Rimmel Kind & Free Was a Rare Gem—Here’s Why That Matters
Mascara: it’s the one product many of us wear even when we’re “not wearing makeup.” It’s also the first to smudge, flake, or migrate straight into our tear ducts—so you’d think that of all things, mascara would be among the first to go clean. But at the drugstore? That’s still a tall order.
Enter: Rimmel Kind & Free Clean Mascara. One of the cleanest, most affordable mascaras ever stocked in the drugstore beauty aisle. No microplastics. No questionable polymers. Just a smooth, conditioning formula with glycerin, radish root ferment, shea butter, and carnauba wax—the kind of ingredients you’d expect from a $28 tube at Sephora, not a Rimmel label under $10.
And now? It’s officially discontinued.
We Asked—Here’s What Rimmel (aka Coty Consumer Affairs) Told Us
We reached out to Rimmel directly, and the response came from Coty, the global beauty conglomerate that owns both Rimmel and CoverGirl. The reply confirmed that Kind & Free Clean Mascara has been discontinued, with a recommendation to try CoverGirl Lash Blast Cleantopia Supercloud Mascara instead.
To their credit, Coty confirmed that Supercloud does not contain polyethylene, a small but meaningful detail in a landscape where plastic-based ingredients sneak into everyday eye makeup.
“The People Demand Polyethylene!”
No, beauty execs probably aren’t sitting in a boardroom chanting “The people demand polyethylene!” But decisions like these sometimes make you wonder. Because from the outside, it feels like a no-brainer: make a mascara without potential irritants, endocrine disruptors, or plastic particles. Make it affordable. Make it available.
Instead, clean drugstore options remain scarce, and when one finally emerges and actually works, it’s pulled from the shelves.
What Made It So “Clean,” Exactly?
If you’re wondering what a clean mascara shouldn’t include, here’s a quick cheat sheet:
- Polyethylene (a common microplastic often used to create “tubing” or thickening effects)
- Fragrance (your lashes don’t need perfume)
- Petrolatum or mineral oil
- Unnecessary silicones or acrylic copolymers
- Carbon black pigment (flagged by some health orgs for potential respiratory risk)
Rimmel Kind & Free skipped all of the above—and even managed to be vegan, cruelty-free, and packaged in 74% recycled plastic. It was one of the few clean drugstore mascaras that didn’t feel like a compromise.
And now? It’s gone.
What This Tells Us About “Accessible” Clean Beauty
We don’t all have $30 to drop on a mascara every few weeks. Clean beauty shouldn’t require a line of credit.
Yes, many premium brands have nailed the clean formula. But there’s something about finding a genuinely clean product in your neighborhood drugstore. It suggests progress. It says, “This isn’t niche anymore.
That’s why Rimmel Kind & Free mattered. Because it worked. Because it was honest. Because it was widely available—until it wasn’t.
Ingredient-Led Comparison:
After Rimmel confirmed the mascara had been discontinued, I entered the ingredients for both formulas into ChatGPT to get a clearer comparison. The result? A handy-dandy chart that breaks down what really separates these two drugstore mascaras:
Rimmel Kind & Free vs. CoverGirl Lash Blast Cleantopia Supercloud Mascara
| Feature / Ingredient Area | Rimmel Kind & Free Mascara | CoverGirl Lash Blast Cleantopia Supercloud Mascara |
|---|---|---|
| Brand Owner | Coty | Coty |
| Price Range | ~$8–10 | ~$11–12 |
| Vegan / Cruelty-Free | Yes / Yes | Yes / Yes (Leaping Bunny certified) |
| Packaging | 74% recycled plastic | PCR-based tube; sustainability-marketed but less specific |
| Microplastics | ❌ None | ⚠️ Contains polybutene (plastic-based binder) |
| Silicones / Synthetics | ❌ None | ✔️ Includes VP/Hexadecene Copolymer, Simethicone, Laureth-30 |
| Film-Formers | ✔️ Naturally derived waxes | ✔️ Includes Ammonium Acrylates Copolymer and VP Copolymer (synthetic) |
| Waxes / Base | Carnauba, Candelilla, Shea | Carnauba, Candelilla, Microcrystalline, Triglycerides |
| Standout Ingredients | Radish Root Ferment, Glycerin, Biotin | Ceramide NG, Panthenol, Lecithin, Glycerin |
| Notable Additives | No alcohol, no petrochemical waxes | Contains alcohol denat, microcrystalline wax, and multiple synthetics |
| Fragrance | ❌ None | ❌ None |
| Clean Formula Verdict | ✅ Exceptionally clean, no flagged synthetics | ⚠️ Cleaner than many, but includes synthetic polymers and plastic-based additives |
Final Word
No one’s entitled to any one product. But it’s not asking too much for a simple, daily-use item like mascara to be made without questionable or potentially harmful ingredients. When even the most basic beauty staples aren’t held to that standard, it’s not a matter of luxury—it’s a matter of ethics.
We’ve included a screenshot of the Rimmel customer service reply below if you’d like to read the full exchange. (Spoiler: polite, brief, and just ironic enough to be frustrating.)
Editor’s Note: This post may contain Amazon affiliate links. If you choose to purchase through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only link to products I genuinely reference or believe add value.
