Meet your match: the 10 best foundations at MECCA right now

January 1 | 6 minute read

Words by Emily Deacon and Sherine Youssef

Originally published on | May 15

Think your best foundation doesn't exist? Think again.

We've rounded up the best bases for different occasions and various skin types, so get set to put your best face forward.

Finding the right foundation is a little like shopping for the perfect pair of jeans — it requires patience and time, and can sometimes feel disheartening in the unflattering lights of the change room. But when you finally locate that perfect fit, the one that seems like it was made just for you, it’s as though the stars have aligned.

That's exactly the feeling we want you to have after you've applied your foundation. Your perfectly-matched, feels-like-this-was-made-just-for-me type of foundation. Because, we promise you, it's out there. Whether you're looking for a balancing formula for your combination skin or a powder compact foundation you can toss in your work bag for mid-afternoon touch-ups, we've done the research and curated this list of ten of the best tried, tested and approved foundations.

Best all-rounder foundation

Shiseido Synchro Skin Self-Refreshing Foundation

According to Shiseido’s global artistry creative director, James Boehmer, the brief when developing this was “a foundation that still looks like skin and has a natural finish, vitality and that looks alive.” Once applied, the lightweight formula resists heat, humidity, oil and any slip caused throughout the day by facial movement. It’s ideal for all skin types looking for a longwear formula, but with zero fragrance and a feeling of instant hydration once applied. It’s also a fitting option for sensitive skin types, and the blurring effect makes it a favourite for mature skin, too.

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Best oil-free foundation

Morphe Filter Effect Soft-Focus Foundation

Pair a silky-smooth finish and a medium-to-full buildable coverage designed to blur and diffuse the look of imperfections, and you’ve got this stellar foundation by Morphe. It’s oil-free which makes it especially good for those with combination or blemish-prone skin, while a trio of skincare ingredients (hyaluronic acid, vitamin E and glycerin) work to ensure the skin stays hydrated and nourished (remember: oily skin still needs moisture!). It’s sweat-proof, transfer-proof and waterproof. Plus, it’s available in 40 shades. Impressive!

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Best-kept makeup artist secret foundation

Ellis Faas Skin Veil Foundation

Ask any MECCA makeup artist what their secret weapon is for dewy, healthy-looking skin, and this foundation will be it. Ellis Faas was one of the most influential makeup artists in the business with years of experience under her brush belt, so it’s no surprise that she knows how to create a heavenly foundation. This suits-all-skin-types vegan-friendly formula diffuses light to impart a seamless, soft-focus finish that becomes one with your skin. It’s buildable, so you can add a light tint or layer up for medium coverage akin to a porcelain-like effect.

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Best foundation for undetectable coverage

M.A.C Cosmetics Studio Radiance Face & Body Radiant Sheer Foundation

A M.A.C classic, this non-comedogenic foundation offers an ultra-light, waterproof sheer effect that works on all skin types — even sensitive ones. You can build it up, apply it with your fingers and, as the name suggests, wear it across the body if you want to even out your limbs before you fly out the door. Once applied, skin feels hydrated for up to eight hours and with 30 shades. It’s a staple backstage, and we can totally see why.

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Best foundation for a second-skin finish

Laura Mercier Flawless Lumière Radiance-Perfecting Foundation

Laura Mercier is a living makeup artist legend who knows good skin, so it’s only fitting that she made an excellent foundation. Available in 34 shades, this medium-to-full coverage foundation dresses all skin types in a weightless veil of luminous pigment, while both silver ear mushroom extract and vitamin C work behind the scenes to help lock in up to 15 hours of hydration and brighten the appearance of skin over time. Did we mention this foundation is also fragrance-free, non-comedogenic? Tick, tick, tick!

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Best long-wear foundation

Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-In-Place Makeup

If you want a matte (but not flat) finish – one that’s non-creasing, won’t budge and is both lightweight and comfortable – this foundation is it. Available in a whopping 61 shades, this oil-free formula has been dermatologist-tested and is non-comedogenic, making it a worthy choice for blemish-prone skin. And, it will leave your complexion looking fresh and flawless for up to 24-hours thanks to its sweat, humidity and heat-resistant promise.

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Best powder foundation

bareMinerals BAREPRO 16-Hour Skin-Perfecting Powder Foundation

bareMinerals has reformulated their beloved powder foundation and come up with 35 shades of this matte formula, which now delivers longer wear, and more skin-friendly ingredients like brightening pineapple and hydrating squalane. Everything else we loved about this foundation – 24 hours of oil and shine control, and sweat, humidity and transfer-resistant full-but-natural coverage – is still here, so it continues to be a top foundation for oily or combination skin types.

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Best full coverage foundation

Too Faced Born This Way Foundation

There are 35 shades of this your-skin-but-better foundation. It’s oil-free and hydrating (thank you, coconut water and skin-plumping hyaluronic acid), as well as brightening (hello, alpine rose), which makes it ideal for balancing combination or oily complexions. The formula is medium to full coverage with a semi-matte finish that delivers the blurring and soft-focus effect you’ve always desired, but perhaps never discovered.

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Best foundation with skincare benefits

Charlotte Tilbury Charlotte’s Beautiful Skin Foundation

Charlotte Tilbury has MECCA customers in love (and glowing) with her lineup of bestsellers, which includes this foundation: a creamy complexion perfector that delivers hydrating hyaluronic acid and brightening rose complex, as well as radiant and dewy colour. It’s available in 30 shades, with a medium coverage that leaves skin looking like actual skin – just glowier and more hydrated.

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Best foundation for buildable coverage

NARS Sheer Glow

We love that this foundation works on multiple skin types (normal, dry, combo and oily), and we especially love that you get to control your coverage and that, no matter how many layers are applied, it always looks natural. One layer imparts a sheer and radiant finish, multiple layers deliver a more airbrushed appearance. Add to that the fact that the formula – available in 40 shades – features skincare ingredients that work to hydrate the skin over time, and, well, it’s not hard to understand why this is one of the best