Black Friday is fast approaching, and it is the perfect opportunity to stock up on your favourite formulas or discover new hero buys at far less than the original price tag. You will find skincare, fragrance, haircare, body and make-up all heavily discounted, with very few beauty brands immune from a reduction.
’s top Black Friday deals at a glance:
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Ahead of Christmas, the online shopping market is a beauty playground where you will find some real gems, but only if you know where to look. I have been covering Black Friday for the last nine years. And in that time, I have seen it go from a US offshoot to a chaotic four-day Supermarket Sweep-like experience to a fully-fledged 30-day event. With all these promotions, it is more important than ever to shop smart and curate your purchases. Pay attention to whether this is, in fact, a true deal rather than an inflated ‘before’ price, and whether you really need it. Will it become a staple in your routine or gather dust in a drawer? You want to get value for your outlay, so gifts with purchases are always welcome. Think ahead to the holiday season and maximise the discounts to tick each person off your shopping list.
From high-end luxury labels to lesser-known brands to pharmacy heroes, there is a broad range of products that will be on sale. There are always discounts across tools and devices like hair stylers, LED masks by the likes of Dyson, GHD and CurrentBody, premium skincare from brands including La Mer, Augustinus Bader, Kiehl's and Drunk Elephant and make-up ranging from gift sets to palettes.
These are the most covetable beauty deals, with a focus on formulas that have been approved by the team. See also our Sephora-focused edit, what the beauty desk loves from Victoria Beckham, the rare sale on Westman Atelier and the Merit must-haves.
Top -approved beauty Black Friday offers:
- Why it’s -approved: A step up from red light in terms of the depth its beams penetrate, Lyma’s device combines low-level cold laser therapy with NIR to rejuvenate skin from the inside out. This handheld tool can treat fine lines everywhere on the face and body – from the crow’s feet to hands and lips – and offers impressive results for deep-set concerns like pigmentation and scarring. What’s more, it fits inside your handbag and is still effective when used over your SPF or make-up. Great for the jet setter who needs on-the-go treatments, it’s no wonder this device is beloved by the celebrity set.
- Device type: Handheld
- Best for: deep-down skin rejuvenation. Tightening lax skin, renewing dull skin and remodelling skin with scars. Several users praise the non-invasive device for its anti-inflammatory effects on conditions like psoriasis.
- Target area: Face, body, neck and hands
- : Three plus minutes daily
- Good to know: As well as whole face rejuvenation, try using it for five minutes on targeted areas like acne scarring and persistent sun spots.
Hair, Face, and Neck Series 3 Bundle
Why this deal is -approved: In this bundle, you will find three of the beauty team’s top CurrentBody devices with a discount of nearly £160. This includes the hair growth helmet, the newly unveiled Series 3 LED face mask and the neck mask for red light therapy from head to the décolleté.
Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara
- Why it’s -approved: The formula has maintained its cult-favourite status since exploding onto TikTok in 2020. Why? Its thin, flexible brush delivers intense volume and length from root to tip.
- Creates length and volume without weighing down the lashes.
- Key ingredients: Bamboo extract and fibres
- Who it’s for: Tested by ophthalmologists, the formula is approved for sensitive eyes and contact lens wearers.
- : Black, brown, blue, pink, burgundy
- Why it’s -approved: The Age-R Booster Pro – the enhanced version of the Hailey Bieber favourite Age-R Booster H – from K-beauty brand Medicube is designed to help you achieve glass skin, with a of unique settings as well as an app that’s as smooth and reflective as a windowpane. In addition to microcurrent, electrical muscle stimulation, and a needleless take on microneedling, Age-R Booster Pro delivers five LED wavelengths to tackle a full spectrum of skin concerns, Matney assures. While red and blue light (and their combination, purple) are most well-known for their use in treating signs of ageing and blemishes, the Age-R Booster Pro also offers inflammation-reducing green light and radiance-boosting orange light. Use these light wavelengths with any of the other glow-boosting settings after your skincare routine for best results.
- “I’m convinced that the red light function on Medicube’s X2 Wand helps bring down angry, inflamed spots. Holding it over a particularly angry breakout feels almost like watching it deflate, and as someone who often experiences painful hormonal acne, it’s a very welcome addition to my routine. A dermatologist once explained to me that while blue light is often the go-to for targeting acne-causing bacteria, red light can help calm inflammation and support skin healing. I’m a skin picker, so this is helpful! There’s also emerging research into its effects on oil production, although evidence is less established. Either way, anything that helps reduce a furious hormonal breakout is worth its weight in gold.” –
- Best for: Uneven tone, enlarged pores, redness, laxity
- Five LED colours (red, blue, purple, green, orange), electroporation, microcurrent, EMS, electric needles
- Varies depending on setting; see user manual for best results
Liquid Peptides Advanced MP & Exo-PDRN Prismatic+ Bundle
- Iris, Peony, Apricot, Rose, Peach, Vanilla, Musk, Tonka Bean, Benzoin and Sandalwood
- Why this is a top pick: With fresh notes of peony and iris blended with creamy musks, vanilla, and a hint of tonka bean, the Miss Dior Eau de Parfum is soft, sensual and the ultimate fan favourite. Finished with a ribbon flourish, it’s also the perfume gift that practically wraps itself – what’s not to love?
- Best collagen powder for: skin and anti-ageing
- Key ingredients: Bovine collagen peptides – 284g of them – which are easily absorbed by the body.
