5 Non Toxic Nail Polish Brands

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Today we’re sharing with you a variety of clean nail polish brands.

Our focus in this post will be on clean, eco-friendly brands, rather than clean nail polish lines that are offshoots of a standard brand. We want to highlight nail polish companies manufacturing clean products as their ethos.

These polish brands are good for people and the earth as a whole by selecting cleaner ingredients and using environmentally friendly practices.

To be fair, we also support clean lines.

Clean, non-toxic lines are a suite of polish colors that are made with better ingredients compared to the standard line, released as part of the brand’s portfolio but not the whole enchilada.

The clean lines usually have names like “nature, natural or eco.” 

While they are great segways into the niche, because they aren’t a core offering, there’s the risk these lines will be discontinued; meaning, as soon as you fall in love with a product it’s on the way to obsolescence.

With a clean brand, that’s their thing. They bet on eco-friendly, clean, non-toxic, better for you products as the future.

They won’t stop producing their core, fan favorite products; so clean brands offer the added stability that you’ll be able to fall in love with a color or manicure set up and keep it going for years to come.

Clean nail polish brands have the same shared goal - the goal to produce a formula that is better for the environment and all its creatures including humans.

Many are cruelty-free and vegan by default and have other environmentally friendly principles woven into their business practices.

How to tell when nail polish is non toxic

Image of pink fingernails by Susi Anderl from Pixabay

As a general rule, the brand or line will have advertisements that state they are “10-free” or higher. 

This “number-free” markup indicates how many toxic ingredients they leave out. The higher the number, typically, the better. The lower number-free markup often indicates some suspected or known toxins may be included.

The reason we choose 10-free as our benchmark is because while 3-free, 5-free and 8-free formulas are definitely chemically safer than their predecessors, these formulas often still contain known and suspected toxic chemicals banned in some countries and/or their immediate chemical derivatives. 

Though, if you’re using polish from a 3-free, 5-free or 8-free brand, don’t panic, we continue to use these products because many companies have been cleaning up their formulas within the past few years. Still, you may want to check the labels on your bottles, especially for older products.

Ready to begin exploring clean nail polish brands?

Here are 5 non-toxic nail polish brands to consider below:

Image of green water color leaves by Monika from Pixabay with text overlay 5 Non Toxic Nail Polish Brands

1 - Londontown

Founded in 2012, Londontown is a US-based company, though their story started overseas. They create a 16-21+ free formula and take a sustainable approach to their packing in using recycled and renewable materials.

Their signature product, the Illuminating Nail Concealer, can be used without a base coat, further greening your routine by eliminating excess.

Their polishes include a proprietary botanical complex designed to nourish the nails and exclude known toxins: Formaldehyde, Toluene, Diphenylene Sulfide (DBT), Formaldehyde Resin, Styrene, Benzophenone, Camphor, Triphenyl Phosphate (TPHP/TPP), Xylene, Ethyl Tosylamide/Epoxy Resin, Nonylphenol Ethoxylate, Glycol Ether of Series E, Mono Methyl Ether of Hydroquinone (MEHQ/HQ), Methylisothiazolinone, Bisphenol A, Phthalates, Parabens and Gluten.

Find Londontown at Ulta, Amazon and the Londontown website

Get 25% OFF with coupon code BUYNOW when you shop at the Londontown website!

2 - Nails Inc.

Founded in 1999, this British brand offers vegan, cruelty-free and up to 21-free nail products. One of their signature products is their 45 Second Speedy Gloss, which is a quick drying formula; unique for a clean brand.

They’ve also recently won the 2020 Fabulous Beauty Award, the 2020 Sunday Times Style Beauty Award and the 2020 CFW Beauty Finalist Award.

Their products are formulated without: Animal-Derivatives, Parabens, Acetone, Camphor, Toluene, Bisphenol A, Formaldehyde, Xylene, Styrene, Benzophenone, Formaldehyde Resin, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Phthalates, TPHP/TPP, Tosylamide/Epoxy Resin, Methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), Artificial Fragrance, Silicones, Gluten and Sulphates. 

Find Nails Inc. at Target, Amazon and the Nails Inc. website

3 - ella + mila

Founded in 2014, ella + mila is made in the USA, vegan, Peta certified, Leaping Bunny certified and they produce 17-free nail polishes.

Their formulas are made without: Acetone, Animal-Derivatives, Bisphenol-A, Camphor, Ethyl Tosylamide, Formaldehyde, Formaldehyde Resin, Gluten, Glycol Ether of Series E, Nonylphenol Ethoxylate, Parabens, Sulfate, Toluene, Styrene, TPHP/TPP and Xylene.

Find ella + mila at Target, Amazon and on the ella + mila website

4 - Mineral Fusion

Founded in 2007, this vegan, cruelty-free,16-free nail polish brand is the first clean nail polish brand I ever invested in as it’s one of the most popular clean nail polishes featured in natural grocery stores.

Their polish has also recently won the 2022 Marie Claire Beauty Game Changers Award.

Their formula includes natural, mineral based ingredients and omits DBP, TPHP, Formaldehyde, Toluene, Xylene, Camphor, Parabens, Gluten, Phthalates, Artificial Fragrances plus other harsh chemicals.

Find Mineral Fusion in your local natural grocery store, on Amazon and at the Mineral Fusion website

5 - Zoya

Zoya has been around since 1986 and they produce made in the USA, vegan, 10-free nail polishes

They're well-known in the industry for naming formulas after women’s first names - you may be able to find a polish named after you!

Their formulas exclude Formaldehyde, Formaldehyde Resin, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Toluene, Camphor, TPHP, Parabens, Xylene, Ethyl Tosylamide, Lead and Gluten.

Find Zoya at Beyond Polish, Amazon and on the Zoya website
Image of earth surrounded by bokeh soft light and green leaves by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

It’s inspiring to see clean beauty brands in the nail polish scene and to find them sold at so many accessible outlets!

Finally, one allergen that may apply to you is gluten.

Some nail polishes are produced in facilities that produce gluten or they are made with gluten ingredients. So if you’re specifically looking for gluten-free nail polish, you're in luck.

Five out of the 5 nail polish brands above are also gluten-free.

Each of these non-toxic nail polish brands can help you jump start your clean manicure journey.

Which clean nail polish brand do you think you’ll try next?

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As a Londontown, Nails Inc., Mineral Fusion, Ulta and Target Affiliate, this site earns from qualifying purchases. As a Beyond Polish Brand Ambassador, this site earns from qualifying purchases. Use coupon code LOTSOFLACQUER for 10% OFF at Beyond Polish. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Lots of Lacquer

Our purpose is to celebrate the joy of fresh nails. Our goal is to help you have fun and awesome nails at the same time.

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