7 Organic Foundation Makeup Brands For Sustainably Flawless Skin
Attention, attention: you can now save face and save the planet at the same time.
Too much hyperbole?
The point is, we’re building on our (organic) foundation of sustainable makeup resources, we’re digging through those hard-to-read labels and chemical-laden ingredients to avoid in skincare to find truly natural foundation that don’t have a sci-fi sounding formulation.
Fortunately, there are several brands that are helping hide your blemishes but aren’t hiding their food-grade, natural, and certified organic ingredients.
Whether you’re combating oily skin or dry skin, there is a natural remedy out there for you. Without further ado, grab your makeup brushes and sponges and let’s start applying that sustainable foundation.
But first, what is the most eco-friendly foundation?
To avoid waste, we test products on an as needed basis. This post contains affiliate links. If you buy something through our links, we may earn a small commission. Learn more about why we do this here.
Our Blemish-Free Picks For The Best Natural Foundation
We can’t say definitively for all skin types, but we can say that Dab Herb’s organic cream foundations are gentle enough for most. Serving multiple purposes in one, they help clean up the amount of cosmetics you need, as well as the ingredients in them.
INIKA Organic doesn’t just create a chemical-free foundation for a clean face; they’re creating a cleaner world by offsetting every ounce of plastic used.
To find out how we fully covered our skin and our bases when finding organic full coverage foundations, dab down to the bottom.
The Full List Of Organic & Natural Foundations
- Dab Herb Makeup | Visit Store
- INIKA Organic | Visit Store
- Elate Cosmetics | Visit Store
- Bee You Organics | Visit Store
- Antonym Cosmetics | Visit Store
- Plant Makeup | Visit Store
- 100% Pure | Visit Store
1. Dab Herb
Dab Herb’s Organic Foundation Makeup
Price Range: $2.60–$44
If you’re looking to cure, not just cover, Dab Herb is your answer.
For those of us in need of a time-saver, the 3-in-1 Frankincense Serum organic liquid foundation is a primer, moisturizer, and zero waste concealer in one weightless formula.
Made with certified organic and food-grade ingredients like hemp seed oil, beetroot, and Gotu Kola (known for its ability to relieve anxiety and improve cognitive function), it’s the best organic foundation for mature skin, sensitive skin, combination skin, and all skin in between.
About Dab Herb
The so-called “medicinal makeup” from Dab Herb—which includes mascara, organic eyeliner, eye shadow, and much more—uses the best food-grade, organic, vegan, palm oil free, and cruelty-free ingredients to promote radiance and healing.
The brand’s creator, Crissy, combined her love of wellness, clean beauty, and giving back to create sustainable beauty products that could be enjoyed by men and women—any age, any color, any skin type, and any condition.
They also support Made in the Free World, an organization committed to ending slavery and human trafficking by providing services to rescue and support victims.
As one of the best zero waste beauty brands, they only use paper mailers, and thus both product housing and shipping are plastic free.
2. INIKA Organic
*Note: We are confirming policies directly with this brand.
INIKA Organic’s Sustainable Foundation Makeup
Price Range: $45–$75
If you want to cover your face in certified organic ingredients, let INIKA Organic do the job.
Both of their organic liquid foundations are made with a minimum of 71% organic ingredients to provide natural, dewy coverage for any skin tone.
With green tea extract, hyaluronic acid, and argan oil, the formula uses 100% natural ingredients and fatty acids to soothe and repair your skin for maximum skin elasticity and brightness.
If you’re more of an organic powder foundation type of person, they also have baked or and loose mineral organic foundation with SPF.
The Baked Mineral Foundation is one of our favorites because it’s mess-free and compact, making it perfect for sustainable travel and touch-ups throughout the day.
Its magnolia bark extract reduces redness, while the plant based squalane preserves your natural skin barrier to reduce skin damage in the first place.
The powder compacts are made from post-consumer recycled plastic, while the liquids come in a recyclable aluminum bottle.
Don’t forget an eco-friendly foundation brush to match. Theirs feature recyclable bristles and a biodegradable handle derived from corn and cassava.
