The YOU Beauty Awards 2026: Expert judges and thousands of readers have chosen this year’s 46 very best skincare, hair and make-up products – with a £6.99 moisturiser coming out on top

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Whether you’re browsing the skincare aisle of Boots or trying to choose a new foundation out of the seemingly hundreds of options available, it can be overwhelming.

We all want to find the most effective serum, the concealer that looks natural but seamlessly covers every flaw, the conditioner that will give us a guaranteed good hair day – but when there’s so much on offer, how do you know where to start?

That’s where we come in. 

After testing hundreds of products, our panel of industry experts picked their standouts across five categories: haircare, make-up, bodycare, skincare and fragrance, and asked you to vote for your favourite online. 

The beauty panel judges

Jackie Annesley

You’s editor has seen it all. Her years of reading beauty copy and trying new products mean only the truly exceptional earn her vote.

Caroline Barnes

A highly respected make-up artist, Caroline’s expertise is trusted by A-list clients including Kylie Minogue and Sheryl Crow.

Hadley Yates

Working with an elite roster of high-profile clients, Hadley is a leading hairstylist who rigorously tests products in real-world settings every day.

Alice du Parcq

An award-winning beauty editor and fragrance specialist, Alice brings a refined nose and industry insight to the panel.

Dr Ifeoma Ejikeme

One of the UK’s top aesthetics experts, Ifeoma combines clinical expertise with in-depth knowledge of ingredients and formulations.

Rosie Green

With three decades of experience, YOU’s beauty editor knows exactly which products deliver visible results – and which don’t.

Alice Robertson

As deputy beauty editor, Alice has a sharp eye for both performance and value, ensuring every recommendation deserves its place.

Reader-voted winners 

You responded in record numbers: more than 8,000 of you voted for these worthy winners… 

Readers’ Top 10

• 1st: Aveeno Skin Relief Moisturising Lotion, £6.99, lookfantastic.com
• 2nd: Astral Intensive Moisturiser, £4.69, boots.com
• 3rd: Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream, £31, lookfantastic.com
• 4th: Clarins Hand & Nail Treatment, £29, boots.com
• 5th: CK One Eau de Toilette, £55, boots.com
• 6th: Estée Lauder Double-Wear Stay-in-Place Foundation, £39.50, lookfantastic.com
• 7th: Lancôme La Vie Est Belle Eau de Parfum, £69, lookfantastic.com
• 8th: Aussie 3-Minute Miracle Deep Conditioner, £3.33, boots.com
• 9th: Colour Wow Dream Coat Supernatural Spray, £27, lookfantastic.com
• 10th: Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser, £9.99, lookfantastic.com

With its shea butter and triple oat complex, your top pick works miracles soothing dry and itchy skin. It sinks in fast and is super-affordable, too.

Launched in 1953 and loved by everyone from Joanna Lumley to Patsy Kensit, this hero face and body hydrator removes make-up as well.

This iconic salve nourishes lips, cuticles and dry patches, gives cheekbones glow and tames brows (let’s not discuss where Prince Harry puts it).

The judges’ winners

HAIRCARE

Haircare winners: Quick List

• Best Treatment: K18 Leave-in Molecular Repair Hair Mask, £30, spacenk.com
• Best Shampoo: Arkive All Day Extra Shampoo, £11.20, boots.com
• Best Volumiser: VO5 Instant Volume Powder, £4.99, superdrug.com
• Best for Anti-Frizz: Color Wow Dream Coat Supernatural Spray, £29, spacenk.com
• Best for Curls: Umberto Giannini Curl Jelly Scrunching Jelly, £8.95, boots.com
• Best Hairspray: L’Oréal Elnett Strong Hold Micro-Diffusion Hairspray, £5, lookfantastic.com
• Best Styling Spray: Olaplex Volumizing Blow Dry Mist, £30, spacenk.com
• Best Conditioner: Moroccanoil All In One Leave-in Conditioner, £25, sephora.co.uk 

TREATMENT: At my salon, this game-changer helps us to keep our clients’ hair in the best condition while changing up their looks. – Hadley Yates 

SHAMPOO: This makes my hair so happy – light, clean and bouncy! It feels great to massage into my scalp, too, and smells wonderful. Caroline Barnes

