As the year draws to a close its time to unwind and reflect on your most memorable times… or in this case beauty trends. From glass skin to glazed pretty much everything, we’ve lost count of the viral sensations that surfaced in 2023.
With that in mind, here at Cult Beauty we’ve done some digging and uncovered the most popular beauty trends of 2023. How? By adding up the total TikTok and Instagram tags of each beauty buzzword along with its monthly average number of Google searches. Curious to know which came out on top? Us too, so without further ado, it’s time to find out the top beauty trends of 2023!
TOP 5 SKIN CARE TRENDS OF 2023
1. KOREAN SKIN CARE
With an impressive 5.3 billion hashtags on TikTok alone, Korean skin care was not only flooding our complexions this year, but our feeds too. Fusing traditional ingredients with cutting-edge techniques, it’s all about paying our skin the respect it deserves. Defined by its 10-step routine, the trend is renowned for its radiant results that withstand the test of time.
READ MORE ABOUT KOREAN SKIN CARE >>>
2. GLASS SKIN
It can’t be denied, this year has seen a sea of glowing complexions. The trend responsible for this? Glass Skin. With over 4.1 billion social tags, it looks to reduce the appearance of pores and uneven textures while unveiling a dew-drenched finish. All you need to do is to scroll through your feeds to see how this uncanny trend is having an undeniable impact on the world’s skin care.
READ MORE ABOUT GLASS SKIN >>>
3. DEWY SKIN
With an average of 1.5 million searches per month (that’s approximately 18 million searches this year alone) dewy skin has made it into the top three skin care trends of the year. Similarly to glass skin, it’s all about feeling fresh faced and glowing results. Far from a passing fad, the trend dates back to the ancient Egyptians, when Cleopatra was said to have used olive oil and fragrant frankincense to increase her skin’s shine. But don’t worry, today there’s simpler solutions to achieve this look. Think cleansers, exfoliators, serums and more.
4. CLOUD SKIN
With the rise of skinmalism in 2021, the past few years has seen a stronger focus on complexions than ever before. Cue: cloud skin. Mixing and matching textures to enhance a mattified glow, this fan-favourite trend leaves your skin soft, smooth and shimmery.
5. YOGA SKIN
Don’t worry, when referring to yoga skin, we’re not talking about the hot and sweaty complexion you get after your intense Vinyasa routine. Today, the trend leans towards how one may look after finding their inner peace. Juicy and hydrated, it’s not about hiding imperfections, but creating a hyper-real version of your natural skin.
Whether we like to admit it or not, 2023 was the year of laid-back, lazy looks. A case in point? Skinimialism. Reaching over 52 billion tags on TikTok, the trend taught us to strip back our make up routine in favour for a more minimalistic approach that provides maximum results. While how you approached the trend was down to you – whether that be applying less foundation to allow your real skin to shine through or harnessing the power of hybrid formulas – the end result was the same, proving that less can be more!
2. SIREN EYES
Taking the classic wing eyeliner look, but making it smokey, siren eyes are primed to bring drama. Dark around your peepers and flicked outwards at the outer corners for a more cat-eye silhouette, this look first took to the limelight in the summer of 2022 and has flourished ever since. With no signs of slowing down, we would even go as far to say that it will still be trending once the new year comes around.
3. BARBIE MAKE UP
2023 was well and truly a Barbie world. But it wasn’t just the release of the Greta Gerwig-directed film that hit record-breaking numbers, its cosmetic trend skyrocketed too – hitting over 1 billion hashtags across Instagram and TikTok. The colour pink was everywhere and Barbiecore make up was, well, everywhere too. Think: flushed cheeks, rosy lips, blush lid and everything in between.
4. LONG LASHES
Filling up our feeds over the past 12 months, long lashes have become bigger, better and bolder than ever. From summer’s ‘manga eyelashes’ to the ‘doll-like effect’, the trend came in all different shapes and sky-rocketing sizes. But, unlike most of the beauty buzzwords we’ve explored, this one took over Instagram feeds rather than TikTok.
5. PINK MAKE UP
Every year there’s a specific shade that steals the spotlight, and for 2023 it was all about a pop of pink (we blame Barbie). From placement to tone, this trend was all about versatility, as it encouraged you to embrace your own innovative look. Over the past year we saw the rise of the baby pink lids, berry lips and brighter blusher that lifted everyone’s mood.
Even though heatless curls went viral in the latter half of the year, the trend has come out on top for the most popular hair trend of 2023. Why? Well, not only is this style easy and efficient to achieve, it also looks after your lengths. Boosting bouncy curls come morning, the overnight technique offers show-stopping styles – no heat needed. We predict we’ll be seeing a lot more of this come 2024…
READ MORE ABOUT HEATLESS CURLS >>>
2. SHORT HAIR STYLES
A lot of us had the urge to get the big chop this year. With an average of 160 thousand monthly searches on Google, short hair styles were all the rave. Tapping into the overarching ‘lazy girl’ aesthetics, these lengths were easy to maintain and could be styled in a plethora of ways… We’re talking everything from the butterfly bob and 90s lob to the pixie cut and more.
READ MORE ABOUT SHORT HAIRSTYLES >>>
3. SLEEK BACK BUNS
While some may say sleek back buns are the result of balletcore, others may thank Hailey Bieber,– either way this easy updo allowed us to feel and look put together in one quick swoop. With endless TikTok tutorials revealing tips and tricks on how to make it stick, this slick style managed to gain more hashtags than the snatched and gloss bun put together. We’ll definitely be sporting it into 2024 and beyond.
READ MORE ABOUT BALLETCORE >>>
4. NATURAL HAIR
When celebrity hairstylist Larry Sims forecasted that natural hair would be the hottest trend of the year, he was not wrong. With over 35 million hashtags on Instagram, people all over the world were embracing their natural textures, colours and curls. With industry leaders taking to socials to explain how to celebrate our strands, gone are the days of indulging in hair styles that put the integrity of your mane at risk. It’s all natural from here on in…
5. WARM HAIR HUES
So, we’ve spoken about styles, lengths and textures, but how about hair colour? With the likes of Kendal Jenner, Meredith Duxbury and Joey King turning to copper reds and candlelit browns, 2023 saw a surge in warmer hair hues. Not only are these shades suitable for all skin tones and face shapes but they are also known for brightening up our complexions too – no make up needed.
Now we’ve reminisced 2023 through beauty trends, it’s time to see what’s coming next. Stay ahead of the curve and be the first to explore what’s new and trending!
SHOP ALL TRENDING >>>*METHODOLOGY*
To determine the most popular beauty trends, the Instagram Hashtags, TikTok Hashtags, and number of Google searches were added together to give a total score. All three metrics were weighted the same.
