Better Cruelty-Free Nail Polish for Nails That Sparkle

When it comes to cruelty-free nail polish brands the number of choices available can seem endless and of course, this can be both a blessing and a curse if you’re looking to get straight to the best polish for the job. The good news however, is that we’ve done the heavy lifting to sort through the best options out there to let you pick from some of the top cruelty-free nail brands without spending endless hours going over all of the options.

Why choose a cruelty-free nail polish?

As with other cosmetics, choosing a cruelty-free nail polish means finding a solution that does no harm to animals in the production of the product.

Essentially, products which are referred to as animal friendly cover those which either don’t use any animal bi-products (vegan) or are made without testing on animals (cruelty-free).

The truly animal friendly products are of course, those which meet both of these criteria.

When it comes to cruelty-free nail polish, the emphasis is almost always on the non-testing side however if you’re also looking for a vegan nail polish, this distinction is an important one to keep in mind when searching out the perfect nail solution.

Opting for a cruelty-free or vegan nail polish (and a wider base of cruelty-free or animal-friendly cosmetic options) is one of the simplest ways to change your everyday routine towards an approach that does no harm to animals.

What makes a nail polish cruelty-free?

Cruelty-free products are those which have not had any element of testing conducted or carried out on animals at any point during production or manufacture. This definition for cruelty-free includes all of the ingredients and the final product itself.

With this in mind, the same criteria applies to finding the best cruelty-free nail polish and if you’re looking for an animal-friendly nail polish option, then going for a cruelty-free brand or product is definitely the answer.

One of the best ways to make sure that a nail polish is cruelty-free (or any other cosmetic for that matter) is to keep an eye out for an official certification or mark of cruelty-free accreditation. The good news here is that the best cruelty-free nail polish options will specify their vegan credentials or cruelty-free certifications as a matter of pride.

Some of the major cruelty-free certifications and standards from the leading organizations such as Leaping Bunny and PETA are ones to watch out for and will ensure that the nail polish you’ve got your eye on is ethically aligned with your goals and is cruelty-free in its production ethics.

Another important thing to keep in mind when looking for a cruelty-free nail polish (or any other cruelty-free product) is that “cruelty-free” is actually still an unregulated term meaning that while some companies may claim to be cruelty-free, they may not actually have official certification of this to prove it to the end user (you and me) so it’s always worthwhile carrying out your own research if you don’t immediately see one of the major cruelty-free certifications mentioned and if you still can’t find anything at that point, to contact the company directly to ask about their practices and any cruelty-free affiliations they have before buying.

What makes a nail polish vegan?

So, at this point you may be wondering what’s the difference between a cruelty-free nail polish and a vegan nail polish? Well, the simple way to think about it is to consider what makes a nail polish not vegan. Basically, this is any animal-derived ingredients that may be hidden among the list of ingredients on the back of your polish.

The issue here is that these items may not be that obvious at first glance. For example ingredients such as guanine (derived from fish scales and sometimes used in nail polish colors) or shellac (derived from the lac bud and used as a hardener in some polishes) can often hide behind names that we’re not looking for or simply don’t know about in the first place!

Therefore in the same way as assessing cruelty-free nail polish credentials, one of the best things to do when scrutinizing vegan nail polish claims is to look for some kind of certification or registered mark that verifies a nail polish brand is doing (and using) what it says it is.

Best cruelty-free nail polish options

The best cruelty-free and vegan nail polish solutions bring the convenience meaning you can look good and rest assured that the production practices of your chosen polish are aligned with your own ethical values.

In this guide we’ve outlined our pick of the best cruelty-free nail polish brands as well as a selection of our top choices from some of the best in the business. It’s important to note that while all of the brands and products featured in this guide are cruelty-free, some may not be vegan. If you’re looking specifically for a shortlist of the best cruelty-free nail polish options that are also vegan, then see here.

Whether you’re looking for a special occasion nail polish for those one-offs, want something to brighten up the day, or simply want a regular staple that you can match to your mood, choosing from one of the best cruelty-free nail polish options means you can look good and do better every time.