If you have oily skin, you’re likely all too familiar with the struggle of trying to achieve a flawless finish with liquid or powder foundation, only for it to slide off your face by lunchtime. Think it’s impossible to create a matte makeup look that can actually stay put all day? Think again. All you need is a little bit of setting powder. These magical beauty products work overtime to control oil and lock all your makeup in place for hours, and a great finishing powder will leave you with that coveted shine-free, flawless face you've been striving for.
Ready to banish oily patches, creasing, and caking once and for all? We’ve rounded up 10 of the best setting powders for oily skin below. Simply dust one of these formulas on before you head out the door and you’ll be seriously impressed by how pristine your makeup still looks when you catch a glimpse of your reflection come happy hour.
1. KVD BEAUTY Lock-It Setting Powder
A great setting powder should act as an invisible shield–an undetectable final layer that locks everything into place without any sign that it's there. This powder does just that. It features a silky smooth texture that feels great on your skin but leaves no dry or chalky finish (win!). It even avoids the dreaded flashback in photos, so you can snap selfies to your heart's content.
"Wonderful powder–light in weight, shine-cutting, invisible, and good for sensitive skin," one Ipster says. Another writes, "It doesn’t show my fine lines or change the color of my underlying make-up!" She gives it an A++.
2. IT COSMETICS Bye Bye Pores Pressed Powder
If you hate the mess that loose powders can sometimes create, turn instead to this pressed powder that instantly disappears when applied to any skin tone. This mattifying formula features a poreless, airbrushed finish thanks to IT COSMETICS’s Bye Bye Pores Optical Blurring Technology™, a formulaic innovation that creates a soft-focus effect by blurring the appearance of large pores. It also includes ingredients like anti-aging peptides, hydrolyzed collagen, and antioxidants that help keep your skin protected and nourished throughout the day.
3. TARTE™ Double Duty Beauty™ Shape Tape™ Setting Powder
For oily skin types, makeup products with Amazonian clay can be a total gamechanger. This key ingredient (which is also featured in this formula) is famous for efficiently absorbing excess oil while also minimizing the appearance of large pores. In a setting powder, Amazonian clay uses those benefits to create a super smooth, matte finish that can also diffuse light for additional brightening benefits.
"My favorite translucent powder I have ever used," one Ipster writes. "It doesn’t look caked on and it keeps my makeup looking fresh all day."
4. CIATÉ LONDON Extraordinary Translucent Powder
Here’s an ultra-lightweight setting powder that keeps makeup expertly locked in place for hours on end without that heavy, cakey feeling. And because this translucent powder is finely milled, it also won't settle into fine lines, making it a great choice for anyone with mature skin.
"Best powder ever. It is light and easy to work with," one Ipster writes. Another says, "This setting powder did exactly what it was supposed to! It gave me such a beautiful matte finish."
5. LUNA BY LUNA COSMETICS Translucent Powder
This pressed formula is another mess-free option for a long-lasting, flawless finish. With just a touch of radiance, this is a great option if you prefer a finish that falls somewhere in between natural and matte. Use this translucent shade all over the face to preserve your foundation application, or do as some Ipsters have done, and use it to illuminate specific areas of the face. Robinsky63 writes that she loves to use it as a highlight on her brow bone and over her concealer on her under-eye area. "It's non-irritating on my VERY sensitive eyes," she adds.
6. MANNA KADAR COSMETICS HD Perfecting Powder
This perfecting powder checks all the boxes: It works on a wide range of skin tones, it uses super-fine particles to provide a silky smooth, weightless finish, and it's a pressed powder, so you can easily bring it with you on the go. Expect a classic matte finish from this powder with zero flashback.
"Perfect for keeping your makeup in place, pore minimizing, and keeping your face oil-free," one Ipster writes.
7. GIGI GORGEOUS Turnt Touch Up Powder
This multifunctional, ultra-soft pressed powder should come with you everywhere. Use this mattifying beauty product as a setting powder immediately after applying your concealer and foundation, dust a little on whenever your T-zone gets a little too shiny for your liking, or dust it all over a foundation-free face after your moisturizer for a touch of perfecting power and oil control. One Ipster says she loves using this for touch-ups throughout the day. "It really helps with oil spots without being heavy or cakey," she writes
8. YC COLLECTION Loose Setting Powder
If translucent powders tend to wash your medium to tan skin tone out, try this tinted setting powder instead. With a matte, shine-free finish, this setting powder will keep makeup locked in place for up to 12 hours. The weightless formula feels super light on the skin, and steers clear of flashback, caking, and flaking. But don't just take our word for it. After using this setting powder, Ipster camsheries wrote, "Perfect match for my skin tone. Goes on smooth, doesn't feel heavy or cake up in fine lines or creases. Sets my foundation and keeps my skin shine-free. Love it!"
9. BELLÁPIERRE COSMETICS Banana Setting Powder
Here's another tinted powder for anyone with a medium skin tone. In addition to providing a closer skin tone match, this formula also comes with color-correcting benefits, as the subtle yellow hue works to balance out any redness and discoloration. Use it under your eyes to correct dark circles, or dust it all over your face for a smooth, even finish.
"Perfect lightweight powder. The yellow shade works perfectly to balance out the color of my skin," says Ipster raerenew4man. Another Ipster was also won over by this formula. She writes, "I never usually use products with this yellowish tone, but it actually doesn’t change the color of my skin. I love how it keeps my face looking fresh all day!"
10. LAURA MERCIER Translucent Loose Setting Powder
The holy grail of setting powders, this versatile loose setting powder allows you to set it and forget it, leaving you with a flawless matte finish that really does last. This cult favorite works on practically every skin tone and gives you subtle coverage that blurs fine lines and imperfections without caking. It’s also oil-free and non-comedogenic, making it a major win for acne-prone and oily skin.
"A classic! I was thrilled to get this," says Ipster sugarsweetnyc. "A light dusting does the trick for smooth, even-looking skin. I use this over my foundation and concealer."
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