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TOP 15 BEST MAKE UP FOUNDATIONS

When it comes to achieving your ideal complexion, the best make up foundation is essential. Whether you're looking for long-lasting coverage, a radiant finish or a formula with a second skin sing off, finding the perfect match for your skin type and needs can make all the difference.

In this guide, we’ve rounded up the best make up foundations that cater to all skin types from oily to dry, and offer a variety of finishes, from matte to dewy. Each famed foundation blends skin-loving ingredients with innovative technology to enhance your natural beauty and keep you looking your best throughout the day and night.

Ready to find your perfect match? Let’s dive straight into the best make up foundations waiting to complete your cosmetic case.

OUR TOP 15 BEST MAKE UP FOUNDATIONS

  1. NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation
  2. Fenty Beauty Pro Filt'R Soft Matte Longwear Foundation
  3. Guerlain Terracotta Le Teint Glow Healthy Glow Foundation
  4. bareMinerals BAREPRO 24HR Skin-Perfecting Powder Foundation
  5. Huda Beauty Easy Blur Foundation
  6. Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Foundation
  7. Westman Atelier Vital Skin Foundation Stick
  8. VIEVE Skin Nova Complexion Balm
  9. MAKE UP FOR EVER HD Skin Foundation
  10. Kosas SPF 25 Revealer Skin Improving Foundation
  11. Pat McGrath LabsThe Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Foundation
  12. La Prairie Skin Caviar Concealer Foundation SPF 15
  13. Hourglass Ambient Soft Glow Foundation
  14. Too Faced Born This Way Foundation
  15. Sweed Glass Skin Foundation

THE BEST MAKE UP FOUNDATIONS

NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation

4.53 stars out of a maximum of 5

642

£41.00

Holding the top spot in our round up of the best make up foundations, ​NARS’ Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation provides medium-to-full, buildable coverage that lasts up to 16 hours. Granting you with a fresh and vibrant complexion throughout the day, this famed formula resists oxidation, allowing it to maintain true-to-colour wear. Infused with the brand’s Skin Optimizing Complex — a blend of raspberry, apple and watermelon extracts — it not only enhances radiance, but also supports skin's elasticity and texture over time. Plus, with an impressive 33 shades available, its advanced skin-matching technology boosts a seamless for various skin tones. Impressive, we know.

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Fenty Beauty Pro Filt'R Soft Matte Longwear Foundation

Revolutionising the beauty industry with its expansive 50-hue shade range, Fenty Beauty's Pro Filt'r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation is designed to minimise shine and provide a matte sign off that lasts all day long. Powered by climate-adaptive technology, it ensures resilience against heat, sweat and humidity, maintaining a fresh appearance regardless of the environment. What’s more, it’s infused with hydrating papaya fruit extract to keep excess oil at bay too.

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Guerlain Terracotta Le Teint Glow Healthy Glow Foundation

Crafted with 95% naturally derived ingredients, Guerlain's Terracotta Le Teint Glow Healthy Glow Foundation brings benefits to both your make up and Mother nature. Featuring self-adapting shimmers, it’s renowned for its luminous glow that adjusts to your unique skin tone. Resting lightly over skin with a barely-there feel, this 24-hour wear and no-transfer formula combines skin-loving ingredients (we’re talking moisturising argan oil, vitamin E and candelilla wax) to not only deliver radiant results but to nourish and protect your complexion as well - making it a top choice for those seeking both beauty and skin care benefits.​

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bareMinerals BAREPRO 24HR Skin-Perfecting Powder Foundation

Not all the best make up foundations come in liquid form. Cue: BareMinerals’ BAREPRO 24HR Skin-Perfecting Powder Foundation. A powder iteration designed to full coverage while feeling lightweight on the skin, this innovative must have provides a natural matte finish that resists oil and shine, maintaining a fresh appearance for up to 24 hours. Melding mineral and antioxidant-rich ingredients (think: bamboo stem extract and papaya enzymes), the compact cosmetic smooths and even skin tone while delivering customisable coverage without clogging pores. So, whether you're looking for a natural, everyday look or full coverage for a night on the town, this multitasking marvel offers both.

