SeeMe Lists E.l.f. Beauty, Dove & Maybelline as ‘Certified Inclusive’ Brands

The 2025 SeeMe Inclusivity Index for Beauty results were announced, ranking the top 100+ beauty brands and data highlighting the industry’s biggest wins, and for the second year in a row, “Certified Inclusive” beauty brands. 
 
The 2025 analysis grew to include over 100 U.S. beauty brands; the most expansive inclusivity analysis conducted for the industry to date. 
 
This Index dives deep into which brands are leading and lagging, as well as how the industry is leaning into inclusivity across six key identity dimensions, including gender expression, skin tone, age, body size, visible disability, and sexual orientation across major consumer-facing efforts like advertising, products, websites, and brand purpose.
 
Ranking was determined as part of the SeeMe Index research in partnership with Circana leveraging point-of-sales from 2024 vs the previous year.

Top 15 “Certified Inclusive” Brands

1. 
   e.l.f. Beauty
2. 
   Dove
3. 
   Maybelline New York
4. 
   Rare Beauty
5. 
   Pattern Beauty by Tracee Ellis Ross
6. 
   MAC Cosmetics
7. 
   EADEM
8. 
   L’Oréal Paris
9. 
   Haus Labs by Lady Gaga
10. 
    Topicals
11. 
    Glow Recipe
12. 
    Carol’s Daughter
13. 
    One/Size by Patrick Starr
14. 
    Tarte Cosmetics
15. 
    Amika

Asha Shivaji, Co-Founder and CEO of SeeMe Index, said, 
 
“The data shows that inclusivity is good for business. Period. While DEI and inclusivity have been highly politicized over the last few years, reaching a recent fever pitch, the clickbait headlines distract from the fact that inclusive marketing drives the bottom line. So if you want to grow faster than your competitors, it’s time to lean in.”
 
Founded by former Google executives Asha Shivaji and Jason R. Klein, the SeeMe Index serves as a vital resource for brands looking to benchmark and improve their inclusivity efforts. 
 
As the industry continues to evolve, the SeeMe Index provides transparency, accountability, and a roadmap for brands ready to embrace inclusivity as a core business strategy.
 
The Index includes 17 L’Oreal Groupe brands, 9 Estee Lauder Companies brands, 7 Unilever brands, 5 LVMH brands, and 5 P&G brands among several notable independents like Topicals, Rhode, and Rare Beauty. 
 
The Index also recognized Ilia Beauty for its standout inclusivity efforts, particularly around its age diversity in ads, age-specific product testing details for Super Serum Skin Tint, and donating 1% of sales to reforestation.

Key Hits & Misses 

Hits

• 
  More brands are designing products with disability in mind, with a percentage increase from 11% in 2023 to 22% today.
• 
  The representation of larger bodies in ads has increased from 2.9% in 2023  to 3.8% today.
• 
  There has been an increase in age inclusion. People aged 55 and older now receive 2.0% of screen time in ads, up from just 0.8% in 2023.
• 
  Intersectionality considerations are ticking upward, with 73% of brands factoring multiple identity dimensions into their inclusive marketing strategies, up from 70% in 2023.

Misses

• 
  Colorism persists in ads. Weighted average screen time continues to decline for talent with deeper skin tones; especially with creators.
• 
  There has been a decline in brand purpose calls-to-action, with fewer brands (56% today compared to 77% in 2023) providing consumers with opportunities to support brand-led social impact initiatives.
• 
  Gender non-conforming representation has remained stagnant at 1.5% of screen time.
• 
  The use of “anti-aging” ageist language has increased, now used by 49% of brands, compared to 40% in 2023.