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Essie Gel Couture Long-Lasting Nail Polish Top Coat, Clear

Curated from 87 real Reddit conversations

Refreshed on: March 9, 2025

Essie Gel Couture Long-Lasting Nail Polish Top Coat, Clear

Brand: essie

Price: $9

Snoop Score:

7.5

Sentiment

4.8

Popularity

8.2

Technical

8.2

Buy on Amazon for $9 See All Top Coat Reviews

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Snoop's Take

Essie Gel Couture Long-Lasting Nail Polish Top Coat is a clear, vegan formula designed to deliver a high-gloss, chip-resistant finish without the fuss of a UV lamp. It works by sealing your nail color for an ultra-polished look that mimics a gel finish, yet removes like regular polish. Consumers have been vocal about its fast-drying traits and brilliant shine; one user even noted, “It dries SO fast! Seriously, dead dry in like 2 minutes,” while others praise its ability to rival more expensive salon products. Although many appreciate its durability and ease of application, a fair number complain about inconsistent drying times and occasional chipping issues. The community debate is lively, with some hailing it as a holy grail top coat and others comparing it unfavorably to options like Seche Vite. Overall, the product is a solid contender in its category if you value a gel-like shine with simple removal, but potential buyers should be aware that drying time and chip resistance might vary depending on technique and polish pairing.

Not for you? Check out our other rated Top Coat

It dries SO fast! Seriously, dead dry in like 2 minutes, no sheet prints or anything.
Positive Feedback

Essie gel couture is good, but doesn’t dry as fast as seche vite.
Negative Feedback

7.5

Essie Gel Couture Long-Lasting Nail Polish Top Coat, Clear

Buy on Amazon for $9

Everyday Wear

6 / 10

Special Occasions

7 / 10

Professional Salons

7 / 10

DIY Home Manicure

6 / 10

See how this compares to all Top Coat

What it does well!

Key strengths users can’t stop talking about.

Dries quickly

“It dries SO fast! Seriously, dead dry in like 2 minutes, no sheet prints or anything.”➕

“I love it, I feel like a broken record with recommending it to people, lol”➕

“It’s my favorite non gel top coat. EVER.”➕

“Gel setter replaced seche vite for me.”➕

Creates a glossy finish

“I loveee that one I’ve completely used up 2 bottles of it so far.”➕

“So yeah, tl;dr, don't buy this top coat. It's the worst.”➕

“It looks really pretty but will not dry!!”➕

“The gel couture top coat is one of my favorites but using the gel couture polish with it isn’t required.”➕

Provides nice shine

“This is a nice plump gel-like formula that smooths out textured toppers, dries rock hard, and hasn’t thickened up in the bottle yet.”➕

“I consider it my holy grail top coat.”➕

Good lasting power

“I love Essie Gel Couture! It's my favorite drug-store polish.”➕

“gel couture for me it lasts 3 weeks (im not kidding).”➕

Good thickness of gel couture and gel setter

“Gel Couture and Gel Setter never caused that problem for me.”➕

Reliable performance

“I prefer ones that dry quickly.”➕

“I've repurchased it so many times and it's never failed me.”➕

Fast drying

“Dries fast and makes things so much easier.”➕

Easy to identify as regular polish

“They call it gel. But it’s not gel, at all.”➕

“I really love the finish, it's so shiny and it lasts for at least a week.”➕

Dries quickly and provides a glossy finish

“Is essie gel couture worth it? I am considering getting a nude color but I am wondering if it's real”➕

“One of the best things about it is the brush. So easy to apply!”➕

Works well with other polishes

“Do I have to use Essie Gel Couture top coat with Essie Gel Couture polish?”➕

“It applies and dries similar to a regular polish so in theory you could use a different topcoat.”➕

Good wear time when paired with Gel Setter

“I get insane wear time out of this combo.”➕

Where it needs some work!

Areas to watch—feedback on possible improvements.

Does not dry as fast as Seche Vite

“Essie gel couture is good, but doesn’t dry as fast as seche vite.”➕

Chipping issues reported

“I have some chips and some tip wearing, but they look pretty good.”➕

Makes polish underneath look weird and uneven when applied

“it made the polish underneath look really weird and uneven.”➕

Requires careful drying time to prevent issues

“Ive found with Essie QDTCs you cant put them over polish thats too wet or they take forever to dry down.”➕

“I find wait times doesnt really matter as theres so many factors that can change length of dry time - actual feel is more important imo.”➕

“That looks like what happens when a QDTC battles too thick of layers below when trying to cure them.”➕

Incompatibility with certain polish formulas

“I think it could be the polish formula - Sally Hansen's Insta-Dry polishes are different from most polishes in my experience.”➕

Takes a long time to dry

“It's the topcoat, Essie Gel couture top coat is not quick drying and it takes forever.”➕

“I usually do my nails while watching a show/film or before I read because I know they'll take a while to dry.”➕

Prone to smudging if not dried properly

“I personally don’t have this problem with my Essie Gel Couture.”➕

Incompatibility with certain top coats

“Overall, I find that using a quick dry topcoat is very helpful with the gel couture polishes.”➕

