5 Best Professional Gel Nail Polishes - Durable & Look Amazing

Best Gel Nail Polishes That Are Long Lasting & Look Amazing

Gel Nail Polishes are simply amazing they are super durable meaning they won’t chip and peel so easily. And they look more glossy and bright when compared to regular nail polishes.

But not all brands of gel polishes are up to standard. You see some of them have poor formulas that look dull and are just hard to apply and cure.

That’s why in this article I am gonna share with you the 5 of the Best Brands of Gel Polishes.

The 5 Best Gel Nail Polishes are:

Beetles Gel Nail Polish – (Best gel polish kit if you are a beginner to gel polish)
Gelish Gel Polish – (A premium professional brand of gel nail polish)
Modelones Gel Polish (Has some amazing unique colors)
Gellen Gel Nail Polish (Best collection of nude gel polishes)
Essie Couture Gel Nail Polish (Dries without a UV Led Nail Lamp)

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What are Gel Nail Polishes

Gel Nail Polishes are different from regular nail polishes in that they won’t dry and harden when exposed to air.

Instead, they only cure and harden when exposed to UV light which is usually from a UV Led Lamp. Citation.

So to apply a Gel Polish you would need to use a UV Led Lamp. Now you can check out the video below to see exactly how to apply gel polishes.

1- Beetles Gel Polish

The Beetles brand has one of the best lines of gel nail polishes on the market which is why they are one of the most popular and widely sold brands.

They are very affordable yet they have a nice consistent high-quality formula.

A high-quality formula means that they have great colors and that they are easy to apply. This makes them ideal if you are now getting into Gel Polish.

Pros of Beetles Gel Polish

1- Long-Lasting & Durable

Beetles Gel Polishes are very durable and won’t chip or peel so easily. They are also long-lasting and should last you for 2-3 weeks without fading or breaking.

2- Creates Really Nice Manicures

Beetles Gel Polishes have stunning colors, from really bright ones to deep and smooth colors, that will easily create some amazing manicures

3- Very Easy to Apply

Beetles Gel Polishes have a great formula that isn’t too thick or too thin which makes it apply smoothly.

I recommend applying two coats when using Beetles, whilst with some other brands, you need to apply 3 or even 4 coats to achieve opacity.

How to Correctly Apply Gel Nail Polishes

Even though they are so many different brands of Gel Polishes, they are all applied in the same easy manner.

You see Gel Polishes are applied in roughly the same way as regular nail polishes with a few differences the main one being that you would need to use a UV Led Lamp to cure them. Citation.

Firstly, prep you nails by pushing back your cuticles and gently filing away the sheen from your nails.
Now, if you want extra durability I recommend applying a coat of dehydrator and a then a coat of a nail primer onto your nails.
Next, apply your Gel Base Coat and then cure it in your UV Led Lamp.
Once your base coat is cured you can apply you gel nail polish and then cure them with your UV Led Lamp
I recommend using multiple thin coats of gel polishes until your nails look the way that you want them to.
Do not apply gel polishes in thick coats – they will not cure properly.
Just note that each coat of gel polish needs to be cured before applying another coat.
Finally, once your gel manicure has the look that you want, you can apply a gel top coat.
If you use a regular gel top coat, you would need to use a cotton pad soaked with rubbing alcohol to wipe away the sticky layer from the top coat.

4- Wide Variety of Colors

Beetles has one of the largest variety of colors to choose from and they are available in large combo sets.

5- Very Affordable

Even though they are a high-quality gel polish, they are still pretty affordable.

Cons of Beetles Gel Polish

1- Small Bottles

Beetles Gel Polishes come in small 5ml bottles that are more like sample bottles than the standard nail polish bottle.

2- Takes Awhile to Cure

Beetles Gel Polishes tend to take a bit longer to cure when compared to other premium brands.

The curing time will vary with the wattage of your lamp but for LED lamps it takes 1-2 minutes whilst with UV lamps it takes 2-4 minutes.

Where to Get Beetles Gel Nail Polish

You can get a great Beetles combo set on Amazon, it comes with 20 gel polishes and a gel base and top coat. You can click here to see the current price for the combo set there.

Now you are also gonna need a UV Lamp to cure your nail polish. I recommend that you get a 48 watt or higher Led UV Lamp which will cure most gel polishes included Beetles in around a minute.

You can click here to see the price for the Led UV Lamp that I recommend on Amazon.

2- Gelish Professional Gel Nail Polish

Gelish is a premium gel polish brand that is commonly used by professionals. Their gel polishes have amazing colors and are extremely durable.

Gelish has years of experience making gel polishes and is actually the company that helped to pioneer the concept of gel polish in a bottle. Citation.

Their reputation, consistency, and high-quality gel polishes are the reasons why most professional nail technicians use Gelish.

Pros of Gelish Gel Polish:

Great Formula – that applies smoothly
Creates Amazing Manicures – Colors are long-lasting and won’t fade so easily.
Extremely Durable – More tough than other budget brands and can last for 3-4 weeks once applied correctly
Cures faster than budget brands – with a good Led Lamp it can cure within 45 seconds.

