Mascara that doesn't clump

Benefit Roller Lash Mascara and Clinique High Impact Mascara have the best records on clumping: 57 of 71 and 54 of 67 reviewers who brought it up said they don't clump, and both hold up at Ulta and Sephora. ILIA Limitless Lash Mascara comes next at 17 of 22.

  • 633 store reviews counted
  • Ulta and Sephora shoppers
  • Aug 2014 to Oct 2026

Updated . How we count

Does it clump? What buyers said
  1. Clinique High Impact Mascara 67 said either way
  2. Benefit Roller Lash Mascara 71 said either way
  3. ILIA Limitless Lash Mascara 22 said either way
  4. IT Cosmetics Superhero Mascara 43 said either way
  5. Lancôme Lash Idôle Mascara 37 said either way
  6. Tarte Maneater Volumizing Mascara 38 said either way
  7. Dior Diorshow Mascara 40 said either way

Share of reviewers who stated an outcome for clumping. Ranked by the lower bound of a 90% confidence interval, so a product needs both a good share and enough reports to rank high.

The ranking, product by product

Praise and complaints are the points buyers repeat most, shown as a share of each product's counted store reviews.

1

Clinique

High Impact Mascara

Best for sensitive eyes

54/67 say it doesn't clump

30% say it doesn't smudge, the most of any mascara here, and 19% call it gentle on sensitive eyes or contacts.

What buyers praise

  • Doesn't smudge or flake 30%
  • Lengthens lashes 28%
  • Gentle on sensitive eyes or contacts 19%
  • Adds volume 17%
  • Natural look 17%

What buyers complain about

  • Smudges or flakes 12%
  • Too expensive 9%
  • Too subtle 7%
  • Dries out fast in the tube 3%
  • Hard to remove 3%
Where buyers said it
  • Ulta 20 of 27
  • Sephora 34 of 40
  • Brand site 0 of 5 shown, not counted
By skin type (Sephora reviewers)
  • Combination14 of 17
  • Normal7 of 7
  • Dry4 of 6
  • Oily6 of 6
2

Benefit

Roller Lash Mascara

Best for a natural, separated look

57/71 say it doesn't clump

Strong at both stores: 26 of 33 at Ulta and 31 of 38 at Sephora. Complaints are small: 7% say the curl drops and 7% mention smudging.

What buyers praise

  • Lengthens lashes 21%
  • Doesn't smudge or flake 16%
  • Natural look 16%
  • Easy to remove 11%
  • Holds a curl 9%

What buyers complain about

  • Smudges or flakes 7%
  • Drops the curl or weighs lashes down 7%
  • Formula changed for the worse 5%
  • Too subtle 5%
  • Messy or awkward wand 4%
Where buyers said it
  • Ulta 26 of 33
  • Sephora 31 of 38
By skin type (Sephora reviewers)
  • Combination12 of 15
  • Normal10 of 11
  • Dry5 of 7
3

ILIA

Limitless Lash Mascara

Best for length

17/22 say it doesn't clump

A lengthening formula that 18% also say comes off easily. On ILIA's own site, 16 of 18 say it doesn't clump, which we show but don't count.

What buyers praise

  • Lengthens lashes 27%
  • Doesn't smudge or flake 23%
  • Adds volume 23%
  • Easy to remove 18%
  • Gentle on sensitive eyes or contacts 14%

What buyers complain about

  • Drops the curl or weighs lashes down 14%
  • Smudges or flakes 14%
  • Too expensive 9%
Where buyers said it
  • Ulta 17 of 22
  • Brand site 16 of 18 shown, not counted
4

IT Cosmetics

Superhero Mascara

Best for length and volume

30/43 say it doesn't clump

33% mention length and 35% call the result natural. Ranked on Ulta reviews only.

What buyers praise

  • Natural look 35%
  • Lengthens lashes 33%
  • Doesn't smudge or flake 26%
  • Adds volume 26%
  • Lasts all day 21%

What buyers complain about

  • Smudges or flakes 9%
  • Too expensive 7%
  • Dries out fast in the tube 5%
  • Too subtle 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Ulta 30 of 43
5

Lancôme

Lash Idôle Mascara

25/37 say it doesn't clump

Good on clumps for most reviewers, but 20% mention smudging and 18% the price.

