Highlighters are indeed the game changer that the contemporary beauty world is currently obsessed over! Well, if you are wondering, let us tell you that the credit goes to faux glam that it provides irrespective of skin type and tone, and it is safe to say that there is one perfect highlighter for everyone. The best highlighters for dark skin are specially equipped with a distinctive tone that really complements black and brown beauties. 

Highlighters with a tone of champagne, gold, rose gold, purple, bronze, and copper work excellent on the skin. However, it needs to be kept in mind that it is not only the color always, but also the formula and texture that make a difference in the outcome.

Keeping these in mind, we have curated a list of the best ones based on our observations. What's more? We have also guided you through how to pick 'the one' according to your skin type and requirements. So, without delaying it, let's get started—

• 1
  Best Overall

  Grande Cosmetics GrandeGLOW - French Pearl

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Glow brighter than a star in the sky with this liquid highlighter by Grande Cosmetics. It offers a luminous glow with a pearly effect that makes it suitable for day as well as nightwear. All you need to do is dab a few drops on your cheeks and blend it with your fingers. The smooth formula easily gets absorbed, giving you a shimmery glow. Moreover, you can add it to your foundation or your face cream to get a beautiful glow. The lightweight formula can be used daily and on oily skin too. 

2

Best for Acne-prone Skin

Perricone MD No Makeup Gel Highlighter

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Enjoy a sheer tinted highlighter that offers a subtle glow to your skin. The gel-based formula makes it extremely suitable for acne-prone skin and oily skin. Unlike other formulas, this highlighter is extremely smooth and feels softer than butter. It offers a lifting, dewy finish to the skin that makes it look naturally vibrant. Addressing it as a "game changer," a regular Amazon user stated that this highlighter gives the skin a dewy and bright look that is perfect. 

3

Best Velvety Formula

Milani Baked Highlighter- Dolce Perla

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Milani Baked Highlighter is indeed one of the best drugstore highlighters for brown skin that is available in the market, and in a few seconds, you'll know why! The creamy consistency of the finely milled powder highlighter gives a flawless finish that won't look unnatural on your skin. And the Dolce Perla shade unbelievably complements dark skin tone, to say the least. The best part? All products from the brand are cruelty-free and vegan-friendly. And we think you need to try it!

4

Best Seamless Finish

wet n wild Megaglo Highlighting Powder- Awesome Blossom

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The Awesome Blossom shade from Wet n Wild comes with a beautiful silky smooth pearl finish that beautifully goes with dark skin tone beauties. The baked formula has a beautiful buildable finish that also blends like butter on your skin. The best part? It is one of the best drugstore highlighters for dark skin that gives you an unwavering glow without causing a hole in your pockets. Infused with nylon and macadamia seed oil, the smooth and non-drying texture of the product helps you to shine radiantly without being too overpowering. The high-pigmented formula is another boon that allows you to have a dreamy look.

5

Best Drugstore Formula

Maybelline New York Master Chrome Highlighter- Molten Topaz

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This is one good highlighter that is currently raging in the industry and is also an absolute favorite of our editor. The Molten Topaz shade is a beautiful color that beautifully blends on deeper skin tones and gives a flawless finish with a blinding glow! It is a metallic highlighter with fine particles that accentuate your cheekbones and take the upper hand at enhancing your facial features. Addedly, it has a beautiful dual tone when it comes under the light which is the unique feature of the product. How cool!

6

Best Hypoallergenic Formula

Physicians Formula Butter Highlighter- Rose Gold

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The dermatologically-tested product by Physician's Formula is an absolute favorite for people with sensitive skin. It gives an subtle glow with a lightweight finish that stays longer than the average product. The finely pressed highlighter melts into your skin like butter to give you the desired glow that you have always wanted. Enriched with anti-aging peptides, murumuru butter, tucuma butter, and cupuacu butter, the refined highlighter boasts of giving a smooth texture without being too overpowering.

