The new beauty routine? It starts with a question. Not necessarily to a friend, a make-up artist, or an expert. More and more often, we ask Google. How to do skincare? When should it be done? Which serum to choose? What is the quickest makeup for the morning? Simple, everyday questions that, when put together, give a surprisingly precise picture of how our relationship with beauty is changing. According to Google, 15% of searches every day are for something that has never been searched before. Search has become a space to discover, experiment, get inspired, and, in some way, build our own style. With the evolution towards more conversational experiences, this behavior becomes even more interesting when it comes to beauty: a universe of personal needs, different skin types, face shapes, textures, occasions, and, above all, time available. Because beauty is not experienced in the same way every day. There are mornings when five minutes in front of the mirror are enough, and evenings when a longer routine becomes a form of ritual. There are days when we want to be natural and others when we feel like daring. And it is by observing what Italians have been searching for online in the last twelve months that some of the most interesting beauty phenomena of 2026 emerge.
Skincare is no longer just observed, it is questioned
The first signal comes from skincare. Among the most trending beauty searches in Italy, we find seemingly basic questions: “when to do skincare”, “how to do facial skincare”, “how many times to do skincare in a day”. It’s an interesting detail. Because it tells of a consumer who not only wants to know what to buy, but also how to use it and why. Alongside questions about the routine, topics like glutathione, collagen, serum choice, and, of course, Korean skincare appear. “What is Korean skincare” is among the most frequent searches, while some go straight to the next question: where to buy K-beauty products and which ones to choose for combination, oily, delicate, and blemish-prone skin. The skin, therefore, is no longer treated as a generic category. It is described in detail. Searches for different needs confirm this: oily skin, dry skin, acne, enlarged pores, blackheads, redness, combination skin, wrinkles, and dark circles. Even Korean skincare for mature skin is among the most frequent searches. We no longer simply search for a skincare. We search for our skincare. And perhaps this is one of the most significant changes in beauty today… personalization is no longer a detail, it has become the starting point.
Beauty, today, is a personal matter
Perhaps the real beauty trend of the past year is not a product, a texture, or a makeup technique. It is the search for something that resembles us. Looking at the most frequent questions on Google, beauty seems to have definitively moved away from the idea of a universal formula: we don’t just search for the best skincare, but for one for oily skin, for redness, for enlarged pores, for wrinkles. We don’t just ask how to do makeup, but what might work for hooded eyes, green eyes, for a ceremony or for a morning at work. Hair follows the same logic: a hairstyle can come from Bridgerton, from the 80s, from a celebrity, or even from a footballer. It’s as if Google has become, even before a search engine, a mirror of our aesthetic possibilities. And this is where beauty meets fashion. Just as in contemporary fashion culture there is no longer a single dominant aesthetic, beauty also seems to work through contaminations, references, and possibilities. K-beauty, baddie, nude, milk makeup, diva, 50s, 60s: these are not necessarily identities to wear forever, but languages to try. Today we can change our skin, literally and metaphorically, depending on the occasion, mood, or simply the desire to experiment.
K-beauty is no longer a niche
The presence of Korean culture in searches is evident even outside of skincare. Korean makeup ranks first among the most searched makeup tutorials. It’s not surprising. In recent years, Korea has helped change the way we look at beauty, shifting the focus from makeup as transformation to makeup as the construction of a fresh, luminous, and personalized image. But in Italian searches, very different aesthetics coexist. On one hand, Korean makeup and milk makeup, on the other hand, fuchsia baddie, diva makeup, smokey eyes, 50s makeup, and 60s makeup. It’s as if Google presents a beauty landscape without a single direction. There is no longer a single trend face. There are aesthetics to try and experiment with. And perhaps this is the point: beauty culture no longer necessarily asks us to choose a single identity. It allows us to change our style.
From “perfect makeup” to makeup that works
Makeup also reflects this search for personalization. Among the most searched queries, we find evening makeup, nude look, bambi makeup, ideas for green makeup, blue mascara, and diva makeup. But what is even more interesting is what happens when the word “tutorial” is added to the search. Italians search for how to achieve a luminous makeup, a smokey eye, makeup for a ceremony, corrective makeup, or a bridal look for brown eyes. They want to see how it’s done, not just know that it exists. Beauty thus becomes a practical skill, almost a permanent tutorial. We watch, save, try, correct. Then we search again. And it is significant that among the searches there are also very specific techniques, such as the tutorial for makeup with tape, along with references like Angelina Jolie or Nina Park. The result is a very contemporary mix: inspiration and instruction in the same gesture.
Beauty without boundaries
If skincare teaches us to know our skin, makeup once again shows us how much we can change it. But perhaps the real evolution lies in the fact that the boundaries between the two categories are becoming increasingly blurred. This is demonstrated by searches for tinted products, one of the most interesting trends emerging from Italian data. Colored BB cream, colored face cream, colored eye contour, anti-aging colored cream, SPF 50 colored sunscreen, colored lip balm, colored primer, colored sun stick. It’s not just a matter of color. It’s the search for multiple functions in the same product. Skincare and makeup intersect. Hydration and complexion enhancement coexist. Sun protection becomes part of the daily beauty routine and, at the same time, contributes to the aesthetic result. Beauty thus becomes increasingly hybrid: fewer separate compartments, more products capable of doing different things.
Time has become a beauty ingredient
But there is one element that no beauty routine can ignore: time. Italian searches say it very directly. “Quick office makeup”, “easy hairstyles in 5 minutes”, “quick eye makeup”, “hairstyles to do in 10 minutes with curly hair”, “quick and perfect eyeliner”. The contradiction is only apparent. Because the desire to take care of ourselves has not diminished, it’s just the time we are willing to dedicate to it that has changed. There are moments when the beauty routine is a pampering, a slow ritual to be done in front of the mirror. And others when it simply has to work. Five minutes in the morning. A longer routine in the evening. A multifunctional product when in a hurry. A detailed tutorial when feeling like experimenting. Perhaps the real luxury is no longer having a lot of time. It is having a beauty routine that can adapt to what we have.
Even hair becomes a language
When the skin becomes personal, hair also stops being just a matter of cut. Searches tell of a universe of hairstyles with strands, waves, low ponytails, half updos, and long hair, but also of cultural and pop references like Bridgerton, the 80s, Rumi, and Zoey. In the male world, the mid fade, middle part, and Lamine Yamal haircut enter. It’s another sign of the transformation of beauty into a cultural language. We no longer just search for “a haircut”. We search for an image to identify with. A TV series, a celebrity, an era, an artist, a footballer, an aesthetic seen online: Google becomes the point where that inspiration is translated into a concrete request. How can I do it too?
The new beauty is a question
Looking at all these searches together, a less superficial picture emerges than it might seem. Italians are indeed looking for new products, but above all they are looking for instructions, personalization, speed, and inspiration. They want to understand which skincare is suitable for their skin. They search for makeup that enhances the shape of their eyes. A hairstyle that suits their hair. A product that does more things. A tutorial that allows them to replicate a look. And, above all, they seek solutions compatible with the real time of their day. Perhaps this is the most interesting direction of beauty in 2026: not a beauty that is increasingly complicated, but a beauty that is increasingly dialogical. A beauty that starts with a question. And that, between one search and another, allows us to understand a little better who we are in front of the mirror. Because in the end, perhaps, we no longer seek a definitive version of beauty. Every time, we seek the one we feel like being. Source: Google Trends, Italy, searches from the last 12 months. Data provided by Google.
