Editor Tip: For a gentler hold and a lightweight feel, opt for the brand’s Original Brow Gel, which is a favorite among staffers.
Key Ingredients: Polyacrylate-2 crosspolymer, glycerin | Available Shades: 1
Best Conditioning: Glossier Boy Brow
Why It’s Worth It: We all know and love Glossier Boy Brow, and you’ll find it in many makeup artists’ makeup bags, to boot. Henney says “there is something for everyone in this range” out of the seven shades (Black, Brown, Auburn, Blonde, and Clear) and the petite packaging makes it super compact and easy to toss into your handbag for on-the-go grooming. (It also has a tiny, bristled applicator for precise application.) This buildable formula also contains oleic acid, an emollient that nourishes and softens brow hairs for a never-stiff finish.
Editor Tip: It’s one of the few brow gels to offer a gray tint, making it ideal for those with gray hair or ashy blondes.
Key Ingredients: Beeswax, carnauba wax, oleic acid | Available Shades: 7
Best Shade Range: Kosas Air Brow Fluff & Hold Treatment Gel
Why It’s Worth It: Kosas’ Air Brow Fluff & Hold Treatment Gel, a 2021 Best of Beauty Award winner, has a moussey gel texture that grips onto every individual brow hair, adding fullness and volume for a laminated look — all without leaving behind a dreadful, crunchy texture. “I’ve used this tinted gel for years to quickly darken and shape my brows,” says Allure contributor Deanna Pai. “I love that it sets in seconds and doesn’t budge or fade throughout the day.” Plant-based microfibers are flanked by panthenol, hyaluronic acid, peptides, and castor oil (in tinted versions) for hydrated, conditioned, and healthier-looking brows.
Editor Tip: You’re bound to find your perfect shade match out of the 10 total shades available, too, or you can go for the clear gel for a low-key vibe.
Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, peptides, castor oil | Available Shades: 10
Best Hold: Benefit Cosmetics 24HR Brow Setter
Why It’s Worth It: Henney says that Benefit Cosmetics’s 24HR Brow Setter “probably has the firmest hold out of any brow gel [she has] ever tried.” If that doesn’t impress you, maybe this will. “No matter if I am shooting on a windy beach or a red carpet, the brows are always exactly where I want them to be,” she adds. The wand’s dual-sided brush (with smaller and longer bristles) keeps brows on lock but also feeling soft and flexible all day long.
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