14 Lip Primers That Will Have You Kissing Touch-Ups Goodbye
A great lip look is one of the easiest ways to make your makeup really pop. Unfortunately, lipstick and lip gloss can also be two of the most high-maintenance beauty products. After drinking, eating, or really just living your life, it's easy for both natural and bright lip colors to flake, feather, bleed, and smudge, even if you have applied it like a pro. But the good news is, there’s a not-so-secret tool you can use to significantly boost a lip product's staying power: Say hello to lip primer.
This makeup essential works just like face primer: It creates the perfect base for lipsticks by adding more grip to the texture of the lips while still feeling silky smooth. Many formulas also come with hydrating and plumping benefits to keep your lips happy and healthy so that they look great with or without makeup.
Ready to make frequent lipstick touch-ups history? We've highlighted 14 of the best lip primers below.
1. Best Lip Primer for Makeup Newbies:
M·A·C COSMETICS Prep + Prime Lip
If you're brand new to lip primer, your best bet is to start with a classic. This bestselling formula does a stellar job at everything you'd expect a good lip primer to do: It lightly moisturizes, expertly smoothes, and refines the appearance of the lips—all while being fully transparent. Finally, no more needing to fuss with feathering, flaking, or smudging throughout your day.
2. Best Multitasking Lip Primer:
URBAN DECAY Ultimate Ozone Multipurpose Primer Pencil
This velvety lip primer glides on quickly and smoothly thanks to the inclusion of ultra-hydrating jojoba oil. Use the primer underneath any lip color or lip gloss to keep the formula securely and comfortably locked in place. Even better, you’re not limited to only using this primer on your lips—the multipurpose priming pencil can also be used under concealer to expertly disguise blemishes or fill in fine lines around the face.
3. Best Hydrating Lip Primer:
ELIZABETH ARDEN Advanced Lip-Fix Cream
Whether your lips are prone to cracking or you're planning to use a longwear lipstick, be sure to reach for a lip primer that not only provides grip but also hydration. This sensitive skin-approved formula from ELIZABETH ARDEN features an herbal antioxidant blend that both deeply conditions and softens the appearance of dry lips for total lip rejuvenation.
4. Best Plumping Lip Primer:
DR. DENNIS GROSS SKINCARE Hyaluronic Marine™ Collagen Lip Cushion
Want your lips to look a little bit fuller? If you don't want to go through the effort of carefully crafting fuller lips with a lip liner, you can opt instead for a lip-plumping primer. This formula is a far cry from the painful lip plumpers we all used a decade ago. Instead, it features a clean set of ingredients like hyaluronic acid, marine algae, antioxidants, and collagen to actually stimulate the production of essential proteins that can restore lip plumpness, definition, and structure. Use this restorative lip treatment daily for around-the-clock results.
5. Best Priming Crayon:
BITE BEAUTY Line & Define Lip Primer
If you tend to have a shaky hand when applying lipstick, this easy-to-hold priming pencil allows for full control. Use it all over your lips as a traditional primer or around the outside of your lips to stop any feathering from happening. The vegan formula is packed with nourishing ingredients like kiwi seed oil, jackfruit extract, and peppermint oil—all of which help the pencil glide seamlessly across your pout.
6. Best Exfoliating Lip Primer:
FRESH Sugar Smoothing Lip Primer Advanced Therapy
Flaky lips and lipstick just don't mix. A matte lip color can end up visibly accentuating dryness and flakiness, which is never ideal. To steer clear of this type of situation, exfoliation is key. But because the lips are a delicate area of skin, you’ll want to be careful how you go about it. This innovative lip product makes it so easy to gently exfoliate and prime in one quick step. The AHA-enriched leave-on solution subtly resurfaces with fruit and flower extracts, and the water-based gel formula doubles as a primer for any lipstick or lip balm.
7. Best Color-Boosting Lip Primer:
NYX PROFESSIONAL MAKEUP Lip Primer Pencil
Most lip primers are translucent, but this affordable primer is closer to the color of a fair concealer (but don't worry, you don't have to have fair skin to wear it). When you apply a lip color over the nude-hued primer, it will give your lipstick more contrast for a brighter, bolder pop of pigment. Use this whenever you want your lip color to really shine.
8. Best Drugstore Lip Primer:
BURT'S BEES Beeswax Lip Balm
Looking for a budget-friendly way to prime the lips? Many moisturizing lip balms can work great as lip primers, so long as they have a bit of grip to them—plus, you even get an added boost of hydration from the balm formula. The mildly tacky beeswax base of this 100% natural lip balm is perfect for a lip color to grip onto. Who says all-day wear has to break the bank?
9. Best Priming Lip Liner:
SMASHBOX Be Legendary Line & Prime Pencil
While lip liner does help lipstick last longer, it still doesn't have quite as much staying power as a lip primer. That is, unless the lip liner in question is infused with a priming oil complex. Spoiler alert: That's exactly the case with this longwear liner. The two-in-one formula provides both grip and color while its pencil format makes it easy to expertly craft your ideal lip shape.
10. Best Weightless Lip Primer:
LIME CRIME Ghost Veil Lip Primer
Sometimes the best makeup is makeup that doesn't feel like it's there at all. This lightweight lip primer has such a barely-there feel that it lives up to its "ghost-like" reputation, but it still supplies your pout with all the benefits you could want from a lip liner. No more nightmares about feathering, fading, and flaking here!
11. Best Smoothing Lip Liner:
COLOURPOP Lippie Primer
Here's a great option for mature skin types that may have lost some of their lips’ natural plumpness. In addition to preventing smudging or feathering, this formula uses spherical beads to fill in vertical lip lines and fine lines around the edges of the lips for a smoothing, youthful effect.
12. Best Lip Primer for Lip Gloss:
ANASTASIA BEVERLY HILLS Lip Primer
Don't get us wrong, we love a glossy lip as much as the next person. However, the mess that these sticky, shiny products often create does sometimes deter us from using them in a longwear makeup look. If you want to make your lip gloss stay locked in place for as long as possible, you'll need a lip primer with a super strong grip. Enter: this ultra-longwear option from ANASTASIA BEVERLY HILLS. The fully translucent, super lightweight formula won't feel heavy on the lips, but it will add an incredible amount of hold.
13. Best Lip Primer for Mature Skin:
TATA HARPER Be True Anti-Aging Neuropeptide Lip Treatment
If you've noticed that your lips aren't looking quite as plump as they used to, give this primer a try to restore and revitalize your pout. The clean lip conditioner uses ingredients like peptides, green tea, antioxidants, beeswax, and natural oils to actively hydrate, plump the skin, and reduce the appearance of wrinkles around the mouth. Layer it under any lip color to look and feel your best.
14. Best for Matte Lipstick:
CITY COLOR COSMETICS Matte Lip Primer
Looking to really commit to a matte lipstick look? This primer's ultra-matte finish will ensure there's no sheen in sight. The paraben-free formula preps the lips using silica, a magic ingredient that absorbs any excess oil while beeswax acts as a humectant to hydrate the lips. If matte lipstick tends to be your daily go-to, this specialized primer will definitely become a new fave.
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