Best Makeup Products and How to Use Them
people's choice
The Best Makeup Organizers on Amazon, According to Hyperenthusiastic Reviewers
Photo: Courtesy of the retailer.
Here at the Strategist, we like to think of ourselves as crazy (in the good way) about the stuff we buy, but as much as we'd like to, we can't try everything. Which is why we have People's Choice , in which we find the best-reviewed products and single out the most convincing ones. (You can learn more about our rating system and how we pick each item here .)
And while we've written about lots of organizers before — including jewelry organizers , closet organizers , and desk organizers — here, we've rounded up the best makeup organizers, as praised by the most enthusiastic reviewers on Amazon.
With nearly 5,000 five-star reviews, this acrylic makeup organizer "makes me feel like I have my life together. Even though I'm still struggling with contour and matching wings, at least my makeup is organized," one reviewer puts it. Another reviewer typically "just throws all of my makeup into a plastic food container or Ziploc baggie," but she says, "It was just becoming very annoying." She found this "gem" and writes, "It isn't gigantic by any means but it is the perfect size to keep all of the makeup I use regularly. Everything has its place now." A few warn that this actually is on the small side, so serious makeup gurus might need two of them to fit their full collection But for one reviewer, "I am not an everyday makeup wearer kind of girl or a girl that buys tons of makeup, so for me it was perfect." Another thinks this is "simply a life-saver for makeup junkies." She adds that she owns more makeup than the average person and says, "This is my favorite makeup organizer hands down. It is so useful and holds so many products."
This makeup organizer may be advertised as an eyeliner and lip-liner holder, but reviewers use it for more than just that. One reviewer keeps "all of my Urban Decay 24/7 eye and lip pencils as well as my Kat Von D Everlasting Lipsticks," in it, calling it, "great addition and helps to clear up the drawers or makeup bags. I like that you can see what you're looking for and they can be displayed for ease of use." Another customer is "actually using it for makeup brushes," and explains "It works perfectly if the handles are slim enough." One reviewer with "a huge collection of makeup" loves this so much that "after receiving the first one, I ordered a second one. It holds pencils, eyeliner brushes, eyebrow brushes, tubes of concealer, tubes of highlighter, eyeliner that comes with fiber tips … and more! They hold securely, and it is so well designed that it doesn't take up tons of room on my makeup table." Another says she "honestly would never have gotten these" if it weren't for the "great price," but is glad she did and is looking to invest in a mascara holder now.
And now for some micro-picks for every type of makeup organizer you might be looking for.
One husband bought these clear drawers "for my wife's million and one make-up products," saying he couldn't quite stand the clutter anymore but also didn't want something bulky and unattractive sitting on their counter. "This holds a lot of stuff and it looks amazing," he writes.
"The clear plastic looks and feels really high quality and it makes her life very easy with so many different products in one case." And many more are impressed with the quality and size. One more reviewer convinced herself that these "wouldn't fit my Urban Decay Naked and Too Faced palettes," but after getting these, she writes, "Oh, I was wrong. They fit perfectly even with a little additional space. Now I can display the things I need to use most instead of storing them away and forgetting about them in a drawer." A third reviewer bought these to stack on her counter and says they hold "sooooo much stuff," adding, "It held all 16 of my foundation bottles in just TWO drawers. I was very skeptical when I bought these because I have a ton of makeup but trust me, so worth it."
Makeup lovers understand how difficult it is to find a way to store palettes due to the awkward shape and occasional bulkiness. But lots of reviewers found this organizer to be a great solution. One reviewer keeps palettes from brands like Laura Mercier, Sonia Kashuk, NYX, and Too Faced in here and writes, "If you have a really slim and portable palette, two can fit in one slot. In general, one palette fits per slot." Another person used finally being organized as an excuse to buy more palettes, writing, "It's wide enough to hold my Lime Crime palettes and holds others too. Now I'm out of control. I'm buying more palettes. Soon I'll need a third." Aside from holding a lot of product, reviewers appreciate the design and construction, including one reviewer who writes, "It's very sturdy, and I LOVE how the product is from taller [from the back] and works its way down in height for multiple palettes at different sizes — wonderful to keep track of and store properly."
"I am not one to fall for the hype of Instagram and YouTube ranted and raved-over products, but this right here? This is such high quality," writes one reviewer who says the best part of this palette organizer is that she "can remove the dividers to make the space larger, if needed." And that ability to customize the size of the openings is what attracted a bulk of customers. "I have been looking for something to compactly contain and organize my eye shadow palettes for easy access and this is absolutely perfect," writes one reviewer who was fed up with her DIY organizational solutions. To get the most out of this organizer, she recommends "using it lying down, not standing up. I can fit 24 eye shadow palettes of varying sizes using the nine divisions provided. The dividers are also removable if more space per section is needed."
The main appeal of this large organizer is that it fits a lot of makeup, just like the more expensive options at stores like Sephora and Ulta do, as one reviewer puts it. She even thinks this is better than the $200 options she saw in Sephora, explaining, "I love that it's clear so I can see where everything is. The box is sturdy, well built and it holds just about everything." Another reviewer says her "makeup collection is not a mess anymore thanks to this product." She can fit everything needs, but the subtle nuances surprised her: "I like that it comes with drawer lining that grips to make up so they are not moving around in there as you open and close drawers." One more "beauty junkie" who owns "tons of cosmetics" kept her makeup in cleaned-out glass candle jars for the aesthetics, but she "really needed something for less cylindrical shaped items that would stack up and save space." She writes, "It's easy to pull out the drawers and find my makeup with the clear acrylic, and I think I'll probably get another one."