What buyers praise

  • Lengthens lashes 30%
  • Doesn't smudge or flake 18%
  • Adds volume 15%
  • Lasts all day 10%
  • Holds a curl 10%

What buyers complain about

  • Smudges or flakes 20%
  • Too expensive 18%
  • Messy or awkward wand 13%
  • Hard to remove 10%
  • Irritates eyes 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Ulta 25 of 37
6

Tarte

Maneater Volumizing Mascara

24/38 say it doesn't clump

16% complain about a messy wand, the most of any mascara here.

What buyers praise

  • Lengthens lashes 24%
  • Adds volume 21%
  • Lasts all day 16%
  • Doesn't smudge or flake 8%
  • Easy to remove 5%

What buyers complain about

  • Messy or awkward wand 16%
  • Dries out fast in the tube 11%
  • Formula changed for the worse 5%
  • Smudges or flakes 5%
Where buyers said it
  • Ulta 24 of 38
7

Dior

Diorshow Mascara

24/40 say it doesn't clump

16 of 40 Sephora reviewers who mentioned clumping said it clumps on them. 10% say it dries out fast in the tube.

What buyers praise

  • Doesn't smudge or flake 25%
  • Lengthens lashes 25%
  • Lasts all day 18%
  • Adds volume 18%
  • Natural look 8%

What buyers complain about

  • Smudges or flakes 15%
  • Messy or awkward wand 10%
  • Dries out fast in the tube 10%
  • Too expensive 10%
  • Formula changed for the worse 8%
Where buyers said it
  • Sephora 24 of 40

Where these numbers come from

The 7 products ranked here carry 198,035 reviews at Ulta and Sephora. We searched them for clumping and read the newest matching reviews, up to 40 per product and store, posted between Aug 2014 and Oct 2026.

A review counts only when the reviewer used the product themselves. We drop reviews written in exchange for a free product or a sweepstakes entry (27 on this page), and products that are no longer sold.

Ulta also shows reviews first posted on brands' own websites. They run much more positive than store reviews of the same products (across 19 products with both, 76% of brand-site reviewers said the product solved the problem, against 55% of Ulta shoppers), so we show them on product cards but never count them.

Because we searched for the problem, people who had it are overrepresented. Compare products with each other rather than reading a share as your own odds.

An AI model labels each review against a fixed list of points, and we spot-check the labels before publishing. We publish counts and link to the product pages, never the reviews themselves.

Read the full method

Product pages we read

  1. Clinique High Impact Mascara Ulta, Sephora (69 reviews counted)
  2. Benefit Roller Lash Mascara Ulta, Sephora (75 reviews counted)
  3. ILIA Limitless Lash Mascara Ulta (22 reviews counted)
  4. IT Cosmetics Superhero Mascara Ulta (43 reviews counted)
  5. Lancôme Lash Idôle Mascara Ulta (40 reviews counted)
  6. Tarte Maneater Volumizing Mascara Ulta (38 reviews counted)
  7. Dior Diorshow Mascara Sephora (40 reviews counted)

Questions buyers ask

Which mascara is least likely to clump?

Among the mascaras with enough reviews, Benefit Roller Lash Mascara (57 of 71) and Clinique High Impact Mascara (54 of 67). ILIA Limitless Lash Mascara follows at 17 of 22.

Does Maybelline Sky High clump?

For a lot of buyers it does. 17 of 38 Ulta reviewers who brought up clumping said it clumps, which keeps it just outside our top 7. 25% of its reviews say it's hard to remove.

Does Too Faced Better Than Sex clump?

Often, by these reviews: only 32 of 76 who mentioned clumping said it doesn't clump, which keeps it out of our top 7.

Does Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes clump?

It has one of the weakest records we counted: 35 of 77 say it doesn't clump, so more than half of the reviewers who mentioned clumping had the problem.

Related problems

Mascara Mascara that doesn't smudge Top pick: L'Oréal Paris Double Extend Beauty Tubes 751 buyer reports Mascara Mascara that holds a curl Top pick: L'Oréal Paris Voluminous Lash Paradise 608 buyer reports Eyelash curler Eyelash curler that doesn't pinch Top pick: Tweezerman ProCurl Lash Curler 304 buyer reports Eyeliner Eyeliner that stays on the waterline Top pick: Urban Decay 24/7 Waterline Eye Pencil 441 buyer reports

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