The Best Makeup for Acne-Prone Skin
Two weeks ago, we shared our best tips for treating and preventing acne in college. Now, we’re back with the second post in our Acne Survival series, which is all about makeup for acne-prone skin.
To achieve flawless-looking skin, you’ll need a primer, foundation, blemish concealer and setting powder. (Note: It’s important to choose a makeup routine that suits your skin type, so those with dry skin might want to skip the powder, while those of us with oily skin will need a lighter primer.)
Below, I’ll share my top favorite makeup products for acne. Most of the products I’ve listed are either oil-free or non-comedogenic, which means they contain ingredients that won’t clog your pores and make your acne even worse. However, I’ve also included products that are great at covering acne in an emergency, but aren’t the best for your skin in the long run. Pick and choose accordingly!
A few tips before we begin:
- Use clean makeup brushes or sponges to apply your products. This makes it much easier to blend your makeup for a more natural finish, and keeps you from touching your face with your fingers, which can harbor excess oils and bacteria.
- Wash your brushes often – at least two or three times per week, depending on how often you use the brush. The excess makeup left on the bristles is a breeding ground for dirt and oils you definitely don’t want to keep spreading around on your face. We’ve done a tutorial on how to wash your makeup brushes, but you can also just use a gentle facial cleanser.
- Check the ingredients on every single product you use. If a product says it is non-comedogenic, paraben-free, sulfate-free or oil-free, that’s a good sign, but sometimes acne-causing ingredients can slip in unnoticed. Avoid using anything that contains isopropyl isostearate, isopropyl myristate, myristyl myristate, lanolin oil, coconut butter or lauric acid. These ingredients are likely to clog pores, which can cause acne or irritate it further.
- Use light strokes when applying makeup. Pressing on or stretching the skin can irritate it and cause breakouts.
- If you need to use more foundation or concealer than usual to achieve full coverage (we’ve all been there), apply light layers, letting them fully set before you apply the next one. This will help you avoid irritating your skin and prevent the dreaded pancake face.
- When hiding blemishes or redness, use mattifying products, especially when it comes to concealers. Illuminators and brightening products are great for the under-eye area, but if you use them on a blemish, they’ll draw the eye right to it.
Ready to move on to the products? Let’s get started.
Primers
Product Information: MAC Prep + Prime SPF 50 Primer, Make Up For Ever HD Microperfecting Primer in Green, Laura Mercier Oil Free Foundation Primer, Bare Minerals Prime Time, Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch, L’Oreal Studio Secrets Magic Perfecting Base, Smashbox Photo Finish Light
How did we live before makeup primer? This miracle product can reduce redness, keep your makeup in place all day, fill in imperfections and make it easier to hide blemishes. Unfortunately, most of the best primers are high-end, but this is one product that’s definitely worth the splurge.
If you’re prone to scarring and hyperpigmentation, you must use a primer that contains SPF, like MAC’s Prep + Prime. Any sun exposure, even on cloudy days, can make dark spots take even longer to fade. A green color-correcting primer (Make Up For Ever’s is my favorite) can also help combat excess redness and light hyperpigmentation.
Those with extra oily skin should stick to a light, oil-free primer, which will help keep your makeup in place. Smashbox‘s beloved Photo Finish Primer comes in a light version, though I prefer Laura Mercier’s version. The two are very similar, but Laura Mercier is cheaper and contains more product.
Clarins Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch is considered one of the best primers on the market, and I have to agree. It visibly reduces the look of scars and indentations, and masks most dark spots, but it’s quite expensive. L’Oreal makes a great drugstore version that’s a little less effective, but it’s easy on your skin and your wallet.
Foundations
Product Information: Make Up For Ever Mat Velvet + Foundation, Revlon Colorstay Combination/Oily Skin, Estée Lauder Double Wear Makeup, Bare Escentuals Matte Foundation, Neutrogena Skin Clearing Oil-Free Makeup, Lancôme Rénergie Lift Makeup, Clinique Stay-Matte Oil-Free Makeup, Physician’s Formula Healthy Wear Powder Foundation
To keep acne-prone skin happy and heathy, a mineral powder foundation is probably your best bet. Though they provide less coverage, they are much less likely to clog your pores or cause breakouts. Bare Escentuals is famous for their mattifying, medium-coverage powder, but Physican’s Formula makes a great drugstore dupe that I think is just as good.