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Huda Beauty Easy Blur Foundation

4.45 stars out of a maximum of 5

148

£32.00

Dreamt up with 1.5% niacinamide, Huda Beauty's Easy Blur Foundation smooths your skin's appearance for a real-life filter finish (minus the digital enhancement). How? Well, for starters it’s enriched with pore-blurring silica to promote an airbrushed veil and reduce the appearance of unwanted blemishes. And if that wasn’t enough, this signature staple enhances a buildable coverage that’s lasts up to 12 hours – taking you from desk to dancefloor with no top ups needed.

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Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Foundation

4.28 stars out of a maximum of 5

564

£39.00

Designed for durability, ​Charlotte Tilbury's Airbrush Flawless Foundation is sweat-proof, humidity-proof, waterproof and transfer-resistant. While it full-coverage formula delivers a natural matte finish, effectively concealing blemishes, it maintains a lightweight feel on the skin for comfort. Blending the brand’s Replexium and MossCellTec complex, this icon works hard to reduce the appearance of fine lines while increasing moisture level within the first hour of application. And the best bit? It also features AirCool, to provide an instant cooling sensation upon application – making it ideal for the milder months.

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Westman Atelier Vital Skin Foundation Stick

4.52 stars out of a maximum of 5

174

£62.00

Bestowing a second skin finish in just a few swipes, Westman Atelier's Vital Skin Foundation Stick is a creamy base-booster that's far from basic. Fusing vegetable-derived squalane, camellia seed oil, berry flux vita extract and coconut oil, it not only boosts medium, buildable coverage, but it hydrates and soothes too. With a convenient stick format, it’s a go-to for on-the-go application and busy schedules, making it versatile enough to serve as both a foundation and concealer that grants you a natural, healthy glow whether your home or away.

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VIEVE Skin Nova Complexion Balm

4.4 stars out of a maximum of 5

131

£34.00

Redefining foundations by blending skin care benefits with make up performance, VIEVE's Skin Nova Complexion Balm ensures a radiant, 'your skin but better' finish. Created with polyglutamic acid, it hydrates and plumps the skin, while the addition of niacinamide evens out skin tone and brightens the complexion. Adapting to your skin tone, the featherweight formula is ideal for all-day use and is available in 20 flexible shades to cater to all. Oh, and did we mentioned it’s housed in a slim tube with a precise nozzle, allowing for easy, mess-free application.

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MAKE UP FOR EVER HD Skin Foundation

4.61 stars out of a maximum of 5

18

£37.00

Long-lasting? Check. Smoothing? Check. Natural, skin-like finish? Double check. Of course we’re talking about MAKE UP FOR EVER'S HD Skin Foundation. Celebrated as the best make up foundation for its Micro-Skin System Technology, the complexion hero moves with your skin to guarantee a true-to-skin look that lasts up to 24 hours. Maintaining its integrity throughout the day, the buildable blend has medium-to-full coverage effectively conceals imperfections without settling into fine lines or appearing cakey. If it’s good enough for over 40 make up artists from across the globe, it’s good enough for us!

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Kosas SPF 25 Revealer Skin Improving Foundation

4.04 stars out of a maximum of 5

24

£35.00

Bursting with skin care heroes (we’re talking everything from peptides and squalane to vitamin B5, arnica and everything in between), Kosas's SPF 25 Revealer Skin-Improving Foundation provides a second-skin finish to cover and blur the appearance of pores, blemishes, redness and discolouration. With the addition of SPF25, this multitasker also shields skin against harmful UV rays, so you can conceal your complexion with ease – no matter the forecast. All that’s left to do is find your perfect match with the brand’s array of light to deep shades in cool, neutral, warm and olive undertones.

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Pat McGrath LabsThe Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Foundation

What do you get when you combine over 25 years of historic make up artistry with the chance to create a second-skin foundation for all complexions? Pat McGrath Labs’ The Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Foundation. Complete with an oil-free, serum-like texture, this base player encourages you to customise your desired look with its satin finish and buildable coverage. More than just your typical foundation, it also utilises the brand’s unique Vita-Serum Complex to quench your complexion’s thirst while mimicking your skin’s natural radiance with its Biocompatible Powder Technology. The result? A complexion that’s ready to walk the catwalk.

