Chemical-Free Foundation
Your skin is your largest organ, so let’s treat it right by giving it clean ingredients and nourishment! That starts with anything and everything that you put on your skin every day. But don’t worry, I know you’re here for the non-toxic foundation recommendations.
Pin this image for later!
This post contains affiliate links. You can learn more here.
What is the Best Foundation Makeup?
Everyone has their own unique skin type, which means that you need to find a foundation that goes with it. You can have dry, oily, or a combination of the two that can make foundation apply flawlessly or terribly. I’ll bet you that the main reason why your foundation clings to your skin in an awkward way is that your skin isn’t prepped properly!
The key to combatting this issue is to have a proper skin care routine, and a non-toxic foundation that acts as more than just makeup. A truly natural foundation will help to keep your skin glowing and moisturized while giving you a flawless look.
The only problem is that it’s hard knowing which foundation is actually clean and natural. Thanks to very little government regulations in the cosmetics industry, companies are allowed to put whatever they want in their products without many repercussions.
And to make matter worse, companies love to fool us with greenwashing! It’s a marketing tactic that makes you buy a product because it seems to be made with cleaner ingredients, when it’s not much better at all.
That’s where experts like me come in. I’ve been on a clean beauty journey since 2012, and I know a thing or two about ingredient lists. It takes some time and practice, but you can learn to read ingredient lists too!
Which Foundation is Chemical-Free?
If you want to be your own advocate for clean beauty products, you have (slowly!) learn how to read ingredient lists and understand its loopholes. It’s the only thing you should trust on a product’s packaging, not the marketing or anything else.
When it comes to foundation, here are the biggest offenders you should look out for when reading ingredient lists:
- Titanium oxide—A powder-like substance that can help give foundation its shimmer. It is incredibly dangerous when breathed in the lungs by causing severe damage to the mucous membranes.
- Talc—Another shimmery powder substance. Pure talc on its own is perfectly fine, but talc is often mined with asbestos particles attached to it, which is a known carcinogen. There are currently no regulations or certifications to show that talc in a product is pure.
- Bismuth oxychloride—Small nanoparticles that give a product a pearly sheen. These particles are so small that they can absorb too quickly and land in our bloodstream. You don’t want foreign nanoparticles floating in your bloodstream!
- Parabens—You can find these toxic substances in just about any cosmetic these days. Parabens are a preservative that absorb into your body as estrogen, which essential means you’re giving yourself a mini hormone shot if you come into contact with them. You can find them on an ingredient list with a super long word in front of it, like Isobutylparaben.
- BHA and BHT—Another preservative that can be found quite a bit in powder foundations. They are known endocrine disruptors that can affect reproductive health, such as fetal development and overall fertility.
- Heavy metals—Yes, it’s common to find heavy metals like aluminum in your foundation. You gotta get that sparkle somehow! Heavy metals are dangerous to the nervous system, among many other things.
What is the Cleanest Foundation?
Now that we’ve gone over the depressing side of the cosmetics industry, let’s get you acquainted with a few brands I know you can trust! These non-toxic foundations get my seal of approval because they not only have clean ingredients, but they also help your skin in some way.
Let me be clear; there are plenty more clean foundations out there than the ones I’m about to show you. You can see all of them on clean beauty marketplaces like The Detox Market.
I wanted to pick my top three favorite natural foundations so that you don’t get too overwhelmed. I get decision fatigue easily, so I thought it would be better to take it slow and I’ll add more if I see a need. Let’s jump in!
Best Non-Toxic Foundation for Oily Skin | 100% Pure Bamboo Blur Tinted Moisturizer and Setting Powder
I’ve loved 100% Pure for their fantastic skin care and makeup products, but their Bamboo Blur Tinted Moisturizer deserves some love in this post. It’s a lesser-known foundation of theirs, but it’s perfect for oily skin types.
Yes, I know that this is a tinted moisturizer instead of an actual 100% pure foundation, but I’ve found this to be just as effective, if not more. If you’re like me and your face is a constant oil slick, I’ve learned that constantly battling the oiliness by blotting and wiping all day won’t solve the problem.
