Robert Welsh has worked his way through 46 lip products, landing on 28 approvals, 12 skips, and 6 mixed takes, giving this category a Guru Score of 61%. He named two outright winners. His taste runs to products that actually stay on and genuinely hydrate, and he has little patience for anything that feels gimmicky or fades fast.
What does Robert Welsh recommend in lip?
Robert Welsh keeps coming back to real hydration and real wear. He called the Aquaphor Lip Repair Stick the best thing going for rehydrating lips. He raved about the Rhode Peptide Lip Treatment lasting all night and leaving lips visibly smooth by morning. The Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask won him over with its customisable scent blends and lasting moisture. The Ordinary Squalane + Amino Acids Lip Balm got one of his strongest endorsements: he said he would buy it again. When a product genuinely does what it promises, he says so plainly.
In his words
"This is Laneige's Lip Sleeping Mask, but not just their normal one, this is their overnight treatment mask that you can custom make for yourself, mixing your own scent blend, for twenty eight dollars. I made my own with blue cream soda and sweet [...] candy and it's just so amazing. [...] It's such a cool opportunity to be able to mix your own and make your own, and they last a really really long time and they really help hydrate your lips. These are absolutely beautiful, [...] it's a really fun experience and the balms themselves are stunning."
"Aquaphor for the lips, because it's literally the best and rehydrates everything."
"I'm going in with some Juicy Tubes. Lancôme Juicy Tubes. Purchased myself. These are an icon. Look at that just shine. I really like this one in particular because it is just a glow."
"Can I just talk about this Rhode Peptide Lip Treatment? I know people were [...] really overhyping this, but [...] the smell is like this banana, desserty smell on the lips. I put this on overnight and when I wake up in the morning, it's still on my lips. I can feel this hydrated region in my mouth. Usually I'm putting on a night mask hoping that I wake up in the morning with the most plump, smooth lips, but this has been incredible. [...] I think it's a new formulation, which I kind of want to explore a little bit more."
"The Squalane + Amino Acids Lip Balm though, is incredible. I love this product. Like, I would re-buy that again."
"MAC lipsticks were like the holy grail."
How many lip products has Robert Welsh reviewed?
Robert Welsh has reviewed 46 lip products, for a Guru Score of 61%. 28 approved, 6 mixed, and 12 skipped.
What has Robert Welsh skipped in lip?
He skipped anything that felt more like a concept than a product. He dismissed the Tatcha Kissu Lip Serum because the gold packaging struck him as gimmicky. He likes Tatcha's regular lip mask, but the new release simply did not interest him. He gave the Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick in Pillow Talk a skip on the product itself, even while praising the brand's marketing. The Dr. Dennis Gross DermInfusions Plump + Repair Lip Treatment ended in a visible reaction on his skin. He also grew visibly tired of lip oil launches, saying he wants glosses that stay put rather than hybrid oils that disappear quickly.
"I'm so sick of lip oils. Lip oils never look this pigmented for that long. You pop them on a lip and they're on your lips for how long before they're gone? I want some glosses. I want some intense gloss. Not a gloss oil hybrid. I don't care if it's moisturizing my lips, as long as it stays on. I can moisturize my lips some other times. I'm not interested in this at all."
"I do like Tatcha's lip mask. Their regular one, the pink one. The gold thing I find a bit gimmicky. Do you remember when everyone was selling those, like, gold under eye patches? It was like four karat gold under eye patch, and it's like, okay, so? It's cute. It's cute. And I think it's good for Christmas. Is it interesting to me? Actually, no, not at all. I like the product, but if we're talking about the new release in general, this isn't very interesting to me."
"Although I don't like the products, Charlotte Tilbury is a perfect example of a traditional beauty brand that's adapting and doing it well. The brand didn't just launch a hit product. They made Pillow Talk into a TikTok sound. That's how deeply they understood the culture."
"I use this, right? It's not the most stingy plumper or anything like that. It doesn't hurt. And I'm quite weak with plumpers, lip plumpers, spicy foods. It just felt fine. It was absolutely fine. And actually, when it first went on the lip, beautiful. Really nice. Now, here's why I should have patch tested. I used it all on my lips, and then it kind of like, it wasn't smudged everywhere. I didn't touch the rest of my face, nothing like that. I know better than to put on a plumping product with the applicator. I didn't use any on my finger, and I just left it there and let it do its thing. It got all itchy down here, all red and raised. It looked horrendous. It got worse than this. It got redder and redder and redder."
What should you take from Robert Welsh's picks?
Robert Welsh is a useful guide for anyone who wants to know whether a lip product actually works. He approved more than half of what he tried, and he was specific about why he skipped the rest. His two named winners are the Aquaphor Lip Repair Stick and the Lancôme Juicy Tubes. If a product overpromises or fades fast, he will say so directly, which makes his approvals worth paying attention to.
Watch Robert Welsh say it
Every verdict here comes from a video. These are the moments themselves, each one jumping straight to the bit about that product.
- Aquaphor Lip Repair StickNamed a winnerWatch at 10:18
- Lancôme Juicy TubesNamed a winnerWatch at 4:49
- Summer Fridays Dream Lip OilSkipped itWatch at 4:09
- Tatcha Kissu Lip SerumSkipped itWatch at 1:13
- Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick in Pillow TalkSkipped itWatch at 15:20
- Dr. Dennis Gross DermInfusions Plump + Repair Lip TreatmentSkipped itWatch at 7:53
- Gisou Honey Infused Hydrating Lip OilSkipped itWatch at 4:55
- Rhode Peptide Lip ShapeSkipped itWatch at 16:13
- Florasis Floral Care Hydrating Dual Lip OilSkipped itWatch at 6:09
- Rhode Phone Case with Lip Balm HolderSkipped itWatch at 0:28
- Too Faced Lip Injection Extreme Lip GlossSkipped itWatch at 8:12
- Sephora Collection Lip OilSkipped itWatch at 2:37
- Huda Beauty Liquid Matte Mousse Soft Blur Lip CreamSkipped itWatch at 15:35
- The Ordinary PHA 5% Exfoliating Lip SerumSkipped itWatch at 5:30
- Laneige Lip Sleeping MaskRated itWatch at 1:21
- Rhode Peptide Lip TreatmentRated itWatch at 1:00
- The Ordinary Squalane + Amino Acids Lip BalmRated itWatch at 7:23
- MAC Ruby Woo LipstickRated itWatch at 0:16
- Lisa Eldridge Rouge Experience Refillable LipstickRated itWatch at 16:34
- Huda Beauty Lip Contour StainsRated itWatch at 18:19
- Lisa Eldridge Sculpt and Shade Lip PencilRated itWatch at 45:58
- MAC Stone LipstickRated itWatch at 16:41
- Hung Vanngo Creamy Matte Lipstick in Shade 88Rated itWatch at 21:47
- NYX Fat Oil Lip DripRated itWatch at 7:55
About this expert
See everything Robert Welsh has reviewed
Related guides
This guide reflects what Robert Welsh said across their videos about 46 products in lip, aggregated by The Guru Index. Sponsored takes are excluded. The Guru Score is our read on how warmly they talk about them. It is general information, not medical advice.