About INIKA Organic
What is the most organic makeup brand?
With over 60 industry awards and thousands of five-star ratings for their cosmetics, INIKA Organic is certainly up there.
The Australian brand has a higher level of natural and organic certifications than any other beauty brand. Currently, they are certified Ecocert COSMOS Natural, PETA Animal Test Free, halal, and Vegan Society vegan.
They’re also the world’s first Certified Plastic Neutral makeup brand, with 90% of their brand packaging being sustainable and recycled materials.
Dedicated to curbing the plastic problem, for every kilo of plastic used by the brand, an equivalent amount is collected and recycled.
By partnering with charities, INIKA has collected over 4.7 tons of plastic, which gets repurposed into fence posts to rebuild farming communities affected by floods, fires, and droughts.
3. Elate Cosmetics
*Note: Elate Cosmetics uses palm oil derivatives from RSPO-certified palm.
Elate Cosmetics’ Eco-Friendly Makeup Foundation
Price Range: $37–$50
Elate Cosmetics has a full or medium coverage foundation that can suit any face, any time, any place, whether your skin prefers liquid, cream, or pressed powder.
The most diverse zero waste foundation Elate makes is their medium coverage Pressed Powder. With eight different refillable shades, it should be easy to find a near perfect match for your skin tone.
Mineral pigments like mica and titanium dioxide are the primaries, but rest assured knowing they’re non-nanoparticles and sourced through Responsible Mica Initiative suppliers.
For those looking for a foundation with less mineral pigment content, check out the Refresh organic liquid foundation or Uplift creamy foundation (available in 12 shades).
While still containing a little mineral content for added tint and sun protection, these also feature greater percentages of organic ingredients intended to moisturize and nourish the skin, like organic coconut oil, sea buckthorn, and jojoba oil.
Everything is housed in reusable, fair trade, FSC-certified bamboo palettes (refillable via composable sachets) or in glass bottles with bamboo lids.
About Elate Cosmetics
Canadian Elate Cosmetics bases its business on five conscious beauty principles: impact, ethics, community, future, and mission.
Authenticity, transparency, and trust are embedded in all of their organic makeup—everything from eyeshadow and lipstick to bamboo vegan makeup brushes.
To prove it, they’re members of the Green Business Association, a Certified B Corp, PETA-approved vegan, and Cruelty-Free International-certified.
Elate Cosmetics shows us that sustainability and healthy skin can go hand-in-hand, which is why more than 90% of their ingredients are organic and many are fair trade.
While their stearic acid is palm derived, it’s RSPO-certified.
As an approved business of the Surfrider Foundation, they donate extensively to them and other environmental and social nonprofits. A total of 2% of revenue goes to charity, not including their tree planting and carbon offsetting efforts.
4. Bee You Organics
Note: Some Bee Your Organics products contain beeswax.
Bee You Organics’ Natural Powder Foundation
Price Range: $20–$89
Bee You Organics’ offers two natural non-comedogenic foundations, one that’s mineral based and one for more sensitive skin types.
The mineral organic full coverage foundation includes three simple and natural ingredients: pure kaolin clay, zinc oxide, and iron oxide.
The Kaolin clay strips dead skin cells and acts as an anti-inflammatory agent, the iron oxide has anti-aging properties, and the zinc oxide provides natural sun protection.
The sensitive skin formula isn’t completely non-mineral, as it still contains zinc oxide. However, it gets its tint from cocoa powder instead of iron oxide.
It’s ideal for oily skin thanks to an oil and sweat absorbing organic arrowroot base—you know, the same stuff found in many eco-friendly deodorants.
Both come in five or six different shades to match your skin tone.
With B.Y.O you can BYO mineral foundation as it comes in both travel sizes and full sizes. You can also choose between either a reusable tin or a glass container, and with or without a plastic sifter.
About Bee You Organics
Bee You Organics focuses on clean products that are good for people and the Earth.
