How to choose a top coat for gel polish
There are 582 items, but far fewer types. Below is the order in which your choices really narrow down: first, two technical questions, then color and effect.
Sticky layer: wipe or not
“No Wipe,” “Non-sticky,” “без липкого шару” in the name means you do nothing after the lamp. Such tops make up the majority of the section. Tops with a sticky layer — F.O.X. Top Coat UV filter, F.O.X. Top Rubber, NOTD Glossy Top Wipe, NOTD Milky pink — require a wipe and liquid for removing the sticky layer. This is neither a worse nor a better option, just another step in your workflow; factor it into your time.
UV filter: for light or dark
Tops with UV filters are positioned by manufacturers for French and light shades: GA&MA Shine-On, SHELLY Glossy Top With UV. “No UV” versions are labeled “for dark and neon”: TOUCH UV-free, HEYLOVE “Dark story,” GA&MA Hard, NOTD Glossy Top Wipe no UV, SHELLY Glossy Top No UV. NOTD Universal Top sits in the middle — “with minimal UV filter content.”
One pitfall. GA&MA SPF PRO Top hints at protection by its name, but its description says “without UV filters” — this is a top specifically for dark colors. Read the line below the name, not the name itself.
Clear, colored, or stained glass
Clear workhorse tops are the backbone of the section: TOUCH Non-sticky, F.O.X. Top No Wipe, NOTD Glossy Top, GA&MA Classic No Sticky, HEYLOVE No Sticky. Matte ones form a separate group: TOUCH Matte, F.O.X. Top Matte, GA&MA Extra Matte, HEYLOVE Super Matte, SHELLY Matte Satin, NOTD Matte Top.
Camouflaging tops have their own color and work over a finished coating — they tone the shade, not replace the base. These are TOUCH Cover Top (Blossom, Cloud, Zefir, Camel, Lagoon, Walnut and others), GA&MA Cover Top, GÉMELY Neo Cover Top #002–#012, F.O.X. Top Tonal #001–#016, NOTD Color Top, HEYLOVE BB Top, as well as Milky ones from TOUCH, SHELLY, HEYLOVE.
Stained glass tops are translucent, giving color with a show-through: NOTD Color Top Vitrage #07–#18 and F.O.X. Top Lipstick.
Effects
Reflective tops go under different names per brand: Flash and Twinkle in TOUCH, Flash and Blaze in F.O.X., Reflective in HEYLOVE and NOTN. The rubbing effect without actual rubbing is given by TOUCH Mirror Top #1–#4 and pearl NOTD Shell Top. Then come tops with particles: hexagons (HEYLOVE Coin, NOTN SNOW), hearts (NOTD “Kupidon”), shapes (NOTD “Fun!”), shimmer, holography.
Niche tasks
- F.O.X. Paper Top — for drawing with pencil over the coating.
- F.O.X. Chrome 2.0 base&top — 2-in-1 under chrome and rubbing, 3 and 7 ml.
- HEYLOVE “Water Drops” SET, 2×15 ml — set for a dew effect.
- Scratch resistance is separately labeled by manufacturers: GA&MA Crystal anti-scratch, HEYLOVE Wow Glossy, NOTD No Stress.
Volume
Large bottles exist only for clear workhorse tops. Fifty milliliters — for GA&MA (Classic, SPF PRO, Shine-On, Crystal, Hard) and NOTD Universal, sixty — for TOUCH Non-sticky and UV-free. Colored, stained glass, and effect tops come only in small sizes: 7, 10, 12, 13, or 15 ml. Remember about paired listings: TOUCH Cover Top is available in 7 and 13 ml, F.O.X. in 7, 14, and 30, NOTD Universal in 10, 30, and 50. That’s the same top in different bottles.
Nearby in the catalog
The top coat is the final layer, so underneath it you’ll need clear bases or camouflage and colored bases, and between them — gel polishes. If you’re used to picking materials from one brand, it’s easier to start from the brands page: note that GA&MA is now released under the name GÉMELY, and the catalog contains items with both labels.
