Mineral Makeup vs Clean Makeup: which is safer?

Ilia Beauty Clean Makeup is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

bareMinerals Mineral Makeup

bareMinerals

Mineral Makeup

PFAS grade

Excellent 100/100

Overall grade

Excellent 92/100

Verdict

Buy

Hazard flags

⚑ 2

Material

not stated

Confidence

100%

PossibleInhalation risk from powder format

PossibleMicrobial growth in powder due to low or absent preservatives

Our pick

Ilia Beauty Clean Makeup

Ilia Beauty

Clean Makeup

PFAS grade

Excellent 100/100

Overall grade

Excellent 96/100

Verdict

Buy

Hazard flags

⚑ 1

Material

not stated

Confidence

100%

PossibleHeavy metals in pigments (lead, cadmium, arsenic in color additives)

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag Inhalation risk from powder format and Microbial growth in powder due to low or absent preservatives on the bareMinerals and not on the Ilia Beauty.
  • We flag Heavy metals in pigments (lead, cadmium, arsenic in color additives) on the Ilia Beauty and not on the bareMinerals.
  • These two are level, close enough that price and fit should decide it rather than our grade.

Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →

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