13 Best Eyeliner Pencils in 2023 for Smokey Eyes and Tight Lines

Spotting one of the best eyeliner pencils at the department store or drugstore is about as easy as spotting a cloud in the sky on a rainy day. Nearly every beauty brand offers one, but they’re not all created equal. Tracking down an especially great eyeliner pencil can be as hard as finding a Hinge match who’s not lying about their height.

There are countless ways to use eye pencils, but no matter what, Houston-based makeup artist Rose Siard sticks to a specific technique: “As soon as you draw your line, start smudging,” she says. “I work one eye at a time so I have more blending time.” And of course, the pencil you choose either makes this easier or harder to do.

Luckily, Allure editors and professional makeup artists have done the tough testing for you. We gathered up the best eyeliner pencils in one convenient place, with picks from brands like MAC, Revlon, and Gucci, plus drugstore eyeliners that look and feel just as vibrant and smooth as the rest. Consider this your shopping guide for the most colorful, long-lasting, shimmery, and intensely pigmented formulas on the market. All are easy to use, most are easy to smudge, and none of them will play a disappearing act on you until they’re ready to wipe off with some makeup remover before bed.

Keep scrolling to find out which one of these eyeliner pencils you should be rimming your lash lines with, using to draw on graphic shapes, blending out as an eye shadow base, or trying the latest liner trend with.