The best way to achieve a dewy glow in a snap? Brush (or dab) on a little bit of highlighter. Just a sprinkling of the stuff can add some serious dimension to your face, and can even give you the appearance of cheekbones. But before you go on the hunt for the perfect highlighter, we chatted with blogger and beauty expert Danielle Gray of The Style and Beauty Doctor to get a few tips on how to choose the right one for your complexion.
If you have fair skin:
“An icy pink or icy silver highlighter will beautifully illuminate the skin,” Danielle tells us. A color like Benefit Cosmetics High Beam Luminescent Complexion Enhancer is a great choice for paler women.
If you have medium/olive skin:
“For medium to olive toned skin, try a highlighter with a soft, peachy golden glow. Urban Decay Naked Flushed in Streak is a perfect option — it combines a matte bronzer, a peachy shimmery highlighter and a bright coral blush for a perfect sun-kissed flush.”
If you have dark skin:
“For darker skin tones, variations of gold (rose gold, champagne, bronze) look beautiful, but you want something richly pigmented so it shows up well on deeper skin,” Danielle notes. “NYX Cosmetics Tango with Bronzing Powder in Bronze Ensemble is amazing as a highlighter on rich skin tones.”
Now that you’ve got the skinny, you’re ready to shop. Click through for highlighters that will brighten up any face — no matter your skin tone.
[ Next: Found: The Perfect Highlighter for Your Skin Type ]
The Best Highlighter For Your Skin Tone (update)
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The Best Highlighter For Your Skin Tone (update) #1
The best way to achieve a dewy glow in a snap? Brush (or dab) on a little bit of highlighter. Whether you have fair, medium or deep skin, read on for the best highlighters for your complexion.
Image: YSL Beauty
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Fair Skin
At first, you might mistake this for a nail polish, but inside that bottle is a luminescent shade that will please even the most strobing-obsessed makeup lovers. Use the tiny brush to apply a few dots of the product anywhere you want to highlight. Then blend the shimmering formula in with your fingertip. And voilà, an icy glow that makes fair complexions look radiant.
Benefit Cosmetics High Beam Liquid Face Highlighter, $26 at Sephora
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Fair Skin
This versatile product goes far beyond highlighting. You can use it as a blush, eyeshadow and even a lip color, hence the name "The Multiple." You'd be missing out, however, if you didn't try it as a highlighter. The shimmering pink shade brings a flattering warmth to pale skin without looking streaky or unnatural. What's more, the creamy formula can be layered so you can create a soft sheen or an Instagram-worthy shine.
NARS The Multiple in Copacabana, $39 at Lord & Taylor
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Fair Skin
This chic gold pen may be small compared to some of the massive highlighter palettes on the market, but it has remained a firm favorite of makeup lovers for years. The small brush applicator makes it easy to apply the product exactly where you want it. And the soft, iridescent formula makes it difficult to overdo. With a whopping 12 shades, there is one for every skin tone. Those with paler skin cannot go wrong with this pearly option.
Yves Saint Laurent Touche Éclat in 1 Luminous Radiance, $42 at Yves Saint Laurent
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Fair Skin
It's not just the sequined package or the fact that this limited-edition highlighter set is released in small quantities that has made it a sellout. It's the fact that the highlighter delivers that alienesque glow that Instagram cannot get enough of. If you want to dial it down, you can do that, too. The multiple products in the kit make it easy to create a look for your every mood.
Pat McGrath Labs Skin Fetish 003 in Golden, $72 at Pat McGrath
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Fair Skin
Anastasia Beverly Hills may have started as an eyebrow specialist, but this highlighter is proof that the brand has mastered luminizing products, too. The cult palette contains six shades to give you that icy glow that looks amazing on fair complexions. Wear them individually or layer them together to create a dazzling look. There is no wrong combination.
