In our quest to get flawless, pore-free skin, and smooth makeup, we often find ourselves navigating a sea of best primers that the beauty industry has to offer! Each promises miracles and perfection, to say the least. With a market brimming with choices, it's tempting to jump headfirst into the world of primers, seeking that elusive matte, dewy, or natural finish, all while minimizing the appearance of those pesky pores, evening out the unwanted skin textures, and making the makeup last way too longer than average lasting time. But here's the truth: not all primers are created equal, and not all are suited to every skin type. Here we have rounded off the best ones, as per our expertise, that are specially equipped with a formula that gives you all the above-mentioned benefits.

Many buyers have been down this road before, only to be left penning lengthy one-star reviews. But not you; you're a smart, savvy shopper who knows the importance of research before purchasing (the reason being you are here, reading this article)! Here, you'll find comprehensive descriptions, pros and cons of every product, and an all-inclusive buying guide to help you make an informed decision. So, whether you're a makeup enthusiast or a skincare aficionado, this guide is your roadmap to achieving that picture-perfect look without any regrets. Let's dive in and discover the primer that suits you best—

• 1
  Best for Sensitive Skin

  Elizabeth Mott Thank Me Later Color Correcting Face Primer

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Unravel the secret to flawless, glass-like skin with this color-correcting face primer by Elizabeth Mott. Infused with breakthrough ingredients and potent blends, this primer works magically to minimize open pores and fine lines and set a flawless base for your foundation to cling on. While you would expect a primer to just do that, this wondrous product also works as a color corrector and helps to reduce the appearance of redness while replenishing moisture for all skin types, including dry, mature, and sensitive. Adding to that, it helps to increase your skin’s elasticity, thereby providing radiant, even-toned skin. 

2

Best Vegan Formula

Milk Makeup Hydro Grip Primer

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Take your makeup game up a notch with this award-winning face primer by Milk Makeup that not only grips your makeup for up to 12 hours but also nourishes and replenishes the skin. Its supercharged formula enriched with blue agave extract helps to further prevent caking, while hyaluronic acid and hemp seed extract perform their magic by boosting hydration and smoothing the skin. Well, that’s not all! It also has niacinamide and aloe water to provide long-lasting moisture for a fresh, dewy glow. Still confused? Don’t be. Get your hands on it today!

3

Best to Reduce Pores

Maybelline New York Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser Primer

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Everyone wants to regain their baby-soft skin and make their fantasies come true, and that's why Maybelline has come up with a pore minimizer face primer is the secret to perfect skin and makeup undoubtedly! This pore-reduction makeup primer goes on your skin like a moisturizer, leaving a smooth canvas for your foundation. Furthermore, it leaves your skin looking matte and poreless, ensuring that the apparent pores on it have blurred out and vanished. Whether you're wearing a full coverage foundation or sheer coverage BB cream, this primer provides a low-maintenance appearance that's matte, smooth, and hydrated all day.

4

Best to Reduce Redness

e.l.f. Tone Adjusting Face Primer

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The e.l.f. Tone Adjusting Face Primer facilitates a quick make-up game that radiates according to how long you leave it on in a day. With this flexible green-tinted primer, you can create a flawless look while neutralizing the appearance of any redness, pigmentation, or blemishes. This silky, skin-smoothing product is ideal for all skin types, providing the ideal canvas for your makeup and to last all day. The primer has skin-loving elements that are free of toxins, and it is reasonably priced. You can feel good about your beauty choices because all of this brand’s products are 100% vegan.

5

Best to Reduce Sweat

e.l.f. Poreless Putty Primer

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Packed with the moisturizing goodness squalane, this e.l.f. putty primer provides maximum hydration and is ideal for most skin types. Its silky texture glides over the skin effortlessly, masking flaws and producing a poreless look. It gives your makeup the optimal hold, ensuring that it stays in place. It's cruelty-free and vegan, plus it's free of nasties like parabens, phthalates, ethoxylates, nonylphenol, and triclocarban. Furthermore, it is a travel-friendly product that is easy to travel with wherever you go.

6

Best to Minimize Shine

Rimmel London Stay Matte Primer

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Safely speaking no one, not even the most inexperienced makeup doer likes heavy makeup. That's why Rimmel offers you a smoothing and ultra-lightweight liquid makeup primer that will help you achieve flawless skin while camouflaging all your skin concerns. This incredible composition is suitable for all skin types, including oily and dry skin. It simply controls shine for up to 8 hours, keeping your skin fresh and matte throughout the day. Furthermore, it is so light that it never feels heavy or greasy, making it an excellent choice for everyday makeup wearers.

