MAC Lipstick Vs. Milani Lipstick

Which is a Better Buy?

MAC is an internationally popular cosmetics brand that originated in Canada and a professional makeup artist line. MAC is now owned by Estee Lauder Inc. and is available for sale at major department stores and stand alone stores worldwide. MAC offers a very wide range of products in shades that are appropriate for many different skin tones. MAC eye shadows are particularly popular with fashionable young women because of bright bold colors and glitter. MAC produces several different types of lipstick. Their traditional style of lipstick in a tube is available in 8 different formulas and over 160 different shades. In the U.S. MAC lipsticks are currently pirces at $14. MAC's red lipsticks are what originally made the company famous, so I chose to use MAC Russian Red matte formula for this test.

Milani is a relatively new brand available in some drugstores. It is not available internationally. The range of different products available does not match MAC, but many consumers compare the quality of Milani cosmetics to the quality of MAC cosmetics. Milani is very popular because many of the products and colors are similar to MAC, but available at a lower price. Milani has several different formulas of lipstick available in about 70 different shades. In the U.S. Milani lipsticks are priced between $3 and $4. I chose to use Milani Color Perfect Lipstick in Berry Rich.

In this side by side comparison, I applied each color to one side of my lips, both top and bottom lips. On my left was Russian Red, on the right Berry Rich. I did not apply any lip gloss, lip liner lip balm or any other lip products. Each lipstick was applied directly from the tube in one coat without blotting.

MAC Russian Red is one of their matte formulas. It is a bright true "classic Hollywood" red. Milani Berry Rich is a berry red shade that is just as bold as Russian Red, but a shade more pink. I need to be able to remember which color is on which side of my lips.