Lipstick Iced Iris vs Super Stay Vinyl Ink Liquid Lipcolor: which is safer?

Burt's Bees Lipstick Iced Iris is the clear pick. Maybelline Super Stay Vinyl Ink Liquid Lipcolor carries a failing PFAS grade, and we never recommend buying a failing product.

Our pick

Burt's Bees Lipstick Iced Iris

Burt's Bees

Lipstick Iced Iris

PFAS grade

Excellent 75/100

Overall grade

Good 63/100

Verdict

Buy

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

wax, oils, pigments (standard lip color base)

Confidence

78%

PossibleFragrance allergens and essential oils

PossibleFormaldehyde releasers and preservatives

PossibleRancidity and microbial growth in wax-oil base

Maybelline Super Stay Vinyl Ink Liquid Lipcolor

Maybelline

Super Stay Vinyl Ink Liquid Lipcolor

PFAS grade

Poor 30/100

Overall grade

Bad 18/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

liquid pigment suspension with waterproof polymer resin

Confidence

45%

Possible1,4-dioxane (formulation byproduct)

PossibleFragrance allergens (undisclosed components)

PossibleBacterial contamination from open-container use

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag Fragrance allergens and essential oils, Formaldehyde releasers and preservatives and Rancidity and microbial growth in wax-oil base on the Burt's Bees and not on the Maybelline.
  • We flag 1,4-dioxane (formulation byproduct), Fragrance allergens (undisclosed components) and Bacterial contamination from open-container use on the Maybelline and not on the Burt's Bees.
  • The Burt's Bees is wax, oils, pigments (standard lip color base) where the Maybelline is liquid pigment suspension with waterproof polymer resin, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
  • The gap is 45 points, wide enough that this is not a close call, and the Burt's Bees is the one to buy.
  • We are less certain about the Maybelline grade, at 45% confidence against 78%, because it discloses less.

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 →

More lip balm & long-wear lipstick: see the full ranking