30 Clean Beauty Brands at Ulta: 2026 Editor's Guide

Navigating the world of clean beauty can feel like a big task, but Ulta Beauty is making it easier than ever. With its Conscious Beauty program, you can find effective, inclusive products that align with your values, whether that’s ingredient safety, sustainability, or ethical practices. Some of the top clean beauty brands at Ulta include Tarte, First Aid Beauty, Briogeo, and TULA, among many others. This guide breaks down exactly what clean beauty means at Ulta and highlights the must know clean beauty brands at Ulta for your skincare, makeup, and hair care routines.

What Does “Clean Beauty” at Ulta Actually Mean?

At its core, a clean beauty brand at Ulta is one that meets the retailer’s high standards for ingredient safety. It’s all part of a bigger initiative that helps you shop with confidence.

Decoding the Conscious Beauty Program

In 2020, Ulta launched its Conscious Beauty program, built on five key pillars: Clean Ingredients, Cruelty Free, Vegan, Sustainable Packaging, and Positive Impact. For a brand to earn the “Clean Ingredients” badge, its products must be made without a long list of ingredients outlined in Ulta’s “Made Without List.” This list bans parabens, phthalates, and over 25 other chemical categories, giving you more transparency and peace of mind.

Clean Skincare and Makeup Explained

Clean skincare and beauty at Ulta refers to any product, from serums to foundations, that follows those strict ingredient guidelines. This means you can find powerful skincare from brands like Tula and Juice Beauty without worrying about parabens or synthetic fragrances, plus targeted dark-spot treatments like Live Tinted’s Superhue Hyperpigmentation Serum Stick. In the makeup aisle, it means exploring vibrant, high performance cosmetics from brands like Tarte that use naturally derived pigments instead of petrochemicals. Clean doesn’t always mean 100% organic, but it does guarantee a formula free from a specific list of unwanted ingredients.

Don’t Forget Clean Hair and Body Care

The clean approach extends to your entire routine. Clean hair and body care at Ulta includes shampoos, conditioners, and lotions made with the same ingredient consciousness. Clean hair care brands often skip harsh sulfates (like SLS and SLES) and silicones that can cause buildup. For example, SheaMoisture not only formulates without these but also reinvests in programs for underserved communities, having donated over $10 million to date.

A Curated List of Top Clean Beauty Brands at Ulta

With hundreds of certified brands, Ulta offers an incredible range of clean options. Here are some of the standout clean beauty brands at Ulta organized by what they do best.

The Skincare Saviors

  • First Aid Beauty (FAB): A true rescue brand for sensitive skin. FAB creates gentle yet effective products, like its famous Ultra Repair Cream, without common irritants like artificial fragrance or alcohol.
  • OSEA: This Malibu based brand harnesses the power of the sea, using sustainably sourced, organic seaweed in its luxurious, vegan formulas.
  • Juice Beauty: A pioneer in the space, Juice Beauty uses an organic botanical juice base instead of water for its potent, antioxidant rich skincare and makeup.
  • TULA: TULA focuses on the power of probiotic extracts and superfoods to help balance and nourish the skin barrier for a healthy glow.
  • Indie Lee: Grounded in nature and supported by science, Indie Lee offers chic, effective skincare born from its founder’s mission to create completely toxin free products.
  • Derma E: An eco ethical brand since 1984, Derma E provides affordable, therapeutic skincare that is 100% vegan, cruelty free, and packed with vitamins and botanicals.
  • Boscia: Known for its preservative free formulas, Boscia merges Japanese botanical science with innovative products like the Luminizing Black Charcoal Mask.
  • Kinship: This Gen Z favorite focuses on microbiome support with its plant based Kinbiome™ probiotic. Its Self Reflect sunscreen is a cult classic for its blendable, no white cast finish.
  • Belif: Fusing Korean skincare innovation with traditional herbal apothecary recipes, Belif is famous for its “Aqua Bomb” moisturizer that delivers intense, lightweight hydration.
  • Sand & Sky: Known for putting Australian Pink Clay on the map, this brand creates powerful, targeted treatments that detoxify and brighten the skin using native Aussie botanicals.

The Makeup Masters

  • bareMinerals: The brand that started the mineral makeup revolution. Its original foundation contains just five mineral ingredients, proving that simple, clean formulas can deliver flawless results.
  • Tarte: Famous for its “high performance naturals,” Tarte offers beloved products like Shape Tape concealer that provide incredible payoff without parabens or phthalates.
  • Jane Iredale: Often called the original “skincare makeup,” Jane Iredale’s mineral based cosmetics are so gentle they are recommended by dermatologists for use on sensitive skin.
  • Cover FX: A go to for inclusive shade ranges and pro level performance, Cover FX creates vegan and cruelty free complexion products without talc, fragrance, or parabens.
  • Honest Beauty: Founded by Jessica Alba, this brand offers a wide range of effective and stylish makeup and skincare formulated without a long list of over 2,500 questionable chemicals.
  • Live Tinted: Born from an online community to celebrate all shades of skin, Live Tinted creates problem solving products that are clean, vegan, and cruelty free. The brand’s Huestick correctors are award winning multitaskers designed to neutralize hyperpigmentation on diverse skin tones, the Hydrating Serum Concealer delivers skincare‑infused coverage in 21 inclusive shades, and for eyes, the creamy, long‑wear Legacy Kajal Eye Crayon delivers rich pigment without tugging.