7

Most Long-lasting

LIFUS Highlighter Palette

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The highlighter palette from Lifus proudly showcases four shades that go with almost all skin types and tones. It has a face-illuminating capacity without making the skin look too harsh or busy. Addedly, the highly-pigmented formula loaded with fine particles and organic ingredients, glides on your cheekbones smoothly to give you smooth glowy skin like a star. Plus, the brand promises the highlighter for dark skin to stay on your face for more than 12 hours.

8

Best Packaging

theBalm Betty-Lou Manizer Highlighter

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If you are a makeup enthusiast, there's no way that you haven't come across theBalm's USP — the highlighter! Apart from vintage cutesy packaging, the brand boasts of giving you a pearl-like finish out of its best-selling product. The Betty-Lou Manizer is one of the best products to make your skin look younger and softer if you have dark skin. It has a buttery texture that glides smoothly over your skin without being too harsh and overpowering. Last but not least, the anti-aging property enriched product comes with a  paraben and cruelty-free tag that can really be your best buddy in your journey to get a flawless glow.

9

Most Versatile

Aesthetica Starlite Highlighter- Cosmos

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Aesthetica presents a shimmer highlighter loaded with fine particles that gives a seamless finish to your makeup. The Cosmos shade is a sparkling rose gold color that gives a unique rosy hue to your cheeks that will fetch compliments. It has a super bright tone that will accentuate the cheekbones and bring out the natural structure. Furthermore, it also blends beautifully to give you a glossy finish without looking fake or overpowering. Lastly, the travel-friendly packaging with a mirror is a bonus that needs special mention.

10

Most Versatile

CmaaDU Hilight Makeup Palette

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This palette indeed offers some of the best highlighters for brown skin! Thanks to its versatility, the four perfect shades present in the palette claim to suit almost every skin tone. Plus, let us tell you that the makeup is not easy to take off, thus it ensures superb longevity that will stick to your skin. The highly pigmented formula is easy to apply as it gives a super blendable and soft texture that gives a perfect blinding glow. Lastly, the light-diffusing pigments are enough to enhance your appearance and will keep people hooked.

11

BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter- Champagne Pop

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Becca Highlighter is the ultimate preferable product among influencers and makeup professionals, let us tell you why! The buttery texture and the superfine pigments will ensure a natural glow that won't seem made-up. It further appears more like a glow-from-within and gives an excellent second-skin-like effect without a doubt. The champagne pop color has a soft gold with a peachy pink pearl hue that definitely will make you stand out in the crowd. Lastly, a small quantity of this product would go a long way in illuminating your skin.

12

Eddie Funkhouser Glow Drops Liquid Highlighter

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The Glow Drops liquid highlighter is equipped with a buildable coverage that allows you to opt for the desired glow that radiates from your skin. From sheer to intense, you can also get a luminous glow by mixing with your daily moisturizer. It comes with a ball tip that allows you for an easy and smooth application. The blendable texture further allows you to get a seamless finish that everyone talks about! What's more? It is vegan and cruelty-free.

13

evpct Face Highlighter Makeup Stick Cream- Pack of 2

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This pack of 2 highlighters, in the gorgeous shade Might Be (almond) and Candy Man (caramel) can be your best buddy to illuminate your dark skin without making it look fake. They are highly pigmented shades and work like magic on your skin with a single swipe. Furthermore, the creamy formula works like a charm as you can spread the product with just your finger for hassle-free use. The best part is that you can even toss the product inside your bag for on-the-go touch-ups. Wondering still? Well, don't! Because the long-lasting product has a waterproof and non-fading formula that lasts through all day.

14

Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick Compact- Pink Quartz

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Bobbi Brown offers you a shimmer brick compact that doesn't quite look like a quintessential highlighter. It is one good highlight powder for dark skin that has a shimmery finish and gives a light and subtle coverage with a hint of pink quartz. And we can safely claim as per our expertise that the color is exactly what you need in your stash if you are in the mood to splurge. Addedly, the dermatologist-tested formula features superfine pigments that give a sheer radiance to look flawless.