For those reviewers who need even more room, this organizer provides a generous amount of space. "It's a great size, and it helped me to finally organize my makeup. I love how many drawers it has and that there are a few different sizes," writes one reviewer who actually plans "on buying another," because she says, "I still have a lot of makeup to organize." Another reviewer wanted to "give my vanity a little face-lift," writing, "These made a huge difference. My vanity looks so much nicer and organized now." And another reviewer calls her makeup collection prior to purchasing this organizer "scary and overwhelming," but after buying this and organizing her products, she writes, "Now I can actually see what I have and it's organized and accessible. And this holds SO MUCH STUFF."
Nail polish can be a tricky thing to organize because in large quantities they can take up a lot of room, and the bottles are oddly shaped. But reviewers say this organizer that fits up to 60 bottles made a big difference. "For my amateur self, I'm really feeling like a nail tech adding this stand for my nail polishes. It really looks nice and holds so much," writes one reviewer. Another used to keep her nail polish in a box, but just ended up using what was on top. Now she loves that she can see everything: "It was sooo satisfying organizing all my nail polishes and it looks sooo good on my desk. It fits a variety of polishes including Essie, OPI, China Glaze, Sally Hansen, Seche Vite, Orly, etc." One more even says this organizer "makes it 1,000 times easier to find the color I want each time I do my nails." She notes that you have to assemble it yourself, but she did it "in less than five minutes with no problems."
Not all reviewers have space on their desk or vanity for a nail-polish rack, so they chose this wall-mounted option instead. "It honestly has made such a difference in my room. It makes my nail polish collection look adorable," says one reviewer. Another calls it the "perfect little nail polish holder" and fit over 35 bottles of polish on her shelf. One mom even appreciates that it keeps her kids organized. "My kids have actually been putting the bottles back after using so that's a plus." And a fourth reviewer says if you accidentally spill a polish "it's very easy to wipe down."
The height of this organizer stood out to reviewers with limited counter space but a lot of products. However, most bought it because of the rotation. "I have a small bathroom vanity. Between my stuff and my husband's it was getting crowded and we needed an answer fast," explains one reviewer. After purchasing this, she say she found a solution, writing, "I saw that it rotated as well, and I was sold. The thing that I found the most novel about this item that you don't see with others is that it's super adjustable, so if you change around the products and types of makeup you use every so often as I do, you will really appreciate this feature." Many more say it rotates smoothly and holds a surprising amount. "It's a space-saver and I easily rotate it to whatever product I need, all at my fingertips," says another. One even questions why she didn't purchase this earlier, writing, "I assembled it in less than 5 minutes and now our bathroom counter is organized and not cluttered anymore."
"I'm a lipstick addict and wanted a better display for my collection. This is very sturdy and holds a good variety of different sized tubes. I like that I can see all my options now," writes one reviewer. Another says it fits her "30+ lipsticks, three concealers and a few other items." She does warn though (as do dozens of more reviewers) that Kat Von D's Studded Kiss lipstick does not fit "because it has a wide, spiky tube, but everything else fits well." And one more "organization freak" is just thankful that her "lipsticks have a home now."
With lip gloss making a comeback and liquid lipstick still popular, this holder can organize any budding collection. "I love that it is tall enough to keep them from falling over the way they can in some organizers meant for lipsticks. I also keep lip liners in it," writes one reviewer who now owns three of these. "The only problem I have with these is that they make me want to buy more lip gloss, so I will need a fourth eventually." Another reviewer owns "72 lip products in addition to 48 MAC lip products that were small enough to fit in two at a time." She "went from two vases of lip glosses and stains to three acrylic trays to keep everything organized." She notes that this made a huge difference, writing, "Best of all I can see every color and quickly grab the one I am looking for! The bumper feet are a nice touch because it keeps it from sliding around in the drawer."
Compacts typically need to be stacked during storage, which makes it difficult to see what types of products you actually have. So reviewers appreciate the size and depth of this organizer, which one reviewer describes as, "definitely more generously sized than a lot of compact organizers." Another "can fit double, even triple of some compacts in a slot and it fits large products like my Physicians Formula butter bronzer." Another agrees that it fits a lot of thicker powders, and writes, "It fits the majority of my large, more bulky compacts, which soothes my organizational anxiety. This tiered organizer fits my Benefit boxed blushes, Too Faced Soul Mates compact, larger MAC compact, Milani baked bronzer, and some of my skinny face palettes." And one more notes, "They fit my drawer perfectly and make me feel so much more organized."
"I have 97 brushes of all different sizes in this thing," says one reviewer who thinks "it definitely might break" if she adds more but notes that people with a more modest collection will find it perfect. Another reviewer "bought it to clean up my bathroom counter." She says this organizer makes "finding all my makeup brushes easier so I actually use them." Another just moved in with her boyfriend and needed to organize her makeup now that the space is shared. This organizer helped her contain everything. She writes, "I was scared at first because I have A LOT of brushes needed to fit in an organizer but after reading the reviews I figured it was cheap enough so why not. It's made of thick plastic and it even has grips on the bottom to make sure it doesn't slip and slide everywhere, and the best part is that it fits ALL OF MY MAKEUP BRUSHES."
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Best Makeup Products and How to Use Them
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