A Honey Face Mask for Every Budget

My love of subscription boxes has definitely lead to my deep love and appreciate for skincare; I've been able to discover so many trends, products, and ingredients through boxes introducing me to them! While I enjoy a good 10-step skincare routine (when I have the time, that is), if I had to pick my favorite step of them all, it would be masking. Something about slathering goop on my face just really makes me feel like I’m taking care of myself, and with so many masks out there angling different claims and ingredients, I find using them to be a lot of fun. At this point in my life, I’ve tried at least fifty different ones (probably double that, but I can’t easily prove it), and I’ve found that some of my favorites masks all include honey. Honey is an amazing skincare ingredient for a variety of reasons; its antibacterial properties make it great for acne, and it’s soothing and calming for inflamed or sensitive skin. Plus, it’s occlusive, so it helps to lock moisture for dry skin. Basically, it can just about do it all- there’s no wonder that there are so many masks out there with honey as a key ingredient.

I’ve rounded up my favorites at a variety of price points, so no matter your budget, you can find a honey mask to try. Oh, and you know how I said I find masking to be fun? I’ve taken that a bit far and even have a tiara I like to wear when I mask. Photos of me enjoying these masks are below... I hope you enjoy!

TONYMOLY I'm Honey Deep Moisture Rescue Mask

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The Mask: TONYMOLY I'm Honey Deep Moisture Rescue Mask

Budget: $

The Cost: $15.00

This mask has a really fun texture that reminds me of jelly, and it feels cooling to your skin when you apply it (even if you didn’t stick it in the fridge beforehand). In terms of ingredients, we’ve got honey, propolis, and Royal jelly. Propolis is also made by bees (it’s a blend of beeswax and tree sap), and just like honey, it’s anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, full of antioxidants, soothing, and moisturizing. Royal jelly is the substance that helps a baby bee grow into a queen bee, and in skincare, it provides a big boost of vitamins and amino acids. All of those ingredients combined work to give your skin a big boost of moisture in this mask, and it feels soothing to the skin if you have any irritation or inflamed acne. After multiple uses, I can definitely say this is the best honey mask at this price point that I have tried (and hasn't been discontinued).

Here it is on! You can see how the texture is a little thin and translucent, but it’s a moisturizing powerhouse. 

I'm From Honey Mask

The Product: I'm From Honey Mask

Budget: $$

The Cost: $38.00

This is a mask that’s been popular on Instagram for years, and I finally caved and bought it during last years Black Friday sale. Now, I can’t believe that I waited so long. It has a creamy texture that glides like butter over the skin, and in a 120g jar, there is over 46 grams of honey inside. That honey is paired with nourishing oils like jojoba, macadamia, and sunflower seed oil along with propolis, snail secretion filtrate, bee venom, and aloe vera. I’ve left this mask on for as little as 20 minutes, and as much as an hour, and every time I’ve rinsed it away, my skin was calm, soft, and very hydrated. What I like to do is apply it to clean skin, veg out or do chores or whatever else I want to do, and then take a bath, rinsing this mask away as the last step before I step out of the tub. The warm steam feels like it helps the mask to moisturize even deeper, and that extra step helps me to relax even further. 

Sometimes I need my hair out of my face more than I need a crown- when that happens, I reach for my cat ears headband while the honey mask does it’s thing. 

Dermalogica Melting Moisture Mask

The Product: Dermalogica Melting Moisture Mask

The Budget: $$$

The Cost: $65.00

This mask came on my radar when an Instagram friend had asked me if I had tried it, but I had never even heard of it. I did some looking into it, loved what I saw, and then waited a few months to think it over. Then, I serendipitously got a mini of it as an Ulta GWP, fell in love after first use, and ordered it the next day. The texture starts out as a thick balm (almost too thick- it does take some effort to get it out of the pump, so I do wish this was in a jar or squeeze tube), and as you apply it to your skin, it melts a bit into a thick, nourishing oil. The texture is honestly so much like honey that I was genuinely stunned to look at the ingredients list and not actually see honey- instead, there’s a blend of oils, butters, and flower waxes that make up the signature MeltingPoint Complex. There’s also linoleum acid, plankton extract, and rosemary. The formula is incredibly hydrating and nutrient dense, and after leaving it on for 30-60 minutes, I tissue off the excess (whatever hasn’t been absorbed by my skin- there isn’t much) with a warm, damp cloth and call it a day. I still love this mask, but I will admit feeling duped by marketing- the “melting moisture” name and the yellow pops of color really had me thinking this was a honey mask, but since it works so well and has such a honey-like texture, it’s staying classified as a honey mask in my mind. 

