Best tinted moisturisers to add to your skincare routine
If you’re after the “most beautiful, natural foundation” fans say this affordable buy gives you instant radiant skin.
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Tinted moisturisers have come a long way from the days when they meant just, well, a moisturiser with a tint.
These days it’s more of an umbrella term for a range of products including BB and CC creams, skin serum tints, skincare-foundation hybrids and more offering a range of benefits besides coverage.
Read on for our round up of the best of the best out there — from the top rated BB creams to skin tinted serums, we’ve got you covered (pun intended).
HOW WE CHOOSE PRODUCTS
With hundreds of thousands of beauty products available, it’s impossible to test every tinted moisturiser out there. To help you find the best one we tested a few well-known brands at different price points. In addition, our shopping team read hundreds of customer reviews and looked at test results and ratings from product review sites to find the best tinted moisturiser for your makeup routine.
OUR TOP PICKS
In this article
BEST TINTED MOISTURISER: EDITOR’S PICKS
MCoBeauty Miracle Hyaluronic Tinted Serum, $35 at MCoBeauty
What You Need To Know
If you’re looking for a great everyday tinted moisturiser that isn’t going to break the bank, head straight on over to MCoBeauty.
It’s lightweight, super buildable and infused with one per cent pure hyalyuronic acid to plump and hydrate the skin.
The only downside is that the shade range could use some work – there’s only eight shades available and they aren’t super diverse.
The Miracle Hyaluronic Tinted Serum has racked up a pretty impressive score on the MCoBeauty website, with an average rating of 4.7 out of five.
It’s also impressed the likes of MAFS-bride-turned-beauty-influencer we all know and love, Martha Kalifatidis.
In a TikTok video, Martha shows how she uses the product in her everyday, glowy makeup routine.
“It is the most lightweight formula”, says Martha.
The tinted serum is designed to give you sheer coverage, while still allowing your skin to look and feel like skin.
“The most beautiful, natural foundation … and you can buy it at the supermarket, I die.”
IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream SPF50, $73 at Adore Beauty
Tried and Tested by Hannah Paine, news.com.au checkout Editor
Your Skin But Better bills itself as offering seven formulas in one product that includes a pore primer, SPF 50 UVB sun protection, hydrating anti-ageing serum, full coverage foundation, a skin brightening colour corrector, moisturiser and concealer.
While it’s a CC cream, Your Skin But Better is buildable to full coverage like my foundation, but didn’t leave my pores feeling clogged after a day of wear. It’s designed to give skin a flawless, even tone after just one layer.
I’m not the only fan — one bottle of Your Skin But Better sells every 13 seconds in the United States alone and it has an average rating of 4.3 stars from 71,000 Google reviews.
I apply a thin layer to even out my skin tone for everyday wear or build out to medium coverage for an evening out, applying the rest of my makeup over the top. The end result? A flawless, natural finish that looks just like my skin, but (of course) better.
Always read the label and follow directions for use. Prolonged high-risk sun exposure should be avoided. Frequent reapplication or use in accordance with directions is required for effective sun protection.
Inika Organic BB Cream, $69 at Inika Organic
What You Need To Know
If you’re all about an even complexion with skin-loving ingredients, the Inika Ogranic BB Cream is one of our top picks.
It contains the highest percentage of certified organic ingredients in a BB cream – think prickly pear oil for extra moisture and jojoba oil to boost collagen production and help reduce the appearance of wrinkles.
There’s six shades to choose from, all with different undertones, so you can find the best colour match for you.
It’s racked up an average rating of 4.8 out of five on the Inika Organica website, with five-star rating customers calling it the “best BB cream”, noting how it “goes on beautifully” and has a “lovely natural coverage”.
Huda Beauty GloWish Multi Dew Skin Tint, $57 at Sephora
Tried and Tested by Hannah Paine, news.com.au checkout Editor
After seeing videos on TikTok raving about the GloWish Multi Dew Skin Tint I knew I had to give it a try.
Available in 15 different shades, this sheer coverage tint is seriously versatile — it can be used on its own for a subtle tinted glow, along your cheekbones as a highlighter or add it to your foundation for a dewy boost.
It contains Damascus rose oil to soothe, clarify and lock in moisture as well as super-hydrating squalene.
