Credo Beauty Cosmetics Review: Clean, Green & Female-Powered
If you‘re on the hunt for clean, sustainable and ethically-made beauty products, look no further than Credo Beauty. This retailer has made it their mission to transform the beauty industry by offering only the best non-toxic cosmetics, skincare, hair care and more. Credo has strict standards for the brands they partner with to ensure every item they carry is safe for you and the planet.
In this comprehensive Credo Beauty review, I‘ll give you the full scoop on the retailer‘s story, bestselling products, customer feedback, and more to help you decide if their beauty offerings are worth the buy. Let‘s dive in!
What Is Credo Beauty?
Longtime beauty industry vets Shashi Batra and Annie Jackson founded Credo Beauty in 2015 with an ambitious goal – to radically change the world of beauty retail for the better. They envisioned a destination for all things clean, sustainable and ethically-produced, where customers could shop with total peace of mind.
Today, Credo is the biggest clean beauty retailer globally. They have 9 store locations across the US, a thriving ecommerce site, and partnerships with over 130 brand partners (fun fact: 90% of them are female-led!). Credo even started a mentorship program called Credo for Change to support BIPOC beauty entrepreneurs.
So what exactly makes a beauty brand "clean" in Credo‘s book? For starters, Credo has a super comprehensive "Dirty List" of ingredients that are banned from every product they carry, like parabens, phthalates, and formaldehyde. They also require all brands to be cruelty-free, use sustainable packaging, and disclose full ingredient lists.
In other words, Credo has done the homework so you don‘t have to stress about the safety and sourcing of your beauty goods. It‘s all about transparency and empowering customers to make informed decisions about what they put on their bodies.
Credo Beauty Cosmetics Review: The Products
Now that you know the Credo Beauty backstory, let‘s talk products. The retailer has a huge selection of makeup, skincare, haircare, body products and more from brands like Ilia, Kypris, Herbivore, Osea, and Ere Perez. I‘ll highlight a few fan-favorite products to give you a sense of the Credo goods.
Ilia True Skin Serum Foundation Review
If you‘re looking for a clean foundation that offers buildable coverage and a natural skin-like finish, over 500 Credo customers recommend the Ilia True Skin Serum Foundation. This best-selling base is made with a skin-loving blend of aloe, jojoba, and marula oils to keep your complexion happy. It comes in an impressive 30 shade range and is suitable for all skin types.
Reviewers rave that the True Skin Serum Foundation "feels like you‘re wearing nothing," "lasts all day without getting greasy," and "makes your real skin look perfected and radiant." It‘s especially ideal for those with sensitive or breakout-prone skin since it‘s non-comedogenic and free of silicones, fragrance, and oil.
Kypris Antioxidant Dew Review
Serums are the workhorses of any stellar skincare routine and Credo‘s bestselling option is definitely the Kypris Antioxidant Dew. This professional-strength serum is packed with botanical goodness like sea algae extracts, vitamin C, and ferulic acid to brighten, hydrate, and smooth your complexion.
Credo reviewers say the Antioxidant Dew is "a game changer," leaves their skin "absolutely radiant," and even call it "liquid gold." While it‘s certainly a splurge at $90 per bottle, a little goes a long way. Several reviews mentioned that they saw a noticeable difference in their skin‘s tone and texture within a few weeks of use.
Herbivore Blue Tansy Mask Review
For an at-home spa treatment, Credo customers turn to the Herbivore Blue Tansy Mask. The striking blue jelly formula gently exfoliates, soothes irritation, and clarifies pores thanks to natural BHAs and AHAs like white willow bark and fruit enzymes. The star ingredient, blue tansy oil, is an anti-inflammatory powerhouse that gives the mask its color.
One Credo reviewer dubbed this mask "the holy grail for sensitive acne-prone skin" while another said it "makes your face baby soft and reduces redness overnight." The Blue Tansy Mask works for all skin types and is especially helpful for those with congestion, breakouts or rough texture. Hot tip: keep it in the fridge for an extra cooling and depuffing effect.
