What’s the Deal with Beef Tallow for Skin?

I tried the viral Evil Goods Whipped Tallow Honey Balm to find out why people are putting beef tallow on their face, and if the newest clean beauty trend is worth the hype or not.

When it comes to viral skincare trends, I tend to start from a place of skepticism. And when those viral skincare trends originate in the kitchen, my level of skepticism starts reaching eye-rolling levels of disbelief. Enter beef tallow—the latest clean beauty super ingredient promising to clear acne, reduce the appearance of fine lines, hydrate dry skin AND leave you with flawless, glowing skin (if TikTok is to be believed). Quite the list of bold claims.

Now, I don’t have anything against DIY skincare or using natural skincare ingredients (I have been known to enjoy an occasional turmeric and honey mask). I just think that skincare formulations have evolved enough that we don’t need to rely on our refrigerator to find a great moisturizer. BUT, as with any trend, I don’t jump to conclusions until and unless I’ve done all the research for myself. So, let’s dive into why beef tallow has suddenly reached mass hysteria levels of popularity, and what I found from my own experience of using beef tallow on my oily/combination, clog-prone skin for a week.

What is beef tallow, and why is it gaining popularity?

Beef tallow is essentially rendered beef fat. Sounds gross, I know, but the rise of beef tallow aligns with broader trends toward sustainable and “natural” ingredients in skincare. Tallow fanatics will tell you that it’s worth smelling like a well-done steak because tallow is:

• Rich in skin-nourishing nutrients It’s true that tallow contains fatty acids like stearic acid and palmitic acid, which help support the skin’s natural barrier. It also boasts fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, which contribute to skin repair, hydration, and antioxidant protection. However, it’s important to note that these are all ingredients that can be found in other good, thick moisturizers too.

• Closely mimics human sebum Advocates argue that tallow’s composition is similar to the natural oils produced by our skin. This similarity may make it especially effective for replenishing moisture and supporting a healthy skin barrier. Again, that’s true but not unique to just tallow.

• Natural and free from additives Yes, beef tallow in its pure form contains no synthetic chemicals, fragrances, or preservatives, but that’s also what stops it from being shelf stable. It can easily go bad if not stored properly, which can be dangerous to use on your skin.

• Sustainability benefits Those focused on reducing waste tout beef tallow as an eco-friendly choice when it comes from ethically raised animals, as it repurposes a byproduct of the meat industry that might otherwise be discarded (just don’t tell that to a vegan).

So, on paper, it looks like there could be some benefits to using beef tallow, especially for those with extremely dry and sensitive skin. But here’s the odd part—a lot of people raving about beef tallow online were those with acne-prone skin. This seemed very counterintuitive to me. As an oily/combination, clog-prone girlie myself, I swear by lightweight, gel moisturizers. The idea of slathering thick, occlusive beef fat on to my face sounded like….a recipe for disaster (to put it mildly). But curiosity got the better of me, and I committed to a week-long experiment to get to the truth behind the trend.

My experience with the Evil Goods Whipped Beef Tallow and Honey Balm

First things first, I was not going to be making my own beef tallow. Yes, I saw all the trad-wife videos about the joys of making tallow by hand for yourself (and your husband), and no, that is definitely not for me.

So that left me with 2 choices—either get it from a local butcher or rely on brands that formulate with it. I decided to do the latter, because, frankly it seemed like the easier and safer of the 2 options. I opted for Evil Goods (self-proclaimed as the “World's Best Beef Tallow Balm”) because it was the most easily available and well reviewed of the few options that were available near me. It’s made from grass-fed AND finished beef, and to the delight of my skinimalist heart, has only 3 added ingredients, aside from the tallow:

• Manuka honey LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this in any form

• Pot marigold (or calendula) flower extract Anti-inflammatory, calming, moistuirizing, all good things

• Cold-pressed olive oil Oof, not my favorite ingredient because it can be comedogenic, but I was having a hard time finding any beef tallow creams without it

Now to incorporate it into my routine. In order to try and keep this test as fair as possible, I got rid of almost every other product in my already pretty basic nighttime routine. I still used my prescription retinoid on alternate nights, but aside from that, it was just going to be double cleanse and tallow for a week straight. Honestly, this wasn’t a huge adjustment for me, because my usual nighttime routine goes something like this: double cleanse > prescription retinoid (alt nights) > barrier repair serum > moisturizer. So really, the only step I was getting rid of was the serum.

On to the results.

First impressions

I held my nose as I unscrewed the lid of the jar, expecting to be hit by a strong whiff of fatty fragrance. I am relieved to report that there was nothing to worry about. The added ingredients did a lot to mask the beefiness of this product, so that all you can smell are pleasant floral notes. This does make me wonder how much of this product is actually tallow, and how much is filler (percentages weren’t disclosed anywhere I could find online).

The texture of this beef tallow cream also really surprised me. It’s definitely creamier than my regular moisturizers, but it was also much lighter than I had expected (potentially because of the whipped nature of this cream). It didn’t just sit on the surface of my skin, like many occlusive creams do, either. It absorbed in almost immediately—which probably speaks to the level of hydration (or lack thereof) in my skin—but still, it left my skin feeling almost…under hydrated? I ended up applying a second layer of the cream just for my skin to feel nourished before bed. Even so, my skin actually felt a little dry when I woke up the next the morning. Not at all what I had expected.

My skin after a week of using beef tallow at night

Sad to say, even after a week of using this product, that feeling of morning-after dryness did not go away. It never felt hydrating or nourishing enough for my skin. What’s worse, I actually ended up with a breakout of small bumps on my forehead (although I’m not sure if this was the beef tallow or the olive oil’s doing). When I started this experiment, I wanted to use the beef tallow cream for at least 2 weeks before delivering a verdict, but one week with this cream was enough for me to make my decision.

Final verdict

Overall, it’s a no to tallow from me (or at least this particular formulation of it). I’m not sure how a cream can simultaneously dry out your skin and clog your pores, but this cream managed to do both. I definitely would not recommend this to someone with oily/combination, clog-prone skin like mine. The short ingredients list might make it a decent option for someone with extremely sensitive or damaged skin, but even then, I believe there are better options on the market (a great alternative, with a short ingredient list and a similar, lightweight whipped texture is the CUREL Intensive Moisture Cream, formulated with their patented Ceramide Care Technology).

Having said all that, if tallow works for you, then great. I’d love to hear more real experiences of this product on skin types different than mine. It’s surely gaining popularity for a reason, I just didn’t see it.

About The Skinimalist

Hi, I’m Mal, a 30-something recovering skincare addict, and this is my blog. A space where I attempt to de-influence you from chasing trends and buying more skincare products you may not need.

Related Posts: