The 6 Best Lookfantastic Beauty Staples for 2026

This is the plain tub of cream that sits in a great many British bathrooms, and the product page sets it out simply: a rich cream for face and body, with three ceramides and hyaluronic acid, for dry to very dry skin. The up-to-24-hour hydration claim is CeraVe’s. When we checked, the 454g tub was £13.13 against an RRP of £17.50, with 177ml and 340g sizes below it, and an extra 5% code on top.

Its 605 reviews were mostly five-star. The low ones are about texture and reactions: one buyer found it thick and sticky, another said it left her skin tight, and several describe stinging, an itchy rash or a crop of spots. A tub is a lot to waste, so start with the 177ml if you have never used it.

Makeup sponges wear out, which makes them a natural Lookfantastic buy. The page describes a three-sided sponge: rounded sides for stippling foundation over large areas, a pointed tip for small ones, and a flat edge for blending around the eyes and nose. Two cost £11.50.

Read the title with care. It says “Worth £14.00”, yet the page shows the RRP as £11.50, the same as the price, so there was no saving when we checked. The reviews were strong, with only three below three stars, but the critical ones agree on a few points: they soak up more foundation than a Beautyblender, they feel rougher or bouncier than some prefer, and one buyer thought the pair smaller than the single sponge.

This is the facial sunscreen many people keep on repeat, and it was £16.80 against an RRP of £21 for 50ml when we checked. The product page lists it as SPF50+, broad spectrum, water, sweat and sand resistant, and leaving no white cast; those are La Roche-Posay’s descriptions, built around its Mexoryl 400 filter. The page tells you to shake it, apply generously and reapply frequently.

It had 2,750 reviews, and the low ones are worth reading before you rely on it. Long-time users report reactions to the current formula around the eyes or nose, one says it is no longer fragrance-free despite the non-perfumed name, and another found the smell had changed. Others mention a box that arrived open, a gritty tube and a small bottle for the price.

Elemis’s cleansing balm is one of the most-reviewed products on Lookfantastic, with more than 4,500 reviews averaging close to five stars. The page describes a balm that turns to oil and then to a milk, built on sweet almond oil with starflower, elderberry and nine essential oils including lavender and eucalyptus. It was full price, £55, when we checked.

Look at the footnote. The percentages quoted (96% felt skin softened, for instance) come from an independent user trial in 2012 of 54 people over two weeks. The one-star reviews are about the smell, which several compare to machine grease, a film that leaves skin feeling unclean, and redness or spots on oily skin. One reviewer reported a reaction to rose.

This is the salon hair oil people reorder, and Lookfantastic sells it three ways: a 30ml bottle, a refillable 75ml glass bottle (£46.80 against £58.50 when we checked) and a 75ml refill capsule. The page suggests one or two drops on wet or dry hair, as a pre-blow-dry oil or a finisher, and quotes heat protection to 230°C and up to four days of frizz control, both from Kérastase’s instrumental tests.

Its 1,606 reviews average well, but the one-star reviews are almost all the same complaint: the reformulated version. Long-time users say the new oil is thinner, greasier and heavier on the hair, smells different, and comes in a smaller bottle at a higher price. If you loved the old one, try the 30ml first.

Lookfantastic’s own calendar lists every product and the value it puts on each, which makes it easy to judge. There are 27 products behind 25 drawers, 19 full size, including Clinique Moisture Surge 50ml, Benefit Roller Lash, MAC Fix+ and Aveda’s Cherry Almond shampoo and conditioner, plus a 30ml Elemis Pro-Collagen Night Cream. It costs £120 and dispatches within five to seven days.

Two cautions. The £665 “worth” includes items such as a single pair of the shop’s own reusable eye patches valued at £15 and an eye cream at £98, so count only what you would buy. And its near-perfect rating came from reviews mostly written in September, before many reviewers had received theirs.