Best Overall

L’Oreal Paris Flash Cat Eyeliner

$12

$9 at Amazon$9 at Target

$12

$12 at Ecosmetics.com

Formula and Type: Felt-tip liquid liner | Color Range: Brown, black | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Waterproof: Yes

L’Oréal’s Flash Cat Eyeliner was the star performer in our testing—the liquid liner stayed on point from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. without budging. The super precise tip makes getting a sharp, crisp wing a breeze, and the deep pigment payoff means one coat is all you need. If you’re a cat eye newbie, don’t sweat it—this liner comes with a handy stencil cap to help you nail the wing every single time. It dries down to a gorgeous matte finish in just seven seconds and comes off in a cinch with a cleansing balm and some micellar water.

Taylor, tester with combination skin: “This liner really impressed me with its longevity over the course of a full workday and night out, and didn’t fade or transfer onto my eyelids like many liners do when balmy weather enters the equation.”

Best Pencil

NYX Professional Makeup Epic Wear Liner Stick

$9

$9 at Amazon$9 at Target$9 at Macy’s

Formula and Type: Classic eyeliner pencil | Color Range: Black, brown, and various colors | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Waterproof: Yes

If pencil eyeliners are your go-to, you’re sure to love this pick from Nyx. It comes in a whopping 24 shades, so we love it for adding that pop of color to a more monochromatic look. Our tester said it took about two to three swipes to get to her desired pigment, but after that, it stayed bright and present all day. And since it’s so inexpensive, you can pick up several shades and mix things up from day to night (yes, it can even do no-makeup makeup). It is somewhat drier, so it can be a bit tricky to blend or smoke out, but we love everything else about it.

Best Liquid

Wet n Wild Megaliner Liquid Eyeliner

$5

$4 at Amazon$5 at Ulta$4 at Target

Formula and Type: Liquid liner with a felt tip brush | Color Range: Black, dark brown, voltage blue, electric purple | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: No | Waterproof: No

The pigment and applicator tip of this pick from Wet n Wild were both major standouts in our testing, easily getting our stamp of approval for the best drugstore liquid eyeliner. The brush is precise and thin, making it easy to get a sharp wing. The four shades are very opaque, pigmented, and vibrant. However, we were slightly disappointed with how long this one took to dry: 32 seconds. We recommend keeping your eyes closed until dry to avoid any transfer.  

However, once it dried, this liner had serious staying power—so much so that our tester was worried about how difficult it would be to remove. However, to her surprise, both micellar water and cleansing balm removed the pigment with no problem. “I wore this liner on a night out on one of the hottest, most humid nights in New York City, and it did its job. It remained intact all night and didn’t move at all!” said our tester.

Best for Cat Eye

NYX Professional Makeup Epic Ink Liner

$10

$8 at Amazon$10 at Ulta$10 at Target

Formula and Type: Liquid felt-tip | Color Range: Black, dark chocolate, graham cracker, lil toasty, marshmallow, milk chocolate | Finish: Shiny | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Waterproof: Yes

Yes, it’s another pick from Nyx, but if you prefer a liquid liner, this one won’t disappoint. The slim, flexible brush tip made it an absolute dream for creating precise cat eyes. The super-pigmented black liquid only needed one coat to deliver stunning results. Just keep in mind it does take a little while to fully dry—around 20 seconds—so it’s not ideal for rushed mornings. Once set, though, this liner stayed put all day with just a tiny bit of fading after nine hours. Removal was simple with a micellar water-soaked cotton round.

Taylor, tester with combination skin: “I was amazed at how easy it was to apply NYX’s Epic Ink Liner without much error. Thanks to its flexible precision tip, it glided over my trembling lash line with ease, and not even my unsteady hand could make it veer too far from the curve of my lid.”

Best for Beginners

Maybelline Hyper Easy Liquid Liner

$11

$9 at Amazon$11 at Ulta$9 at Target

Formula and Type: Liquid | Color Range: Black, brown | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: No | Waterproof: Yes

Applying liquid eyeliner can be intimidating if you’re new to liner or don’t have a steady hand, but this one from Maybelline, as the name suggests, makes it easy. Our tester was able to achieve a “flawless wing” with minimal effort, thanks to the pen’s fine flex-tip, which was made for precision. She’d even recommend it for tightlining. The formula can spread a little during application, but our tester says it’s easy enough to fix with a fingernail. The liner stayed put all day in high humidity, and the color was as bold at the end of the night as it was when she first applied.