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La Prairie Skin Caviar Concealer Foundation SPF 15

5 stars out of a maximum of 5

1

£225.00

Bring a little luxury into your cosmetic case with La Prairie's Skin Caviar Concealer Foundation SPF 15. Going beyond its call of duty this dual-purpose product seamlessly combines the benefits of a full-coverage foundation and a potent concealer. Fortified with the brand's exclusive Cellular Complex and caviar extract, the hybrid hero support skin's firmness and elasticity, providing a lifted appearance over time. Delivering a dewy, natural finish, the creamy emulsion blurs the line between science and cosmetic artistry, boasting a blend of nourishing ingredients (think: licorice and ginseng root extracts) and advanced pigment technology that provides camouflages under-eye darkness and imperfections. Now that’s what we call skindulgence.

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Hourglass Ambient Soft Glow Foundation

4.32 stars out of a maximum of 5

146

£57.00

Made with light-diffusing pigments and blurring spheres, Hourglass' Ambient Soft Glow Foundation unlocks long-lasting radiance. Minimising the appearance of blemishes, fine lines, and wrinkles, the everyday essential boosts a natural, soft-focus glow once applied. Packed with antioxidants, like white tea extract and vitamin E, it also offers protection against environmental stressors, including pollution and blue light. Mixing a luxurious feel with performance, the 32-hued hero is easy to use, effective and versatile – catering to all tones and undertones.

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Too Faced Born This Way Foundation

4.37 stars out of a maximum of 5

193

£38.00

A mainstay in make up bags across the world, Too Faced’s Born This Way Foundation undetectable coverage is achieved through a lightweight, oil-free formula that allows your skin's natural beauty to shine right through. Inspired by the I woke up like this beauty mantra, the brand was on a mission to create a natural-looking product that covers and blur all in one. Incorporating coconut water, alpine rose and hyaluronic acid, the famed foundation not only replenishes moisture but also brightens and promotes elasticity over time too. From its Porcelain to Cocoa shades, it’s long-wearing, photo-friendly and resists settling into fine lines to maintain a flawless finish throughout the day (or night).

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Sweed Glass Skin Foundation

4.19 stars out of a maximum of 5

32

£38.00

Last, but by no means least in our round up of the best make up foundations is Sweed’s Glass Skin Foundation. Aptly named, this lightweight formula serves a second skin-like sign off with every use. Supplemented with energising sea water and seaweed, it boasts up to 12 hours of hydration and protection against environmental aggressors such as pollution and blue light – along with all day wear. Ideal for normal to dry skin types, it features medium coverage with a silky, elastic texture that feels comfortable and is super flexible. Complete light-reflecting and colour-correcting pigments for an even luminous complexion so your skin never look dull or dry.

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BEST MAKE UP FOUNDATIONS FAQS

Which foundation do make up artists use?

While each make up artist bag is filled with different formulas, most tend to gravitate towards foundations that offer a wide range of shades, buildable coverage and long-lasting formulas that work well in various lighting conditions and on different skin types. The most popular foundations used by professionals include: Make Up For Ever’s Ultra HD Foundation, NARS’ Sheer Glow Foundation, Fenty Beauty’s Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation and Charlotte Tilbury’s Airbrush Flawless Foundation.

Should mature skin use matte or dewy foundation?

For mature skin, dewy foundations are generally a better choice than matte ones. Not only do they tend to be more hydrating, which is crucial for mature complexions as skin often becomes drier, and a dewy formula helps to maintain moisture, but they’re also typically offer softer finishes, that don’t settle into fine lines, making them look more natural and skin-like. In short, dewy foundations provide the hydration, smoothness and luminosity that enhances your natural beauty without accentuating fine lines or dryness.

What is the best natural looking foundation?

If you’re looking for a natural-looking foundation, the key is to find one that blends seamlessly into your skin while enhancing your complexion, not masking it. We suggest a formula mimics the look of your skin – think: Charlotte Tilbury Beautiful Skin Foundation, BareMinerals Original Foundation or IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream.

So, whichever foundation you choose from our list of the best make up foundations, you’re guaranteed to find a formula that suits your skin and keeps you glowing with confidence from morning to night.

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Trifonia Asmar
Trifonia Asmar Writer and expert

Cult Beauty’s Senior SEO Copywriter, Trifonia started out in the industry when bold brows were just becoming a ‘thing’, and shares a passion for all things fashion and beauty. Currently embracing her curly girl journey (after endless years of straightening her strands), she is finally reverting to her natural ways! When Triffy isn’t busy testing out the latest curl-saving solutions, you’ll find her binging the latest reality TV show or on a long walk listening to her ever-evolving country music playlist.

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