier was set apart from the traditional beauty brands at the time – and managed to snag a pretty die-hard following in return for its authentic vision. But what exactly set it apart?
To start with, Glossier was one of the pioneers of the direct-to-consumer model in the beauty industry, and was built on the foundation of community engagement and feedback. Of course, its branding was fresh, modern, and minimalist, appealing specifically to the millennial demographic. And unlike many traditional beauty brands that focused on makeup to transform appearances, Glossier emphasised enhancing natural beauty with skincare-first products. The brand's mantra? "Skin first. Makeup second. Smile always."
But outside of their marketing and branding, Glossier introduced products that were innovative in its simplicity and functionality. Easy-to-use, multi-functional products that fit seamlessly into everyday routines – like Balm Dotcom, Boy Brow, and Milky Jelly Cleanser – emphasised their effortless ethos and natural aesthetics.
But up until recently, Glossier didn't ship to Australia. So for many beauty die-hards on our shores, we had to find our fix elsewhere (or get crafty with our shipping options). And luckily for us, Glossier's approach caught fire around the world, and there are now a myriad of beauty brands that offer up many of the same aesthetics and product philosophy.
If you're looking for some brands to mix with your Glossier collection seamlessly, or that you're able to grab off the shelves of your local Mecca or Sephora while we wait for Glossier to be stocked on our shores, we've got you covered below with 15 brands like Glossier to love.
1. Kosas
View this post on Instagram
Kosas and Glossier share several similarities in their approaches to beauty and skincare, both appealing to a younger demographic of Gen Z-ers and Millenials who value minimalistic aesthetics and clean beauty looks. Both Kosas and Glossier are committed to clean beauty principles – Kosas being known for its avoidance of harmful ingredients and focus on skin-friendly products. Kosas also offers plenty of multi-use products designed to simplify your beauty routine.
Kosas also stands out for its makeup products that also have skincare benefits. Its Tinted Face Oil, a lightweight foundation that includes nourishing ingredients like jojoba oil, avocado oil, and red raspberry seed oil, is one of the key products and combines skincare benefits with makeup application.
2. Milk Makeup
View this post on Instagram
Milk Makeup has been in the game since 2016, founded in in New York City and born out of the creative culture at Milk Studios, a hub for fashion, music, photography, and beauty. From its inception, Milk Makeup committed to being 100% vegan, and also dedicated to clean beauty, formulating products without parabens, sulfates, phthalates, and other potentially harmful ingredients. Like Glossier, its products are multi-purpose and easy to use – its Blur Stick primer, Lip + Cheek sticks, and Cooling Water sticks all designed for easy, on-the-go application.
Inclusivity is also core to the ethos of Milk Makeup – it offers a wide range of shades to cater to various skin tones. And the brand also has plenty of high-profile fans of the brand – like Zendaya, whose makeup artist, Sheika Daley, has mentioned using Blur Stick, Kush Mascara, and Lip + Cheek stick to create some of the her key looks.
3. Saie
View this post on Instagram
Saie places a strong emphasis on community, transparency, sustainability and environmental responsibility. It is another clean beauty brand that uses safe, non-toxic ingredients that are gentle on the skin and the environment. Founded in 2019 by Laney Crowell – formerly at Estee Lauder – the brand has taken off in the last five years, its Dew Balm highlighter, Brow Butter tinted brow gel and Slip Tint Dewy Tinted Moisturiser among some of its most popular offerings.
4. Fluff
View this post on Instagram
Fluff is an Australian beauty brand that focuses on creating high-quality, minimalist, and versatile beauty products. If you like brands like Glossier because of their functionality and effortless application – then we'd suggest looking into Fluff. Founded by one of the co-founders of the cult beauty brand Frank Body, Fluff was launched with a vision to offer a more thoughtful approach to beauty, emphasising self-expression and individuality over perfection.
Its curated range of multipurpose beauty products include bronzing powder, lip tint, and setting powder, each housed inside sleek, silvery and re-fillable components. They'll look as good on your skin as they will sitting inside your handbag or sink-side in your bathroom.
5. RMS Beauty
View this post on Instagram
Another pioneering clean beauty brand founded by makeup artist Rose-Marie Swift way back in 2009, RMS Beauty products are high-quality, natural and organic in composition. The brand's best-known products, such as the Living Luminiser and Un Cover-Up, have become cult favourites, celebrated for their ability to create a radiant, natural look. Like Glossier, the brand's focus is on enhancing natural beauty with minimalist, high-quality products that prioritise skin health and clean ingredients. Meghan Markle counts herself as a fan, as does Gisele Bündchen.
6. Refy Beauty
View this post on Instagram
Influencer and entrepreneur Jess Hunt started Refy Beauty at the tail-end of 2020, and it's burgeoning popularity is largely down to its focus on enhancing natural features with innovative and minimalistic products. Refy Beauty is particularly known for its eyebrow products, such as the Brow Sculpt, Brow Pomade, and Brow Pencil, which are designed to create perfectly groomed and defined brows with a natural finish. But its Cream Blush and Gloss Highlighter are both winners in our books too.
Clean beauty muse Hailey Bieber uses Refy Beauty in her routine, as does our quiet luxury queen Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.
7. Simihaze Beauty
View this post on Instagram
Founded by twin sisters Simi and Haze Khadra, Simihaze Beauty feels like if Glossier went space-age. Its packaging is divine and features bespoke components unlike much of what's on the market currently – and despite being launched in 2021, it's pretty successfully blended Simi and Haze's worlds of fashion, art, and beauty. Bold and eclectic, the brand is characterised by its playful and avant-garde branding, with a focus on creating makeup that allows for creative expression.
