Does Red Lipstick Really Make You Feel More Confident? I Wore It for a Week

We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we love. Promise.Beth Gillette for CosmopolitanPoring over magazines as a preteen, it seemed like the key to success was a swipe of red lipstick. Need to go from day to night in a pinch? Red lipstick. Want to feel like a bombshell on a first date? Red lipstick. It’s been a symbol of status and power for centuries, when ancient Egyptian elites would grind up dead beetles and tap the vivid juice on their lips. More recently, in 2024, the idea of “red lipstick theory” went viral, wherein creators The Lipstick Lesbians noted that wearing nothing but red lipstick can make your skin look more even and glowy. Heck, even the most famous woman in the world, Taylor Swift, is rarely seen without her signature MAC Ruby Woo lips.On the contrary, I’m just shy of turning 30, and as it apparently goes in your Saturn return, I’ve never felt so disconnected from myself. I doubt my abilities at work, feel hopelessly single, and still live in a tiny room not much different from my college dorm. I’ll take anything—from my daily Prozac prescription to a swipe of red lipstick—if it means I can start feeling like a self-assured adult. Could the theory that red lipstick makes you feel better about yourself actually work for me too?For seven days, I wore red lipstick—from a movie-star red from Louis Vuitton to a long-lasting liquid lip from Chanel to a satin, vampy red from Dior—every day. The results were fairly unexpected.Beth Gillette for CosmopolitanIt’s exciting to embark on a new experiment, so my first swipe of red lipstick for the week had me giddy. As a child, the sheer thought of getting to wear red lipstick to my corporate job made me radiate with joy. There’s something so 13 Going on 30 or The Devil Wears Prada about smearing red lipstick on my face before waltzing into my magazine editor job. Maybe it helped, too, that this was a rainy day, and I was yearning for anything that would make it feel less gloomy outside. I opted for a classic, blue-based red and kept my makeup otherwise very minimal. Just a little bit of skin tint, bronzer, and a soft blush.By the end of the day and about five reapplications later, I felt... mostly fine! I wouldn’t say it instantly upped my confidence, by any means, but I liked how it looked enough to keep going.Day 2: Beth Gillette for CosmopolitanOn day two, I realized that finding outfits that work with red lipstick is really difficult. How does T-Swift do it? I have quite a colorful wardrobe, and virtually everything I own seemed to clash with all of the bright red lipstick shades I own. So, I opted for a deeper red from Dior that pairs well with my favorite vintage red sweater. Not having the “right” wardrobe definitely knocked my confidence a bit, so swiping on this shade didn’t feel nearly as exciting as it did yesterday.By midday, I hated how much I had to reapply, and lipstick was literally everywhere. My desk water bottle was covered in lipstick stains, and I felt like I had to completely redo my lips after lunch. Is this the price I have to pay to be this confident, red lipstick-wearing minx? Red marks everywhere? Constantly checking my face to make sure it didn’t smudge everywhere? All the logistics took up so much brain space; I barely had any time to feel better about myself. Nevertheless, she persisted...Day 3: Beth Gillette for CosmopolitanBeth Gillette for CosmopolitanAll week, every cup I touched looked like this.I did a teensy bit more makeup by adding a shimmery white in my inner corner. I was starting to feel the fatigue of not getting to do something different with my makeup every day. I figured, maybe, getting back to my usual routine will help.And it sorta did! I loved how my makeup looked this day, and I got a ton of compliments. It was actually the first day in this whole experiment that anyone even noticed my makeup. That certainly made me feel a little bit better. But I wouldn’t say my performance at work was any stronger, nor was my interest in going to a bar to meet a potential date. I felt the same listlessness as before, just now coated in red.Day 4 to 5:Beth Gillette for CosmopolitanBeth Gillette for Cosmopolitan“I’m doing an experiment where I’m wearing red lipstick every day—and ugh, I can’t wait for it to be over,” I told a handful of my colleagues in the office on day four. I was shocked that, after a mere four days in, I was already considering throwing in the towel. I wanted to try a new trend I saw during Paris Fashion Week, and I wanted to freakin’ touch my face and not worry about lipstick getting everywhere. Alas, I prevailed.I kept going with my go-to Louis Vuitton red on day four, but for day five, I went the old-school “day to night” magazine route. During the day, I kept it simple with a lip balm and lip liner. But before a work dinner, I tried on a deep, rusty red—specifically, MAC’s Viva Glam x Chappell Roan in the shade “Unnatural Redhead.” As I am also an unnatural redhead, this color worked well for me, especially for a moody fall look. This definitely made me feel put-together after a day at the office, but it was unfortunate that I had to wipe it off the second I bit down