When you look for brands whose products will not cost you a fortune, Dollar Tree is a popular option.
After all, budget-friendly yet safe and trustworthy makeup products are the first choice of all women.
But the usual concern associated with low-price products never leaves us. What if the product performance is also cheap? Nowadays, it has become more serious with Dollar Tree.
People raise the question about the brand a lot: is Dollar Tree makeup safe? And guess what? The answer to that question might shock you.
Is Dollar Tree Makeup Safe?
It is safe to use Dollar Tree makeup to some degree. Occasionally, there were issues with the beauty products the brand sold, but not all you see at its stores are unsafe.
You get them at a low price in Dollar Tree because some high-end brands offer their products at that cost.
So, some of those products are indeed dependable and effective.
Notwithstanding that, there are several legit reasons for people to be concerned when it is Dollar Tree makeup, the most crucial one of which is the probability that the store is selling you expired or counterfeit products.
The details are in the next section.
What Are The Issues With The Dollar Tree Makeup Products?
Expired And Counterfeit Items:
It is one of the riskiest issues you would be handling with beauty products bought from a Dollar Tree store.
Those products sold to you could be purchased by the store from a regular retail channel that removed them for expiration dates or quality problems.
So it charged the Dollar store a small price to resell and remove them.
Needless to say, they are not safe for you and can create severe skin issues.
Toxic Ingredients:
Some makeup products at Dollar stores might consist of toxic ingredients, namely allergens, heavy metals, and harmful chemicals that are not skin-friendly.
The ingredients comprise a negligible amount of the product, but that can still be detrimental to consumers’ health, particularly if they have allergies and sensitive skin.
Besides, even if we do not consider that, it is not ethical on Dollar Tree’s part to sell such stuff.
We will get back to it with more details on the ingredients in the following part of the discussion.
Poor Quality Control:
The convenience store has poor quality control, whereas it sources a variety of products from multifarious suppliers.
That indicates the products might not be consistent with their quality.
Consequently, it will be challenging for the buyers to know whether the products are worth their money.
You may also like : Is Chinese Makeup Safe?
Confusing Product Packaging:
Along with expired and counterfeit goods with detrimental ingredients, their labeling and packaging may also confuse a consumer with inaccurate information.
Some products may falsely claim to contain specific benefits or components, putting a barrier for users to make an informed purchase decision.
That is not all. If you look closely when passing Dollar Tree’s beauty aisle, you may find cosmetic products that look surprisingly similar to those of other brands.
For example, body lotions from a low-margin brand may resemble body lotions from a high-end brand.
That is a no-brainer that it is not coincidental but intentional.
What Are The Ingredients In The Makeup Products Of Dollar Tree?
Many makeup products of a Dollar store have materials similar to high-margin products, which have a varying degree of safety.
As a licensed esthetician with 10 years of experience, I’ve researched and tested their various makeup products.
Here goes a list illustrating the common materials in the brand’s makeup items that I have found.
Mineral Oil:
Most makeup brands, including Dollar Tree, use mineral oil as a common ingredient in their cosmetic items.
As a potent emollient, it helps moisturize your skin by preventing water loss.
Although, in a general sense, you can consider it safe, it may not be so for people with acne-prone or sensitive skin. Mineral oil can give them clogged pores and skin issues.
Mica:
Mica, a mineral, acts as a glistening agent in a beauty product. Just like the previous one, it is usually harmless but can be otherwise, depending on your skin type.
Talc:
This mineral powder is a bulking agent found often in makeup commodities. Its use in consumable products has been a disputable matter because of the possibility of causing asbestos contamination.
Generally, cosmetic-grade talc does not have asbestos. Despite that, some studies found it might be connected to cancer if inhaled or used heavily.
A breath of relief is that the FDA has regulated that the amount of asbestos used in makeup talc is low and can be considered safe.
But you may still want other products without talc after reading this: as stated by the American Academy of Dermatology, talc is pore-clogging and can cause breakouts.
You can develop acne and other skin issues because of it, even with healthy skin.
Check out a quick comparison between Mica and Talc.
Titanium Dioxide:
Cosmetic products, mostly sunscreens, have this white pigment in their formulation for their capability to bounce back UV rays.
Like other ingredients in this discussion, titanium dioxide is safe, although some research found it might cause DNA damage and oxidative stress.
But maybe you do not need to mull it over because the FDA’s verdict was in favor of its presence in makeup products.
Parabens:
Brands put parabens in their makeup essentials for their preserving ability to deter bacterial growth.
Then again, there have been other arguments against their likeliness to emulate estrogen and hamper regular hormone behavior.
According to a study published in the Journal of Cosmetic Science, parabens can penetrate the skin and accumulate in the body.
According to some studies, parabens can deposit in your breast tissues.
But we did not find any conclusive evidence to support such discovery that they could be responsible for health problems, i.e., breast cancer.
Phthalates and Lead:
Lead is a potent toxin found in various cosmetics, particularly lip products, posing significant health risks upon ingestion or prolonged exposure.
However, another concerning group of chemicals in cosmetics is phthalates.
These compounds have been linked to reproductive issues, including disruptions in hormone regulation and fertility problems.
Dollar Tree Scandals (Yes, there are more!)
