An Ophthalmologist and a Makeup Artist Just ID'd the 11 Best Mascaras for Ageing Lashes

If you find it challenging to shop for the best mascaras as your lashes change with age, you're not alone. While it's a known fact that the strands of hair on your head grow increasingly dry, brittle, and sparse as they mature, it's easy to forget the same thing applies to the hair on the rest of your body, including your eyelashes. From year to year, a mascara you once depended on to keep your lashes looking long and luscious may need to be traded for a newer model to address new concerns.

Below, two experts on the subject—an ophthalmologist and a makeup artist—are sharing their tips for keeping mature lashes healthy and the best and worst ingredients to keep an eye out for. They even spilt the details on a few of their product favourites, too, so you can rest assured these are the best expert-approved mascaras for mature lashes.

How Do Lashes Change As We Age?

Before starting your hunt for a mascara that will look and feel amazing on aging lashes, it's helpful to know how to care for and protect them. As your lashes age, oestrogen levels dip, which reduces the hair-growth rate. This leads to everything from thinning and brittleness to loss of pigment and irregular density.

How Should We Care For Our Lashes As We Age?

Michele Probst, celebrity makeup artist and founder of Worth Beauty Company, tells us that you can keep your natural lashes thriving long after you've reached a particular age by taking time to remove product from your eyes and lashes nightly, using a lash serum, being careful while using metal lash curlers, and avoiding astringent glue with fake lashes.

What Mascaras Are Best For Mature Lashes?

When it comes to deciding which mascara will work the best for your mature lashes, pay special attention to the ingredients. "I like hydrating ingredients like argan oil—a fatty acid–rich plant oil [that's] rich in linoleic acid, which is extremely hydrating," says Diane Hilal-Campo, MD, board-certified ophthalmologist and founder of Twenty/Twenty Beauty. She also shares that vitamin E offers nourishing benefits for the lashes and defends against damaging free radicals, and the addition of panthenol (vitamin B5) in a formula can work overtime to condition the lashes from the inside out.

"I'd also recommend looking for hyaluronic acid or glycerin, both of which are humectants that can draw water into dehydrated lashes. That water will then be locked into the lash by the aforementioned nourishing ingredients," Hilal-Campo adds. When it comes to which ingredients would cause more harm, she tells us to steer clear of allergens like beeswax. Additionally, she warns against mascaras with strong preservatives and alcohols that can cause damage to the lashes and eyes. It's smart to avoid prostaglandin analogues since they're known to trigger unnaturally long lash growth.

Additionally, it's worth considering waterproof mascaras and tubing mascaras, which are less likely to smudge or flake onto your lids. And if you find black mascara too harsh, a brown mascara can be softer and more natural-looking. Keep scrolling to see the mascaras beauty editors and experts love for ageing lashe,s underlined by hundreds of glowing reviews from customers.

The Best Mascaras For Ageing Lashes

1. Best Overall mascara for mature lashes: UKLash Lengthening Mascara (£12)
2. Best Lengthening mascara for mature lashes: Hourglass Unlocked Instant Extensions Mascara (£32)
3. Best Volumising mascara for mature lashes: Charlotte Tilbury Exaggereyes Volume Mascara (£28)
4. Best Tubing mascara for mature lashes: Milk Makeup Kush High Roll Defining & Volumizing Tubing Mascara (£28)
5. Best Waterproof mascara for mature lashes: Clinique High Impact Waterproof Mascara (£26)
6. Best Curling mascara for mature lashes: Trish McEvoy Lash Curling Mascara (£25)

1. UKLash Lengthening Mascara

2. Hourlgass Unlocked Instant Extensions Mascara

3. Charlotte Tilbury Exaggereyes Volume Mascara

4. Lancôme Définicils High Definition Mascara

5. Milk Makeup Kush High Roll Defining & Volumizing Tubing Mascara

6. Clinique High Impact Waterproof Mascara

7. Ilia Limitless Lash Mascara

8. Maybelline Falsies Lash Lift Volumizing and Lengthening Mascara

9. YSL Beauty Lash Clash Extreme Volume Mascara

10. Trish McEvoy Lash Curling Mascara

11. Sisley-Paris Phyto-Noir Mascara

Why Trust Us: Beauty

At Who What Wear UK, we know that beauty isn’t one-size-fits-all. Our editors have tested thousands of products over the years—spanning skincare, makeup, hair and nails—and work closely with trusted experts including dermatologists, makeup artists and leading industry insiders to ensure every guide is well-researched, inclusive and relevant to you.

We focus on formulas that deliver, whether they’re affordable favourites or luxury investments. Our product selection is based on tangible results, ingredient know-how and what we’d truly recommend to a friend.