The mask isn’t that visible in photos, but it’s there working its magic on my skin. 

Fresh Beauty Creme Ancienne Ultimate Nourishing Honey Mask

Image via Fresh.

The Product: Fresh Beauty Creme Ancienne Ultimate Nourishing Honey Mask

The Budget: $$$$

The Cost: $160.00

This is the one mask on this list I don’t own, yet have been lusting over it for at least two years now. The formula is 38% Buckfast bee honey (which equates to about 2.5 tablespoons of honey per jar), and it also has echinacea, sea buckthorn oil, and meadowfoam seed oil. Fresh makes some truly incredible masks (after perusing the website, I believe this is the only mask from the brand I haven’t tried), and I will get my hands on this one day, even if it’s not today. 

Are you interested in some face masks, but honey isn’t your thing? Here are some other masks that I recommend.

Bliss Mint Chip Mania Cooling Face Mask

The Product: Bliss Mint Chip Mania Cooling Face Mask

The Budget: $

The Cost: $11.00

This is my favorite face mask from Bliss, and my all-time favorite affordable mask; I am on my fourth or fifth jar, and I have two backups waiting for me in my stash. This is a cooling face mask made with aloe vera and shea butter, along with bentonite clay and peppermint leaf extract. I don’t find it to be drying, and it always subdues the redness in my cheeks so it is looking less red. My favorite way to use this mask (and I encourage you to try it if you haven’t) is as a shower mask:  apply it before you step into a hot shower and rinse it away as the last step before you get out. Hot showers can be really drying to your skin, and masking while showering can help prevent the water from drying your skin out. Plus, the cooling sensation on your face with hot water everywhere else is a nice sensorial experience, too.

Boscia Cactus Water Peel Off Mask

The Product: Boscia Cactus Water Peel Off Mask 

The Budget: $$

The Cost: $34.00

I actually don’t like peel off masks. They usually have ingredients that irritate my sensitive skin, they hurt to peel off, or they won’t peel off at all, and then I’m left with a mess. None of that applies to this peel off mask by Boscia. It’s described to be best suited for combination-oily skin, however I’ve never had issues with it on my dry and sensitive skin. It doesn’t take forever to dry (although I will usually leave it on a touch longer than I think I need to), and I’m able to peel it off in one big piece. The best part is the results- every time I've finished with this mask, my skin is glowing and feels much softer and more hydrated. It doesn’t leave my skin red the way some masks do when I’m done masking (thanks, rosacea), and while I enjoyed this on a lazy Friday afternoon, it would be a good pick before an event where you wanted your skin to look your best too. If you don’t believe my words, you can see me use this mask (and the glow it leaves when I peel it off) here. 

Peter Thomas Roth Therapeutic Sulfur Mask

The Product: Peter Thomas Roth Therapeutic Sulfer Mask

The Budget: $$$

The Cost: $52.00

This is the mask I grab when I feel a cystic pimple forming on my skin- those types of pimples are so hard to treat, and sulfur is the one ingredient I’ve found to really shorten the lifespan of those huge monsters. I am on my second jar of this, and I primarily use it as a general spot treatment (apply a thick layer wherever I am breaking out, let it chill for about 20-30 minutes, and then wash away and follow up with a sheet mask). If you have oily, acne-prone skin, you may prefer to use this mask all over your face, but if you suffer from dry skin, then using this mask as a spot treatment is the way to go. I’ve been using this mask since 2019, and I do not plan to ever be without it.

Thanks for sticking around and reading this mask round up. I would love to know what wash off mask you reach for on a regular basis- and if you’ve tried the Fresh mask (or any of the other masks on my list), I would definitely love to know your thoughts! 

Ready to discover more face masks? Check out some of our readers' favorites that hit all the marks.

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