Cons of Gelish Gel Polish

The main issue with Gelish Gel Nail Polishes is that they are more pricey when compared to other budget brands.

This is why I don’t recommend them for beginners who are now learning and might be very prone to mistakes and wasting their polish.

Now if you have some experience with Gel Polish and want to try the good stuff I highly recommend Gelish. This is because I think their durability and quality more than justifies their higher price tag.

Where to Get Gelish Nail Polish

You can get Gelish Polishes on Amazon, gonna leave links to a few of their collections below.

Gelish Summer Collection

Gelish Nude Collection

Gelish Winter Collection

3- Modelones Gel Polish

Modelones is another great budget brand of gel polishes. They have good quality polishes at reasonable prices.

But what I really like about them is that they have some unusual colors such as glitter gel polishes, color-changing gel polishes, and holographic gel polishes that really stand out.

Where To Gel Modelones Gel Polishes

Amazon usually has Modelones Gel Polishes in stock, you can click on the links below to see the current prices for them there.

Modelones Magnetic Glitter Cat Eye Gel Polish

Modelones Sparkling Glitter Gel Polish

Modelones Color Changing Gel Polish

4- Gellen Gel Nail Polish

Gellen is a very popular brand of gel polish, they are of good quality and are pretty affordable.

Now what I like about them is their nude collection which goes on smoothly and blends perfectly with your nails.

Where to Get Gellen Gel Nail Polishes

You can get Gellen on Amazon, you can click on the links below to see the current price.

Gellen Standard Nude Collection

Gellen Nude Grays

Gellen Nude Browns

5- Essie Non-UV Gel Nail Polish

Essie Couture Gel Nail Polish is one of the most widely sold and popular lines of nail polish on the market.

Their popularity is primarily due to the fact that they create amazing manicures that have the durability and glossiness of UV gel nail polishes but are applied just like regular nail polishes.

This is because Essie’s line of Couture Gel Polishes dry and harden without the need for a UV Lamp they are dried just like regular nail polish. Citation.

Pros of Essie Non-UV Gel Nail Polish:

Dries & Hardens without a UV Lamp – this is because Essie Couture Polish is a regular nail polish that air dries.
Durable & Long Lasting – much stronger than your typical nail polish, can last for 2 weeks without fading or peeling.
Has a Nice Glossy Finish – When applied correctly the polish has a nice smooth, glossy sheen very similar to UV Gel Polishes.
Brilliant Colors – Has a wide array of really nice colors to choose from.
Very Easy to Remove – just wipe the polish off with a cotton pad soaked with acetone, no need for long soaking

Cons of Essie Non-UV Gel Polish

Not as Strong as UV Gel Polish – Essie Couture polishes are tougher than the average nail polish but they are not as long lasting and durable as a good UV Gel Polish which can last you for 3-4 weeks
Expensive – more pricey when compared to both budget UV gel polishes or regular nail polishes.

How to Apply Essie Couture Non-UV Gel Polish

Firstly, prep your nails by pushing back your cuticles and then gently buff the sheen off of your nails.
Next, clean your nails by wiping them with a cotton pad soaked in rubbing alcohol.
Then you can apply a coat of your nail polish and let it dry.
Now once the first coat has dried you will need to apply a second coat.
Finally, you need to apply the top coat and let it dry.

Where to Get Essie Non-UV Gel Polish

You can get Essie Couture Gel Polishes on Amazon, you can click here to see the current price for one.

Every polish comes with a top coat.

Pros and Cons of Gel Polishes

Pros of Gel Polishes:

Extremely Durable when compared to regular nail polish – depending on the brand they can last for 2-3 weeks without peeling and chipping.
Creates Really Nice and Glossy Manicures – Gel Polishes colors tend to be more glossy, brighter and more long lasting meaning they won’t fade so easily.
Dries Faster than regular nail polish – Gel Polishes cure within 1-2 minutes with a Led Lamp or 2-3 minutes with a UV Lamp.
Easier to apply when compared to acrylic nails, or dip powder – yet just as durable
Allows you to create amazing nail art – Now because gel polishes won’t dry unless its cured under the lamp means that you can take your time making different designs.

Cons of Gel Polishes:

Requires a UV Led Lamp to Cure – which means you need to invest in a lamp and have access to electricity to apply Gel Polishes.
Doesn’t have that wide array of colors compared to regular nail polishes – the color selection won’t be so wide like regular nail polish.
Tend to be more expensive – Gel Polishes tend to be more pricey compared to regular nail polish.

What are Gel Polishes Made Out Of?

Gel Polishes are made of acrylic monomers and photoinitiators mixed in a resin. Instead of containing solvents like regular nail polish.

Their different formula is what allows them to only harden and dry when they are exposed to UV light, usually when they are cured under a UV Led Lamp. Citation.