If you’re still stuck on liquid foundations, Neutrogena’s Skin Clearing Foundation is oil-free and contains salicylic acid, which means you can cover blemishes and treat them at the same time, though its finish is a bit too sheer if you need to cover hyperpigmentation or scarring.
Healthy, non-comedogenic foundations are great for everyday wear, but they tends to provide less coverage, especially the drugstore variants. Sometimes you really do have to look flawless for a few hours, and the right foundation can do the job in a snap. Don’t worry, your pores will forgive you. Revlon Colorstay is one of the best foundations available, providing full but natural coverage that lasts all day for a fairly low price. However, it’s been known to break people out, so use with caution. Make Up For Ever’s Mat Velvet foundation is an oil-free alternative that gives flawless matte coverage, but still contains some less-than-awesome ingredients.
Luckily, you can get the best of both worlds if you’re willing to splurge. Estée Lauder’s Double Wear foundation contains no acne-causing ingredients and provides long-lasting full coverage, as does Clinique’s Stay Matte foundation. If you want a more luminous finish along with healthy coverage, try Lancôme’s Rénergie Lift foundation.
Concealers
Product Information: MAC Studio Finish SPF 35 Concealer, Physician’s Formula Conceal RX, Dermablend Quick-Fix Concealer, Estée Lauder Double Wear Concealer, Covergirl + Olay Concealer Balm, Clinique Advanced Concealer, Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer
If you struggle with acne, you know how important (and challenging!) finding the right concealer can be. My current favorite is Physician’s Formula Conceal RX. It hides my hyperpigmentation completely, and it’s ridiculously inexpensive for how good it is. However, the color selection isn’t great and I find its finish isn’t quite matte, which leaves my skin looking cakey after a few hours. Estée Lauder’s Double Wear Concealer is more than double the price, but it does eliminate those two problems.
For more heavy-duty coverage, try the perennial favorite, Bobbi Brown’s Creamy Concealer (if you can stand the price tag, of course). If a matte finish is a must, Clinique’s Advanced Concealer is also great. MAC’s Studio Finish provides the same coverage with a high SPF, so if you’re trying to keep a spot from scarring, that’s a must-have.
If you feel like you’ve tried everything and you still can’t mask your zits, I recommend Dermablend’s Quick-Fix Concealer. It’s not cheap, but its natural-looking, buildable coverage can’t be beat. This stuff can hide just about anything.
Finishing Touches
Product Information: Maybelline Dream Matte Powder, Neutrogena Skin Clearing Mineral Powder, Clinique Instant Relief Mineral Powder, Revlon Nearly Naked Pressed Powder, Urban Decay De-Slick Makeup Setting Spray
If you have oily skin, or just need your makeup to stay in place for a longer period of time, a setting powder is a must-have. The trouble is, a lot of them can look cakey or trap oils under the skin, which can exacerbate acne. Revlon’s new Nearly Naked line makes a great, natural looking powder that offers a fair amount of coverage without making your skin feel weighed down. If you don’t need as much coverage, try Maybelline’s Dream Matte Powder to combat oil with a lighter finish.
If powders tend to irritate your acne, Neutrogena makes a great mineral powder that provides great coverage without clogging your pores. It also fights zits, which is why it’s my current favorite! You can also try a setting spray, which tend to make your makeup last even longer. I’m a huge fan of Urban Decay’s De-Slick. It’s oil- and paraben-free, so it’s much less likely to irritate your skin, and I think it’s definitely worth the splurge.
To combat redness and hide hyperpigmentation, I can’t recommend Clinique’s Instant Relief Mineral Powder enough. It masks everything from dark spots to broken veins, and it helps sooth irritated skin. What more could you ask for?
Your thoughts?
