best products under $25
Select’s Best of Wellness awards are the culmination of hundreds of hours spent trying hundreds of products and interviewing experts in the sleep, fitness technology, fitness apparel and personal care categories. Below, we’ve rounded up winners that cost $25 or less for anyone who wants a wallet-friendly wellness routine without sacrificing quality.
How we chose our winners
To find our winners, our editors and staff tried hundreds of products in the fitness, sleep and personal care categories. Products underwent a five-week trial period before being selected as our favorites in their respective category. We have used our editors as shopping and trial experts, as well as healthcare professionals, who have provided us with information and advice that they give to their patients.
When we review products, especially wellness items, we review them comprehensively. Being our favorite in a category requires meeting a multitude of your needs. We want to provide you with products that work well, but we also want to share those that improve your life. Among other things, we specifically looked at price, size inclusion, and overall quality and efficiency.
Shop our full list of winners – including fitness apparel, fitness tech, sleep and self-care products – on Select’s site.
Select Best of Wellness Awards Under $25 Winners
Dr. Scholl’s Women’s Extra Support Insoles
Award: Better soles
These structured insoles provide arch support and full-length cushioning for your foot, according to Dr. Scholl’s. As someone over 160 pounds (the body weight these insoles are designed for), I have found that they relieve my chronic foot pain and make even the firmest of my loafers and boots feel like to sneakers.
Simplified adjustment of resistance loop exercise bands
Award: Best resistance bands
Whether you’re new to exercise or a regular at the gym, this five-pack of resistance bands can be incorporated into any workout. Mili Godio, editor of Select’s updates, found them “super stretchy – way more than any other resistance band I’ve tried”, allowing her to better customize her workouts. “I also love that they come in a small carry pouch, so I can take them with me to the gym,” says Godio.
Obe
Award: Best fitness apps | Activity: All
The Obé fitness app, our favorite overall fitness app, offers “the most diverse assortment of class types and durations, plus live and on-demand workouts,” says Zoe Malin, associate editor of Updates. update from Select. According to Obé, the app offers more than 10,000 options in 20 different class types. “Anyone can download this app and find some kind of workout they like to do,” Malin says.
Alo moves
Award: Best fitness apps | Activity: Course on demand
If you prefer on-demand courses to live options, Alo may be a better fit for you than Obé. The app is “extremely easy to navigate, there’s a huge variety of class types and class lengths, and the trainers are always coming up with modifications,” says Malin. Plus, Alo Moves is great for adding new content to make classes “feel fresh,” says Malin.
Silent loop
Award: Best earplugs
These washable silicone earplugs are so noise-reducing that Select editor and city-dweller Leah Ginsberg thought she was sleeping in another apartment. The headphones come with four sizes of interchangeable tips.
Nu Skin AP 24 Toothpaste
Award: Best toothpaste | Type: All
This toothpaste from Nu Skin contains fluoride, which helps prevent cavities and whitens teeth without using peroxide, according to the brand. Malin loved its subtle vanilla mint flavor and creamy texture.
Sensodyne Fresh Mint Toothpaste Sensitivity Protection
Award: Best toothpaste | Type: Sensitivity
It’s a great option for people with sensitive teeth who still want that fresh mint flavor and feel, according to Rosalie Tinelli, Social Media Editor at Select. Sensodyne’s toothpaste diminishes surface stains and uses potassium nitrate as an active ingredient to soothe toothaches, according to the brand.
Colgate Extra Clean Toothbrush
Award: Best Toothbrush | Type: Manual
The selection’s editorial director, Lauren Swanson, liked that this manual toothbrush was gentle on her gums. “I feel like I’m really capable of getting those far spots,” Swanson said. It has an ergonomic handle and should be replaced every three months.
