Mass and prestige beauty grew at the same 7% rate in H1 2026 in the US with mass beauty reaching $39.2bn and prestige rising to $17.1bn but there were significant differences in growth by category.
In mass, the fastest growing category was fragrances with sales growing +15% both driven by value and volume. Skincare grew +8%, haircare +7%, and makeup +5%, though Circana notes that makeup units declined.
In prestige growth came from treatment and clinical promises. Haircare grew +11%, driven by treatments, scalp products and serums. Skincare grew +9%, with body care and suncare adding to the usual facial skincare engine. Fragrance grew +6%, but this growth was driven by price increases and premium formats as sales in units were flat.
Growth in beauty is not anymore coming from consumers trading up for prestige beauty. Consumers are still buying beauty, but they are being more selective spending where the functional promise is strong, as in sunscreen, body care, scalp care and treatments and looking for cheaper alternatives where the price premium is not always so clear, as in fragrance.
