I Tripled the Length of My Short Lashes With These 10 Eye-Opening Mascaras (2024)

For a tiny tube of black goo, choosing a long-lasting, high-quality mascara isn’t as simple as I imagined. Several factors influence whether a mascara will give you volume and lengthy, Bambi-like lashes or streaky dark circles, from bristle thickness to formula to shade. According to makeup artist Kristi Fiola, brush shape is also a key factor to consider. “Hourglass-shaped wands make the lashes appear more dense and dramatic,” she explains. Meanwhile, curved brushes help wayward lashes move in one uniform direction, and straight designs are great for separating hairs.

With this in mind, I tested a dozen top-rated mascaras ranging from drugstore picks to ones from luxury makeup brands. I considered how long their formulas held up against sweaty subway rides and eight-hour workdays without smudging or flaking. I also paid close attention to each one’s texture, determining if they made my lashes stick together or appear thick and defined. After carefully judging each one, these 10 mascaras earned the highest marks and a spot on my list.

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Our Top Picks

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Why We Love It: I previously only associated Buxom with lip plumpers, but I’m now wholly devoted to its mascara line. The formula was smooth and easy to glide onto my lashes thanks to the brush’s tiny bristles that move between each lash to prevent clumping. I saw instant volume, similar to wearing false lashes. The formula held up perfectly after dancing all night—my lashes even maintained their curl all night (I saw them in the mirror when I returned home hours later).

Who It's For: If you’re typically a no-makeup makeup girl like me, you’ll reach for this mascara whenever you want a little extra oomph. It gives dramatic lift and volume to lashes while still looking totally natural.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.37 oz | Key Ingredients: Vitamin E | Waterproof: No

Why We Love It: The Essence Bye Bye Panda Eyes! Mascara made me question why I avoided buying drugstore mascara for so long. The first two coats of this lightweight formula applied seamlessly, leaving me with long, separated lashes. I noticed my lashes began to stick together when I got eager and applied a third coat; two was plenty to reach my desired length.

Who It's For: Rather than going for a dramatic look, the Essence mascara enhances your natural lashes. This is a great option if you already have thick lashes and want a little more length.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.54 oz | Key Ingredients: Vitamin E | Waterproof: No

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Why We Love It: If you’re familiar with the makeup artist and editor-lauded, They’re Real! Mascara from Benefit, consider the Roller Lash its more laid-back cousin. The mascara is ideal for an everyday look thanks to its thin, curved brush that subtly lifts lashes upwards while providing modest length. However, building upon the clump-free formula was easy when I wanted longer lashes and more intense color. I occasionally layered 10 coats on my lashes, and they never stuck together.

Who It's for: This is an excellent option for my friends with thin and short lashes. You can add as much product as you please without worrying about its lightweight formula clumping and weighing your lashes down.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.3 oz | Ingredients: Provitamin B5, vitamin E | Waterproof: No

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Why We Love It: Choosing among colorful ColourPop products, particularly its cream eyeshadows, makes me feel like a kid in a candy shop. This bright, cobalt blue mascara is no exception. Its color is noticeable but not too intense, meaning I could wear it at work without looking like a scary Smurfette. While its punchy shade gave me a definite dopamine boost, I was most impressed with how this drugstore option was smudge-proof. Beyond that, it kept my lashes curved upward all day without assistance from an eyelash curler.

Who It's For: Although these colorful shades require several coats to show up in darker lighting, they are great for anyone who wants to subtly brighten up their makeup look. However, the mascara will be a real showstopper for anyone with light-colored lashes.

Shades: 8 | Size: 0.24 oz | Key Ingredients: Rice bran wax | Waterproof: No

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Why We Love It: Like many beauty discoveries, I learned about tubing mascara on TikTok. Still, I wasn’t entirely convinced by the life-changing lengthening claims until I tried the KVD Full Sleeve mascara. It did as promised—the formula creates little polymer tubes around each lash, allowing me to pull on lashes to remove the mascara rather than using a makeup cleanser. The KVD formula also gave my short, flat lashes the most dramatic volume and a noticeable curl that held all day.

Who It's For: This is a must-try mascara for anyone with sensitive eyes like me. I quickly pulled the tubes off without damaging my lashes or irritating my eyes with cleansers and scrubbing.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.37 oz | Key Ingredients: Sunflower seed oil, berry wax | Waterproof: Yes

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Why We Love It: The Lancôme Hypnôse mascara gave me such fluttery, lengthy lashes that I wanted to fake a rom-com moment and skip around the NYC streets while wearing it. Hundreds of long bristles on the S-shaped brush offer beautiful lift and volume without clumping. The high-quality formula gave me thick, gorgeous lashes that stay that way through sweat and water to the face. It did not smudge or flake even after a long walk in 90-degree weather and swimming in the ocean. One note: Removing it requires extra elbow grease from a makeup remover wipe or cleanser.

Who It's For: When I say this mascara won’t budge, I mean it. You can feel confident your lashes will look perfect even hours after swiping the waterproof formula in the morning.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.22 oz | Key Ingredients: Beeswax | Waterproof: Yes

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Why We Love It: I consider the Maybelline Waterproof Mascara a pink and green preteen rite of passage. Even though a decade has passed since I initially purchased it as a 13-year-old, this formula still gives my lashes precisely what they need: volume, length, and a subtle lift. Plus, Maybelline reformulated the mascara to be totally waterproof, which means no raccoon eyes from smudging on super humid days.

Who It's For: One swipe of this thick, waterproof mascara, and you’ve got just the right amount of intensity for an everyday look.However, it may not be ideal for fine lashes since the formula is a little heavier than other options on this list.