- What experts say: “Collagen peptides can stimulate the production of hyaluronic acid by dermal fibroblasts, enhancing skin moisture and reducing wrinkle formation. Because it uses collagen peptides, Vital Proteins Collagen is an incredible powerhouse for the skin.”
- For those frantically googling “which collagen does Jennifer Aniston use?” this is it. Famously endorsed by the alum, the Vital Proteins bumper jar contains more than half a kilo of high-quality type I and III collagen peptides. Plenty here to set you on the path to stronger hair, skin and nails, at a price that almost feels like stealing. The flavourless formula is her ticket to a next-level glow, and she adds it into her morning coffee or smoothie each day. And it really is as easy as that – with a mini scoop that accompanies the tub, it is soluble in both hot and cold liquids, easy to digest and doesn’t taste of anything at all. And if it leads to the skin like Aniston’s… well, add to basket, immediately.
- -approved review: “I have always been quite sceptical when it comes to beauty supplements – after all, there’s nothing that gives you a glow quite like a healthy diet and decent night’s sleep. However, the data around collagen was compelling, and so earlier this year I finally took the plunge with Vital Proteins’s Collagen Peptides. Coming in a flavourless powder, it’s perfect for adding to my morning coffee, without any gloopiness or weird after-taste. After a few months of use, my skin is definitely smoother and brighter, and a facialist commented on how tight my pores were, which is never a bad thing. Watch this space.” —
ZIIP Beauty Nanocurrent Skincare Device
Why it’s -approved:
Many LED devices are marketed as “bringing the clinic home”, but this one actually lives up to those claims. A powerful, medical-grade brand favoured by top facialists, the Dermalux Flex has been attenuated for safe home use by non-trained professionals. It still delivers salon results, though, with 360 lights configured to deliver clinically proven wavelengths for targeting acne, ageing and even muscle aches. We love that it can be placed above the face and body for all-over rejuvenation, as does Kate Moss, who’s also a fan of this device. “I use the Dermalux LED device in my clinic and I am a fan of the results it offers,” says Yoo. “It’s worth noting that this home-use device will be weaker than an in-clinic LED device, but it has great specs as far as efficacy is concerned.”
Key specs:
- Blue (415nm), red (633nm) and near infrared (830nm)
Why it’s -approved:
“Our goal was to make it more accessible”, explains Tim Roberts, head of science at Therabody. The TheraFace Mask Glo is significantly cheaper than its TheraFace Mask predecessor (£299 vs £579), and yet it has maintained the high dose of light therapy even with fewer lights (the original has 648 vs 504). This has been achieved by upping the treatment time to 12 minutes, but it’s an entirely hands-free device, so it remains easy to slip into a regular routine. I wear mine sitting in front of the TV, scrolling on my phone. There are two buttons on either side of the mask, one to start the cycle of red, red and infrared and blue light, and the other for three varieties of vibration. This massage function is unique and was designed to enhance relaxation. The lights switch after four minutes for skin rejuvenation with such benefits as improving the appearance of dark spots, wrinkles, uneven skin tone and firming. These results have been clinically tested in the largest trial of a commercially available mask, done on a broad range of skin types, in a controlled environment. There were also visible improvements on the jowls and jawline from the residual light.
Key specs:
- 504 medical-grade LEDs – red, red+infrared or blue light
- Hard shell rigid
- Device type: Face mask
- Target area: Face
- Best for: The TheraFace Mask Glo has the largest clinical study in the LED mask space, with 104 subjects
- Good to know: Kendall Jenner is a fan of this mask and a brand ambassador
Why it’s -approved:
Shark’s CryoGlow LED face mask is all over social media right now for good reason. With 480 LED lights and four targeted treatment modes (including Better Ageing, Blemish Repair, Skin Sustain and Under-Eye Cooling), it’s a multitasking wonder that has been clinically proven to reduce fine lines and wrinkles, boost luminosity and improve blemishes and skin roughness. All that while also helping to cool and depuff the eye area, which is an absolute dream the morning after the night before.
Key specs:
- Red (630nm) and blue (415nm) light, and near infrared (830nm)
Why it’s a deal we recommend:
For lifting, sculpting and firming skin, there’s a legion of TikTokers who swear by Nu Face’s microcurrent toning device. We tried it and can concur: it’s an excellent skincare tool for smoothing lines and a thorough depuff. Including a conductive gel activator and a travel-sized version of the cult tool, this kit comes with all the essentials for a thorough spa facial at home – or wherever you wind up during the holiday season.
Best Black Friday make-up deals
- Why it’s -approved: Erborian’s CC Crème has formed the basis of my make-up bag for as long as I can remember. It was brought to market back in 2007, and its endurance as a cosmetic holy grail is a testament to the quality of the formula.
- The hybrid hero comes in just three shades, but its adaptable pigment means that it has an almost universal smoothing effect on uneven skin tone, imperfections and glides over fine lines without settling. The texture is lightweight, while the inclusion of soothing centella asiatica does wonders for redness and inflammation.
- See also the brand’s CC Red Correct, CC Dull Correct and CC Water, the latter of which adds hyaluronic acid into the mix.
- Why it’s -approved: Acclaimed by the pros and celebrities like Rachel Zegler alike, NARS Climax Mascara’s eye-catching red tube isn’t its only covetable quality. This creamy lightweight formula coats lashes with buildable volume without clumping.
- The lightweight formula won’t clump or smudge, but it deliver a most intense coat of volumising black.
- Key ingredients: Acacia Senegal gum, paraffin, glyceryl stearate, synthetic beeswax
- Who it’s for: The buildable formula is a winning make-up bag staple for anyone who believes that mascara is best served in layers.