Haircare Heroes

  • Briogeo: This Black owned brand offers “6 free hair care,” meaning its formulas are free of sulfates, silicones, parabens, phthalates, artificial dyes, and DEA. Its Don’t Despair, Repair! mask is a holy grail for damaged hair.
  • Innersense: A luxurious, organic haircare line that uses certified organic plant ingredients to nourish hair from the inside out. It’s a favorite for those seeking truly pure, professional grade results.
  • Biolage: A trusted salon brand that has embraced clean beauty. Many of its formulas are now vegan, cruelty free, and made without sulfates or parabens, all while delivering professional quality results.
  • Grow Gorgeous: This brand takes a skincare approach to hair, focusing on scalp health to promote thicker, fuller, healthier looking strands with its science backed serums and treatments.
  • Flora & Curl: Perfect for enhancing natural textures, this UK based brand uses potent botanical ingredients to hydrate and define curls, coils, and waves without harsh chemicals.

Body & Everyday Essentials

  • Burt’s Bees: An iconic natural brand that started with beeswax lip balm. Its products average over 95% natural origin and are formulated without parabens, phthalates, or petrolatum.
  • SheaMoisture: A leader in hair and body care, SheaMoisture uses ethically sourced shea butter and other natural ingredients while investing in community commerce.
  • Acure: Acure makes clean, vegan, and cruelty free skincare and hair care accessible to everyone, with effective formulas at budget friendly prices.
  • Bliss: What started as a famous NYC spa is now a source of joyful, PETA certified cruelty free skincare that delivers spa grade results without the high price tag.
  • COOLA: This California brand makes wearing sunscreen a pleasure with its organic, antioxidant rich formulas that feel luxurious and protect skin without oxybenzone or parabens.
  • basd: A plant based body care line with a cheeky attitude. Its invigorating coffee scrubs and rich lotions are vegan, cruelty free, and smell incredible.
  • Dr. PAWPAW: Famous for its multipurpose soothing balms made from papaya fruit, this UK brand offers simple, effective, and clean solutions for lips, skin, and hair.

The Fun & Fresh Crowd

  • Pacifica: A 100% vegan and cruelty free pioneer, Pacifica offers a huge range of fun, affordable, and effective makeup, skincare, and perfume.
  • Florence by Mills: Created by Millie Bobby Brown, this brand offers Gen Z friendly clean skincare and makeup that’s fun, easy to use, and PETA certified vegan and cruelty free.

Beyond the Bottle: Sustainability and Customer Love

The commitment of clean beauty brands at Ulta often goes beyond just the ingredient list.

Eco Friendly Packaging Options

Sustainable Packaging is a key pillar of Ulta’s Conscious Beauty program. Brands earn this badge if at least 50% of their packaging is made from recycled or bio sourced materials, or is recyclable or refillable. With the beauty industry producing an estimated 120 billion packaging units annually, this focus is crucial. Ulta has also pledged that by 2025, half of all packaging it sells will meet these sustainable criteria.

What Shoppers Really Think

Customer reviews for clean beauty brands at Ulta consistently show that you don’t have to sacrifice performance for safer ingredients. Top rated products like ILIA’s Limitless Lash Mascara and Milk Makeup’s Lip + Cheek stick prove that clean formulas can outperform conventional ones. Shoppers often express relief at finding products that deliver beautiful results without causing irritation or breakouts. Brands that cater to a wide range of skin tones, like inclusive makeup such as Live Tinted’s Skin Tint SPF 50 mineral sunscreen, also receive high praise for meeting a critical need in the beauty space.

Frequently Asked Questions about Clean Beauty at Ulta

1. What is the easiest way to find clean beauty brands at Ulta?
Look for the Conscious Beauty seal on product pages online and on displays in store. You can also use the filters on Ulta’s website to shop specifically for brands that meet the “Clean Ingredients” standard.

2. Does “clean” mean the same thing as “natural” or “organic”?
Not exactly. “Clean” at Ulta means the product is made without the specific ingredients on Ulta’s “Made Without List.” While many clean products use natural and organic ingredients, the term focuses on avoiding potentially harmful ones, which can include both synthetic and natural substances.

3. Are clean beauty brands at Ulta more expensive?
Not necessarily. Ulta carries a wide range of clean brands at every price point, from affordable options like Acure and Honest Beauty to prestige lines like OSEA and Juice Beauty.

4. Can I find clean makeup that actually performs well?
Absolutely. Brands like Tarte, bareMinerals, and Cover FX are beloved by makeup artists and consumers alike for their incredible performance, pigment, and longevity, proving that clean formulas can be highly effective.

5. Are there good clean sunscreen options at Ulta?
Yes! You can find fantastic clean sunscreens from brands like COOLA and Kinship. Many shoppers also love skincare makeup hybrids that include mineral SPF protection, like the Hueguard 3 in 1 from Live Tinted, which acts as a moisturizer, primer, and SPF 30 with no white cast. For on‑the‑go reapplication, try the Hueguard Invisible Sunscreen Stick SPF 50.