Makeup Brushes and Eyeshadow Insights

Kaidron — Makeup Brushes & Eyeshadow Survey

Kaidron Community Insights — Makeup Brushes & Eyeshadow

The tools behind the look — and the eyeshadows that make it worth reaching for them.

This week's survey covers two tightly connected parts of the makeup routine: the brushes this community relies on every day, and the eyeshadow products they're reaching for to fill them. Together, the data reveals a community that has invested seriously in its tools, has clear standards for how they should perform, and is highly engaged with eyeshadow as both a daily ritual and a creative outlet.

On the brush side, the findings are precise. Three-quarters use brushes daily, most own a substantial collection, and the majority — surprisingly — actually use most of what they own. The most pressing frustration is durability: bristle shedding leads all complaints by a wide margin, suggesting the category has a quality threshold that many products are failing to meet. Durability, not brand name or aesthetics, is what drives the purchase decision.

On the eyeshadow side, powder palettes dominate overwhelmingly, neutrals anchor colour choices, and excellent performance is the near-singular driver of repurchase. The discovery picture is equally striking: in-store browsing, Instagram, and beauty apps form a near-perfect three-way tie — a multi-channel community that can be reached through multiple touchpoints at once.

75%
use makeup brushes every single day as part of their routine
33%
own 16 or more brushes — the largest ownership tier in the community
31%
say bristle shedding is their single biggest brush frustration
76%
use powder palettes as their go-to eyeshadow format — by a very wide margin
66%
cite excellent performance as the only thing that makes them repurchase eyeshadow
Part One Makeup Brushes — Usage, Care & Frustrations
Chapter 01

How They Use Their Collection

Daily use is the norm, collections are substantial, and — unlike the assumption that brushes go unused — the majority of this community actually reaches for most of what they own.

75%
use makeup brushes daily — a usage rate that puts brushes firmly in the non-negotiable tier of the routine
58%
use all of their brushes regularly — not just keeping a few favourites; the full kit sees regular action

How many brushes they own

33% own 16 or more
16 or more33%
4–6 brushes25%
7–10 brushes20%
11–15 brushes12%
1–3 brushes9%

Brand loyalty — or lack of it

Mix of brands
70%
Mostly same brand
23%
All same brand
8%

Brushes used per full routine

3–5 brushes
60%
6–8 brushes
19%
1–2 brushes
15%
9 or more
6%

"Durability is the category's brief. Before brand, before price, before aesthetics — this community wants brushes that last."

29%
rank durability as the single most important factor when purchasing a brush — above material, reviews, and price
31%
name bristle shedding as their biggest frustration — confirming that the durability expectation is not currently being met
33%
of all issues cited across every brush complaint go to bristles falling out — the dominant quality failure in the category
Chapter 02

Cleaning Habits, Frustrations & Brush Lifespan

Weekly cleaning is the community standard — gentle soap or shampoo is the go-to method — but bristle loss and shape degradation remain persistent pain points that no cleaning routine can fix.

How often they clean their brushes

Once a week
35%
Every two weeks
27%
Once a month
20%
After every use
13%
Rarely
6%

Cleaning method of choice

Gentle soap / shampoo
62%
Brush cleaner solution
35%
DIY solution
2%
33%
Bristles falling out — the most reported issue
23%
Brushes losing their shape over time
19%
Difficulty cleaning thoroughly
15%
Brush handle breaking
9%
None of the above — no issues experienced
34% replace brushes within six months to a year — the most common replacement window — suggesting brushes are wearing out faster than expected.
Chapter 03

Purchase Behaviour & Brand Preferences

Sets and individual brushes are bought in near-equal measure, and brand mixing is the overwhelming norm. Real Techniques leads by a clear margin in community mentions.

What influences their purchase

Durability
29%
Online reviews
21%
Brush material
20%
Brand reputation
15%
Price
12%

Individual or sets?

Both equally
58%
Mostly sets
30%
Mostly individual
11%

Natural vs synthetic preference

No preference
64%
Natural
23%
Synthetic
6%
Real Techniques
Morphe
Spectrum
e.l.f.
MAC
Revolution
Huda Beauty
P.Louise
ZOEVA
Charlotte Tilbury
Made by Mitchell
Sigma

Brand mention bars show relative popularity — indexed to Real Techniques as the most-mentioned brand. Based on open-text responses counted individually. Approximate figures only.

Part Two Eyeshadow — Format, Finish & the Repurchase Decision
Chapter 04

How Often, What Format & Which Shades

Eyeshadow is firmly a regular habit — and the powder palette dominates format preference by a margin that leaves almost no room for debate. When it comes to colour, neutrals lead overwhelmingly.

57%
use eyeshadow regularly on most days — not just for occasions
81%
use eyeshadow at least a few times a week — combining daily and frequent users

Eyeshadow format used most

76% Powder palette
Powder palette76%
Shadow sticks10%
Cream shadow6%
Single / Liquid / Pigment8%

Most appealing colour shades

Neutrals (brown/beige)
64%
Pink / Rose shades
14%
Deep / Smoky shades
10%
Warm tones (orange/copper)
8%
Bold / Colourful (blue/green)
3%

Finish preferences (select all that apply)

Matte
26%
Shimmer
25%
Satin
16%
Metallic
12%
Glitter
11%
Chrome / Duo-chrome
9%
Chapter 05

Palette Collections, Spend & Purchase Cadence

Collection sizes are substantial at both ends — many own over ten palettes — while spend clusters in the mid-premium range of £10–£50, with a meaningful audience prepared to go higher.

Palettes currently owned

4–6 palettes
30%
2–3 palettes
26%
More than 10
26%
7–10 palettes
12%
1 palette
6%

Typical spend per palette

£21–£35
28%
£10–£20
28%
£36–£50
24%
£50+
14%
Under £10
4%

Preferred palette size

Mid-size (6–9 shades)
38%
No preference
24%
Large (10+ shades)
20%
Small (3–5 shades)
18%

Most important when choosing

Long-lasting wear
34%
Blendability
28%
Pigmentation
28%
Minimal fallout
4%
Price / Brand rep
4%

Discovery is happening everywhere at once — and performance is the only thing that converts it into a repurchase.

22%
discover new eyeshadow in-store — physical retail remains the joint top discovery channel, level with Instagram
21%
discover via Instagram — tied with in-store, making the brand/retail combination the dominant discovery pairing
66%
say excellent performance is the only driver that brings them back to repurchase — no other factor comes close
Chapter 06

How They Discover & What Drives Repurchase

Discovery is genuinely multi-channel — in-store, Instagram, beauty apps and TikTok are all within five percentage points of each other. Performance determines whether any of it converts.

Where they discover new eyeshadow products

In-store browsing
22%
Instagram
21%
Beauty apps
19%
TikTok
18%
Friends / word of mouth
12%
YouTube reviews
8%

What drives them to repurchase

Excellent performance
66%
Unique colour story
16%
Affordable price
8%
Limited edition appeal
4%
Clean / vegan formula
3%
Packaging / design
3%
Source: Kaidron Community Survey — Makeup Brush Usage & Care / Eyeshadow Preferences. Data expressed as percentages of total responses per question. Multi-select questions (Q1190, Q2614, Q2621) expressed as share of total selections. Brand mentions (Q1195) are open-text responses counted individually; approximate figures only. Minor rounding variance may apply.
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