They stick to healthy ingredients and have a long list of not-so-good ones they avoid (think: parabens, phthalates, fragrances, preservatives, SLS / SLES, toxins, palm oil, and emulsifiers).
Their environmental efforts extend beyond their consciously chosen ingredients to how you receive them. They only ship in recycled and recyclable packaging and accept returned containers for recycling.
5. Antonym
*Note: Antonym’s foundation is vegan, but other products are not. Their eco-friendly powder foundation is palm oil free, but the liquid variation isn’t. We have reached out to confirm policies directly with this brand but have not received a reply.
Antonym’s Natural Foundations
Price Range: $40–$52
Antonym knows natural. In fact, their products are at least 90% natural and about 11% certified organic.
The Skin Esteem sustainable liquid foundation raises that natural percentage to 99%, and contains moisturizing ingredients like hyaluronic acid, shea butter, and jojoba seed oil that gives dry skin a smooth, velvety finish.
Meanwhile, the Baked Foundation blends into the skin to revitalize and brighten for a natural, transparent medium coverage finish. Housed in a bamboo compact, it’s a lower waste choice than the liquid glass bottles.
However, if you’re trying to avoid minerals, it does contain mica and alumina, of which we’re not certain on sourcing policies.
All of their foundations can also be used for bronzing, highlighting, and contouring.
If you need something a little lighter than foundation, Antonym also makes some worthy organic tinted moisturizers.
About Antonym
Antonym was created to bridge the gap between function and formulation in the natural cosmetic industry, offering products and application brushes for the eyes and face.
This Leaping Bunny cruelty-free and vegan brand remains natural without sacrificing pigmentation. A little goes a long way with their richly pigmented formulas.
You’ll never find synthetic fillers, preservatives, fragrances, parabens, sulfates, phthalates, or other petrochemicals in their products.
Products are made in France, Italy, or the Czech Republic, but we’re still checking in on their palm oil and other sourcing policies.
They support various organizations helping with plastic pollution, animal rescue, rehabilitation support, and education.
6. Plant Makeup
Note: Plant Makeup’s organic powder foundation is vegan, but the foundation stick contains beeswax.
Plant Makeup’s Affordable Organic Foundation
Price Range: $11–$20
It shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone that Plant Makeup uses only plants to cover up your pimples.
Their choice for the best vegan organic foundation for oily skin is their non-mineral Foundation Powder.
It’s free of oxides, mica, and toxins, and instead contains ingredients like organic and fair trade cacao powder, organic and fair trade cinnamon, organic arrowroot powder, and organic aloe leaf juice—all in one cute little glass pot.
But this versatile formula isn’t just a foundation; it can also be used as a brow filler, eye shadow, and bronzer—saving you and money and the planet from excessive consumption.
Similarly, their cardboard push tubes of Foundation Balm double as tinted makeup primers and moisturizers, thanks to fair trade cocoa butter, shea butter, and various seed oils.
Because these contain beeswax, they are more waterproof but are not vegan.
About Plant Makeup
Owner, creator, apothecary, and artist Jes started Plant Makeup in the way all beauty brands should begin—by studying plants.
Realizing that plants work as a natural dye, she started making products that promote true natural beauty and espouse the philosophy that makeup can also be sustainable skincare.
She’s single-handedly revived ancient beauty secrets that thousands of customers around the world can enjoy today.
Recycled, upcycled, and compostable materials are used for shipping, all batches are small, and all ingredients are vegan and local, organic, fair trade, palm-oil free, and/or sustainably sourced.
There aren’t many brands creating pregnancy-safe foundation, but they’re definitely one of them.
7. 100% Pure
*Note: Not all products are vegan, but there are many vegan options. We have attempted to confirm policies with this brand but haven’t heard a reply.
100% Pure Full Coverage Organic Foundation
Price Range: $42–$48
With a name like 100% Pure, finding incredible eco-friendly foundations shouldn’t be surprising.
Instead of harmful colorants, products are naturally pigmented with fruit, vegetables, teas, and cacao that produces natural skin healing effects.
While they mostly utilize non-mineral plant-based pigments, you will find some mica sourced from Ethical Training Initiative (ETI)-compliant suppliers.
