Zoya

Last Updated: January 17, 2022

How Ethical Is Zoya?

Make a positive impact by supporting companies with the same values and ethics as what matters most to you. To navigate and find ethical brands, here's a summary of Zoya's ethics and initiatives.

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Ethical Analysis

Is Zoya cruelty-free, vegan, or sustainable? We’ve got the answers here! Read below for more details on Zoya’s policies.
Zoya is cruelty-free. None of Zoya’s ingredients, formulations, or finished products are tested on animals, anywhere in the world.
Not all of Zoya’s products are vegan but they have some vegan options.
Zoya does not claim or market itself as a sustainable company.
Zoya has been non-responsive when I asked if their mica is ethically-sourced without the use of child labor.
Zoya products come in plastic packaging. I couldn’t find anything stating they’re working on reducing their use of virgin plastic in their product packaging.

About Zoya

Zoya makes the world’s longest-wearing natural nail polish and nails care treatments.
COMPANY BASED IN: USA
PRODUCTS MADE IN: USA
PRODUCTS: Nails, Makeup
CERTIFICATIONS: N/A

Zoya

This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.

You can find Zoya cruelty-free products at Ulta.

Zoya is Cruelty-Free

Zoya has confirmed they do not test their products or ingredients on animals or ask others to test on their behalf. Their suppliers also do not test on animals, nor do they allow their products to be tested on animals when required by law. And finally, their products are not sold in stores in mainland China or any other country that may require animal testing.

By our standards, we would consider Zoya to be Cruelty-Free.

Cruelty-Free Policies

Note that there is no legal definition for the label ‘Cruelty-Free.’ It can mean different things to different people. But Cruelty-Free is generally used to imply no animal testing. More specifically, the ingredients, formulation, or finished product are not tested on animals at any stage of product development.

At ethical elephant, we always assess a company’s cruelty-free policy using our Cruelty-Free Checklist. This ensures no animal testing was performed by the brand itself, its suppliers, or any third parties.

Also, note that Cruelty-Free and Vegan don’t always mean the same thing.

Cosmetics is Not 100% Vegan

‘Vegan’ in cosmetics can refer to an entire brand that is 100% Vegan or a specific product is vegan.

In the case of Zoya, not all of their products are vegan. But they have some products that are suitable for vegans.

How to know which of Zoya’s products are vegan?

Most of Zoya’s nail polish formulas are labeled as “vegan-friendly” but since they don’t have a list of ingredients on their website, it’s best to email or message the company to ask and verify which of their products/shades are vegan.

Vegan Policies

Similar to ‘Cruelty-Free,’ there is no standard or legal definition for the label ‘Vegan.’ But it usually means no animal-derived ingredients or animal by-products.

Some common animal products used in cosmetics include carmine, lanolin, snail mucus, beeswax, honey, pearl or silk-derived ingredients, animal-based glycerin, keratin, and squalene.

There are plant-based and synthetic alternatives to animal-derived ingredients. But it’s sometimes difficult to know with certainty whether a product is vegan just by reading the ingredient list.

So it’s best to ask the company and manufacturers to ensure the ingredients they’ve chosen to use were from non-animal sources.

Ethical Mica Mining Policy

Mica is a mineral that’s used in cosmetics to add a shimmery effect. But the mining of natural mica has been linked to child labor and human rights violations.

Unless the company discloses its mica mining policy, we have no way of knowing whether its mica is ethically sourced without child or forced labor.

So I asked Zoya if their mica is ethically sourced without the use of child labor, but they never responded to any of my emails or messages.


I hope this article helped you to understand Zoya’s cruelty-free and vegan status and by choosing cruelty-free together, we can help end animal testing for cosmetics once and for all!

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