The Best Eyeliner Pencils

NYX Mechanical Eyeliner Pencil

The bottom line

Get the smooth, all-day color of your dreams with this pencil.

Best Overall

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Emphasize your beautiful eyes with this eyeliner pencil from NYX, which provides you with smooth, all-day color that’s hard to beat. Available in strikingly cool shades like deep purple, aqua green, and gold, this pencil covers like a liquid liner, with a creamy formula that stays put for hours on end. It’s smudge-proof and glides on effortlessly, so it’s super easy to get the look you want. What more could you want in a great eyeliner?

Pros:

• The intense pigment covers like a liquid eyeliner
• Creamy formula holds for hours
• Comes in several gorgeous, bold colors
• Cruelty-free
• Very affordable price point

Cons:

• Super-thin lines are a little tricky to do with this pencil

NYX Jumbo Eyeliner Pencil

Where there's smoke

This eyeliner is your ticket to nailing the coveted smoky eye.

Best Jumbo

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Effortless application and color that won’t quit? Sign us up. NYX’s jumbo-sized blendable eyeliner crayon is perfectly made for achieving a smoky eye or a soft, smudged look. Apply this color to your waterlines, inner corners, or entire eyelid for a pop of smooth, creamy, intense color. Deliver all the drama to your eyes, whether it’s night or day, with this awesome jumbo pencil.

Pros:

• Glides on effortlessly — no pulling or tugging necessary
• Really makes your eyes pop
• Available in a wide variety of hues
• Cruelty-free
• Works great as a primer, brow highlighter, and eyeliner base, as well

Cons:

• Not waterproof

Revlon ColorStay Eyeliner Pencil

Withstand the water

Pack this eyeliner in your swimming bag for a lovely look that lasts.

Best Waterproof

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If you’re prone to shedding tears, you live in a rainy climate, or you’re going out on the water for the day, get Revlon’s ColorStay eyeliner pencil. This pencil is fully waterproof, with an awesomely long-wearing formula that lasts up to 16 hours — way longer than most pencils. And we love that this pencil comes with a smudge and pull-out sharpener so you can achieve different effects without needing a bunch of different tools.

Pros:

• Waterproof, long-wearing formula lasts up to 16 hours
• Includes a smudge and pull-out sharpener for different effects
• Glides on with remarkable smoothness
• Comes in several cool colors

Cons:

• This pencil only lasts a couple months, so you may want to buy more than one to keep yourself stocked up

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil

A premium pencil

Some things are worth splurging for, and that's definitely the case with this eyeliner.

Best Splurge

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When you want to splurge on eyeliner, you can’t go wrong with this long-wearing eye pencil from Urban Decay. Its super-creamy, richly pigmented formula glides on smoothly so that you can easily achieve a precise line or smudge it out for a smokier effect. In any case, it’s easy to get the exact look you want. There are also dozens of colors and five different finishes to choose from, so you’ll be able to find one for any occasion. Whether you prefer matte, metallic, or something in between, rest assured — none of them disappoint.

Pros:

• Delivers intense, long-wearing color
• Comes with a double-barrel pencil sharpener
• Offers five different finishes, ranging from matte to glitter
• Formula looks creamy and smooth going on
• Color selection is great

Cons:

• The price point may be inaccessible for some

Palladio Eyeliner Pencil

All the colors of the rainbow

Take your pick from dozens of glam, glittery shades.

Best Color Selection

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Palladio’s eyeliner pencil comes in over a dozen eye-catching colors that run the gamut from golden yellow to sky blue. Unlike most pencils, which come in solid colors, this pencil’s colors are sheer, near-metallic, and bright, adding a unique, glammed-up look to your lids. This pencil is also super-easy to use — the formula is just about as buttery-smooth as an eyeliner pencil gets.

Pros:

• Colors are bright, sheer-looking, and gorgeous on every skin tone
• Easy to create a thin, precise line with just one stroke
• Super-smooth formula
• Great value

Cons:

• Doesn’t stay on quite as long as other formulas

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know which eyeliner color is right for me?

While we recommend keeping at least one black eyeliner pencil in your makeup case, it’s always fun to play around with other colors, too. When it comes to selecting colors, think about what would play well with your skin tone and enhance your natural eye color. A few looks we love right now include icy, cool tones for pale skin, warm greens and browns for mid-toned skin, and bright, bold shades for darker skin.

How do I apply eyeliner correctly?

Applying eyeliner can be tricky business, but keep the following tips in mind, and you’ll be good to go. Be sure to warm up the pencil on the back of your hand to prevent it from crumbling or smudging upon application. And instead of trying to trace a perfectly straight line in one shot, pull your skin taut at your eye’s outer corner and draw tiny dashes along your lash line. Then you can connect them at your own pace and adjust as you go.