The best Australian beauty groups to join on Facebook

From retinol to rosehip.

Beauty has always cultivated community, whether it’s through recommending products to friends, being a subscriber to your favourite beauty YouTuber, or getting lost in the comment sections of raving reviews. But with the abundance of new products entering the market these days, finding out the inside scoop before you buy is crucial.

The hardest part is always the research, because there’s just so much information out there. Most of the time you can read over ten different opinions yet still feel uncertain and if your friend hasn’t tried the product you’re after, then where do you go?

Thankfully, Facebook is a veritable treasure trove of beauty groups. It’s a place where members share the best kind of beauty advice and recommendations. It’s all the honesty and camaraderie you would expect when talking about beauty and skincare with your mates, but with the added knowledge of experts, product junkies and threads catered to specific skin types, products and techniques.

Basically, it’s all your beauty and skincare solutions at your fingertips, combined with the ability to connect with other beauty devotees. Isn’t the Internet great? But because there are as many Facebook beauty groups as there are types of moisturisers, we’ve narrowed it down for you and found the best, most useful Australian-centric Facebook beauty groups worth joining. 

Mecca Chit Chat

Far beyond the four walls of the stores, the extremely educated Mecca team are available online, too. In Mecca Chit Chat, the team dishes out sneak peeks of new and exclusive brands, products and content coming to Mecca. The Chit Chat community is all about researching, talking, and swatching beauty, as well as sharing the most asked-about formulations and beauty hacks. You essentially have unlimited question time with a Mecca artist, something I didn’t realise I needed so badly. You can expect great product comparisons and honest feedback on almost anything, just make sure you don’t mention Sephora. 

Find it here.

You Beauty

Created off the back of Mamamia’s popular podcast of the same name, this strictly “beauty only” group feels more like having a cup of tea with friends than a serious product review group. But that doesn’t mean it’s not packed with exceptional information on hair, skin and makeup. The members of this group really get into the nitty-gritty of all the exciting new products coming to market, but in a fun, lighthearted way­ – basically, they’ll test it so you don’t have to. Often focusing on budget buys – yay! – you can expect to discover all the inside goss on dupes and upcoming beauty trends in this group.

Find it here.

Gritty Pretty Gang

Run by renowned beauty editor and influencer, Eleanor Pendleton, the Gritty Pretty Gang can offer you advice on everything from hair, beauty, skincare, supplements and even diet. If like me you’re an absolute rookie when it comes to how products work, you’ll get the low down on everything from retinol to rosehip, and learn insider info from industry professionals. Plus, there are brutally honest reviews from your average beauty joes. The Gritty Pretty Gang community and admins are particularly active, and there are discussions going on all day long, so make sure to have your notifications on. If I haven’t sold you yet, they are always on the lookout for new people to join their trial team and you know what that means? It means free products, baby.

Find it here.

Your Go-To Gang

A place to share your beauty hacks and wonky eyeliner fails, Your Go-To Gang is run by the masterminds behind Go-To Skincare, the Aussie skincare brand known for its excellent peach-hued products. In this group, you can expect to see exclusive product releases and your budding questions about all things beauty and skincare answered thoroughly in long-form posts. The thing I love most about Your Go-To Gang is the on-going support you receive from the Go-To clan. Even if their products aren’t right for you, they will send you in the right direction for something better suited. Lunchtime live Q&As are also regular occurrences, plus there’s a handy master thread where you can find all of the most talked-about topics.

Find it here.

The Ordinary & Deciem Chat Room (The Fan Page)

No one can deny the difficulty of deciphering The Ordinary’s product range. The combination of identical packaging and perplex, scientific-sounding names makes figuring out the right products for your skin type somewhat intimidating. Thankfully, The Ordinary & Deciem Chat Room has compiled all the information you’ll ever need about The Ordinary’s line into one handy Facebook group. Here you will find the hard facts from its fan base, with people with all different skin types and concerns weighing in about the products that do and don’t work for them. Most importantly, it’s easy to understand. The members of the group talk all things layering, what exactly niacinamide does and all the best serums for redness, acne and blackheads. A very useful database of ingredients and their uses, this group is the holy grail for fans of the budget beauty brand.

Find it here.