Battle Of The Mattes: NYX vs Nichido vs Ever Bilena vs SanSan + Comparison and Observations

Hello Pinay Beauties! I am back with a rather interesting comparison review as I will be comparing the cheapest matte lipsticks there is in the market. I would like to call this post "Battle Of The Mattes".

I am sure by now you all know how obsessed I am with lipsticks, especially semi-matte/matte ones. And in my search for the perfect budget-friendly, high quality lipstick, I decided to do this comparison review. I already got my matte red lipstick from NYX so I purchased 3 more matte red lipsticks. Here are the swatches for your reference:

[L-R] NYX Matte Lipstick in Perfect Red,

Nichido Matte Lipstick in Runway Red,

Ever Bilena Matte Lipstick in Love That Red, and

SanSan Creamy Matte Lipstick in Really Red

I will be sharing with you my observations on each of these lippies, then at the end you will find a comparison table with the categories that I believe is important to consider when you are purchasing a lipstick. Let's begin.

NYX MATTE LIPSTICK IN PERFECT RED

Price: ₱270 (from Stuff In Style)

• Most matte out of the 4 lipsticks.
• Slightly blue undertone.
• Has a weird but mild scent.
• Very drying, needs lipbalm under it.
• Glides smoothly on the lips, no tugging issues.
• Super pigmented.
• Transfers.
• Dries out after an hour.
• Color faded after 3 1/2 hours.
• Staying power is 7 hours or more.

NICHIDO MATTE LIPSTICK IN RUNWAY RED

Price: ₱188

• Has a neutral undertone.
• Has a waxy scent but very mild.
• Finish is matte.
• A little bit drying, needs lipbalm under it.
• Slight tugging when applied, it does not glide smoothly.
• Pigmentation is a bit poor, need a couple of swipes.
• Transfers a bit, not so much.
• Dries out after 1 1/2 hours.
• Faded after 5 hours.
• Staying power is 7 hours or more.
• Difficult to remove, needs an oil-based makeup remover.

EVER BILENA MATTE LIPSTICK IN LOVE THAT RED

Price: ₱155

• The brightest red out of the 4 lipsticks.
• Has a neutral to slightly orange undertone.
• Finish is on the semi matte side.
• Moisturizing but still needs lipbalm under it.
• Glides smoothly on the lips.
• Pigmentation is okay as well, needs couple of swipes.
• Transfers.
• Dries out after 2 hours.
• Color faded after 4 hours.
• Staying power is 5 to 6 hours.
• Slightly difficult to remove, stains the lips.

SANSAN CREAMY MATTE LIPSTICK IN REALLY RED

Price: ₱125

• The most moisturizing out of the 4 lipsticks.
• Has a neutral undertone.
• Scent is a very strong vanilla scent, may be overpowering.
• Finish is semi-matte, but more creamier/glossier.
• May or may not need a lipbalm before application.
• Pigmentation is okay, needs couple of swipes and smoothing to even out color.
• Color tends to collect on the outer line of the lips.
• Color fades on the inner edges of the lips after 1 1/2 hours.
• Dries out after 5 hours.
• Staying power is 6 hours.
• Doesn't stain the lips, easy to remove.

And those are my observations. I tested out this lipstick each day for 4 days, without lipbalm nor lipliner and the staying power is determined by me drinking, smoking, eating and constantly smacking my lips (which is a habit of mine when I am wearing lip products). I also applied it straight from the tube so that I can test how easy it is to apply.

Here is the table comparison of the 4 lipsticks:

	NYX	Nichido	Ever Bilena	SanSan
Price	₱270	₱188	₱155	₱125
Finish	Matte	Matte	Semi-Matte	Creamy Matte
Moisturizing?	No	No	Slightly	Yes
Glides Smoothly?	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Transfers?	Yes	Slightly	Yes	Yes
Color Faded After?	3 ½ hours	5 hours	4 hours	1 ½ hours
Staying Power	7 hours or more	7 hours or more	5 to 6 hours	6 hours
Easy To Remove?	No	No	No	Yes

Overall, out of these 4 lippies, my top pick would be the Nichido Matte Lipstick. Yes, it is drying, but the texture, the color and staying power is amazing! It also does not transfer a lot, which is an A+ in my book. For ₱188, you get a high quality lipstick without hurting your wallet.

The NYX Matte Lipstick is no doubt amazing but the price is quite hefty (for me at least) plus it is not locally available. The Ever Bilena Matte Lipstick will always be a favorite of mine but the color is quite bright for me. Then we have the SanSan Creamy Matte Lipstick which has this strong vanilla scent that is too overpowering for me so I decided to give it to someone else.

What are your thoughts? Do you have other matte lipsticks that you love? Do you have other observations that I wasn't able to include in this post? Please let me know by posting a comment below.

I hope this post is helpful to those who are lipstick lovers out there or for those who wanted to try out matte lipsticks. Please know that everything posted here are of my own and honest opinion. Thank you so much for reading! I hope you can share it with your family and friends and please do not forget to follow this blog for more reviews, tutorials, etc. and to follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (links can be found at the side bar) for other news and updates. Goodluck!

-- Maica :)