on a piece of table bread.Day 6 to 7: Beth Gillette for CosmopolitanThe last two days were the weekend, so I took a few creative liberties, and everything finally came together. A weekend red, for me, is sheer and intentionally smudgy. So, I went for m.ph Beauty’s Lip Ciggy in Cherry Pie. It’s a balmy lip color that can be built up a little. I loved it. I felt revived. The soft color was easy to wear—both as a lip color that didn’t tug at fine lip lines or dry out my lips, but also to pair with my outfit and the rest of my makeup. And I wasn’t fidgety over my skin at all. I didn’t constantly check that it was smeared in the mirror, nor did I pay extra close attention to any breakouts or dark spots. This was the experience I was hoping for all week. With this lip on, I felt like me, just a little better.FWIW, here’s what I used all weekHow’d it go?My makeup routine was cut in half. Not surprisingly, when all you're putting on is lipstick, doing your makeup is a breeze. My routine was cut down to only a few minutes. I don’t wear all that much makeup to work on a usual day, but I usually budget about 15 to 20 minutes to put on my full face. This week, I spent less than five minutes every day. It was freeing, but...I missed the creativity. Although I don’t wear a bold eyeshadow or intricate liner every day, not having the option at all left me feeling a bit bummed every morning. I could have gone for a more intense look, opting for shimmery eyes or winged liner or monochrome blush to match what was on my lips. But I really did like the contrast of a soft face with a strong lip... just only for a day or two.I hated the mess. Gosh, by that final day, I despised the look of lipstick all over my coffee cup. I hated wiping it off to take a bite of my sandwich, and I really hated that it prompted me to order a salad instead of a wrap, all for the sake of not having to completely remove and reapply my lipstick. The ease of pulling a tube out of my bag and plastering it on my lips is truly a facade. Because while it feels good in the moment, the annoyance after the fact is enough to make me want to take it off and just go back to lip balm.All of the wiping off got me realizing how fickle it really is to put so much stock in lipstick. If the confidence can just go away the second I wipe it off, then how could it possibly impact my self-worth? Until...I found formulas that actually fit my life. I tried the bold, opaque, matte lipstick that sets down and looks like it just waltzed off the pages of a 1950s ad; and it just wasn’t right for me. In 2026, red lipstick doesn’t have to be so definitive. Blurred edges, softened lines, sheer washes—these are the lipstick trends we’re seeing today. From long-wear glossy stains to velvety creams to chunky crayons that create a feathered lip line, we have an abundance of formats now that didn’t exist in the early aughts. When I put on one of those—which allows me to live my life, look good, and not worry about what’s on my face—I absolutely feel more confident. There’s autonomy in makeup products that move with your life rather than requiring a ton of steps to get it “right.”So, did red lipstick make me feel more confident?Perhaps I was foolish for thinking that a lipstick could fix my relationship with myself. But the media I consumed in my youth practically promised it. A pair of heels, the right blush to make your cheeks look alive, the perfect haircut for your face shape, and yeah, a red lipstick—that was the key to success in adulthood, career, love, sex, and femininity.Some people immediately feel like themselves when they put on red lipstick, a signature look that’s sexy and powerful. But I don’t think I’m one of them, and that’s okay, too. For me, the look that instantly makes me feel good is a colorful, shimmery eye. If I had Sophia Sinot on speed dial to do my makeup every day, I’m convinced I’d be leading a Fortune 500 company right now, or, I don’t know, headlining a sold-out tour across the world Zara Larsson–style. But the simplicity of red lipstick just doesn’t do it for me as an “all the time” thing.Obviously, I’ll wear red lipstick again, but with these findings in mind. Sheer formulas are a huge win for me, because they don’t require nearly as much precision in application. A red-orange, balmy lipstick makes my skin look brighter and more alive without all the fuss. But I will also now always opt for anything long-wearing, like a non-drying liquid lipstick or a stain. Anything to avoid the worry of talking to someone at the office, all to realize the entire time, I had lipstick on my chin.Why trust Cosmopolitan? Beth Gillette is the beauty editor at Cosmopolitan with eight years of experience researching, writing, and editing skin, hair, makeup, nail, and fragrance stories.Beth Gillette is the beauty editor at Cosmopolitan, where she covers skincare, makeup, hair, nails, and more across digital and print. She can generally be found in bright eyeshadow furiously typing her latest feature or hemming and hawing about a new product you "have to try." Prior to Cosmopolitan, she wrote and edited beauty content as an Editor at The Everygirl for four years. Follow her on Instagram for makeup selfies and a new hair 'do every few months.