What are your favorite makeup products for acne? Share your tips in the comments! As always, let me know what you think of this series – I love hearing your thoughts.
*Top photo credit: iStockPhoto.com
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Posted on on February 17, 2013 / Filed Under: Beauty & Hair / Tags: acne, clear skin, Concealer, Cosmetics, Featured, Foundation, Makeup, Primer, Skin, Skincare
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Shelby Sieber
I’m fairly positive Bare Minerals is the reason my skin has cleared up. I’ve tried a lot of the different methods out there, but using BM, my skin is almost acne free. Briefly stopped using it and acne came back. Went away once I began again. I had a really bad experience with Make Up Forever, some of the worst acne in my life.
Shaun
Vagisil Chafing gel works great on my skin! I’ve had cystic acne and oily skin since 6th grade, and it keeps my makeup in place all day. It also fills in pore like benefit’s porefessional. It’s 6$ for a giant tube, so try it, and if you don’t like it, it’s not a huge waste of money. But if you love it, you’ll never need another primer again!!
Erin
This is great! I always hate to buy a foundation and then discover that it breaks me out. (Un)fortunately, I get to use all those misses hanging around, because I can never find a shade for me and end up having to mix and match! Does anyone know if any of these skin-friendly companies makes a foundation for someone who is really pale with REALLY yellow undertones? I would be able to wear a C1 at MAC if it didn’t give me zits. I thought about trying Shiseido or something like that, but it’s an awfully big investment to take a risk…
Erin
Target’s Sonia Kashuk line looks pretty yellow-based too, but I’m not sure about the ingredients, or whether their palette goes fair enough.
Tricia
I’m a big fan of the Sonia kashuk line although I’d say its a pretty sheer coverage for my hyperpigmentation. I don’t like neutragena’s color selection though– it’s first color is the only one with yellow tones!
Nobody
Just a heads up there’s another brand Aveda. While its a little pricey it’s really good and no animal testing. :)
Gracie
I have tried Meow’s mineral powders and they’re amazing bc they don’t clog my pores and they feel light on my skin, i think it would be great for people with acne, and yeah also NO animal testing either.
Kelsey
Clinique’s Acne Solutions (or Anti-Blemish Solutions, if you’re in the UK) foundation is really nice. It runs really pink though, so be prepared to either buff it down your neck if your skin is neutral or yellow. Also, Rimmel’s StayMatte powder, or their Clear Complexion mineral powder is great for setting concealer and foundation. AND, finally, if you live in the UK and can get to a Boots or Superdrug, Collection’s Lasting Perfection concealer is amazing for long lasting coverage. It only has four shades, which sucks, but if you happen to suit the shades that they offer you NEED to try it. I use it under my eyes and on my acne scars and it lasts at least 8 hours on it’s own, 12+ if I set it with powder.
Nell
just many thanks sooooo much to Carina for the articles about trouble skin care – they are really priceless))) i can only imagine what it cost you (in all meanings) to find this life-saving information for all of us.
Marian
Right now I mainly use Almay BlemisHeal (with salicylic acid) for foundation. The formula seems to be pretty good for my skin. I also use a St Ives moisturizer before makeup, which works similarly to a primer, though probably not as long-lasting.
Chrissie
I recently (as in the past few months) started using MUFE’s Mat Velvet since I’ve heard it does wonders for those with super oily skin. However, as much as I don’t want to admit it, I think it’s breaking me out. So, once again, I’m on the search for a foundation with medium-full coverage that’s also mattifying.
Alice
I have to say, one of the things that bugs me about these types of articles about what makeup to wear with acne prone skin (not specifically this one, just in general) is that they never include options for dry skin. It’s all about oil control and mattifying, etc. I have seasonally super dry skin (in the summer it’s mostly normal-combo), that is still acne prone. I need to use hydrating products, but usually those aren’t oil-control or acne-controlling, so it’s really hard to find foundations and concealers that are compatible with my skin type.
Ashley
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR POSTING!!! This is sooo helpful!