Best for Waterline

NYX Professional Makeup Retractable Vivid Rich Mechanical Eyeliner Pencil

$8

$6 at Amazon$8 at Ulta$8 at Target

Formula and Type: Mechanical pencil | Color Range: 12 neutral to vivid shades | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: No | Waterproof: Yes

This Nyx pencil is perhaps the easiest to apply thanks to its creamy, skip-resistant formula, which is what you want for a waterline liner. Our tester achieved her ideal pigment after one swipe, so she didn’t have to be too rough with that more sensitive area of her eye. “I used a rich chocolate brown color that I think complements every eye color and skin tone and adds a nice depth without being as intense as a black eyeliner,” she said.

It transferred and faded slightly throughout the day, but that’s to be expected on the waterline, which is moister than the eyelid. We love the retractable pencil, but do wish it stayed a bit sharper over time.

Best Gel Pot

Revolution Gel Eyeliner Pot

$9 at Target$9 at Revolutionbeauty.com

Formula and Type: Gel pot liner with angled brush | Color Range: Black | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Waterproof: Not listed

If you’re a pro at applying eyeliner, this gel pot liner by Makeup Revolution is for you. Gel pots are great for creating multiple different liner styles, especially winged eyeliner and more bold, dramatic looks. They do often require some skill and practice (in other words, they’re not always the most beginner-friendly), which our tester found to be true with this pick. She noted the formula is a bit stiffer and stickier than others, which required some finesse to disperse the right amount of product. Still, she enjoyed how rich the pigment and color payoff were, and that, for the most part, it lasted throughout the day. She experienced minimal transfer onto her upper lids because she has oily, hooded eyelids, but other than that, it was pretty smudge-proof.

Erica, tester with oily eyelids: “I loved the boldness and opacity of this product the most! It’s very satisfying to create bold lines and designs. The formula and angled brush combo also made it easy to fill in the entire lash line and get product between my lashes, which is usually a struggle.”

Best Brown Liquid Liner

Physicians Formula 2-in-1 Lash Boosting Eyeliner

$12

$9 at Amazon$12 at Ulta$13 at CVS

Formula and Type: Felt tip liquid liner | Color Range: Brown, black | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: Yes | Waterproof: No

For a more natural-looking, everyday liquid eyeliner look, brown will be your best friend. This brown shade by Physician’s Formula is highly pigmented with a gorgeous matte finish, and it swipes on effortlessly thanks to the felt tip. It’s easy to control and maneuver, and dries down in seconds once applied. 

Our tester did have a little trouble getting the liner to last all day and not smudge, but she found that as long as she didn’t touch it, it held up pretty well. She also found that locking it in with a setting spray helped improve its longevity.

Ashley, tester: “The pigment is nicely saturated; it shows up well after shaking the liner a few times before applying. I love brown eyeliner on my eyes, and it complements my eye color and overall makeup look. I was also impressed by how much color came out in one swipe.”

Best for Smudged Looks

Revlon ColorStay Eyeliner

$8

$7 at Amazon$11 at Ulta$9 at CVS

Formula and Type: Pencil liner with built-in smudger | Color Range: Brown, charcoal, bronze, cherry, sapphire, black, black brown, grape, white, navy, jade | Finish: Matte | Cruelty-Free: No | Waterproof: Yes

Tend to go for smoky eye looks? You’ll want an eyeliner with a built-in smudger, like this drugstore option by Revlon. I found it easy to apply and smudge out, and the pigment showed up in just one coat. Even more, the shade range is truly impressive, with more than 10 colors to choose from, from classic black and brown to cherry and grape. It did fade throughout the day (read: not the longest-lasting of all the options on this list), but this could partially be due to commuting in NYC’s humidity.

I opted for the brown shade, and I felt it had a great pigment—it was just dark enough, but not too dark where it looked black. The shade complemented my skin tone since I have warm undertones, and I like how natural it was for an everyday makeup look, as well as how it can be smudged out for a more dramatic smoky eye.