7

Best to Fill Fine Lines

NYX PROFESSIONAL MAKEUP Pore Filler Blurring Primer

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The phrase "go big or go home" comes to mind when talking about this product by NYX. Let us tell you the magic of this pore-blurring makeup primer is that it beautifully covers all the pores and imperfections along your T-zone. Its silky, lightweight formula effortlessly glides onto your skin, reducing the appearance of pores. Your skin will feel exceptionally smooth to the touch, leaving you with a unified finish. This silicone-based primer works for both your face and undereye area. Just blend it under your eyes to smooth fine lines, on your nose and cheeks to minimize blemishes, and across your T-zone for a matte finish.

8

Best to Blur out Imperfections

L'Oreal Paris Magic Perfecting Base Face Primer

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You can now discover the power of this pore-reducing makeup primer with L'oreal Paris Magic Perfecting Base Face Primer which takes the upper hand at giving you the base of your dreams. Its lightweight, silky formula glides softly onto your skin, reducing the appearance of pores and fine lines. Use it on bare skin or after your moisturizer after it has been thoroughly absorbed. Blend it beneath your eyes to smooth fine wrinkles, over your nose and cheeks to eliminate blemishes, and across your T-zone to achieve a matte finish.

9

Best Drugstore Product

Maybelline New York Face Studio Master Prime Face Primer

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Maybelline New York offers a lightweight, non-oily solution that works wonders by improving the texture of your skin, resulting in a flawless skin surface. It has been dermatologically approved and allergy-tested, so it is suitable for sensitive skin, and the best part? It does not clog pores. Bid farewell to flaws and discoloration. This water-based primer provides a smooth, greasy-free application while optically blurring flaws and smoothing fine wrinkles for even-toned, flawless-looking skin.

10

Best Lightweight Formula

Revlon PhotoReady Pore Reducing Matte Primer

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Nobody likes the notion of having visible pores that make one look not-so-appealing. So, by using this pore-minimizing foundation primer by Revlon, you will be creating a matte, smooth canvas that conceals pores and keeps your makeup appearing flawless all day. It's like having photo filters in real life, thanks to the High-Definition Filter Technology that it is equipped with. This technique collects and changes any light, guaranteeing that you always appear your best, even in less-than-ideal lighting conditions. And thanks to the infused silica mattifiers, the product minimizes sebum production, you can say goodbye to shine as well.

11

Best Oil-free Formula

COVERGIRL Simply Ageless Makeup Primer

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The COVERGIRL ageless makeup primer stands true to its name and allows you to achieve the best finish that will grab everyone's attention. It provides the ideal canvas for a liquid foundation. The nourishing composition keeps your skin nourished and feeling fresh. Its convenient pump dispenser makes it simple to apply makeup. As a result, you can effortlessly smooth the product over your skin before any meeting! What's better? These goods are International Leaping Bunny-certified cruelty-free, which indicates it has never been tested on animals.

12

Best Nourishing Formula

Aveeno Positively Radiant MaxGlow Hydrating Face Serum + Prime

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Everyone loves natural radiance, right? So, keeping that in mind, Aveeno came up with this one-of-a-kind face primer serum that has a two-phase formula that is water-light and fast-absorbing, allowing an effortless layering. The moisturizing face serum and primer, made with moisture-rich soy and kiwi complex, is designed to lock in skin hydration. Furthermore, this face serum is paraben-free, phthalate-free, hypoallergenic, and non-comedogenic, which means it won't clog pores. It can be used as the last step in your skincare routine or as a primer before wearing makeup.

13

Neutrogena Healthy Skin Radiant Booster Primer & Serum

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Unlock a radiant complexion with 1.0 fluid ounces with the help of quality ingredients of this serum. Infused with pearl pigments and peptides, this dual-purpose gem enhances your skin for a healthy and luminous finish. As a radiant nourishing facial primer, the face primer prepares your skin for makeup, ensuring a smooth, glowing canvas. This versatile product can also be used solo, acting as a correcting serum to improve uneven texture and even out your skin tone, ultimately leaving your face with a healthier appearance.

