Tinted Lip Balm Vs Lip Gloss

Most who don’t like to wear lipstick often wonder what alternative they can use, tinted lip balm or lip gloss? If this is you or you're just curious, we can help you choose what lip product will work best for what you’re after. Whether you want to keep your lips healthy, give them a beautiful glossy shine or are after the same colour choices but dislike the heaviness of lipsticks, there are alternatives to be found in lip balms and lip glosses.

The KIND Collective promotes clean beauty while still creating products like our lip elixir that will make you glow and feel beautiful! So, what’s going to work best for you? Let’s look at the basics and the differences between tinted lip balm and lip gloss.

The basics of lip gloss

Lip glosses are used to enhance the appearance of your lips. They achieve this by giving your lips a glossy look that is impossible to obtain with regular lipstick. Some lip glosses add shine to your lips, while others are designed to give your lips a wet look. Lip glosses do provide a shine to your lips but do not hydrate them. Lip gloss can be applied alone or over lipstick to provide a glossy sheen while maintaining the colour of your choice.

Lip gloss's capacity to impart volume or plumpness to your lips is one of the features that people adore. Because of its thick, glossy nature, lip gloss can transform your lips from flat and thin to full and luscious, when applied correctly. Lip gloss has the downsides of being sticky (no one enjoys getting their hair caught on their lips because they've overapplied the lip gloss again!) and can easily smudge.

The basics of tinted lip balm

A lip balm's main aim is to hydrate and moisturise dry and chapped lips. Sun protection factor, or SPF, is found in many lip balms to protect the lips from the sun. Lip balms with a tint can help you add a pop of colour to your lips while hydrating them. If you don't feel like putting on a lot of makeup, a tinted lip balm will suffice.

Some tinted lip balms tickle, some shine, and some shimmer, but one thing they should all do is hydrate. While there are days when we desire ultra-pigmented, matte colour, there are also days when a barely-there balm with a hint of gloss is all we need. Since the days of Lip Smackers, tinted lip balm has developed, with beauty brands ranging from chemist brand to luxury, releasing their own semi-pigmented moisturising sticks, salves, and other products.

However, lip balm isn't for everyone; some don't last all day, and if you want a true pop of colour, most lipsticks will do a better job. While many lipsticks contain healthy elements these days, nothing beats the ultra-nourishing feel of a lip balm.

The man difference

Lip glosses and lip balms both help to keep your lips moisturised. Lip balms are better at this than lip glosses because they are developed to keep your lips healthy, moist, and free of cracks. A lip gloss can be used as a lip balm, but because it is usually applied after lipstick, it does not give the same level of lip care as a lip balm.

The bottom line

Lip balms and glosses both have pros and cons. Lip glosses in neutral colours are available, giving your lips a more natural appearance. Lip balms, on the other hand, come in a variety of hues and tints and can be worn regularly when looking lavish isn't a priority. 

For the perfect combination of shine, subtle colour, and hydration, check out the KIND Collective’s lip elixir here.