Buying a clean beauty product that’s supposed to be better for you and the planet sounds like a no-brainer, but if you’ve ever shopped for an all-natural moisturizer or green mascara, then you know that the reality can be more headache-inducing than anything else. Clean beauty is far from new, but navigating the category still feels wildly confusing and frustrating for most consumers. With no clear industry standard (or any formal regulating body to enforce them), buzzy terms like “clean,” “green,” “eco-friendly,” and “sustainable” are open to interpretation, which means brands and retailers are left to implement their own guidelines and working definitions. Some do a stellar job, and others, well, not so much (think: green-washing, fear-mongering, and shady marketing practices—yeah, it can be a mess out there).

That’s why we spent the last eight months curating Cosmopolitan’s second-annual Clean Beauty Awards. Below, you’ll find 60 skincare, haircare, and makeup products, each carefully vetted by me, Cosmo editors, and a panel of industry experts—because keeping up with the clean movement takes a village these days. Together, we narrowed down hundreds of products to meet our current clean criteria (more on that below) and then swiped, dabbed, and swatched the finalists, paying attention not only to what a particular formula contains but also to how it performs and impacts the planet. Keep scrolling to learn all about our winners, the experts that love them, our clean beauty guidelines, and more.

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