In the world of eye make-up removers... Is it worth splashing the cash?

This past month I've found myself in the unusual position of having used these 4 very different eye makeup removers:

I ran out of my Nivea Visage Daily Essentials at the start of the month and found, when moving home from Uni, the Clinique 'take the day off' sample which I then used until it ran out at which point I borrowed the Boots essentials gel from my sister until I could get to Boots and pick up a new one of my own! What an exhausting sentence to read out loud.

So what I want to answer with this review is the big question - is it worth spending megabucks on eye makeup remover or do cheaper products provide the same results? 

I use a lot of mascara as well as eyeliner and eye shadows almost every day so it's important for me to be able to get all the makeup off.

1. Boots Essentials 'Cucumber Eye Make-up Remover Gel' £1.50 at www.boots.com

As you can see from the missing writing my sister has had a lot of use out of this product! 

This the cheapest of the 4 products, an absolute bargain at only £1.50!! For 150ml of product - 1p per ml is not bad!

The consistency is gel like which is something I've never seen before and it works remarkably well. 

Eye make-up removability - not great! Gets most of the mascara off your lashes but just spreads it onto your face 

Effect on the eyes - my sister says this stings her eyes. I didn't feel any sting but that is obviously not desirable! It left my eye area feeling refreshed but a little sticky.

Overall score - 7/10

This product does give great value for money and it does the job (mostly!) but the stinging, stickiness afterwards and less than complete removal of mascara leaves room for improvement.

2. Nivea Visage Daily Essentials - 'Extra Gentle Eye Make-up Remover' £3.39 at www.boots.com

After I decided I couldn't afford to keep buying my go to eye makeup remover (No7's Beautiful Skin Eye Make-up Remover) as it costs £8.50 a pop I decided to try out a couple of cheaper alternatives which is how I came across this. It's an oil free liquid which I do like because I worry when using oily products near to my oily nose!

I was quite disappointed with the product really. I defiantly wouldn't describe it as gentle never mind 'extra gentle'!

Eye Make-up removability - not as good as you'd expect from a brand like Nivea. I often found my eyes would get itchy in the night with bits of mascara that I couldn't get off however hard I tried.

Effect on the eyes - my big issue with this product is how dry it left the skin around my eyes. It just feels horrible after and can be itchy! 

Overall score - 6-10

This does do it's job by removing pretty much all of the eye makeup and quite quickly however the itchiness and dryness just completely put me off. I don't think I'd buy this again.

3. Nivea Daily Essentials - 'Double Effect Eye Make-up Remover' £3.69 in Boots stores

This product excites me because it looks like a less-expensive version of the No7 product I mentioned above. Like that product this has an oil phase and an aqueous phase so you have to give it a good shake before using it. I've only used it a few times and I LOVE IT!!!

Eye make-up removability - can't be faulted, got all my mascara off quickly and efficiently.

Effect on eyes - no itching and no dryness! Also no stinging! All bonuses! The skin is left a little oily but not an unmanageable amount.

Overall - 9/10 

Because I can't put my finger on why but its just not quite as good as...

4. Clinique - 'Take the day off' makeup remover for lids, lips and lashes £16 www.clinique.co.uk

This was ridiculously hard to photograph! As you can see from the last little bits remaining in the bottle the formula was white, it was also separated so needed shaking before use. This is probably the best eye makeup remover I have ever used!

Eye make-up removability - somehow achieved the miracle of getting rid of so much of my eye makeup that I didn't get any building up in the corners of my eye overnight! I'd say this got the most eye makeup off with the least amount of product - you only need a tiny bit each time so even the sample lasted for ages.

Effect on eyes - no pain, no dry skin, no make-up left. Definately the gentlest of the eye makeup removers I've tried!

Overall- 10/10!!!

So.. Was this, the most expensive eye makeup remover, worth the £16 price tag?!

Well, if I had all the money in the world I would buy this every time!! However, the Nivea double effect does almost as good a job at a fraction of the price. So whilst the Clinique was worth the extra price it's not something I could afford to purchase considering my current income!

I'd really like to know what anyone reading this uses for eye makeup remover - do you like to splash out or have you found a perfect product for you?! Please leave a comment letting me know! #nosey