VOLUMISER: This beauty steal is genius at adding oomph to flat hair with minimal fuss or mess. A stylist used it on me for a photo shoot and I’ve been hooked ever since. Rosie Green

ANTI-FRIZZ: A good drench of this before blow-drying and hair feels way silkier, less brittle and dry, but without the sticky weight of a styling product. Alice du Parcq

CURL: From wavy to tightly coiled hair, this affordable product defines curls without crunch. Alice Robertson

HAIRSPRAY: This is hands down the best hairspray – it’s easily brushed out but also gives hair the perfect amount of hold. Hadley Yates

STYLING SPRAY: Finding a product that adds body without leaving hair feeling crispy or looking stringy is the holy grail. Alice Robertson

CONDITIONER: Does your usual creamy conditioner fail your knotted post-wash hair? Same. Three sprays of this, and your brush glides through. Jackie Annesley

MAKE-UP

Make-up winners: Quick List 

• Best Lipstick: Jones Road The Classic Lip in Nudist, £30, jonesroadbeauty.com
• Best Foundation: Estée Lauder Double Wear, £39.50, esteelauder.com
• Best Bronzer: H&M Solar Soufflé Cream Bronzer, £8.99, hm.com
• Best Blush: No7 Pro Artist Luxe Liquid Blush, £14.95, boots.com 
• Best Eyeliner: Hildun Beauty Silk To Set Kajal Liner, £16, hildunbeauty.co.uk
• Best Concealer: By Terry Hyaluronic Serum Concealer, £39, lookfantastic.com 
• Best Mascara: Rimmel Thrill Seeker Mega Lift, £12.99, lookfantastic.com 

LIPSTICK: I have spent a lifetime looking for the perfect nude lipstick. Reader, this is it. Recently, two people have asked ‘What lipstick are you wearing?’ That’s enough affirmation for me. Jackie Annesley

FOUNDATION: Reliable, long-lasting coverage that stays in place without feeling heavy and works well across different skin types. I tend to favour formulas like this that maintain coverage without clogging pores or disrupting the skin throughout the day. Ifeoma Ejikeme

BRONZER: Delivers a gorgeous, blurred bronzer effect with a faint pearlised finish that looks glowy rather than sparkly. I also love it as a smudge of eyeshadow with my fingertip. Alice du Parcq

BLUSH: Buttery and blendable with a slightly dewy finish for a youthful flush. Alice Robertson

EYELINER: These eyeliners just glide on! No pressure needed to sweep the colour on to your eyes, the pigment melts into the skin, giving you time to blend and perfect. The range of shades is great, too. Caroline Barnes

CONCEALER: This is not only a favourite of mine, but I see it in the kit of all my make-up artist friends. Covers imperfections without caking, looks natural and feels luxe. Rosie Green

MASCARA: I’ve tried mascaras from £5 to £50, and this is the one that has made it to my make-up bag. Its cone-shaped brush is good for catching every lash, and the formula coats evenly, extending each one without ever smudging. Rosie Green

BODYCARE

Bodycare winners: Quick List 

• Best Lotion: No7 Future Renew Body Serum, £32.95, no7beauty.co.uk
• Best Scrub: First Aid Beauty KP Bump Eraser Body Scrub, £27, lookfantastic.com
• Best Fake Tan: Gatineau Golden Glow Gradual Tan, £55, lookfantastic.com 
• Best Hand Cream: Clarins Hand & Nail Treatment Cream, £29, johnlewis.com 
• Best Body Wash: Rituals The Ritual Of Seshen Foaming Shower Gel, £12.90, johnlewis.com 
• Best Bath Oil: Fenjal Crème Bath Oil, £9.75, boots.com
• Best Foot Care: Bare Feet By Margaret Dabbs Foot File, £12, amazon.co.uk 
• Best Body Oil: L’Occitane Amande Sublime Supple Skin Oil, £43, spacenk.com 

LOTION: With the same potent ingredients as the range’s bestselling face products, this formula is just as joyous to use. Left my skin smoother and less itchy in one application. Rosie Green

SCRUB: A mix of chemical and physical exfoliation with 10% AHA and satisfyingly scrubby pumice beads, this works wonders on ‘chicken skin’. Alice Robertson

