L’Oréal Group brands have taken leading positions across UK beauty social media during Q4 2025, as shown in Kolsquare’s most recent ranking report.
L’Oréal Paris advanced four places on Instagram to reach number one, generating £11.8M in Earned Media Value (EMV). On TikTok, NYX Cosmetics held on to the top ranking with £10.7M EMV, ahead of Estée Lauder-owned MAC Cosmetics, which placed second with £7.6M EMV and achieved an industry-leading 8.3% engagement rate.
Garnier also performed strongly, topping both the skincare and haircare categories on the platform.
Essie made one of the most notable gains, rising 70 places on TikTok and 149 places on Instagram, highlighting growing visibility and engagement among digital-first consumers.
Rimmel London leaps up the rankings
Among the standout performers in Kolsquare’s Top 100 Beauty Brands rankings for Q4 2025 is Rimmel London, which climbed 37 places to rank fifth on Instagram and rose 23 places to sixth on TikTok.
On Instagram, Rimmel London generated £8.8m EMV using 825 influencers and 2,526 pieces of content, a highly efficient performance when compared to L’Oréal Paris, which activated more than double the number of creators to secure the top position. On TikTok, the brand delivered £6.7m EMV from 675 influencers, signalling a sharply optimised creator strategy across both platforms.
The surge in Rimmel London’s performance comes amid high-impact product launches and experiential campaigns such as the Thrill Seeker Mascara activation with Red-Bull and gymnast Lily Smith.
Quentin Bordage, CEO and founder of Kolsquare, Europe’s leading influencer marketing platform, said: “What we’re seeing in Q4 is the growing maturity of influencer strategy in the beauty sector. L’Oréal Group’s dominance reflects the advantage of structured, data-driven activation across multiple brands and categories.
“Rimmel London’s rise is particularly notable because it demonstrates that scale alone is not the only key. The brand generated substantial EMV while activating fewer creators than many of its competitors. That level of efficiency signals strong creator alignment and platform-relevance.”
High street brands gain momentum
Kolsquare’s rankings report reveals a resurgence among heritage high-street beauty brands that have successfully recalibrated their influencer strategies for TikTok and Instagram.
On TikTok, MCoBeauty surged 147 places to rank 30, while Soap & Glory jumped 160 positions to reach rank 56. No7 rose 59 places to secure 25th position, generating £2.73m EMV.
On Instagram, Kylie Cosmetics rose 35 places to rank 16, Laura Mercier jumped 48 positions to 26th, and Hong Kong beauty retailer YesStyle leapt 163 places to reach number 54. Luxury fragrance house Maison Francis Kurkdjian posted one of the quarter’s most dramatic movements, climbing 222 places.
Quentin Bordage said: “The data shows that legacy brands are no longer at a disadvantage on social platforms. When heritage names combine brand equity with platform-relevant content and the right creator partnerships, they can scale visibility at pace. Q4 demonstrates that strategic recalibration can lead to significant ranking acceleration within a single quarter.”
Beauty brands dropping down the rankings
As challenger and heritage brands gained ground, others lost momentum.
On TikTok, The Beauty Crop fell 40 places despite producing 1,828 pieces of content, underlining that content volume alone does not guarantee EMV growth. Olaplex declined 31 positions, while The INKEY List dropped 55 places year-on-year amid intensifying skincare competition.
On Instagram, Barry M (-48 places), Cloud Nine (-49) and ghd (-40) recorded significant declines, despite in some cases maintaining strong engagement rates. Benefit Cosmetics slipped 15 places, while REFY also fell 15 positions, illustrating how rapidly competitive share of voice can shift in a saturated beauty landscape.
Quentin Bordage added: “Q4 confirms a structural shift in the influencer economy. Brands climbing fastest are not necessarily those producing the most content; they are those executing with precision. Efficiency, creator relevance and sustained engagement are now the primary drivers of EMV growth in the UK beauty market.”