How to Shop Cruelty Free on a Budget
Whether you are on a budget, looking to save money or just love a bargain, I have put together a list of the best ways to save when buying cruelty free!
Try finding small independent brands
High-end brands that are constantly promoted and have huge endorsement deals are often seen as the forefront of cruelty free beauty. Brands such as Kat Von D, Illamasqua, and Sugarpill for example are renowned for their quality, label and cruelty free status. However, there are many smaller companies that are available through sites such as Etsy that provide totally cruelty free and vegan beauty products that are free from animal testing and animal ingredients. You will also be supporting independent and homegrown brands with handmade quality products.
Have a look in your local supermarket
This one is less so for beauty, and more for those everyday toiletries like shaving foam and hand soap, as well as household items like cleaning products and washing powder.
Morrisons is Cruelty Free International approved:
“Our Morrisons branded personal care and cosmetic products are approved under the Humane Cosmetics Standard and we aim for certification under the Humane Household Products Standard in the future.”
Asda’s animal testing policy:
“At Asda, we don’t test any of our own brand beauty, toiletry or household products on animals. In fact, we haven’t tested any of the ingredients in our cosmetics products on animals since 31st December 2009, or cleaning products since 31st of April 2015.”
The Co-op is another Cruelty Free International approved brand, they were also the first to be completely cruelty free in the UK!
“The Co-op’s own brand cosmetic, personal care and household product ranges are all approved cruelty free.”
Sainsbury’s has over 200 BUAV approved products:
“As part of our commitment to sourcing with integrity, we’re proud to say that we are the first major supermarket to sign up all our own brand cosmetics and toiletries, over 200 products in total, to the Humane Cosmetics Standard and be certified free from animal testing by the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV). We are committed to animal welfare and our policy on animal testing is an essential aspect of this commitment. In March 2011 Sainsbury’s became members of the Humane Cosmetics Standard. The Humane Cosmetics Standard (HCS) is an internationally recognised standard that guarantees for consumers that products and the ingredients used are free from animal testing since an agreed fixed cut off date.”
M&S is Leaping Bunny approved:
“We don’t test any of our M&S beauty or household products on animals. But we wanted to go further than this. We guarantee that none of the individual ingredients in our beauty or household products is tested on animals either, starting from a fixed cut-off date of January 2006. All these products have the stamp of approval from Cruelty Free International, founded by the BUAV (British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection). You’ll see their ‘Leaping Bunny’ logo on pack, which means you’ll know that what you’re buying is free from animal testing.”
“We do not support testing on animals for cosmetic or household products, and do not carry out or commission such tests on our own-brand products or the ingredients they contain. Some products have ingredients which will have been tested on animals in the past. This is because we operate a fixed cut-off date for animal testing of ingredients, of 31 December 2007. We have set in place very robust systems to ensure that these cut-off dates have been met by all our suppliers to our own brand, where stipulated.”
Check out the health and beauty shops!
Holland and Barretts stock many cruelty free brands such as Crazy Rumors, Dr. Organic and Salt of the Earth.
Your favourite clothing stores may also be your new favourite beauty shops!
Next’s own brand products are approved by FRAME:
“We do not support testing on animals for our own brand cosmetic products and do not carry out or commission such tests. We operate a fixed cut-off date of testing for ingredients in our products of 1998. We support the Fund for the Replacement of Animals in Medical Experimentation (FRAME) which seeks to end animal testing.”
There are so many cosmetic brands that are cheap and cruelty free
MUA, Revolution, B., Barry M, and Lottie London are just some of the cruelty free ranges available in the high street pharmacy stores. Be sure to check out our ‘How to Shop Cruelty Free at Boots‘ and ‘How to Shop Cruelty Free at Superdrug‘ shopping guides!
Make your own!
It’s super easy to make your own products at home, cheaply, naturally, and you know they are 100% cruelty free and vegan! There are lots of guides online of how to make your own household cleaners with ingredients like vinegar, lavender and tea tree, to body scrubs and exfoliators.
Look in discount stores
Like high end but not high end prices? Me too! Discount stores like TK Maxx and Designer Outlet have a host of cruelty free beauty for much cheaper prices, usually due to the fact the products are last season. TK Maxx stock lots of W7 items which are good value, cruelty free, and in most cases vegan. eBay is also a good option for when you are looking for something in particular.
