Skin Tints Can Be Hit or Miss—15 You'll Be Instantly Obsessed With

Collage of Danielle Jinadu and Kit Keenan with glowy skin and a flashing gif of skin tints.
(Image credit: @daniellejinadu; @kitkeenan)

In case you've missed it, skin tints have been experiencing a meteoric rise in popularity over the past few months. While I'll always leave a place in my makeup bag for a mid-coverage foundation and brightening concealer, skin tints have also been making an appearance lately. In fact, my ultra-dewy base routine has expanded to include skin tints that are easy to use and comfortable enough to wear all day and that create a gorgeous "your skin but better" finish.

If that sounds like a tall order, I hear you. While skin tints have definitely worked wonders for my makeup, it's also worth noting that they have the tendency to be hit or miss. Since they lean toward lightweight and light coverage, it's fair to wonder whether these products can truly target the appearance of fine lines, skin texture, and hyperpigmentation. Finding a skin tint that does it all is nearly mythical.

Spoiler alert: There are more than a few that achieve all of the above. With the help of four Who What Wear beauty editors and thousands of product reviews across major retailers, I've rounded up 15 high-performing skin tints that are the definition of "if you know, you know."

The Best Skin Tints at a Glance

  1. Best Overall: U Beauty The Super Tinted Hydrator
  2. Best With SPF: Ciele Tint & Protect Serum Foundation
  3. Best for Medium to Deep Skin Tones: Danessa Myricks Yummy Skin Serum Skin Tint
  4. Best for Light to Medium Skin Tones: Chantecaille Just Skin Tinted Moisturizer SPF 15
  5. Best for Combination Skin: Kosas BB Burst Tinted Gel Cream

The 15 Best Skin Tints of 2024

Best Overall: U Beauty The Super Tinted Hydrator

Best for Concealing Blemishes: Hourglass Veil Hydrating Skin Tint

Jamie Schneider testing the best skin tints.

(Image credit: @jamieeschneider)

Best With SPF: Ciele Tint & Protect Serum Foundation

Jamie Schneider testing the best skin tints.

(Image credit: @jamieeschneider)

Best for Medium to Deep Skin Tones: Danessa Myricks Yummy Skin Serum Skin Tint

Best for Light to Medium Skin Tones: Chantecaille Just Skin Tinted Moisturizer SPF 15

Jamie Schneider testing the best skin tints.

(Image credit: @jamieeschneider)

Best for Combination Skin: Kosas BB Burst Tinted Gel Cream

Jamie Schneider testing the best skin tints.

(Image credit: @jamieeschneider)

Best for Oily Skin: Tower 28 SunnyDays SPF 30 Tinted Sunscreen

Jamie Schneider testing the best skin tints.

(Image credit: @jamieeschneider)

Best Multipurpose Formula: Typology Tinted Face Serum

Content creator Amaka Hamelijnck with glowy skin and silver jewelry.

(Image credit: @amaka.hamelijnck)

Best for All-Day Wear: Saie Slip Tint Tinted Moisturizer

Best for Dry Skin: Ilia Super Serum Skin Tint SPF 40

Best for Sensitive Skin: Gee Beauty Prime Skin

Content Creator Kit Keenan having her makeup done by L'Oreal artists.

(Image credit: @kitekeenan)

Best Skin-Loving Formula: Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Skin Tint

Best Dewy Finish: Almay Skin Perfecting Hydrating Tint

Best Drugstore Option: Covergirl Clean Fresh Skin Milk

Best Luxury Option: YSL Beauty Nu Bare Look Tint Hydrating Skin Tint

Content creator Danielle Jinadu with dewy-looking skin and natural hair.

(Image credit: @daniellejinadu)

What to Look for in a Skin Tint

We've given you a pretty good jumping-off point if we do say so ourselves, but still, navigating the sheer number of options on the market can be a little overwhelming. Here are a few factors to keep in mind as you're combing the beauty aisles.

  • Finish: Are you partial to dewier looks, or do you opt for more of a matte finish? Skin tints will typically lean on the dewy side, but some have a satin-like finish that doesn't read so glowy if that's more your jam. For example, Typology's tinted serum is capital-D dewy, while Tower 28's SunnyDays has a natural, skin-like effect.
  • Coverage: Skin tints are typically more sheer than foundations, but there's still a spectrum of coverage to keep in mind. Some offer a lightweight veil of pigment (like U Beauty's formula), others are denser and more foundation-like (such as YSL's), and with others, you can build to your desired level of coverage.
  • Skincare ingredients: As I mentioned, skin tints tend to be formulated with high-quality actives to quench dryness (hyaluronic acid), smooth fine lines (peptides), fade hyperpigmentation (vitamin C), and so on. Many also include SPF to offer extra protection from UV damage, which is often the number one culprit for those aforementioned skin woes.

How We Chose

As with all buying guides here at Who What Wear, we compile our product lists based on original testing. The WWW beauty team tried all of the options listed above, offering their favorite formulas and what they would change, if anything, about each one. Testing is important when it comes to how the product actually looks and feels on the skin, so our beauty team made sure to comment on the finish and coverage of each product.

We also pored over ingredient lists for each skin tint, making sure each had good-for-skin actives to simultaneously improve texture and tone. After all, skin tints are known for being skin-makeup hybrids. Customer reviews are, of course, important to keep in mind, especially when it comes to TikTok-viral and celebrity-endorsed favorites. That said, we scoured the review sections of our favorite retailers when compiling our list of 15.

Maya Thomas
Assistant Beauty Editor

Maya Thomas is Who What Wear's assistant beauty editor based in New York City. Her strong love for all things beauty and fashion stems from a strong childhood interest in the fine arts. During a gap year spent in Paris studying the history of French fashion, she shifted her focus to English literature and journalism as a student at Loyola Marymount University with the goal of one day pursuing a career in fashion. After graduating in May 2021, Maya began freelancing for Parade.com as a contributing commerce writer while also building a following on her lifestyle blog, Itsmayalala.com. When she's not writing, Maya spends her free time catching up on reading, perusing art galleries, and enjoying a night out at the ballet every now and then.

With contributions from