Topicals

Slick Salve Glossy Lip Balm.

Lip

About this product

A pigmented lip balm by Topicals featuring castor oil, shea butter, and vitamin E for hydration and gloss.

Full ingredients

Hydrogenated Polyisobutene, Ethylene/Propylene/Styrene Copolymer, Butylene/Ethylene/Styrene Copolymer, Oryza Sativa (Rice) Bran Wax, Ceramide NP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Palmitoyl Tripeptide-38, Sodium Hyaluronate, Hydrolyzed Sodium Hyaluronate, Tocopheryl Acetate, Ergothioneine, Glycerin, Phytosphingosine, Cholesterol, Portulaca Pilosa Extract, Sucrose Cocoate, Panthenol, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Carbomer, Xanthan Gum, Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate, Sorbitan Isostearate, Mentha Arvensis Leaf Oil, Mentha Piperita Flower/Stem/Leaf Oil, Purified Water

Guru Score

74%

Mixed

4 experts · Moderate agreement

4Gurus

3Yay

0Mixed

1Nay

What they liked

Hydrating and feels good on lips
Pigmented color for deeper skin tones
Thick, emollient texture

What they flagged

No SPF or pigment-modulating actives
Requires lip liner for even application
Pricey compared to basic emollients

What the gurus are saying

Gurus are split on whether this thick, pigmented lip balm truly serves darker skin: most praise its hydrating feel and vibrant color on deeper tones, while others point out it lacks SPF and pigment-modulating actives. Since darker lips are prone to hyperpigmentation from sun exposure and chronic inflammation, this is a significant gap in a product positioned for black skin. Using lip liner first helps with even application.

Synthesized from 4 expert reviews · most recent take September 2026

Type

LipBalm & ointment

Key actives

Hyaluronic acidVitamin ECeramidesPeptides

Formula notes

Fragrance-freeNo drying alcohol

Where to buy

Amazon → Google →

Opens a search for this product. We do not sell anything ourselves.

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

All takes Yay takes Nay takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored

Dimma Umeh

532k subs

~Yay

"I have the topicals slick salve. I've talked about this before, but this is one of my favorite lip balms. I even have one lying around somewhere."

All 2 takes from Dimma Umeh

WEEKLY VLOG: THIS CANNOT BE RIGHT + MY HAIR IS A MESS + TREE TAKEDOWN + LUNCH DATE + MORE

"I really quite enjoy this lip balm. It's the one from Topicals. I really quite like it. I find it hydrating. And as far as minty lip balms go, this one is not that bad. It's not bad, actually. And I'm saying not that bad because you guys know that I don't like minty lip balms. I think I've talked about this lip balm more than once now. I just quite like it."

VLOG: WHERE ON EARTH HAVE I BEEN?? MY EUROPE HONEYMOON + LATE BIRTHDAY GIFTS + more

"I have the topicals slick salve. I've talked about this before, but this is one of my favorite lip balms. I even have one lying around somewhere."

Dr. Vanita Rattan

1.23M subs

~Nay

"This is a standard emollient lip balm with castor oil, shea butter, and vitamin E, but there are no tyrosinase inhibitors in the formula and no SPF, even though the lips are often the first part of the body to tan and black lips hyperpigment from sun exposure and chronic inflammation. A lip product targeting black skin should contain at least SPF 30 or pigment modulating actives, and this doesn't. At $16, Aquaphor does the same job. It wasn't really made with black skin in mind."

AliceintheRabbitHole

59k subs

~Yay

"I got a discount on this lip balm trio from Topicals and I love that it is all individually boxed. I feel like topicals came through in terms of fulfilling a category that I think nobody had really mastered. This is a thick lip balm, it feels like Ole Henriksen, but look at that pigment. The only catch with it being this level of pigmented is that it's almost more makeup, I had to put on lip liner first and make sure it's all spread out. But if you have a deeper skin tone and you've been looking for a more pigmented lip balm for your lips, topicals came through."

The Style and Beauty Doctor

221k subs

~Yay

"Topicals has a Slick Salve Glossy Lip Balm trio for $34. You're going to get, as it denotes, three of their lip balms, and their lip balms are good. They feel really good on the lips."

All 2 takes from The Style and Beauty Doctor

Holiday Gift Sets That Actually Deserve Your Money 😤💄

"Topicals has a Slick Salve Glossy Lip Balm trio for $34. You're going to get, as it denotes, three of their lip balms, and their lip balms are good. They feel really good on the lips."

What We're Getting from the Sephora Savings Event

"It's giving tinted lip oil. I just tried the new shade and it looks so pretty. Doesn't it look so different from what it looked like? And it's the same shade, the same acai shade. But the natural color of your lips can make a lip gloss look a little different, especially if it's more sheer. I want it to look like on me, like how it looks on her, you know what I mean? Like if I go into Sephora and it's like this deep burgundy color, I'm like no I want it to look like how it looks on her. It's like such a difference."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Ceramides

Ceramides are part of the skin's own barrier, and moisturisers built around them have evidence for holding water in and settling the tightness and flaking that come with a damaged barrier.

Source: DermNet

Humectants and emollients

Ingredients like these draw water into the surface layers and slow how fast it leaves. The evidence is for comfort, softness and hydration rather than for changing the structure of the skin.

Source: DermNet

Peptides

Peptides are short protein fragments meant to signal repair. The evidence for them is thinner than for retinoids or vitamin C, and it varies a lot by the specific peptide, so the category is more promising than proven.

Source: NIH, National Library of Medicine

Frequently asked.

What is Topicals Slick Salve Glossy Lip Balm?

A pigmented lip balm by Topicals featuring castor oil, shea butter, and vitamin E for hydration and gloss.

Is Topicals Slick Salve Glossy Lip Balm worth it?

The gurus mostly approve it, but with enough reservations to keep it in the middle at a Guru Score of 74%.

What is Topicals Slick Salve Glossy Lip Balm's Guru Score?

Topicals Slick Salve Glossy Lip Balm holds a Guru Score of 74%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 4 expert reviewers we have collected.