Cosmetics in Tokyo and Kyoto

I'm planning to travel to Tokyo and Kyoto this summer. I was wondering where is the best place in these cities to shop for cosmetics.

Preferably there will be many stores located close to each other selling cosmetics brands of a variety of price range.

I'd like to avoid department stores though.

I typically buy my cosmetics from drugstores like Matsumoto Kiyoshi and Kokumin Drug. There's also O.S. Drug. So these stores are all over Tokyo and you're bound to run into a drugstore almost neighborhood that you visit in Tokyo. Usually the branches at Ueno are cheaper, though I just wander into any available drugstore. It's a drugstore but the huge selection of cosmetics is overwhelming.

There's also Loft, which is a huge store that sells not only cosmetics but stationery, home goods and the like. They do have a decent selection of cosmetics and pretty wide range too.

Not sure about Kyoto as I've never purchased cosmetics there. In my experience as well as reading Taiwanese travel blogs (Japanese make up is big in Taiwan), they mostly travel to Tokyo and Osaka for cosmetics, not so much Kyoto.

*in almost any neighborhood

Sorry for missing any words!

Thank you! I'll definitely be checking those out. Are those drug stores you mentioned all pretty much the same size or are there certain ones that has a bigger selection than others?

It really depends on their location. Many stores occupy two floors while some don't, so their selection will vary. Most of these stores are packed from wall to wall. I'd say all the drugstores I mention carry most of the same brands. I can't remember if I've seen brands like Dior or Chanel in them, but I do know some stores have separate "fancy" display areas for some of the higher end cosmetics. Otherwise it's the usual drugstore brands like Canmake, Majolica Majorca, etc.

Luckily in many of the touristy areas, you'll find more than one drugstore so it's easy to compare prices and also pick up a few items that are sold out at other locations.

If you're interested in best-selling products, definitely check out the @cosme stores. Cosme is a beauty ranking site kind of like Makeup Alley if you use that. You did mention no department stores, but in case you do want to see what is popular in Japanese cosmetics, Lumine Est in Shinjuku has the @cosme flagship store. If you want to stick to drugstores only, top selling products there will have a @cosme tag to them.

Wow, that's great! Thanks for the info. I'll definitely check out @cosme. We have the higher-end cosmetic counters where I live, so I won't be looking for those in Japan... except maybe Shishiedo products, because the Asian and the North American line is so different.

I guess if I go to Shibuya or Ueno locations of these drugs stores they'll be the bigger 2 story ones?

I've only seen the two-story one in Harajuku. Not sure about Ueno, but there is definitely more than one drugstore in Ameyokocho so I wouldn't worry too much about finding the two-story ones. Near Shibuya Station there is Matsumoto Kiyoshi Store #1 and Store #2. They are apparently right next to each other so you should be able to find a lot of cosmetics there.