Plum Beauty Oil Review
Face oils are having a major moment, but Credo customers say the Le Prunier Plum Beauty Oil is a cut above the rest. This luxurious oil is cold-pressed from locally-grown French plums and loaded with skin-perfecting vitamins A and E, omega fatty acids, and antioxidants. The silky texture melts right into your skin without feeling greasy.
Reviewers describe the Plum Beauty Oil as "magic in a bottle," "incredibly nourishing" and a "savior for dull, dehydrated skin." You can use it solo or mix a few drops into your moisturizer for an extra boost of nutrients. While it‘s definitely a bougier pick at $72 per ounce, Credo customers report that the Plum Oil is well worth the spend.
Credo Beauty Pros & Cons
To sum up the key highlights and lowlights of Credo Beauty, here‘s a quick overview of the major pros and cons:
Pros:
- Carries only clean, non-toxic, cruelty-free and sustainably-packaged products
- Bans all harmful ingredients on their "Dirty List" from products they sell
- Partners with over 130 top clean beauty brands
- 90% of Credo‘s brands are female-founded
- Offers perks like free shipping over $50, a rewards program, and easy returns
- Has largely positive customer reviews on product quality, results and service
Cons:
- Pricier than drugstore beauty products (but on par with Sephora, Ulta, etc.)
- No international shipping outside of the US
- Some very popular items frequently sell out
All in all, the pros heavily outweigh the cons for Credo Beauty. It‘s an excellent one-stop shop for clean, consciously-made products from a wide array of covetable brands. The higher prices reflect the quality ingredients and ethical sourcing.
What Customers Think of Credo Beauty
To get a grasp of what real Credo Beauty customers think of the retailer, I scoured hundreds of product reviews on their site plus third-party forums like Reddit and Sephora. The overwhelming majority of feedback for Credo Beauty is glowingly positive.
On Credo‘s website, most products have between 4 and 5 star ratings. Customers frequently call out how well the products work, the clean ingredients, pretty packaging, and informative product descriptions. Reviews often say things like "Holy Grail product," "exceeded my expectations," "my skin has never looked better" and "can‘t believe it‘s all natural."
The small handful of less than positive reviews usually mention that a product didn‘t wow them or the price was too steep. A few customers also noted frustration with popular items being sold out. But by and large, Credo Beauty reviews are enthusiastically in favor of the retailer and rave about the high quality of their clean beauty offerings.
Credo Beauty Shipping & Returns
One notable downside to shopping with Credo Beauty is that they currently only ship within the US – so unfortunately international customers are out of luck. On the bright side, Credo offers free standard shipping on all orders over $50. For orders under that threshold, shipping costs a flat fee of $5.95.
Credo has a 30-day return policy for products that are lightly used or unused. They‘ll accept returns on items purchased from their site or retail stores. Exchanges are only available for in-store purchases though. To start a return, simply fill out the return form on Credo‘s site or bring your items to a Credo store near you.
Is Credo Beauty Worth It?
So now for the million dollar question: is Credo Beauty legit? In my opinion, the answer is a resounding yes. No other retailer is as thorough or transparent when it comes to vetting clean beauty brands and products. Credo has done the heavy lifting to ensure every item they carry is free of toxins and ethically-made.
That peace of mind is invaluable for beauty consumers who want to vote with their dollars and support brands that prioritize sustainability. Credo‘s vast selection of products at every price point makes clean beauty way more accessible to all. Their female-founded brand incubator and BIPOC mentorship programs also set them apart as true industry leaders.
While you‘re generally going to spend a bit more at Credo than the drugstore beauty aisle, the price tags are on par with or better than comparable retailers like Sephora, Ulta, Follain, and Detox Market. And based on the rave customer reviews, the products from Credo really perform.
At the end of the day, I‘d recommend Credo Beauty to anyone looking to detox their beauty routine and discover the best clean brands on the block. Their transparent, extensively screened offerings and excellent customer service make them the gold standard for natural beauty retail. Hopefully this Credo review gave you the full picture on this industry leader!