Anastasia Beverly Hills Glow Kit in Moon Child, $40 at Anastasia Beverly Hills
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Medium Skin
If you're looking for a hint of color along with a prismatic complexion, this palette has you covered. The three-pan product includes blush, highlighter and a contouring shade so you don't need much else. The palette has earned a devoted following because the color you see in the mirror in the morning is the same shade you'll see at the end of the day. There is no fading happening here. Furthermore, all three formulas are buildable so you can take the palette from soft to statement-making.
Lancôme Blush Subtil All-In-One Contour Blush & Highlighter Palette in 323 Rose Flush, $43 at Nordstrom
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Medium Skin
Watt's up? This highlighter kit, that's what. Glide the easy-to-apply chubby stick applicator down the bridge of your nose and on your cheekbones. The creamy formula deposits just the right amount of shimmer.
Benefit Cosmetics Watt's Up! Cream-to-Powder Highlighter, $30 at Ulta
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Medium Skin
Urban Decay's entire Naked range has a cult following and this luminizing face product is no exception. The light-diffusing trio gives medium and olive skin a flattering warmth without packing on the sparkle. It's like your skin but, well, flushed. What's more, the blush, contour shade and highlighter have feather-light textures that make it feel like you're not wearing anything.
Urban Decay Naked Flushed in Streak, $34 at Urban Decay
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Medium Skin
If you've done a quick search for "best highlighters," the results were probably flooded with BECCA's Skin Perfector highlighter in Champagne Pop. It delivers a wearable high-shine finish that's easy to blend thanks to the creamy formula. The Champagne Pop shade is a favorite thanks to an oh-so-flattering mix of white gold with pink and peach undertones.
BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter in Champagne Pop, $38 at Sephora
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Medium Skin
Swipe on any of the shades from this palette and you'll be feeling just peachy. (And did we mention it's even infused with actual peaches?) The soft powders provide a gorgeous warmth to medium complexions. Try it and you'll quickly discover why it's a makeup artist favorite.
Too Faced Sweet Peach Glow, $42 at Too Faced
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Deep Skin
You really can't go wrong with this ultra fine highlighter that works anywhere on your face. The lightweight formula delivers a prismatic finish, but it's still soft enough for everyday use. (Read: No chunky glitter here.) This bronze shade is especially amazing on deeper complexions. The light-diffusing pigments help you get a radiant glow without the need to book a facial.
Stila Heaven's Hue Highlighter in Bronze, $32 at Stila
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Deep Skin
If your skin is looking a little dull, a few swipes of this highlighter will sort it out. The powder comes in six universally flattering shades, so no matter which one you pick, you're going to get a good result. The highlighter is formulated with Photoluminescent Technology, which uses color-correcting particles to refract and diffuse light. The result? A glow that competes with the best Instagram filter.
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Radiant Light, $46 at Hourglass
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Deep Skin
The tie-dye finish earns this highlighter major points, but it's the way it blends on your skin that makes it a firm favorite. The coppery peach with silver and gold shimmer does amazing things to any complexion. Silver tones can sometimes do nothing for dark skin, but the combo of peach and gold gives deeper complexions a flattering icy finish.
ColourPop Super Shock Highlighter in Churro, $8 at ColourPop
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Deep Skin
Bronze makeup worn on dark skin is a gorgeous combination. One swipe of this powder is proof. Add in the fact that it's wallet-friendly and you can see why it has earned a place in many beauty lovers' makeup bags.
NYX Cosmetics Tango With Bronzing Powder in Bronze Ensemble, $10 at NYX Cosmetics
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Deep Skin
Squeeze a couple of drops of this prismatic pigment into any of your other beauty products and you have yourself a new highlighter. The drops can be mixed into your foundation, serum, moisturizer, primer and more. Once you've mixed everything, apply the formula to your face for that coveted lit-from-within glow. This rose gold shade is universally flattering, but it brings a beautiful warmth to darker complexions.
Cover FX Custom Enhancer Drops in Rose Gold, $42 at Sephora
