As a broke future beauty editor in 2013, I was a college student without a whole lot of spending money for cosmetics. I spent hours on YouTube researching the most affordable and effective products so I could indulge my beauty obsession while still being able to afford groceries. While watching a Kandee Johnson video, she revealed that she used Plus White Five Minute Whitening Gel ($11) to get her teeth white. Curious, I ran to the drugstore and picked up the white tube, and I have been using it ever since. You can apply it with a cotton swab, but I usually just swipe it on with my fingers. The gel works so well that I even got a compliment from my dentist on my bright, shiny teeth.

While the name is “five minute white,” the directions actually instruct you to leave the gel on your teeth for 15 to 20 minutes before rinsing. After a few times of using it, you can keep your teeth from getting stained by touching it up with five-minute sessions of whitening. While this tube used to be a little hard to find, it’s now available on Amazon, so it can be sent straight to your door in no time. So sip your coffee and red wine with abandon!

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