ACT Anticavity Fluoride Mouthwash
Award: Best mouthwash
Godio and Select reporter Harry Rabinowitz liked that this alcohol-free mouthwash didn’t leave a burning sensation unlike other mouthwashes. “The lid is awesome too,” says Rabinowitz. “Instead of pouring into a screw cap, it fills in a transparent top section when you squeeze the bottle, making it much easier to see the fill line compared to black plastic caps.”
DenTek Clean Floss Pick
Award: Best dental floss | Category: All
Food stuck between your teeth? Rebecca Rodriguez, associate of editorial projects at Malin and Select, found these flosses did the trick and were much easier to use than dental floss. Malin liked how the picks were “easy to grip” and had a “mint mouthwash flavor that leaves your mouth feeling fresh.”
Being Frenshe regenerating and moisturizing shower gel soap
Award: Best body wash | Type: All
I loved the pungent, almost lemony scent of this Being Frenshe body wash so much that I later went to buy the candle version from Target. It’s formulated with oat extract and niacinamide, which I found hydrating but still left me feeling clean and refreshed.
Dove Go Fresh refreshing shower gel
Award: Best body wash | Type: Pharmacy
Shari Uyehara, Head of Editorial Operations at Select, found this body wash to be delicately cleansing without over-drying, leaving her skin soft right out of the shower. The body wash has a cucumber and green tea scent.
Cetaphil Acne Relief Body Wash
Award: Best acne treatment | Type: Shower gel
If you have sensitive skin or body acne, Cetaphil Body Wash is a great option. “It doesn’t lather but lathers well and leaves skin soft and clean,” says Malin, who also notes that its gentle formula hydrates her skin and helps heal dry patches.
Mighty Hero Cosmetics Crest
Award: Best acne treatment | Type: button patch
A favorite in the Select guide to the best acne patches, these Hero patches use a colloidal gel to pull all the fluid out of your acne, according to our experts. When the patch changes from translucent to white, you will know the patch job is complete. “Of all the pimple pastes I’ve tried, this blends into the skin the best,” Rodriguez says.
Differin Gel
Award: Best acne treatment | Type: All
A favorite in our guides to treating cystic acne and acne scarring, Differin gel clears breakouts and helps with skin texture, according to the brand. Bethany Heitman, senior editor at Select, says she’s been using Differin for years and puts it on whenever she feels a blemish appear. It helps get rid of the blemish immediately, she says, and “it doesn’t leave a white residue as it dries.”
Dune Bodyguard
Award: Best sunscreen | Type: Body
Of the many sunscreens the Select team tried, this option was social media editor Sadhana Daruvuri’s favourite. “It absorbed immediately, so I didn’t have to spend a lot of time blending it into my skin. I also loved how it made my skin feel more hydrated and gave it a healthy, natural-looking glow. says Daruvuri. The compact container is also easy to store in a purse or bag, especially on trips to the beach. The broad-spectrum sunscreen provides SPF 30 protection and an aloe vera scent. .
CeraVe Moisturizing Cream
Award: Best moisturizer | skin type: Oily
Both Godio and Ginsberg were CeraVe devotees long before trying it out for the Wellness Awards. “I love the texture, it moisturizes so well, it’s so gentle on my skin, it’s affordable, and many dermatologists recommend it,” says Ginsberg. Godio likes its lightness. “I never feel like I apply too much or it sits on the skin.”
4U by Tia Curl Cream
Award: Best hair treatment | Type: Cream
Malin, Select’s resident curly girl, loved pairing this curl cream with the brand’s defining gel to perfect her curls and tame frizz. “It’s a thicker product, so in addition to hydrating the hair, it helps define the curls and gives them some hold,” says Malin, who recommends using the product alone if you have curls or curls. looser waves.
About our experts
To make sure our product selections are more than just editor-approved, we tapped a panel of experts, including dermatologists, sleep doctors, and personal trainers, to share shopping tips. Experts did not recommend individual products. During our interviews with our panel of unaffiliated experts, we asked them what advice they would give to their patients or clients. You can read more about our panel of experts on our Best of Wellness Awards page.
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