I applied GloWish to my face with a damp Beauty Blender on top of my regular morning roster of vitamin C, moisturiser and (of course) sunscreen. It was instantly impressed with how well it sat on top of all those products, with no pilling or unevenness — it glided over my pores for a flawless finish.
During the day at work it held up well with minimal creasing and gave a barely there, natural glow — I really like how it evened out my skin tone.
While I loved how it looked during the day, my one complaint would be that it made my face look rather shiny under artificial lights when I wore for the second time out for dinner. Next time I would set my face with powder for evening wear.
BEST TINTED MOISTURISER WITH SUN PROTECTION
Ultra Violette Dream Screen SPF50 Tinted Veil, $55 at Sephora
What You Need To Know
This tinted sunscreen serum from cult Aussie beauty brand Ultraviolette provides broad-spectrum protection and buildable coverage that leaves a dewy finish.
This tinted serum, which is available in 15 shades, subtly smooths out skin tone and feels weightless while providing SPF50 UVA and UVB protection.
Always read the label and follow directions for use. Prolonged high-risk sun exposure should be avoided. Frequent reapplication or use in accordance with directions is required for effective sun protection.
BEST AFFORDABLE TINTED MOISTURISER
Missha M Perfect Cover B.B Cream, $20.63 at iHerb
Missha M Perfect Cover B.B Cream SPF 42 PA+++ No. 23
What You Need To Know
This BB cream is designed to brighten your skin tone, blur wrinkles and imperfections, all while providing excellent coverage for daily wear.
It’s racked up an average rating of 4.7 out of five from over 9000 five-star ratings on iHerb, with countless customers calling it the “best BB cream” and their “new best friend”.
With seven shades available this BB cream helps to brighten skin while covering discolouration and imperfections with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, ceramide, rosemary leaf extract and camomile flower extract.
BEST TINTED MOISTURISERS FOR DRY SKIN
L’Oreal Paris True Match Nude Plumping Tinted Serum, $44.99 at Priceline
Tried and Tested by Hannah Paine, news.com.au checkout Editor
This skin serum, available in nine shades, gives you a glowy finish while offering intense hydration thanks to it being infused with one per cent pure hyaluronic acid.
When I wore this it gave me a nice even tinted glow that didn’t budge during the day. Oily skin types may find this serum makes them a little too shiny, so you might want to use a mattifying primer underneath or powder over the top to set.
Clinique Moisture Surge Sheertint Hydrator SPF25, $60 at Myer
What You Need To Know
Containing activated aloe water and hyaluronic acid this oil-free formula is designed to keep skin plump and dewy for 12 hours, making it a god-send for dry skin types.
Over 83 per cent of Myer reviewers recommend this product, with many noting how it’s “light and moisturising but not greasy”.
“It goes on so light, feels like you have nothing on, yet full coverage,” one five star review reads.
BEST TINTED MOISTURISERS FOR OILY SKIN
Garnier BB Cream All-In-One Perfector Combination To Oily Skin, $16.95 at Chemist Warehouse
What You Need To Know
This lightweight and blendable formula of Garnier’s signature BB cream is not only affordable – priced at just under $20 – but also contains hyaluronic acid and aloe vera to soothe and hydrate skin.
The only downside is its limited shade range, with only light and medium available.
Five-star Google Reviewers have said it offers “great coverage”, calling it a “favourite I always come back to”.
HOW DO YOU APPLY TINTED MOISTURISER?
Because tinted moisturisers tend have a runnier consistency than foundation, you may want use a foundation brush or damp sponge to ensure you apply your product evenly.
Simply apply small drops of your tinted moisturiser to your nose, cheeks, forehead and chin before using your brush or sponge to buff the product out for a lovely even finish.
Like foundation, you want to be applying your tinted moisturiser after the final step in your skincare routine (which should be SPF).
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A CC CREAM AND A BB CREAM?
The difference lies in their name — BB cream stands for beauty balm cream, it works to correct skin imperfections thanks to skincare ingredients like hyaluronic acid and SPF.
In contrast, CC cream stands for colour correcting, which means it will cover redness or uneven tone while offering coverage.
A BB cream will be more suited to those wanting a product that provides light coverage with extra benefits like hydration and sun protection, while a CC cream will give you more coverage if you’re trying to cover up redness and uneven skin tone.
More Coverage
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