Spate flags biggest and emerging trends in beauty

Spate has released two trend analysis reports spotlighting microbiome-friendly and science-backed skin care, fragrances, and multifunctional formulations for their popularity on TikTok and Google search analytics.

The company’s proprietary Popularity Index measures the momentum of trends by tracking 20 billion Google search signals and 60 million TikTok videos linked to beauty.

Facing the facts

Spate found that the focus is shifting toward science-backed, barrier-supportive solutions in skin care. Spate highlights the skin microbiome as a key trend, with a 296% growth and 94.5% increased engagement on TikTok.

Top searches such as “how to improve skin microbiome” and “acne skin microbiome” suggest that consumers are still learning about the concept. Spate says this positions microbiome-friendly products as an educational and commercial opportunity for brands.

Another fast-growing category is noninvasive aesthetic procedures such as skin boosters, which offer injectable-inspired serums with clinical-grade results at home.

The trend rose by 325.2% and is largely TikTok-led, where 93.2% of its engagement originates. Consumers embrace formulations with PDRN and exosomes, seeking visible results without clinical procedures.

PDRN is a part of DNA that aids cell regeneration and wound healing, while exosomes facilitate intercellular communication, making it useful for dermatological disorders.

Perfume sales soar as consumers seek long-lasting, luxurious scents.Fragrance forward

According to Spate, fragrance’s popularity is growing by 26.8% year-over-year (YoY) with 66.7 thousand average monthly searches on TikTok.

Top-performing fragrance subcategories include long-lasting perfumes (75.1% predicted YoY growth), mini perfumes (78.4%), and perfume gift sets (68.7%).

Ingredient-driven interest also shapes fragrance search behavior. Vanilla leads with 1.2 million average monthly searches and 16.7 million average weekly TikTok views, followed by oud (676.6 thousand monthly searches) and pheromone (557.8 thousand).

Oud fragrances have rich, woody scents. Pheromone perfumes aim to mimic naturally occurring biological chemical signals and enhance one’s natural scent. This is believed to increase the wearer’s desirability, allure, or sexual attractiveness, although limited clinical data is available to prove its efficacy.

These scent profiles indicate consumer preferences for rich, long-lasting, distinctive aromas. TikTok hashtags such as #long-lasting, #niche, and #luxury also gain millions of views.

Spate spotlights Lattafa as one of the breakout fragrance brands. Its popularity increased by 180.1%, signaling the rise of Middle Eastern perfumery on a global stage.

These trends reflect demand for portability, personalization, and giftability in fragrance, with TikTok accounting for 39.2% of perfume trend engagement. The company says brands can capitalize on the demand by “highlighting extended wear times, crafting exclusive niche scents, and offering luxury scents to attract TikTok’s engaged beauty audience.”

Multifunctional formulationsKorean skin care continues to rise with collagen-rich, skin-brightening formulas.

Spate also reports strong momentum in hybrid and multi-use formats. The most prominent was SPF setting spray, which grew by 62.4% — signaling the “skinification” trend amid a demand for makeup with skin care properties.

Spate says interest is more search-led, with 62.5% of engagement coming from Google, suggesting that consumers are actively looking for practical and novel SPF solutions.

Search terms “setting spray with SPF” and “makeup setting spray with SPF” highlight consumers’ functional expectations linked to format and convenience. “Hybrid products win when they are easy to use and demo. Lean into TikTok’s show-and-tell culture to drive adoption of multi-use formats,” the company advises brands.

As a broader category, makeup has plateaued with a 1.2% growth. However, some subcategories are showing high momentum.

Eyebrow pomade, for instance, recorded a 619% increase in popularity, with TikTok responsible for 73.7% of engagement. Searches show demand for “waterproof,” “brown,” and “long-lasting” eyebrow formulations.

Growing hair care 

Hair care is also expanding, up 12% YoY. According to Spate, this growth is primarily driven by search activity, with consumers focusing on styling and volumizing solutions.

Eyebrow pomade gains traction for smudge-proof brows.One notable trend is hair powder, which is expected to grow by another 62% in the coming year. Searches for hair powder emphasize “volumizing” (18.3 thousand) and “texturizing” (15.3 thousand) benefits. While most engagement originates from Google, TikTok activity remains low.

However, the social media platform does drive aesthetic experimentation, leading to high growth in expressive hairstyles. Calico hair — an alternating patchwork color look — rose by 1,400%, with 96.3% of popularity stemming from TikTok.

Popularizing novelties

Spate’s analysis highlights several emerging trends with sharp YoY gains, signaling niche-to-mainstream potential. 

“Consumers seek high-performance, targeted products like nail growth oil, texturizing powder, and glitter mascara to enhance daily routines. Brands should focus on innovative, results-driven formulas that offer specific benefits and easy application to stand out,” the report advises.

Beef tallow skin care saw a 656.2% increase from last year. The ritual is part of the growing interest in ancestral and natural skin remedies. However, the industry has yet to place it on the clean and sustainability scale due to the potential ethical and safety concerns linked to its animal origins.

Peeling serums increased by 630.7%, and peeling solutions increased by 369.6%. Furthermore, collagen masks (up 361.4%) and Korean face masks (up 475.0%) continue to benefit from the global appeal of Korean skin care routines. “Korean skin care,” as a search term, saw a 119.8% popularity increase.

Personal Care Insights previously reported on TikTok’s role in fueling product discovery, trends, and viral demand.