Shades: 2 | Size: 0.43 oz | Key Ingredients: Carnauba wax | Waterproof: Yes

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Why We Love It: The Milani Highly Rated mascara lives up to its name. It darkened my lashes after only two coats, giving my eyes a sultry look that I intensified with glitter eyeshadow. Despite its thicker formula, the mascara still lifted my lashes to the heavens and kept my eyes looking wide open for the entire night. That said, after a few hours, I saw some clumping and occasionally had to pull the tubing formula off and reapply it.

Who It's For: This mascara is a game changer for those with thin, sparse lashes who want drama but find falsies and heavier formulas make their lashes feel heavy.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.22 oz | Key Ingredients: Shea butter | Waterproof: Yes

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Why We Love It: This super thin, precision C-shape brush looks razor sharp, but I promise it applies the mascara very gently. The mascara effectively coated my lashes from top to bottom, acting like a miniature comb.Occasionally, my lashes stuck together from the wet formula. Fortunately, this didn’t translate to smudging under my eyes, where I could get significant volume near the base. Thankfully, this mascara takes no time to remove with just a little cleanser and water.

Who It's For: Anyone with straight lashes will appreciate how this mascara lifts from the lash base, giving a more dramatic curl.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.34 oz | Key Ingredients: Vitamin E, panthenol | Waterproof: No

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Why We Love It: The Tarte Big Ego mascara gifted me wispy, separated lashes that have become a key definer of my natural makeup looks. Although the formula is thicker, the tapered brush design helped evenly distribute it across my lashes to prevent clumps or a tacky feeling. Plus, nourishing ingredients like glycerin and vitamin B5 gave my lashes a healthier appearance. I recommend setting powder under your eyes during application because the mascara smudges a little on hot days.

Who It's For: If your lashes grow super close together and frequently clump, this hourglass-shaped brush helps prevent any sticky situations.

Shades: 1 | Size: 0.23 oz | Key Ingredients: Glycerin, vitamin B5 | Waterproof: No

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Our Testing Process

I spent almost two months testing a dozen mascaras, carefully monitoring their performance throughout the day to curate this list of mascara winners. I judged their effectiveness by how well they lengthened, volumized, and curled my lashes. I also considered how easy each one was to apply and deducted points if my lashes stuck together or felt tacky after a few swipes. Factors such as longevity, noting when a mascara didn’t quite make it to the end of the day or if it started flaking, also affected final scoring, as did the ease of removal.Only those that scored highly made it onto this list.

What to Keep in Mind

  • Wand: For lengthening, thin wands with rubberized bristles help comb each hair without clumping. “I find that a thin, bendy rubber-like wand gives your lashes the best coat without it looking clumpy,” says Cynthia Mojica, a New York City-based makeup artist. On the other hand, a giant, bushy wand will yield more volume. However, we wouldn’t recommend it for people with lots of volume at the base; that excess product will just excuse itself under your eyes and clump your already full hairs. Curved wands and rounded mascara tips are helpful with curling.
  • Shade: Black is typically the go-to shade for mascara because it “brings depth to your eyes and is a great way to enhance lashes and make your eyes pop,” says celebrity makeup artist Armando Kole. On the other hand, “Brown emphasizes your eyes, without coming out too bold or too strong, and looks a lot more effortless,” he explains. The orange tone in brown mascaras helps blue eyes pop, adds Kole. For hazel eyes, Kole recommends deep purple or plum mascara. “These shades bring out the yellow tones,” he says. You can also experiment with jewel-toned mascaras to further match your eye color and makeup look.
  • Formula: Selecting a formula comes down to what’s important to you. In addition to benefits like volume or length, you can choose between clean and vegan formulas, those with nourishing oils, and tubing technology, which offers more water resistance.

Your Questions, Answered

How do you remove waterproof mascara?

“I like to take a cotton round and drench it in warm/hot water, pressing the access in the palms of my hands, and then place it over one eyelid at a time for about 15 seconds before wiping it away,” says celebrity makeup artist Brittany Whitfield. “This softens and weakens the formula before removing it with makeup remover.”

What's the best way to apply mascara?

Makeup artist Casey Gouveia says, “Start at the lash line with a little wiggle to get it set and dispersed evenly.” Follow this by “brushing it out slowly and pulling upward toward the outer corners of your eye,” she says. Usually, three coats is the magic number. Gouveia also recommends wiping off excess formula on the mascara tube’s edge.

Is mascara safe for sensitive eyes?

If you have sensitive eyes, look for vegan or organic formulas. I also recommend tubing formulas that allow you to easily remove mascara by pulling off the formula without a potentially irritating cleanser.A good rule of thumb is to replace your mascara every three to six months to prevent a reaction from expired makeup.

Can you apply all mascaras to the lower eyelashes?

Yes, you can apply all mascaras to lower lashes. Sometimes, bigger brushes make it hard to be exact with tiny bottom lashes. Spike ball and pointed mascara brushes allow you to apply specific lashes and tight corners more easily.

Why Shop With Us

Lily Forand is a freelance tester and writer for InStyle. In addition to testing every product on this list, she spoke with the following experts for tips on what to look for in a great mascara:

  • Kristi Fiola is a New Jersey-based makeup artist specializing in wedding looks.
  • Casey Gouveia is a New York-based makeup artist.
  • Armando Kole is a celebrity makeup artist who has worked with Lady Gaga, Cardi B, and Beyonce.
  • Cynthia Mojica is a New York City-based makeup artist.
  • She also relied on previous reporting from InStyle's former associate commerce editor, Emily Cieslak, who interviewed celebrity makeup artist Brittany Whitfield.
I Tripled the Length of My Short Lashes With These 10 Eye-Opening Mascaras (2024)
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