The Velvet Blur Matte Balm is one of the best-sellers, a versatile lip product provides a soft, matte finish with a comfortable, velvety texture, and Sun Flush All-Over Tint, a multi-use product that can be applied to the lips, cheeks, and eyes in a blendable, buildable formula. If you're someone who longs for the days of Glossier Play – Simihaze is for you.
8. Jones Road
View this post on Instagram
After leap frogging from her eponymous brand, Bobbi Brown launched Jones Road in 2020, a brand that pushes the "no-makeup makeup" look, providing versatile products that are easy to use and suitable for all ages and skin types. Clean formulations – free of harmful ingredients – are at the core of Jones Road, as its the promotion of an inclusive approach to beauty. The brand creates products that work for a wide range of skin tones, types and ages – leveraging Bobbi Brown's decades of experience in the beauty industry to combine her professional knowledge with a modern approach to beauty.
Popular products include the Miracle Balm, which can be used as a blush, highlighter or skin tint, and the Just A Sec Eye Tint, which provides a quick and easy wash of colour for the eyes.
9. Merit
View this post on Instagram
Glossier but all grown up. Merit shares the same ethos of being a clean, minimalist beauty brand – but in more sophisticated wrapping. Katherine Power, the founder of Merit Beauty, is also the co-founder of the fashion brand Who What Wear, creating a makeup line of essentials that fit seamlessly into a busy, modern lifestyle. Popular products from the line include the Flush Balm Cream Blush, which adds a sheer, buildable and lightweight flush of colour to the cheeks, the Clean Lash Lengthening Mascara, which defines and lengthens lashes without clumping or smudging, and the Shade Slick Tinted Lip Oil, a sheer wash of colour that offers the hydration of a lip balm with the shine of a gloss.
10. Rare Beauty
View this post on Instagram
Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty may only have been around since 2020, but its celebration of individuality and wide range of shades to cater to diverse skin tones quickly propelled it to the top. Like Glossier, Rare Beauty focuses on clean beauty, and offers a variety of innovative makeup products designed for ease of use and versatility. Of course, you can't have been on the internet these past few years without coming across the uber-popular Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, or the Liquid Touch Weightless Foundation.
11. Byredo
View this post on Instagram
Byredo is like Glossier's cooler, sexier older sister – the one who goes to art shows on a Friday night and is always wearing an obscure Japanese fashion brand from SSENSE. Founded by Ben Gorham in 2006, its evocative fragrances, minimalist design, and sophisticated beauty and home products are what the Glossier girl – with her focus on minimalism and versatility – might grow into. Of course, Byredo is much more of a luxury brand (with a price point to match), but there are otherwise similarities between the two – particularly its chic and minimalistic packaging design. Byredo's makeup line, launched in collaboration with makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench, features bold and innovative products with versatility at the fore – exemplified by its Colour Stick, Universal Mascara and Eye Shadow Palettes.
12. Rhode Beauty
View this post on Instagram
Hailey Bieber has been unofficially dubbed queen of the clean beauty look online – glowing skin, rosy cheeks, defined natural brows and glossy lips. And she's channelled that love into a brand of her own - Rhode – which was at first skin-focussed, but now is slowly moving into the makeup space. It started with a set of tinted lip oil treatments (you know the ones, which now have their own perfectly moulded phone cases to compliment), but it seems the mogul is now teasing blushes are on the horizon. While this brand is still in in its fetal stages when it comes to makeup – we'd be keeping tabs. And if you're looking for an alternative to your Glossier Balm Dot Calm – Bieber's got you covered.
13. ILIA
View this post on Instagram
Like Glossier, many ILIA products are formulated with skin-care benefits in mind. They often include nourishing ingredients like plant-based oils, vitamins, and antioxidants that help improve the health and appearance of the skin. But despite its clean formulations, ILIA products are designed to deliver high performance, providing effective and long-lasting results. Some of the bestsellers include the Super Serum Skin Tint SPF 40, Limitless Lash Mascara, and the Multi-Stick – products that have garnered fans in Kate Hudson, Olivia Wilde and Gwenyth Paltrow.
14. Mecca Max
View this post on Instagram
For a very similar price point, but which you can buy in stores across Australia, MECCA's home line Mecca Max offers all the candy-like packaging aesthetics with even more colour pay off. It offers products that straddle both skincare and makeup, and have become a beloved brand in the Australian beauty market, appreciated for its commitment to quality, inclusivity, and affordability. The brand frequently launches new, innovative products, all of which are cruelty-free. We'd suggest starting with their Whip Lash Tubing Mascara, Gloss Boss Lip Gloss or Zoom Shadow Stick.
15. Go-To Skincare
View this post on Instagram
On the skincare side of things, Go-To, founded by Australian beauty expert Zoë Foster Blake in 2014, is a brand dedicated to creating effective, simple, and clean skincare products. Using natural, cruelty-free ingredients, the key products – like Face Hero, a nourishing face oil, and the Properly Clean cleanser – have been praised for their gentle yet effective formulations. Aussie beauty icons like Margot Robbie and Jesinta Franklin both count themselves as devotees of the brand.
Feature images: one, two.
Featured products are selected editorially. Our opinions are our own. Occasionally, we may receive a standard affiliate partner fee if you make a purchase using the links we feature.