14

LAURA GELLER NEW YORK Spackle Skin-perfecting Primer

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Laura Geller's primer works as a treatment for dry, flaky skin and gives you the luminous finish that you have always wanted. This dual-purpose product creates a smooth canvas for foundation and extends the wear, leaving your face feeling fresh all day, whether you wear heavy makeup or not. It contains beneficial nutrients like glycerin, antioxidant botanicals, and hyaluronic acid, which results in a brighter and more supple complexion. Ideal for those with normal to dry skin. This formula has no synthetic scent, phthalates, or parabens. It's ideal for days when you don't want to wear makeup.

15

Tatcha Liquid Silk Canvas Primer

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If you have an uneven skin tone and small pores, you don't need primer or foundation, rather you only want something on your skin to keep it soft and clean! This Tatcha liquid silk canvas is formulated to work even over your sunscreen. Furthermore, the high-grade ingredients give you a lovely diffused effect. It's light, so you may use it in hot weather or on greasy skin, and you can even use the small silk canvas in the winter. If you are in the mood to splurge, this can be a great investment for your skin!

16

L’Oréal Paris Prime Lab Up to 24H Pore Minimizer Face Primer

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Introducing advanced primer that is an amalgamation of makeup and skincare. This pore minimizer contains LHA, BHA, and AHA complex, refining skin texture over time. Instantly, it blurs and smooths skin, extending your makeup look for up to 24 hours. This unique primer is non-comedogenic, and paraben-free, which ensures your skin's health. It also has a matte texture packed with salicylic acid and LHA for balanced skin, a redness eraser with niacinamide to neutralize facial redness, dullness reducer for a radiant complexion for a flawless look.

17

Veil Cosmetics Sunset Light 3-in-1 Primer

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This serum from Veil Cosmetics is a versatile addition to your daily beauty routine. This multitasking product minimizes pores and smoothes fine lines while extending makeup longevity. Its unique blend features cinnamon bark extract for instant wrinkle smoothing and antioxidant protection. With ingredients like white water lily extract and hydrating sodium hyaluronate, it calms redness and leaves your skin looking refreshed. Suitable for all skin types and tones, it can be used before makeup or as a standalone product.

Now that you have checked the products, take a look at how you can pick the best one-

Whether you're a seasoned makeup enthusiast or a newcomer to the beauty game, the world of primers can be a bit overwhelming. Choosing the right face primer is the first step towards achieving that flawless, long-lasting look. In this primer-buying guide, we'll explore five key considerations to help you make an informed choice.

a) Skin Type: Understanding your skin type is paramount. Is it oily, dry, balanced, or a combination of these? Your skin type will determine the primer that suits you best.

b) Finish: Dewy or matte? Well, it depends on personal taste. Whatever your preference, make sure to read the primer's description to match your desired finish. While some of the primers offer a dewy finish, others offer a matte base for full glam looks.

c) Hydrating Properties: For extra hydration, opt for primers with hydrating ingredients like hyaluronic acid, aloe vera, squalene, glycerin, etc. Your skin will thank you.

d) Concerns: If you want to skip the skin-brightening cream, look for primers with AHA, BHA, or LHA additives. They work wonders for skin texture. For a picture-perfect, smooth canvas for makeup absorption, choose a primer with pearl pigments.

With these considerations in mind, you'll be well-equipped to make a smart choice and enjoy a long-lasting, flawless makeup look that suits your unique preferences and needs. So, now let's dive into the world of primers and make your beauty routine even more fabulous!

What is the right way to apply the best face primer to get makeup artist-approved looks daily? Here we cover you with simple steps.

1. Cleansing 

To begin, gently cleanse your face using a mild face wash that's appropriate for your skin type. For example, if you have combination skin, consider a face wash with niacinamide or a foaming formula. Thoroughly rinse and pat your face dry with a soft towel. This step ensures that your skin is clean and free from impurities, allowing the primer to adhere better.

2. Toning

After cleansing, apply a toner to your skin. Opt for a toner with soothing properties, such as aloe vera-based toners. Using a cotton pad, gently apply the toner, ensuring even coverage. This step helps to balance your skin's pH and prepares it for the primer.

3. Absorption

Allow the toner to fully absorb into your skin. This typically takes a minute or two. Patience in this step ensures that your skin is optimally prepared for the primer.

4. Primer Application 

Take a small amount of your chosen face primer and dab it onto your face. It's essential to use a small amount, as a little goes a long way. Start with the center of your face and work outward, ensuring even distribution.

5. Setting Time

After applying the primer, wait for a few minutes to allow it to set. This step is crucial because it allows the primer to create a smooth, even surface on your skin, ensuring that your makeup adheres well and lasts longer.