The Best Makeup Primers for All Skin Types (2024)

If the first step of your makeup routine isn't applying a face primer, then this is your sign to reconsider. Face primers prep the skin for makeup. "Typically, they hydrate and plump the skin, creating a smooth base for your makeup to glide onto," says Rea Ann Silva, CEO and founder of Beautyblender. They stay on top of the skin, which stops the makeup you apply afterward from settling into pores or fine lines or sinking into skin and disappearing entirely. They also help your makeup colors look truer and more vibrant.

Depending on the ingredients in the formula, primers can do even more for skin. "Primers can mattify shine, reduce the look of large pores, color correct, and blur texture," says makeup artist Jonet Williamson. If you have dry skin, look for a formula with hydrating ingredients. Oily and acne-prone skin types may prefer a formula that reduces shininess. Ahead, shop the best face primers that will help make your makeup last while improving the look and feel of your skin over time.

On those days when you need your makeup to last all day and night, the tacky texture of this primer grips onto makeup for extended wear. Williamson loves it because it helps create a smooth canvas for makeup without looking cakey. It also offers lightweight hydration thanks to hyaluronic acid and aloe water.

This is a sunscreen, highlighter, and primer all in one. Available in four shades, the antioxidant-rich formula protects your face from environmental aggressors and gives it a beautiful dewy finish. When applied under makeup, it creates a beautiful lit-from-within finish.

For those who experience an inevitable oil slick by midday, Williamson says you'll like this mattifying primer, which helps control shine and smooth the look of large pores. The powder infused into the cream formula also helps to soften the look of fine lines.

For the busy minimalist, this primer helps you cut down steps in your skincare routine. It's so hydrating, thanks to hyaluronic acid, squalane, and shea butter, that it doubles as your moisturizer. Your skin is left plump, radiant, and moisturized while your makeup is left intact all day.

Williamson recommends this formula for sensitive or acne-prone skin because it helps reduce redness and keeps excess sebum production in check. It also protects the skin from blue light and digital pollution to keep your skin looking bright and healthy.

The newest addition to the Beautyblender repertoire is perfect for mature skin types. It contains peptides, ceramides, mimosa flower extract, and glycerin to visibly reduce the appearance of fine lines and hydrate the skin.

Available in 12 shades, this tinted primer is the secret to effortlessly glowing skin with and without makeup. It blurs, smooths, and enhances radiance without feeling heavy or cakey on the skin.

This hydrating gel formula moisturizes and preps the skin for long-lasting wear. The texture is sticky, so it grips onto makeup without budging or smudging.

Mattifying primers are notorious for making skin appear flat or chalky, but this oil-free formula melts into the skin, smooths the look of large pores, and offers a natural-looking finish.

Makeup artist Laura Geller launched the OG primer, forever changing the first step of our makeup routines. She offers five versions of her skin-smoothing, makeup-gripping spackle; this one is like a glass of (weightless, non-greasy) water for dry skin.