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E.l.f. Beauty Announces $1 Price Hike, Citing Inflation and Tariffs

The mass brand will raise prices in August.
elf beauty
E.l.f Beauty has responded to US-China tariffs with a $1 price hike, which analysts say came sooner than expected. (BoF Team)

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E.l.f. will raise the price of its products by $1 starting in August 1, according to an Instagram post published on the brand’s account on Friday.

“Not gonna lie, inflation and tariffs are hitting us hard,” read the announcement, written in Gen-Z-friendly language, with an emoji of a downward line chart. The post emphasised that 75 percent of E.l.f.’s products, which span makeup, skincare and tools, will remain under $10. Other E.l.f.-owned brands, including Naturium and Keys Soulcare, posted similar announcements about the dollar price hike on their respective Instagram channels.

The company’s production relies on third-party suppliers primarily located in China, which exposes it to the US-China trade war kicked off by President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” announcement. In April, Trump raised tariffs on China to 145 percent, but reduced them to 30 percent last month pending further negotiations. China lowered a retaliatory tariff on US imports from 125 percent to 10 percent.

Korinne Wolfmeyer of Piper Sandler wrote the price hikes “should be enough to at least offset tariffs to protect gross profit dollars (by our math), if not protect even more given the pause on Chinese tariffs” in an analyst note. Many in beauty had anticipated price changes from the brand, but the announcement came sooner than expected, Wolfmeyer added, which could result in a sales lift in the second half of the year.

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E.l.f. Beauty will report its fourth quarter 2025 earnings on May 28.

Learn more:

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The industry let out a sigh of relief as the US and China announced a de-escalation of their punishing trade battle, but fashion can’t breathe easy just yet.

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