With cream, liquids, and powders on offer, you’re sure to find the most natural foundation for your skin.
For medium coverage, their powder foundation takes the cake (literally). Made with peach and cocoa pigments, it proves that you don’t need synthetic dyes for a smoothe, matte finish.
With active botanical oils like rose, white tea, and skin purifying eucalyptus, your skin will take on a natural glow.
For heavier coverage, their Full Coverage Water Foundation provides a deeply hydrating formula made with anti-aging red wine resveratrol, alpha lipoic acid, and superfruit oils that promote softer skin.
About 100% Pure
100% Pure isn’t just the name, it’s the motto.
The business has a dedication to sustainability, constantly striving for clean and fair trade ingredients, sustainable packaging, and eco-friendly shipping.
All of their Fruit Pigmented makeup is cruelty-free and vegan, except for the beeswax lip balms.
All products are housed in recycled or recyclable packaging and are printed with non-toxic inks. Aiming to be petrochemical-free in their product housing by 2024, they offer in-store recycling for all plastic containers in the meantime, incentivizing it with a free trial sample.
All orders are packed in recycled cardboard boxes with biodegradable cornstarch packing peanuts.
Products are USA-made and the headquarters are 100% supported by solar panels and LED-lighting.
Part of their proceeds are donated to organizations supporting global wellness. During checkout, you can choose whether to donate a vegan meal for a shelter dog or plant tree.
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Why Choose Organic Makeup Foundation?
Why is organic makeup better?
Well, your skin is the largest organ of your body.
You wouldn’t want to slather your organs in chemicals, so why would you want to slather them on your skin?
Especially since the skin absorbs 64% to 100% of what’s put on it.
By choosing natural and organic makeup—including the best non-toxic foundation, eco-friendly lipstick, and organic eyeshadow—you’re choosing to not only protect your health, but promote it, considering many natural skin care ingredients have immense benefits.
Like antioxidant-rich organic aloe juice, which helps dry skin and has long-term anti-aging effects.
Organic makeup isn’t just better for your health, it’s also better for the planet.
Since natural ingredients for organic cosmetics are grown without pesticides or harmful fertilizers, they have less of an environmental impact on local flora and fauna.
But how can you tell which organic foundation is best?
How We Found The Top Organic Foundations
What is the most healthy foundation, and how did we dig through the cluttered vanity of the beauty industry to find it?
Well, we needed a clean foundation (pun intended) and started with our natural makeup remover to get rid of greenwashing.
For there, we used our sustainable and ethical beauty to find the best natural foundations:
- Non-toxic: Our faces lit up to find that most of these brands prioritize pregnancy safe, certified organic and non-GMO ingredients—instead of the many ingredients to avoid in skincare.
- Cruelty-free: This means no animals were used in the testing of these products.
- Vegan: Cruelty-free and vegan foundation don’t imply the same thing, so we also don’t want to see animal byproducts in our organic skin foundations—with exceptions for ethically-sourced honey, beeswax, and goat milk (i.e. things that can be harvested without harming the animal).
- Palm oil free: Or RSPO-certified responsibly-sourced palm oil.
- Ethical ingredient sourcing policies: Fair trade certifications are ideal, but since many smaller brands can’t afford them, we mostly like to see transparency, especially when mined minerals are involved.
- Thoughtful packaging: The cream (foundation) of the crop is anything zero waste (reusable, refillable or compostable), but they need to be at least recyclable.
Final Thoughts On Eco-Friendly Foundation
Now you can face the world with makeup that’s natural, healthy, and sustainable.
All-natural foundation is a beauty trend that’s here to stay—just like these products will stay on your face all day.
There’s nothing better than a natural and flawless complexion; you don’t need a lab-made formulation of synthetic chemicals to keep your face glowing.
In fact, Mother Earth might just be the best makeup artist we’ve got. Maybe she should start a YouTube channel…
Or you can just spread the good word for her by opening up your sustainable makeup bag and passing along this list of the best organic foundations to your friends.
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