A CBS News report revealed that the FDA sent Dollar Tree a warning notification in 2019 for selling unsafe drugs.
As stated by FDA’s warning, the brand had been dealing in acne treatments manufactured in a Chinese facility called the Shanghai Weierya Daily Chemicals Factory.
That factory was investigated by FDA and discovered to have lacked enough testing tools and procedures to test its products.
For instance, it never conducted proper tests to confirm that the goods did not have any harmful microorganisms like viruses and bacteria.
Things got exacerbated to a higher extent when a Chinese supplier of Dollar Tree, Bicooya Cosmetics, was caught by the FDA in 2017 for the same reason as above.
It did not test its products before supplying them to Dollar Tree. To top that off, its facilities were found to have been fraught with feces everywhere.
A spokesperson of Dollar Tree defended the brand and told CBS that the products in question were not ingestible but topical while promising that the brand would soon work with the FDA and reinforce its compliance with the FDA guidelines.
Dollar Tree products and their Recommendation:
Elf Cosmetics: Elf offers a range of affordable makeup products available at Dollar Tree.
Their lip balms, eyeshadows, and brushes are generally well-received by users.
Wet n Wild: Wet n Wild is another brand with budget-friendly options.
Their MegaGlo Highlighters and Color Icon Eyeshadow Palettes are popular choices.
LA Colors: At Dollar Tree, you’ll discover an array of L.A. Colors makeup products, including their lip gloss and lipstick duos.
These affordable duos allow you to experiment with different lip shades without straining your wallet.
Keep in mind that checking expiration dates is crucial to avoid any surprises when applying these lip products.
Beauty Blenders : Dollar Tree occasionally surprises shoppers with brand-name makeup dupes.
For instance, they’ve been spotted selling lookalike Beauty Blenders at a mere $1.25. Compare that to the usual $20 price tag at Ulta or Target!
Luxe Beauty Care Retinol Skin Cream: Among Dollar Tree’s offerings, the Luxe Beauty Care Retinol Skin Cream stands out.
This anti-aging cream boasts a base of shea butter and features retinol as its active ingredient. Shoppers have praised it, reporting firmer skin and a more youthful appearance.
User Experience:
Let’s take a look at the Dollar Tree reviews from Trustpilot. Customers have shared their experiences, and here are some key points:
Rating:
In Trustpilot, Dollar Tree has an overall rating of 1.8, based on reviews from almost 500 customers. This rating does not bode well for the brand.
Cashier Rudeness:
A customer reported encountering an extremely rude cashier who insinuated that the gift bags were already messed up. Professionalism was lacking, and this incident left a negative impression.
Temperature Control:
Another customer complained about freezing conditions inside a Dollar Tree store due to corporate-controlled thermostats.
Workers were bundled up, and the situation was uncomfortable for both shoppers and employees.
Why Is Dollar Tree Makeup So Cheap?
Even with the soaring price hikes continuing, Dollar Tree is managing to offer us the most lucrative deals. How is it doing so?
How come it is charging only a buck for a body wash? Because it has adopted a popular trading tactic as its main strategy, private labels.
Business Insider unmasked the secret behind Dollar Tree’s product pricing about 4 years ago, finding that the company sells products made by third-party manufacturers for a particular retailing shop.
Those third-party companies make the packaging almost the same as the original, with the product being dramatically less pricey.
You might have even come across those brands without noticing it.
Is Dollar Tree Makeup Vegan-Friendly?
There are both vegan and non-vegan makeup products at the store. So it is not completely vegan-friendly. However, they might not be cruelty-free either.
Although Dollar Tree claims to be cruelty-free, saying it does not conduct tests on animals, a large percentage of Dollar Tree’s suppliers are China-based.
They usually do not solely use organic ingredients in their products. Plus, they are notoriously known for animal testing, hence, not cruelty-free.
You may also like: Is Sheglam Cruelty free?
What Are People Saying About Dollar Tree Makeup?
We found more negative than positive reviews. The good ones did say that some makeup commodities at Dollar Tree served them really well and lived up to their expectations with their long-lasting performance.
But some people were dissatisfied as the products caused skin irritations and allergic reactions. They added that the brand might conceal some ingredients to keep you underinformed.
Also, all products contain natural mica, coming from India exploiting child labor. That was yet another unethical practice we found out about the brand, although there was no concrete data available to back it up.
Final Words:
So, what do you think? Is Dollar Tree makeup safe? Yes, their makeup products indeed have some of the best bargains in the market, but you should also calculate the plausible risks.
Lack of compliance with FDA guidelines, toxic ingredients, and previous allegations and investigations say a lot about the brand and what you could face using its makeup items.
If you still want to buy Dollar Tree makeup, you can do so with enough information by checking the product manufacturer, ingredients, and tags.
That way, you can have budget-friendly hauls without compromising your safety.
If you are someone like me, who loves to try new and different brands, yet concerned about safety, you can have a glance at the following articles:
- Is Gege Bear Makeup Safe? Here’s what you need to know! - February 5, 2024
- The Makeup Industry Doesn’t Want You to Know This Safety Checklist! - February 4, 2024
- Is Titanium Dioxide Safe In Makeup? - January 1, 2024