I know it sounds counterintuitive, but adding more moisture to oily skin helps keep everything balanced for me. The moisturizing ingredients of aloe vera and pomegranate oil keep everything hydrated without leaving my skin feeling heavy. And that’s a huge win for me! This is one of the few foundations that don’t leave me feeling like I’ve got a heavy layer of gunk on my face.
You can layer this tinted moisturizer for whatever amount of coverage you want! I usually go with one layer and call it good. But if it’s a hot summer day, or if I have a dance performance that involves heavy amounts of stage makeup, then I’ll also add a layer of the Bamboo Blur setting powder to make sure everyone stays in their assigned seat.
Sometimes your face just needs a little kick of light moisture to keep itself from turning into a perpetual oil slick. I learned that the hard way after collecting little blotting paper packets for several years. Just give your skin some extra moisture and seal it with some setting powder!
Ilia Foundation | Best for Acne-Prone or Irritated Skin
Since I’ve started my clean beauty journey, I’ve noticed that Ilia Beauty has several cult favorite products. Whether it’s their amazing mascara or their True Skin Serum Foundation, they clearly know what’s up.
I would argue that this is the best natural foundation on the market, because it’s also a serum that’s designed for all skin types. This foundation is fantastic for people who have mad, irritated, or broken-out skin that want to heal without showing their damage to the world. I mean, how cool is it that this foundation can literally heal your skin?!
The serum part of this non-toxic foundation is made up of several lightweight oils that are also very healing and therapeutic to the skin. You’ve got jojoba oil, marula oil, aloe and rose hip that will help your skin repair and heal while maintaining healthy elasticity.
All of this combined with Ilia’s buildable medium-coverage foundation ingredients will even out your skin underneath the foundation while giving flawless results outside. This is one of my personal favorite foundations because I feel like I’m applying a super light serum that instantly evens out my skin tone. It also has amazing staying power and never cakes or slides off my oily skin!
W3ll People | Best Natural Drugstore Foundation
Last, but certainly not least, is one of my favorite drugstore clean beauty brands that I love to recommend to beginners. W3ll People can be found in-person at the beauty section of every Target. You can also find them anywhere else online! They have great prices with even better ingredients.
Their Narcissist Stick Foundation is a great option for those who want a clean, affordable and effective foundation that doesn’t take much effort to apply. I love a good stick foundation because I can simply apply it where I need, then blend with a beauty sponge and go.
I’ll admit that I was a bit skeptical when I first gave this foundation a try. It had been years since I tried an affordable drugstore foundation! But I was pleasantly surprised that this non-toxic foundation didn’t irritate my skin. In fact, I found it to be very soothing. Plus, it stayed all day and didn’t cake in awkward places. My oily skin has a habit of making my foundations sit weird on my skin if I don’t prepare it properly.
If you want to try clean beauty without breaking the bank, you need to give W3ll People’s foundation a go! I promise it won’t be for nothing. If anything it makes a great undereye concealer too.
Final Thoughts on Non-Toxic Foundation
It can take several tries before someone falls in love with a good foundation. And that’s okay! I hope this list gave you some new ideas to try out. I only gave you what I think is the best of the best to eliminate some guesswork for you.
If you want even more clean makeup or clean beauty inspiration, don’t forget to check out The Detox Market for even more ideas! I also love The Choosy Chick for their wide array of vetted clean beauty products.
I don’t wear foundation very much these days, but when I do, I want it to sit well on my skin and make it look flawless. Is that too much to ask? I’ve had all of those things happen with these foundations, and they’re all at different price ranges, so there should be something for everyone on here!
Which non-toxic foundation is your favorite? What did I miss? Let me know in the comments below!
Articles Related to Non-Toxic Foundation:
Need to add:
- honeybee gardens foundation
- Inika Liquid Foundation
- Kosas foundation
- Exa foundation
- Ilia true skin serum foundation
- ere perez oat milk foundation
- kosas tinted face oil
- saie slip tint tinted moisturizer