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Sick of forehead shine? These are the best foundations for oily skin
If you’ve got oily skin, it can sometimes feel like a losing battle against that dreaded forehead and nose shine when it comes to makeup. Find the best foundation to achieve smooth coverage and control grease.
While we’re totally on board with the glowy look, there can be a fine line between dewy and greasy.
And for those of us with oily skin, it’s a line we’re (sadly) crossing a lot of the time.
So if you’ve had enough of your overly shiny face, why not check out our favorite foundations for oily skin? With offerings from brands like Fenty Beauty, MAC and Maybelline, we’ve got one for every preference, budget and skin tone.
Jump in and start your journey to find a foundation for a glowing you.
Read more: Best facial cleansers for acne-prone skin
Top oily skin foundations
Haus Labs Triclone Skin Tech Foundation
Make Up For Ever HD Skin Undetectable Longwear Foundation
Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Powder Foundation
COVERGIRL Clean Matte Liquid Foundation
We tested it
Specifications
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Natural
Formula: Liquid
Shades: 51
In terms of celebrity makeup brands, we can’t think of many that we prefer over Lady Gaga’s Haus Labs — and this foundation is why.
Formulated using 20+ beneficial skincare ingredients like fermented Arnica, Intellizen 7 Complex and BioFerment 7 Complex, this is one of the best foundations we’ve ever tested with our oily skin.
The weightless, serum-like formula glides seamlessly onto your skin, and it’s buildable, meaning you can layer it for sheer or full-coverage as you need. It gives you a luminous, natural glow, and with 51 shades to choose from, it’s no surprise that this is one of our all-time favorite foundations.
Pro tip: Pair with the Haus Labs concealer and setting powder for an all-day flawless finish.
Specifications
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Natural
Formula: Liquid
Shades: 40
Going for the no-makeup-makeup look? If so, this might just be the perfect foundation for you.
This formula instantly blurs your skin, giving you a natural, flawless base that you can leave as is, or build for a stunning full face— it’s perfect for all kinds of looks!
It’s also both waterproof, sweatproof and super long-lasting for up to 24 hours. You can wear it for everything from long summer days at the beach, to an intensive hike, or a regular day at the office.
Specifications
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Matte
Formula: Pressed powder
Shades: 49
When it to those with oily skin, sometimes a powder foundation is the only [product that will control shine and not make you look like a greasy mess at the end of the day.
And we can’t think of many powder foundations that we’ve liked more than this one from Fenty Beauty by Rihanna.
With buildable coverage, a soft-matte (non-cakey) finish and sweat, humidity and crease resistance, this is the perfect foundation for those who want a flawless matte face all day long.
Specifications
Coverage: Light to medium
Finish: Matte
Formula: Liquid
Shades: 15
If you’re looking for a great matte foundation on a budget, then look no further than this one from Covergirl.
Providing a matte finish and light to medium coverage, this foundation (made specifically for oily skin) is sure to impress if you’re on a tighter budget.
We love that it’s water-based, so it’ll keep your skin feeling fresh and hydrated without clogging your pores, which is essentially what leads to oily skin!
Specifications
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Natural
Formula: Liquid
Shades: 43
Promising a 16-hour wear, this is the ideal foundation for those constantly on the go.
We love this foundation for many reasons, with one of them being that it’s formulated with glycerin, which helps retain moisture in the skin.It also has oil-controlling actives so your skin will be remain refreshed all day without looking shiny.
This foundation is created through a cold fusion process, which ensures its formula is extremely silky and blendable, making it the perfect base for your everyday makeup looks.
Specifications
Coverage: Full
Finish: Matte
Formula: Cream
Shades: 12
For those days where you want a bit more coverage (overnight pimples begone!), you might just find this foundation a godsend.
There are a bunch of great ingredients in this, such as collagen for a smooth look, peptides to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, and charcoal, which minimizes the look of pores and cleans the skin. It’s also free from sulfates, parabens and mineral oils, which is ideal if you’re conscious of those ingredients.
While we love this foundation, the shade range is quite limited (and rather on the lighter side), so it’s not ideal for darker skin tones.
Specifications
Coverage: Medium to full
Finish: Matte
Formula: Powder
Shades: 53
For years, MAC has been at the forefront of the makeup industry, and it’s for good reason. Their no-frills, straightforward approach to makeup makes them a winner to regular people and makeup artists alike.
This powder foundation will blur any redness and imperfections on your face, reduce the appearance of your pores and control oil and shine for up to eight hours — which almost sounds too good to be true!
We love this option if you have an event as this foundation is photo-friendly, and you won’t get any dreaded flashback or caking. The compact also is ideal for application on the go.
Specifications
Coverage: Medium
Finish: Matte
Formula: Liquid
Shades: 40
With an expansive range of shades for all skin tones and undertones, this budget foundation from Maybelline is a must-have in every makeup bag.
We love the matte, ‘your skin but better’ look of this foundation, and the buildable formula is suitable for a range of skin types, from oily to sensitive to normal.
With SPF 18, it’s perfect for protecting your skin from harmful sun rays in all seasons!
Specifications
Coverage: Full
Finish: Matte
Formula: Liquid
Shades: 46
A longtime favorite of ours (and the internet), this Amazonian Clay foundation from Tarte is undoubtedly one the best foundations to use if you’ve got oily skin.
With their new and improved oil-free formula, this is even better at keeping your face looking pristine and shine-free all day. Amazonian clay in this foundation acts as a natural ingredient for up to 16 hours of wear.
This is a very full-coverage foundation, so if you’re also looking to cover up blemishes, scars or acne scars, this is definitely the foundation for you.
Our verdict: What are the best foundations for oily skin?
We’ve got some great foundations in this roundup of the best for oily skin, and we’re confident that there is one for everyone here.
Want to try a coveted celebrity pick? Try the Haus Labs or Fenty Beauty foundations, both of which have extensive shade ranges and beaming reviews online.
Don’t want to feel like you’re wearing a foundation? The COVERGIRL Clean Matte foundation offers the perfect amount of coverage for your clean-girl no-makeup-makeup looks, and at an affordable price.
Want fuller coverage? For a put-together look, our top picks would be the offerings from IT Cosmetics and tarte. They both offer flawless coverage and won’t make your face look shiny or cakey.
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Prices updated on 02/29/2024. We are not responsible for any changes to the prices mentioned above.
Written by
Phoebe Davenport
A book aficionado, you will always be able to rely on Phoebe Davenport for the best book recommendations. On the weekend, you’ll probably find Phoebe at a bottomless brunch in London, at a museum, or chilling at home with her two cats.
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