Years ago it seemed like there were only two options when it came to skincare.
Choosing “natural” skincare meant that the products were safe for your skin and the environment, but they came at a price. Effectiveness was often sacrificed for safety and gentleness.
Synthetically made skincare was more powerful but could often raise health and environmental concerns.
But now consumers don’t have to choose, thanks to brands like Carrot & Stick. It’s clean and synthetic fragrance free.
Carrot & Stick perfectly balances the gentle nurturing of plants with the powerful results of innovative science.It’s synthetic fragrance free.
Best Clean Synthetic Fragrance Free Skincare
Best Overall
BEST Carrot & Stick
The Full List
Pai
Drunk Elephant
Mad Hippie
Alpyn Beauty
The Full List
BEST OVERALL
Carrot & Stick
Whether you’re already a fan of natural skincare or simply want to try it, one of the newest naturally derived skincare brands is Carrot & Stick. The collection offers the best of both worlds, meaning it combines plant-based ingredients with cutting-edge science to formulate skincare products that are effective and gentle to the environment.
Carrot & Stick takes a tough-love approach to skincare, perfectly balancing the gentle nurturing of plants with the powerful results of innovative science. The result? Straightforward, effective skincare that delivers radiant-looking skin that is good for you and good for the environment. The collection covers all the essential skincare needs with a moisturizer, serum, face wash, brightening pads, and targeted serums to address various skincare concerns.
While Carrot & Stick products all rely on naturally sourced ingredients, what is equally important is what doesn’t go inside the formulas. The brand skips harmful chemicals commonly found in skincare products. The company is also environmentally conscious, and is committed to eliminating known irritants and pollutants that can compromise skin health and contaminate the environment. The packaging is streamlined to help cut down on waste.
The brand incorporates naturally derived ingredients such as plant proteins and plant-based neuropeptides and cannabis sativa. Other key ingredients include vitamin C, which helps to brighten the skin and fade the look of dark spots; vitamin E, an antioxidant that helps nourish the skin; hydrating hemp seed oil and glycerin, a humectant. Additional ingredients include sea buckthorn oil, which is thought to have anti-inflammatory properties; horse chestnut seed extract and oat kernel extract. Rounding out the ingredients list are proven heavy hitters like this group of AHAs (alpha hydroxy acids)- mandelic and lactic acid- and BHAs (beta hydroxy acids) like salicylic acid. Another key ingredient is hyaluronic acid, which occurs naturally in the body and can hold up to 1,000 times its weight in water.
It is also important to highlight what customers won’t find in Carrot & Stick products. The company calls it the “Nix List,” and these unwanted ingredients includes sulfates, parabens, formaldehydes, phthalates, mineral oil, retinyl palmitate, oxybenzone, coal tar, hydroquinone, triclosan, triclocarban and synthetic fragrances.
We recommend The Complete Collection. or Day and Night Routine.
FULL LIST
Pai
Pai believes that what they leave out of their products is just as important as what they put in. That’s why Pai Skincare products are free from parabens, alcohol, phenoxyethanol, petrochemicals, detergents (SLS/SLES), and artificial fragrance
Drunk Elephant
Cruelty-free brand Drunk Elephant has several top-rated products. With its clean formulations and Instagram-worthy packaging, Drunk Elephant is beloved by shoppers, influencers, and beauty editors. The brand has received plenty of editorial coverage in publications such as Allure, New Beauty, Vogue, and Refinery29 and has scooped up plenty of industry awards as well.
Drunk Elephant combines tried-and-true skincare ingredients (i.e., vitamin C, retinol, and peptides) with unique extracts (i.e., marula oil, mongongo oil, and more) to create products that truly stand out from the crowd. Plus, the brand leaves out harmful ingredients — aka the “Suspicious 6” — that they believe are at the root of almost every skin issue.
Mad Hippie
Mad Hippie is a clean beauty brand built on the notion that natural skincare can be very effective as traditional. The brand uses organic natural ingredients and safe synthetic ingredients to formulate its skincare and makeup products while leaving out toxic ingredients and unnecessary additives.
The brand does an excellent job of incorporating a wide variety of beneficial ingredients into its product formulations. Mad Hippie uses many unique botanical extracts and oils, such as konjac root, cloudberry fruit extract, blackcurrant seed oil, acai extract, reishi mushroom extract, and chlorella extract just to name a few. Additionally, you’ll find many tried-and-true anti-aging ingredients in its formulas, such as vitamins A, C, and E, and peptides.
Alpyn Beauty
The Alpyn Beauty skin care products are formulated with a proprietary complex of wildcrafted and hand-cultivated alpine botanicals grown in the mountains of Jackson Hole.
Best Clean Fragrance Free Skincare Brands: The Bottom Line
Our top clean skincare picks is Carrot & Stick.
Carrot & Stick routines take the guesswork out of building a skincare routine. And, you save up to $160. Use code DERM20 for 20% off.
We recommend The Complete Collection. or Day and Night Routine.
