#TheLIST: The Best Drugstore Foundations
Get a perfect base without spending extra bucks.
Every product on this page was chosen by a Harper's BAZAAR editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.
You don't have to drop money on a designer base makeup (unless you want to, of course) when there are so many affordable options at your local drugstore. Powder, liquid, mattifying, hydrating—these are the absolute best drugstore foundations.
Shade Range: 32
Finish: Matte Medium Coverage
Best For: If you're looking for blurring and smoothing matte coverage that still looks natural and not the least bit cakey, this is the liquid foundation for you.
Shade Range: 24
Finish: Matte
Best For: If you hate the feeling of foundation but want the coverage, try this water-light droplet formula. Mix it with moisturizer or wear it alone.
Shade Range: 40
Finish: Matte
Best For: Oily skin-havers who can't seem to get foundation to stick.
Shade Range: 43 (impressive!)
Finish: Natural
Best For: The impressive shade range and affordable price make this the best pick for someone looking for an everyday lightweight foundation.
Shade Range: 16
Finish: Full Coverage
Best For: Full coverage fiends who live in humid climates and like to workout in makeup. Even if your life is decidedly less sweaty, this formula really lasts and lasts.
Shade Range: 12
Finish: Full Coverage
Best For: Aging skin. The thick, creamy, hydrating formula fills and covers fine lines, dark spots, and basically anything your skin's got going on.
Shade Range: 30
Finish: Matte
Best For: The buildable formula can be used to set makeup, or buff it all over skin for matte seamless coverage.
Shade Range: 7
Finish: Luminous
Best For: Frequent travelers (or commuter makeup pros) who want an ultra-glowy foundation with them wherever they go.
Shade Range: 11
Finish: Semi-matte
Best For: The oil-free formula feels weightless while still blurring imperfections and mattifying shine.
Shade Range: 8
Finish: Satin
Best for: Those of us who like powder foundations without the powderiness. The lightweight formula can be used both wet and dry.
Shade Range: 20
Finish: Matte
Best For: Selfie-junkies who want their skin to look filter-perfect all the time.
Jenna Rosenstein is the Beauty Director at Harper's BAZAAR across both print and digital. While attending NYU, she held internships at Women’s Wear Daily, Bloomingdale’s, Harper’s BAZAAR, and Allure, the latter of which she parlayed into her first job as the Beauty Assistant. She left Allure three years later as the Senior Beauty Editor. She spent a few months at Refinery29 overseeing branded content in the same title, before finally landing back at BAZAAR to manage all beauty content. When she's not testing every lipstick known to mankind, getting zapped by new lasers, or interviewing experts and celebrities, you can find Rosenstein at home in New Jersey with her son, husband, and black cat named Maddie.
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