This may sound absolutely insane but it’s happening on a regular basis: dishonest sellers literally ERASE expiration dates from packages. Here’s how they do it:

First let me say that not all products contain an expiration date. Specifically, most makeup does not contain one UNLESS there is an active ingredient that can expire. This is because cosmetics use an “After Opened Date” which you can learn more about by reading our blog post Expiration Dates vs Best By vs Sell By vs Use By vs After Opened Dates

With that being said, just because a lipstick doesn’t have an expiration date DOES NOT MEAN the seller removed it. PLEASE, do not falsely accuse honest sellers! However if you are purchasing an item that you know damn well has the exp date printed on it, it is likely missing because the seller erased it due to it being past expiration. You may be shocked to find out that the ONLY ingredient needed to “wipe clean” expiration dates is acetone nail polish remover. Yep, that’s it! And a great quality “date eraser” polish remover can be bought on Amazon for as little as $1.99 with Free Shipping:

I wanted to show you guys how easy this scam is but I didn’t have any liquid acetone remover because I personally prefer Cutex Gel, so I will show you using what I have:

I grabbed a bottle of White Vinegar from my pantry and applied the polish remover:

As you can see the expiration date is printed on the plastic cap lid:

The acetone polish remover was applied:

As you can see in the image above, after only around 90 seconds of being applied the date already looks like it is lifting.

And before 3 minutes have elapsed I can completely wipe it off:

Personally, I don’t think Vinegar is THAT big of a deal, so let’s look at a product that could indeed be deadly or completely not work if it is far past exp: My beloved API Stress Coat that protects my fish from harmful ingredients in tap water:

And just for the sake of showing you, here’s a metal can of Grapeseed Oil with the exp printed on the bottom:

Fresh white bread:

As you can see, this IS a legitimate problem. There is little you can do as a buyer or seller other than to familiarize yourself with the products and become aware in advance if the item is SUPPOSED to have an expiration date printed on it.  Again, PLEASE DO NOT ACCUSE HONEST SELLERS OF THIS PRACTICE!!!  As mentioned, most USA makeup does NOT have an exp date and this typically includes lotion, nail polish as well as many other beauty items.  Additionally there are some consumables that may not have a printed date.  Things like tampons, toilet paper, computer paper, etc also do not have an expiration date.  All I'm saying is PLEASE, PLEASE, PLLLLEASE be sure the item in question truly is supposed to have a date of expiration before you ever leave a bad review for a good seller who did nothing wrong.  If you are pretty sure the item might have a date printed on it you can usually find out for sure by googling the exact item / UPC and looking on sites like Amazon to see if the listing includes an exp date.  

With that being said, the expiration date is NOT the day the toothpaste "goes bad".  The toothpaste has no brain and it is not on a timer, meaning it has no way of self destructing on November 8th 2023.  This means that if today is November 29th 2023 you absolutely can use the toothpaste and it will work as good as it did 4 weeks ago,  I strongly encourage you to read Expiration Dates vs Best By vs Sell By vs Use By vs After Opened Dates because we throw away so much great food and products due to being afraid of the printed date, even though the item is actually 100% usable and the purpose of the date is nothing more than marketing to get you to pitch it and buy a "fresh one".