We know, we know. Social media is far from the best place for chemists seeking sound advice on cosmetic science. But beauty ingredients, products and fads often flood popular social channels like TikTok and Instagram—and staffers at smart brands should keep tabs on what’s trending (retinol) and what’s not (we’re looking at you beta hydroxy acid).
 
Here’s a recent study that was sent in to Happi. Conducted by an online platform from the UK called Hey Discount, it revealed the following as the top 10 biggest beauty trends so far this year as:

Rank	Trend	# of Tik Tok View	# of Instagram hashtags	Number of Google Searches
1	Retinol	1.2 billion	635,767	9.276 million
2	Graphic liner	1 billion	655,325	195,500
3	Gua Sha	976.9 million	502,093	12.491 million
4	SPF	876.4 million	1.6 million	2.493 million
5	DIY skincare	527 million	234,553	31,000
6	Lip scrub	436.1 million	1.1 million	1.075 million
7	Ombre lips	422 million	427,196	201,500
8	Glass skin	346.1 million	676,770	407,400
9	Hyaluronic acid	331.4 million	1.6 million	6.846 million
10	Niacinamide	322.8 million	362,311	6.4 million

Gua Sha is high on the popularity list; it made the top three beauty trends of 2022 with 976.9 million views on TikTok and a 2.4 million Google searches. Gua Sha, a traditional Chinese medicinal practice that means “to scrape” and activate “redness of the skin,” is often used to treat chronic pain, reduce puffiness and aid lymphatic drainage.
 
Caffeine skincare and beta-hydroxy acid were some of the least popular beauty trends of 2022, according to the study. Popular last year, caffeine skincare had just 3,078 TikTok views this year, according to this report.