The best tinted lip balms you can buy

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The best tinted lip balms you can buy

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  • Tinted lip balm is a great way to add a little color to your face without drying out your lips.
  • Our top pick, Burt's Bees Tinted Lip Balm, is an enduring classic that combines the brand's classic hydrating formula with a shot of pigment.

Tinted lip balms are an enduring staple in my life. They're just so easy to wear, and they barely count as makeup. You can apply a tinted balm without a stitch of additional product on your face without it looking weird. The effect is more like, "What? My lips are just naturally flushed this perfect shade of violet!"

Unlike traditional lipsticks or even lip stains, tinted balms have all the moisturizing power of clear balms, but they're dosed with a hint of pigment. Some are more intense than others, but they're all comfortable to wear and relatively subtle, and they repair your lips instead of causing further damage.

It's the perfect option for days when you feel chapped but still wanted to brighten up your complexion with some color.

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The best formulas don't compromise on ingredients for the sake of a look. Packed with ingredients like vitamin E, cocoa butter, and oils, our top picks are nourishing and fun to wear.

Here are the best tinted lip balms you can buy:

Read on in the slides below to check out our top picks

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Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Insider Picks team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.

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The best tinted lip balm overall

The best tinted lip balm overall
Why you’ll love it: Burt’s Bees Tinted Lip Balm gives the brand’s classic balm a colorful makeover in six wearable shades.

Burt’s Bees lip balm is a beloved drugstore pick, and the tinted version is just as good as the original. It takes the classic Burt’s Bees formula and does it over in six wearable shades with standouts like Hibiscus (neutral pink) and Sweet Violet (plum).

Made with shea butter and waxes, these balms are as moisturizing as they are lovely to look at. The formula is all-natural, made without common irritants like parabens, sulfates, phthalates, and petroleum and packaged with recycled materials. One swipe gives you a wash of natural color and a slightly glossy, non-shimmery finish.

Shoppers and beauty editors alike adore the Burt’s Bees Tinted Lip Balm. The product has a 4.4 rating on Ulta based on 1,290 reviews and has been featured in Allure, Vogue UK, InStyle, and Rank and Style.

With an under-$5 price tag, you might as well collect ‘em all.

Pros: Affordable, all-natural, six shades

Cons: None

Buy Burt’s Bees Tinted Lip Balm at Ulta for $4.99

The best luxury tinted lip balm

The best luxury tinted lip balm
Why you’ll love it: The Dior Lip Glow is a color-adjusting balm that's available in a variety of shades and finishes.

I don’t blame you for being skeptical of luxury makeup brands, especially when they sell staples you could buy for less than $10 at the drugstore at exorbitant prices, but the Dior Lip Glow really is something special.

The formula is color-adjusting, so the shades acclimate to different skin tones and look incredible and natural on everyone. While the original Pink Glow remains the fan-favorite, there are now a total of seven shades and two finishes (satin and shimmer) available.

Editors at Allure, Stylecaster, Vogue UK, InStyle, and Rank and Style recommend Dior Lip Glow and it has a 4.5-star rating at Sephora based on 4,641 reviews.

“I am almost done with my first tube and I must say, I need to have this stuff. When I am in a hurry, I can put this on and it gives me all the color I need. I love that it adjusts to your skin tone,” writes one reviewer.

Pros: Color adjusts to suit skin tone, adds natural flush, available in two finishes

Cons: Expensive

Buy Dior Lip Glow at Sephora for $34
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The best SPF tinted lip balm

The best SPF tinted lip balm
Why you’ll love it: The Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment gives your pout a healthy dose of sun protection and long-lasting moisture in a huge array of color options.

The Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment is one of the most popular tinted balms on the market, and with good reason. Not only do these delightful little tubes come in a ton of shades and pack a hydrating punch, they also include sun protection for your lips.

The formula comes in 14 colors, including an untinted version, each one containing sugar, hydrating oils, and SPF 15. Some of the shades, like Sugar Berry Tinted, are more intense than your average tint. You can go ahead and replace your entire lip collection with these.

Shoppers give the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment 4.5 stars based on 9,047 reviews at Sephora and it has been featured by Rank and Style, Into the Gloss, The Strategist, InStyle, and Vogue UK.

One word of caution — I once had one of these thoroughly melt in my non-air conditioned bedroom, so store them somewhere cool during the summer.

Pros: 14 colors, untinted option, SPF 15

Cons: melt easily in hot weather

Buy the Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment SPF 15 at Sephora for $24

The best buildable tinted lip balm

The best buildable tinted lip balm
Why you’ll love it: The Clinique Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm resembles a regular lipstick but it has far superior hydrating properties.

If you want a bit more color, the Clinique Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm is a good option. The finish is still subtle, but the formula can be built up for more color. It’s more like a regular cream lipstick in this way, but still low-maintenance enough for every day.

The formula is packed with mango and shea butters for long-lasting moisture. The tube comes to a point for easy, precise application. Available in eight permanent shades with an array of limited-edition ones as well, there’s a color for just about everyone.

“I bought this clinique chubby stick in Plushest Punch and I am obsessed with it!! It's super pigmented, lightweight, and long lasting. Will be buying more in different shades!” writes one Sephora reviewer.

The lip balm has an overall 4.3-star rating based on 558 customer responses and has been featured by Rank and Style, Vogue UK, Stylecaster, and Allure.

Pros: Buildable color, pointed tip for easy application, lots of shades

Cons: Expensive for what it is

Buy the Clinique Chubby Stick Moisturizing Lip Colour Balm at Sephora for $18.50
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The best organic tinted lip balm

The best organic tinted lip balm
Why you’ll love it: The Ilia Tinted Lip Conditioner is an organic treatment that nourishes chapped lips while delivering a natural flush of color.

These days there are tons of options for the ingredient conscious. Take the Ilia Tinted Lip Conditioner, an organic treatment that gives you a healthy dose of simple color while moisturizing chapped lips.

The gentle formula uses cocoa butter, vitamin E, olive fruit and sesame oils to hydrate and “regenerate the skin from the inside out.” It comes in 12 shades ranging from the warm nude Nobody’s Baby to the deep berry Pink Moon. This a great pick if you want some variety.

It’s gluten-free, cruelty-free, and lacking in petrochemicals, mineral oil, nanoparticles, and other unpopular ingredients.

The Ilia Tinted Lip Conditioner has a 4-star rating on Sephora based on 132 reviews and has been featured by Stylecaster, InStyle, Into the Gloss, and Rank and Style.

Pros: Organic, made with natural dyes, gluten-free

Cons: Expensive

Buy the Ilia Tinted Lip Conditioner at Sephora for $28
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