15

elf Cosmetics Baked Highlighter- Apricot Glow

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This can be a really good option that delivers you the coveted result without burning a hole in your pockets. It can safely be tagged as one of the best drugstore highlighters for dark skin that has some race reviews online. Enriched with vitamin E, jojoba, sunflower, rose hip, apricot, and grape oil, the highlighter infuses a great amount of nourishment to the skin, which delivers  a sheer, incandescent glow that everyone desires.

16

Milk MAKEUP Highlighter Mini- Champagne Pearl

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The Champagne Pearl shade from Milk Makeup can be your best buddy if you have a dark skin tone and want that flawless glow that everyone talks about! It has a shimmery finish that doesn’t contain chunky glitter which may ruin your look as you go out. Plus it is packed with natural oils, which gives you an unwavering glow that looks healthy and natural. Not only just that, but it also nourishes your skin just as it settles onto it.

17

Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Light Wand Pillow Talk- Silver

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All hail to the latest talk of the town— the Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Light Wand which is currently raging in the industry for all the good reasons. Apart from giving you an unwavering glow, the highlighting wand takes the upper hand at blurring out all the imperfections with its rich velvety finish. The seamless formula will illuminate the face while keeping a soft focus that everyone loves. Plus, the luxurious packaging is also convenient and travel-friendly, which is an added plus point.

Now that you have already taken a look at the best products, here is how you can pick the best product for yourself—

Below are the parameters to keep in mind—

a) Formula- The formula you are picking has a lot to do with your skin concerns. If you have sensitive skin, a hypoallergenic formula will work the best. Similarly, a highlighter that is free of toxic chemicals like phthalates and harsh components like parabens, alcohol, talc, etc. might not work as well as the ones that are without them. 

b) Skin type- Before you pick your holy grail, make sure you are considering your skin type before concluding. People with dry skin tones can opt for liquid highlighters while people with oily skin tones can go for powder highlighters. Similarly, if you want a dewy glow, a liquid highlighter is the best option for that. You can also set and lock everything in with the powder one.

c) Shade- If you have a darker skin tone, it is not wise to choose a highlighter with a lighter shade in the first place. Warm brown, bronze, and rose gold work best for people with dark skin tones.

d) Undertone- Undertone plays a crucial role in picking the best highlighter for yourself. If you have a warm undertone a rose gold and bronze shade will always outshine everything. But if you have a cool undertone, staying away from a highlighter with a golden hue can be the best option. A shade that has a subtle white tint like champagne or silver will work best. 

 Now, take a look at how you can add the highlighter into your makeup routine to get the coveted glow—

a) The best way to ensure a glow from within is to opt for a liquid highlighter or strobe cream right after you are done with applying the primer and before the foundation.

b) After you are done with your base makeup, i.e., foundation and concealer, only set the places that are prone to creases or cracks. Leave the rest of the face as it is.

c) We recommend creamy textures instead of dry and powdery products to make sure your face imparts a goddess-like glow without any powdery finish. However, if you use powder products, make sure they are blended really well without leaving harsh edges.

d) Next, you can opt for strobe cream or liquid highlighter over the top of your cheekbones, the temple of your nose, and over the cupid’s bow. But make sure you have pushed the product in with a damp beauty blender for a seamless finish.

e) You can also opt for a powder highlighter to amplify the intensity. But blend it for 10-15 seconds to ensure no chunky glitter or finish is there for a sunkissed glow.

f) Lastly, apply an illuminating or dewy setting spray to ensure the makeup melts altogether and gives you a second-skin-like finish in no time.

So, that’s it! You have now plenty of suggestions for the best highlighters for dark skin that we have curated from our experience. These highlighters are packed with an effective formula that will give you the ultimate glow that you have been looking for! Last but not least, all we can say is if you want the perfect glow without spending a bomb on a highlighter, Milani Baked Highlighter is what you should grab. However, if you are in the mood for a splurge, look no further, Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Light Wand Pillow Talk can be your ultimate choice. BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed Highlighter is also a great option to get a seamless glow, and it is also an absolute favorite of influencers and makeup artists. So, which one are you getting for yourself?