What Is Lip Oil? Here’s What You Need to Know

Lipsticks, lip glosses, and lip balms may already have a place in your beauty routine, but there’s a newer product deserving of your attention: lip oil. So, what is lip oil? This trending beauty essential has taken social media by storm—and for good reason. Lip oil is a skin-loving, multitasking product that combines the nourishing care of a balm with the glass-like shine of a gloss.

That’s right, lip oils are multitasking powerhouses. They perfectly blend skincare with makeup, as they’re typically made with a multitude of nourishing ingredients and offer extreme shine. Think of lip oils as a lip balm and lip gloss in one. In just one swipe, they can drench the lips in a lustrous finish, while also leaving you with a pout that feels soft, smooth, and supple.

If you want to learn more, good news: We aren’t keeping our lips sealed. Below, we’re explaining what you need to know about lip oils, including how to use them and what benefits they offer. Plus, we’ll spill all the details on our favorite lip oil, L’Oréal Paris’s Plump Ambition Hyaluron Lip Oil.

What Is Lip Oil?

True to its name, a lip oil is an oil or oil-based product that combines makeup and skincare into one luscious, lacquered package.

What makes lip oils different from lip balms and lip glosses is that they are typically formulated with various natural oils: jojoba oil, coconut oil, vitamin E, almond oil, sunflower seed oil, and avocado oil (among others). These natural oils help provide deep hydration and nourishment to the lips, giving them a soft, smooth, and plush feel. And depending on the type of lip oil formula you choose, some options might include other beneficial ingredients, like antioxidants and peptides that protect your skin’s barrier and improve the appearance of your pout over time.

As if that weren’t alluring enough, lip oils can also create a plumping, volumizing effect thanks to their high-shine consistency. It creates a bit of an optical illusion, instantly giving you a fuller-looking pout.

What Does Lip Oil Do?

Put simply, lip oils take care of your delicate lip skin while enhancing your makeup look.

As mentioned, many lip oils are formulated with hydrating ingredients that nourish your lips. This added hydration can help protect your lips from dryness, damage, and harsh elements. Not to mention, lip oils are the perfect finishing touch to any makeup look since they dress up the lips with intense shine. You can easily wear one alone to enhance your lip’s natural color or layer it on top of a bright, bold lipstick for an extra standout finish.

7 benefits of using lip oil

If you're still questioning, “Is lip oil good for your lips?”, let us give you a quick overview of some of the (many) lip oil benefits that have made this product a true staple.

• Deep hydration: Lip oils can deliver deep moisture to the lips thanks to their oil-based properties. Many give lips an extra nourishing feel that lasts throughout the day.
• Lip barrier protection: Thanks to the many moisture-locking oils in lip oils, they can create a barrier over your lips and help protect them.
• Nourishing ingredients: Ingredients like vitamin E, coconut oil, jojoba oil, and hyaluronic acid are some of the popular picks for lip oil formulas. And all of these have their own benefits.
• Lightweight feel: Most lip oils don’t leave behind a sticky, gooey consistency, and instead, feel soft and lightweight on the lips.
• Glossy finish: Similar to lip gloss, lip oils provide a high-shine finish and can be worn alone or layered with other lip products.
• Subtle tints: Some lip oils are clear, but many offer a soft flush of color. This makes them great for everyday makeup looks.
• Easy application: While some lip makeup really requires a steady hand and a magnifying mirror to get the perfect application, lip oils are easy to swipe on without looking. This is true for reapplication too, making them great for on-the-go use.

What to look for in a lip oil

When choosing a lip oil, the formula is key. Look for ones with nourishing oils, such as jojoba oil, coconut oil, almond oil, cherry oil, sunflower seed oil, and avocado oil, for deep hydration and conditioning. Other oils that may not sound as familiar but are commonly used in cosmetics include ethylhexyl palmitate and diisostearyl malate.

Of course, lip oils contain more than just oils. In order to provide all those benefits we spoke to above, they tend to feature other skincare powerhouses. Some to keep an eye out for include honey, hyaluronic acid, peptides, and squalane.

Types of Lip Oils and How To Choose the Right One

Just like lipsticks or lip glosses, there are different types of lip oils to choose from. Many options will include a variety of skincare benefits and come in a range of lip shades and finishes. Here’s a breakdown of five of the most common types:

• Tinted Lip Oils: These lightly-pigmented options provide a subtle wash of color while keeping lips hydrated and glossy.
• Clear Lip Oils: For a natural look that still packs a punch, clear lip oils are the perfect option. And if you ever want more color, you can easily layer them over lipstick.
• Shimmer Lip Oils: Infused with fine glitter or shimmer particles, these oils offer a sparkly finish for a more glamorous, radiant look.
• Plumping Lip Oils: Any shiny lip oil can help make lips appear fuller, but for more oomph, there are plumping options. These contain ingredients like peppermint oil to create a temporary plumping effect.
• Nourishing Lip Oils: Rich in natural oils like jojoba, argan, or almond, these formulas often contain added vitamins and are designed to restore and hydrate dry or chapped lips.

When choosing a lip oil, consider what you want most—whether it’s hydration, a hint of color, or added skincare benefits like plumping or nourishing ingredients. For an option that hits on all of the above, try the L’Oréal Paris Plump Ambition Hyaluron Lip Oil. Available in 10 shades, some of which include pink, nude, plump, and clear, it delivers a volumizing, glass-like finish while also hydrating lips for up to 24 hours. The lightweight, non-sticky formula features hyaluronic acid and tripeptides for instantly smoother, plumper-looking lips.

How to Use Lip Oil in Your Routine

One of the many benefits of lip oil is that it’s soversatile. You can use an oil on lips as a daily moisturizer, a nightly treatment, or to add an extra touch of glam to your makeup look—to name a few options. Below, we’ll dig deeper into four of our top ways to use lip oils in your routine.

• Daily hydrator: Whether you’re wearing a lip oil alone or layering it with other lip products, it can keep your lips hydrated, nourished, and plump throughout the day.
• Nighttime lip treatment: Some lip oils include ingredients that can help care for dry and flaky skin. Applying these at night can help with getting intense hydration while you sleep.
• Pout protector: Since lip oils create a barrier over your lips, they can help protect your pout.
• High-shine finishing touch: Add a little razzle dazzle to your makeup look by layering a lip oil on top of your lipstick. The added shine is sure to turn heads.

Next Up: How to Apply Lipstick: Tips, Tricks, and Techniques to Try

Photo courtesy of L’Oréal Paris