The best and worst 2024 trends according to the beauty community

According to a recent report by Research And Markets, the global beauty and personal care products market is projected to grow from $606.74 billion in 2024 to $799.73 billion by 2029, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.68% during the forecast period (2024-2029). The significant rise in users engaging with the beauty world can be largely attributed to the influence of social media and the rapid, overwhelming spread of trends online. Even in 2024, specific hashtags, beauty hacks, niche products, and trending makeup looks have gained immense popularity. Let’s dive into the glamorous highlights of the year, turning to Instagram and TikTok for insights.

The Beauty Industry Thrives on TikTok: 2024 Trends

The platform with the musical note is becoming a key player in the beauty industry, boasting over a billion active monthly users. Analytics from recent years, shared by numerous research institutes, confirm this trend. Among these, Rixin Cosmetics has compiled a list of 2024’s most influential trends: Mob Wife, Office Siren, the Asoka Makeup (inspired by Indian bridal culture), Light Therapy (with a focus on LED anti-aging treatments), Wax Dolls by Pat McGrath, and increasing attention to sunscreen (SPF) and collagen for achieving smooth, youthful "glass skin." To get a clearer picture, including the valuable input of the beauty community, we asked content creators to share their views on the standout products of 2024, their favorite trends, and the ones they didn’t appreciate.

Favorite (and Least Appreciated) Trends According to Content Creators

Elèna Hazinah

• Best TikTok Trend of 2024: Fake freckles. TikTok is brimming with tutorials showing how to create them. Some creators have even come up with unique methods, such as using broccoli as a stencil!
• Worst TikTok Trend of 2024: The Menina do job song, a Portuguese hit that gained popularity on TikTok. However, controversies arose due to its sexist lyrics, with many users performing lipsyncs without understanding the song's meaning, making this a highly controversial trend.
• Best Beauty Trend of 2024: The Asoka Makeup celebrates the iconic Indian-inspired look, particularly from Kareena Kapoor Khan’s portrayal in the movie Asoka (2001). Known for bold eyes, red lips, and sharp contouring, this style has become a global phenomenon.
• Worst Beauty Trend of 2024: Strawberry makeup, characterized by warm tones reminiscent of ripe strawberries. While it offers a fresh, luminous appearance, it doesn’t resonate well with those who dislike red hues.
• Favorite Product of 2024: The HD SKIN palette by Make Up Forever, loved for its 12 shades of tinted creams for a flawless base.

Fabiola Baglieri

• Best TikTok Trend of 2024: The Hear Me Out Cake trend, adored by friends. Participants place unlikely celebrity crush photos on a cake using toothpicks.
• Worst TikTok Trend of 2024: Que vas hacer hoy song, yet another lipsync hit. Many performed it without understanding the sexually suggestive Spanish lyrics.
• Best Beauty Trend of 2024: Do your makeup like your celebrity lookalike, where users recreate the makeup of their celebrity lookalikes using filters to identify their doppelgängers.
• Worst Beauty Trend of 2024: The boy pretty VS girl pretty makeup trend, which highlights how people create makeup to suit themselves versus societal expectations, sparking important conversations about self-expression.
• Favorite Product of 2024: Sephora brow gel.

Anna Volpi

• Best TikTok Trend of 2024: “The Olive Oil Story” trend, where people share hilarious stories featuring the Pepe the King Prawn meme, and the Apple Dance by Charlie XCX.
• Worst TikTok Trend of 2024: The obsession with three-day micro-trends, as Anna hopes for more meaningful trends in 2025.
• Best Beauty Trend of 2024: Using Fissan paste for acne scars, a method that has revolutionized her skincare routine.
• Worst Beauty Trend of 2024: Ingredient-scanning apps that assign safety ratings to products, which Anna argues are unnecessary as cosmetics are regulated to be safe.
• Favorite Product of 2024: VT Reedle shot (a microneedle face treatment), Wonderskin lip stain, and Isamaya beauty gloss.

Emanuela Catalano

• Best TikTok trend of 2024: “Women in male fields” is the perfect trend to end the year on a high note. Women create videos where they step into men's shoes, mimicking behaviors and phrases that they often find disrespectful in relationships. Emanuela explains that she chose this trend because, in her opinion, “it opens people's eyes to the small discriminations women have to endure daily, but with an ironic twist that makes the message even more powerful.”
• Worst TikTok trend of 2024: for her, the worst trend is also “my wife is late because...”. She explains that, as often happens, the trend spiraled out of control, leading many women to compete with each other.
• Best beauty trend of 2024: the latte make-up look aims to recreate the effect of sun-kissed, warm, and luminous skin, much like a delicious cappuccino.
• Worst beauty trend of 2024: the lip combos inspired by the 90s, characterized by a stark contrast between the lipstick and lip liner colors. Emanuela isn’t fond of the mismatch between the two shades, which is why she lists it among the “failures.”
• Favorite product of 2024: Emanuela also can't live without the Make-up Forever palette.

What can we expect from 2025?

It’s impossible to know for sure what trends await us in 2025, but we can venture a few predictions. While it’s unclear if we’ll move away from micro trends, one thing is certain: we’ll need to learn to be more transparent, ditch filters, and step away from the fictional world of social media. In beauty, we foresee a possible trend centered around cherry tones, captivating everyone from makeup to fashion and even hair. There’s likely to be a fascination with medieval-inspired styles and the dominance of polychromatic makeup inspired by the colors of our aura.