I Tried Benefit’s Tech-y New Mascara & Here Are My Honest Thoughts

It’s hard to really innovate when it comes to mascara. If you’re anything like me, you feel like you’ve tried it all: volumizing, lengthening, priming, tubing—the list goes on and on. Some work better than others. My biggest complaints including clumping during application and flaking after a few hours. The new Benefit Cosmetics They’re Real! Magnet Mascara promises to solve all these problems so you know I had to review it. And I have thoughts.

TL;DR: it’s great. But is it good enough to run out and buy today? Well, maybe. It depends on what your current mascara struggles are. Either way, this is by far Benefit’s most innovative mascara. Yes, they found a way to surprise even me. Though the thick brush might look pretty normal, it’s the inside that counts. The brand developed a magnetically charged core that gently pulls the magnetic mineral-enriched formula up and out for a promised 40 percent longer lashes. Simply, the mascara brush and the formula are attracted to each other.

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Magnet Extreme Lengthening Mascara $27

buy it

First, it’s important for me to say that I love Benefit mascara. I can’t live without BADgal BANG! Volumizing Mascara ($25 at Ulta). Truly, I have no complaints about it. But I do have friends (and a mom) who complain that all mascara flakes and smudges on them after a full day. No one wants raccoon eyes. What I liked most about They’re Real! Magnet Mascara is that even after a good 12 hours, running around in the Los Angeles sun and even rubbing my eyes, it stayed put. I was very impressed.

You can’t exactly feel the magnet working but it’s obvious there’s something a bit different. It’s very easy to apply and layers well without clumping. While I usually have to work hard to get that amount of length, it only took a few swipes of this mascara to achieve my desired results. That’s also great news. I used it on Valentine’s Day and more people complimented my lashes than my pink hearts.

Source: Instagram

All of this being said, the finished look is very similar to that of the OG They’re Real! and my favorite BADgal BANG!. At least on me. And that’s mostly because the others just work really well. But if you’re someone who deals with flaking and fading, or just wants a quicker application for long AF lashes, it’s worth switching to They’re Real! Magnet Mascara. It’s already sold out on the Benefit website but we’re hearing Ulta is stocking up soon so grab it before it’s gone.