Frequent chipping issues

“Essie always chips on me no matter what I do.”➕

Does not dry as fast as some other top coats

“If I don't need to, I have Essie's speed setter top coat and it dries so fast I love it!”➕

Shrinkage issues compared to Seche Vite

“I cant stand the shrinkage.”➕

“I rage-quit Seche a number of years ago also.”➕

Compare On All Talked About Dimensions

Product Name	Price	Score	See Details	Buy Now
Glamonade Top Coat Nail Polish Clear	$6	10.0	Details	Buy
L.A. COLORS Top Coat, Top Coat CNP192	$1	9.5	Details	Buy
CND Vinylux Long Wear Shine Top Coat	$11	8.5	Details	Buy
V Beauty Pure No Wipe Gel Top Coat	$14	8.5	Details	Buy
Essie Gel Couture Long-Lasting Nail Polish Top Coat, Clear	$9	7.5	Details	Buy
Mia Secret UV Finish Gel 15 ml - Professional High Gloss Top Coat	$13	6.7	Details	Buy
Makartt Gel Top Coat - 2 PCS No Wipe Top Coat Gel Nail Polish	$7	6.4	Details	Buy
KUPA GelFinity Soak Off Gel Top Coat	$9	6.1	Details	Buy
Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat - .5 fl oz by Seche	$6	6.1	Details	Buy
Sally Hansen Miracle Gel™ Shiny Top Coat	$8	5.8	Details	Buy
OPI Top Coat \| Nail Polish Top Coat	$11	5.3	Details	Buy
beetles Gel Polish No Wipe Gel Top Coat by beetles Gel Polish	$5	5.2	Details	Buy
Beetles Gel Polish No Wipe Top Coat and Base Coat Set	$6	4.6	Details	Buy
modelones Gel Nail Polish Top Coat	$5	4.6	Details	Buy
essie Nail Care Gel Setter Top Coat	$9	4.1	Details	Buy
Sally Hansen Hard As Nails® Top Coat	$3	3.5	Details	Buy
beetles Gel Polish Beetles Extra Glossy Gel Top Coat	$7	3.5	Details	Buy
JODSONE 2 Bottles of Top Coat Base Coat Set	$5	3.1	Details	Buy
ZOYA Armor Top Coat Clear	$12	3.0	Details	Buy
Vishine Top Coat- 15ML No Wipe Top Coat Gel Nail Polish	$6	2.8	Details	Buy
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri® Clear Top Coat	$4	2.3	Details	Buy
KIARA SKY Professional Nails LED UV Soak off Gel Polish Non Wipe Top Coat	$13	2.3	Details	Buy

Core Power Plays

The specs and strengths that make it shine.

Praise for color

“I love this colour! I have it in my collection, time to wear it!”➕

Discussion about different product numbers

“did essie recently change the number on it or did i get a fake?”➕

“a different number doesn't immediately mean one is fake.”➕

“it could be that the one i got is the platinum version as well.”➕

“I liked the 1098 more.”➕

Discussion about drying time

“How long to dry down?”➕

“Awesome! I'm excited to try it, thanks for the rec”➕

Varied experiences with different Essie formulas

“I just love the formula, colors, and application.”➕

Hidden Hero Hacks

Unexpected tricks and side‑door uses you’ll love.

Discussion about mixing top coats

“Oh my gosh. I forgot how much I love essie gel setter.”➕

“They look gorgeous! I love this colour on you.”➕

“Just pour two of them into the third bottle and add thinner as needed.”➕

“Mixing them together before adding thinner would definitely be best.”➕

Buyer’s Cheat Sheet

What to check before you click ‘Add to Cart.’

Discussion about other top coats

“Essie has a special place but KB Shimmer is cheaper and less shrinkage for me and dries stupid quick.”➕

Discussion about alternative top coats

“Lately that’s my go to from Essie.”➕

“That and the Gel setter are honestly so good.”➕

“I just got the gel setter based on recommendations here and I can’t wait to try it.”➕

Discussion about techniques to prevent shrinkage

“Apparently you're not supposed to wait till the colour is dry to put on the top coat.”➕

Discussion on favorite top coats

“I actually hated painting them until I discovered Seche Vite. It was a game changer!”➕

Discussion about preference for different top coats

“It's not billed as quick drying but it dries pretty dang fast for me.”➕

“I love Gel Setter personally.”➕

Comparison to other top coats

“It worked well for me then suddenly it started shrinking at the tips.”➕

Discussion about nail prep techniques

“Are you using a quick dry top coat to finish your manicure?”➕

Discussion about drying time expectations

“I left both my hands in for more then 3 minutes each and I even tried with a thin layer and nothing.”➕

Discussion about using base coats for better application

“Glitter is so pretty but the worst to remove, I have a pink OPI with glitter and it's so hard to take off everytime haha.”➕

Discussion on the necessity of using the specific top coat

“I'll probably buy the top coat eventually, but right now I'm on a major spending freeze!”➕