44.3%
reported rarely cleaning their brushes
In a 2025 survey of 370 makeup-tool users in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 44.3% said they rarely cleaned their cosmetic brushes.
Source: Attar & Imam, 2025 ↗Research reference
Makeup brush hygiene statistics.
A practical, source-backed snapshot of cleaning habits and cosmetic-tool hygiene. Updated October 2, 2026.
This page reports what the cited studies found. It is not medical advice, and individual study results should not be treated as a measure of personal health risk.
Key findings
The numbers worth knowing.
27.8%
reported skin problems they connected with contaminated tools
The same 2025 survey found 27.8% of respondents reported skin problems they believed could be linked to contaminated cosmetic tools. The study did not establish that the tools caused those problems.
Source: Attar & Imam, 2025 ↗81%
of brush isolates were Gram-positive bacteria
Among bacteria identified from 57 collected cosmetic brushes, Gram-positive bacteria made up 81% of isolates in the 2025 laboratory study.
Source: Attar & Imam, 2025 ↗79–90%
of sampled used products carried bacteria
A 2020 study of donated lipstick, lip gloss, eyeliner, mascara, and beauty blenders found bacteria in about 79–90% of the used products tested.
Source: Bashir & Lambert, 2020 ↗93%
of sampled beauty blenders had not been cleaned
In the 2020 study, 93% of the sampled beauty blenders had not been cleaned before testing.
Source: Bashir & Lambert, 2020 ↗64%
had been dropped and then kept in use
The same study reported that 64% of sampled beauty blenders had been dropped on the floor and continued to be used.
Source: Bashir & Lambert, 2020 ↗How to read this page
Useful context beats a scary number.
These studies are snapshots of specific samples and places, not a census of every makeup user or every makeup brush. They are useful because they show where a regular cleaning routine can be easy to miss, and why clean tools deserve a place in a thoughtful beauty routine.
The research does not say that a person will develop a skin concern from an unwashed brush. It does show that used tools and products can pick up microorganisms, and that cleaning habits are inconsistent in the samples researchers studied.
Methodology and sources
Where the figures come from.
2025
Cosmetic brush contamination and hygiene habits
Attar and Imam analysed 57 cosmetic brushes and surveyed 370 participants in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The page uses the study’s reported cleaning-habit, self-reported skin-problem, and laboratory-isolate figures.
Read the peer-reviewed study ↗2020
Microbial contamination in used cosmetic products
Bashir and Lambert tested donated lipstick, lip gloss, eyeliner, mascara, and beauty blenders in the United Kingdom. The page uses their reported contamination and beauty-blender care figures.
Read the peer-reviewed study ↗Last reviewed: October 2, 2026. We will revisit the figures when a stronger or newer primary source changes the picture.
Cite this page
Make this reference easy to use.
Drift Supply Co. (2026, October 2). Makeup Brush Hygiene Statistics: 2026 Reference. Retrieved from https://driftsupply.center/makeup-brush-hygiene-statistics.
For a specific figure, link directly to its numbered section above and include the original study in your own source list.
Read the brush-care guide