pH Lip Stains Are Trending—Here’s How They Work

If you want a custom lip color that lasts longer than your usual lip balm, why not try a pH lip stain, like our new Cooling Water Jelly Tint in pHreeze? For the uninitiated, these innovative lip and cheek tints are basically the mood rings of beauty products. Here’s the gist: They react to your skin’s natural pH levels to reveal a natural-looking, buildable color that’s truly unique to you. These tints can also change depending on how your skin’s natural pH shifts throughout the day—think: a spicy meal or a post-work run, which can make your tint look even brighter. Pretty cool, right?

Like other lip stains, you can also expect their long-lasting formulas to stay put without fading or smudging like other lip products. But here’s how Cooling Water Jelly Tint in pHreeze is different: It’s packed with skin-loving ingredients and has a non-comedogenic, non-acnegenic formula. Want even more details on this trending beauty product? We’re breaking down everything you should know below.

A pH lip stain is a type of lip product that uses pH-reactive dyes to shift in color, usually from clear to a pigmented shade of pink. Its color-transforming formula, in combination with your skin’s tone and undertones, results in a pop of color that’s completely unique. Unlike shimmer-spiked lip glosses (which we also love, of course), pH lip stains usually have a sheer, juicy wash of color—imagine the stained look on your lips after eating a popsicle. But you can also intensify its color with another layer or two. These versatile products can also be used as a cheek tint, but just make sure you use a light hand (or, better yet, a brush) when applying to avoid over-applying.

Fun fact: Naturally, your skin has an acidic pH that typically sits between 4.7 and 5.75. pH lip tint formulations, on the other hand, have a neutral pH and react when exposed to a new environment with a different pH level. (Remember those Litmus tests you did in school? It’s like that, but with makeup. Wish we had Jelly Tint back then…) This reaction causes a color change that shifts from clear to anywhere between watermelon pink and coral, depending on your natural pH. 

Every pH lip tint works a little differently; Cooling Water Jelly Tint’s pH technology is encapsulated in bubbles, which creates a more even application and reveals a bold pink that takes two minutes to fully develop.

First off, pH lip stains are as custom as makeup can get, without going through the trouble of having a bespoke product made just for you. Due to their innovative formulations, these tints provide bold color payoff that adapts to your skin tone straight from the tube.

Beyond that, lip stains overall tend to have long-lasting pigments that won’t budge or fade right after you apply them. They also have a lightweight, barely there feel that won’t dry out your lips. In fact, Cooling Water Jelly Tint is spiked with hydrating skincare ingredients like vegan collagen, aloe vera, and seawater to help your lips have enough moisture to feel soft and hydrated, even without a lip balm or gloss on top.

The biggest difference between pH lip stains like Cooling Water pH Jelly Tint and other lip products is their approach to custom color. Traditional lip products don’t have the color-shifting technology pH-based formulations do, which is why many shades are only complimentary to a few skin tones. Because pH Jelly Tint’s pink shade adapts to your skin’s natural pH and undertones, it looks good on just about anyone.

Unlike lipsticks, glosses, and tinted lip balms, pH lip tints are also known for their longwear power. That’s because they (temporarily) stain the skin on your lips rather than sit on top of them, allowing their pigment to last longer and have a lightweight, more natural appearance.

“Whenever you need a long last wash of color is a great time to reach for a lip stain, like pH Jelly Tint,” says Sara Wren, Milk Makeup’s Senior Director of Artistry. “A traditional lipstick can fade, smudge and end up in lip lines throughout the day, whereas a lip tint stays put and needs minimal touching up."

Feel free to layer as you please with a pH lip tint, because its non-sticky formula won’t feel weighty like other products. That being said, the color will get brighter with each swipe, so keep that in mind.

Anyone, really. Our pH Jelly Tint’s pigment looks different on everyone and adapts to your skin’s tone, undertone, and pH. What you can always expect is a bright, gorgeous pop of pink that’s all yours. Cooling Water Jelly Tint’s ultra-light formula plays well on bare skin and over a full face of makeup, too.

You can use any applicator that you want, but, as a lip stain, Sara says you can apply our pH Jelly Tint straight from the jelly to your lips. Then, wait two minutes for the pH pigments to fully develop and apply more layers as needed to reach your desired brightness.

You can also add pH Jelly Tint to your lip combo lineup, according to Sara. First, apply pH Jelly Tint on bare lips, then line with a nude lip liner, and top with a clear, glassy-finish lip gloss, like our Odyssey Lip Oil Gloss in Journey. “The reason I like to apply pH Jelly Tint first is to ensure the product stays put and there is nothing under it before I apply,” she says. “This means removing any lip balm before applying and layering other products on top.”

We can't speak to all pH lip stains, but like all of our products, Cooling Water pH Jelly Tint has a clean, vegan, and cruelty-free formula. Additionally, all of our Jelly Tints (including pHreeze) are non-comedogenic, non-acnegenic, and gentle on sensitive skin. Plus, its bouncy formula is infused with hydrating, soothing skincare ingredients like aloe and seawater. Since everyone’s skin is different, we always recommend patch testing before applying to your face.