FAKE TAN: This gel formula is super-easy to apply, never transfers onto sheets and builds up your tan gradually while hydrating your skin, too. Gives a soft, even warmth all over. Caroline Barnes

HAND CREAM: Never been a fan of hand cream. Yet once your hands turn into your mother’s, needs must. This French classic smells nostalgic and claims to fight age spots. Jackie Annesley

BODY WASH: This gel-to-mousse has a lotus flower and orange blossom-scented formula that elevates your morning shower. Rosie Green

BATH OIL: Skin softening with a woody, floral fragrance. It transports you back to happier times for under a tenner. Jackie Annesley

FOOT CARE: Affordable and highly effective at tackling even the driest, most calloused skin. Rosie Green

BODY OIL: This feels beautiful to apply and leaves that iconic vanilla almond scent on your skin for ages. The texture is decadent but not overly heavy. Alice du Parcq

SKINCARE

Skincare Winners: Quick List 

• Best Cleanser: La Roche-Posay Toleriane Dermo-Cleanser, £25, spacenk.com
• Best SPF: Beauty of Joseon Relief Sun: Rice + Probiotics SPF50+, £15.50, lookfantastic.com
• Best Serum: Sisley Black Rose Concentrate Radiant Youth Serum, £198, spacenk.com
• Best Eye Cream: Elizabeth Arden Retinol + HPR Ceramide Rapid Skin Renewing Eye Cream, £58, lookfantastic.com
• Best Night Cream: Eucerin Hyaluron-Filler + Elasticity Night Care, £36, lookfantastic.com 
• Best Moisturiser: Dose By VH Daily Moisturiser, £15, victoriahealth.com
• Best Troubleshooter: Dermalogica Phyto Nature E2 Exosome Exfoliant, £148, lookfantastic.com 

CLEANSER: Gentle and non-stripping, this is a good example of a cleanser that removes impurities without compromising skin-barrier function. Ifeoma Ejikeme

SPF: Lightweight but creamy, this sinks into skin fast and leaves no white cast. Alice Robertson

SERUM: Eye-wateringly expensive, yes, but it smells divine and is full of hyaluronic acid, antioxidants and micro exfoliants for plumped, glowing skin. Rosie Green

EYE CREAM: To keep crow’s feet at bay, I swear by this retinol cream that can be used even on sensitive skin. Alice Robertson

NIGHT CREAM: Best for dry or mature skin, this supports hydration using moisture-trapping and sealing ingredients, which are useful during the night when most water is lost from the skin. Ifeoma Ejikeme

MOISTURISER: I really rate this purse-friendly brand’s carefully calibrated formulas that really deliver. This hydrator works on all skin types to plump and strengthen skin. Rosie Green

TROUBLESHOOTER: Part of the wave of new-gen formulas using tweakment ingredients, this exosome serum makes a noticeable difference to skin texture and radiance. Jackie Annesley

FRAGRANCE

Fragrance Winners: Quick List 

• Best Budget: M&S White Jasmine Eau De Toilette, £12, marksandspencer.com
• Best Luxe: Dior J’adore Intense Eau De Parfum, £80, dior.com
• Best Men’s: Escentric Molecules Molecule 01, £60, johnlewis.com
• Best Multi-Tasker: Rare Beauty Find Comfort Body & Hair Fragrance Mist in Feel Seen, £28, spacenk.com
• Best Niche: Essential Parfums Bois Impérial By Quentin Bisch Eau De Parfum, £86, johnlewis.com 
• Best Home: Zara Basilicum Reed Diffuser, £19.99, zarahome.com 

BUDGET: I love the gentle suntan-lotion vibe of this scent – it’s fresh, cool, and a touch creamy. Alice du Parcq

LUXE: Keeping the rose, jasmine and ylang-ylang of the original fragrance, this version is amped up to irresistible with vanilla, sandalwood and apricot. Rosie Green

MEN’S: A modern classic – I love how it reacts with your natural scent to create something unique and personal. Hadley Yates

MULTI-TASKER: This leaves skin hydrated, hair shiny, and its blend of musk, jasmine and bergamot smells wonderful. Rosie Green

NICHE: This subtle, complex scent smells far pricier than it actually is. A bestseller at John Lewis. Jackie Annesley

HOME: Its basil, mint and lemon mix will leave your space smelling clean and expensive. Alice Robertson

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