Carina - Ohio University
@Erin
I have yellow undertones too! I’m such a hard match because I’m also pretty pale for someone with a warm skin tone and I use sunscreen religiously, but I’ve found Revlon Colorstay in Natural Beige is almost a perfect match for me. Good luck!
Drama
love it!
Mariam
I always wonder about how some people don’t have to check every makeup label to see if it’s going to break them out or not. Acne hurts- it’s not just a vanity issue. thanks for all the help!
Ella
I’ve found that Bare Minerals works the best for me! I have acne-prone and very sensitive skin, and I swear by BM’s products! I use their concealer, mineral veil, foundation, bronzer, and blush- all of their products are amazing! And they have so many different shades, so there’s a ton of options. Also, Aveeno moisturizer and face wash is what I swear by, it’s gentle, helps keep my acne at bay, and is actually good for my skin. I highly recommend Bare Minerals and Aveeno products for those who have problem skin and/or sensitive skin (and for those who just want to change their routine and get amazing results)!!
Carissa
Great article!
I recommend keeping a notepad with lists of foundations that don’t work out for you. Eventually you figure out the problem ingredients to avoid. :)
Claire
I have oily/combination skin, Estee Lauder double wear light used to be my favourite foundation, until I purchased Guerlain Parure de Lumiere liquid foundation! It covers most of my acne and pores and give my skin beautiful glow! It lasting all day in Malaysia’s summer! high recommend it!!!
Kahlie
I have extremely oily/ acne prone skin and primers just don’t work for me =(. I’ve tried matte, oil-free, regular, from Smashbox, Urban Decay, Benefit, Laura Mercier and more. When I use a primer the makeup slides right off my face. Setting sprays don’t work either. Now I go sans primer and touch up when I need it. I do love Bare Escentuals products and I’m curious to try Clinique’s mineral powder.
Mallory Jai
Awesome article! One foundation I would add is Kat Von D’s Lockit Tattoo foundation. It is sold out in SO many stores right now, which sucks because it is absolute perfection. SERIOUSLY lasts 12 hours or so with a halfway decent primer, doesn’t break me out, and I don’t even need a concealer with it. And if you saw how awful my skin is, you would know what a big deal not needing a concealer is LOL.
Also, to any of the girls on here who I’ve seen mention that there are some high end products they want to try but it seems like such a big investment, one of the huge advantages of high end products is that the stores tend to have SUCH a lenient return policy. Seriously, ask before you buy but I know for a fact Ulta will take anything back as long as their is still more than half the product remaining and Dillards will take it back at any point. Most of those stores give samples too if you just request one.
tradzikrozowaty.pl
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kristy ng
i’ve heard so many good things about dermablend and wanted to try their creme cover. but when i did my research online, the first ingredient listed is mineral oil with talc as the second. i’m so confused now! how can mineral oil and talc be any good for the skin? any tips or advice? thanks!
Courtney
Clinique Even Better (conceals and clears) makeup is great! I use Proactiv for my facial regimen and then Clinique for my foundation. My skin has never looked better! I love Bare Minerals but my skin is too oily and it doesn’t look so great as the day goes on.
angel g
ok so im 15 and really cant afford any of this and my parents are gling threw some tough times with money as well..i mean the way the ecknomy is nowadays and llus im not aloud to get a job but i am workin on selling some stuff so i might have around 30-40 dollars can u recomend some products i can get at like walmart or the dollar store that are great for my somewhat tan( im porta rican but i havent had muh sun cause of winter so im not as dark) and acne pron skin it would be such a help. :)
Christina Purgason
Hey carina, I have really oilyish skin because I have minor rosacia. I’m 15 and I’ve been so confused on makeup, what’s worth my money and what’s not. I’m between ivory and light. I always end up buying too dark makeup. I have maroon acne scars around my left cheek and I want to know what makeup you’d recommend. I see girls look like models who have worse acne than me and I envy it. Can you please help me out? <3 thank you please email?f
Cecee
Mac clogged my pores and caused more breakouts but then again I was using it everyday.
Michelle
Great article! I use Bare Minerals. Love the lightness on my skin.