The BIGGEST Review of BB Creams, EVER!
Wed, 6 Mar 2013PRODUCT REVIEW | MAKEUP
By Huda Heidi Kattan
Hiii My Loves!!! So I have been pretty obsessed with BB Creams, as you may know and I promised you all a FULL review on some of my favorite or the most talked about BB Creams! I took notes for each one, so you can see exactly how they felt and how they blend on to skin! If you haven’t tried one yet, hopefully this will give you a great picture about which one to buy!
Remember BB Creams, brighten skin, fight wrinkles, have SPF, even skin tone, and protect against free radicals while giving you a little color! It’s like beautifying makeup, which is why it rocks!
MAC Prep + Prime Beauty Balm SPF 35
Dries Well but then it left streaks and wasn’t blend able. A little thick, slightly dewy, but in a nice way, not greasy, not oily, Natural skin finish, slightly too pink, which appeared gray on my skin
Clarins Skin Perfecting BB Cream SPF 25
Felt thick when you started to blend it, but blended the most beautifully! Dried almost completely matte, but seems to have a little radiant shimmer in it (VERY fine, looks natural), not greasy, every so slightly sticky, but didn’t feel bad! Coverage light, but not sheer, actually a really nice BB Cream
Clinique Age Defense BB Cream SPF 30
Consistency too thin and didn’t blend well, coverage not bad, but really greasy and sticky, also didn’t really dry, so it kept moving, which I did not like Although the color tone was nice. So far the WORST of the bunch!
DiorSkin Nude Glow Skin Perfecting BB Creme SPF 10
Blended beautifully, covered well, but still was light. No stickiness, no greasiness, but also a slight sheen to it. Definitely a favorite for combination skin types. Really felt like a different class than the other BB Creams
Dior Hydra Life Enhancing Moisturizer BB Creme SPF 30
Quite nice consistency, not too thick, not too thin (more on the thin side), Coverage nice, but HUGE downer, they only offer in one color, dried nicely, no stickiness, slight greasiness, coverage good
Estee Lauder Day Wear Anti-Oxidant BB Creme SPF 35
Quite thick, but blended very well, zero stickiness, but a little greasy, Coverage quite nice and looked very natural and not heavy, not bad, actually pretty nice maybe for dry skin. Also the color tone was quite nice
Garnier Skin Renew Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream SPF 15
Garnier Skin Renew Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream SPF 15
Soooo thick, blends nicely, with decent coverage. The greasiest of the bunch so far, but not so sticky! Definitely not a matte finish, I feel that skin would be too shiny if using this.
Kiehl’s Actively Correcting & Beautifying BB Cream SPF 50
A little too water coming out of container, but not so easy to blend, it was slightly sticky when blended. Although it did dry beautifully and was very natural finish. not greasy, but had a little stickiness to it, not bad, more for dry skin. I like that it has Vitamin C, so it will correct dark spots and even skin tone
MAC Prep + Prime Compact BB Cream
Really terrible, soooo thick, felt like paste on skin. coverage was very heavy, didn’t seem like a BB Cream, Blended well, but pretty greasy. Felt like it didn’t dry, but was very thick, so it may move throughout the day
Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream
Smashbox Camera Ready BB Cream SPF 35
Really nice consistency, not too thick, not too thin, Blended beautifully and coverage was quite natural but still good. A little too greasy, but not sticky, similar to Estee Lauder, but nicer consistency
Too Faced Multi Benefit Skin Care BB Cream SPF 20
Kind of thick, but bladed beautifully! Felt more like a foundation than a BB Cream, a little orange, slightly sticky, slightly greasy, although does look natural Covereage not bad, but not a front runner
Urban Decay Naked Skin DNA Repair BB Cream SPF 20
So far, LEAST favorite, blended into nothing! Felt like the coverage was soooo light that it made me wonder why I even bothered with a BB Cream, it also kind of felt weird when it blended, thick at first, then it blended into basically nothing! Not a fan! No Greasiness, barely any stickiness
87 Responses to The BIGGEST Review of BB Creams, EVER!
so which one do you recommend? .. which one was your favourite?
DiorSkin Nude is my go to on a daily basis!
You didn’t have a review for the Mabelline one – what did you think of it?
Jane Iredale BB Cream is the BESSSSTTTT so far….Have you tried it?
a BB cream in general does not give a full coverage, right? i mean for someone with acne scars, you’ll need a full coverage foundation. correct me if i’m wrong please..
i have many scars and i don’t feel confident without a full coverage foundation
i wish i had a flawless skin, but i don’t
Hi darling! Not really, the full coverage ones tend to be heavier since they are a combination of skin corrector and pigment, they are also a little too greasy! For full covereage I would go with a powder mineral foundation, since those are great at covering your skin and don’t have all the harmful ingredients like TALC, etc!
Hey Huda !! I am from Pakistan ! Can u plzz
1) tell me a way to get rid of dark upper lips ! Its so embarrasing and I have lost my self confidence due to it.
2)tell me how to boost MY SELF-CONFIDENCE plzzzzzzzzzzzz!! Love ya a
is it just me, or can anyone else not see the maybelline review?
Maybelline’s review seems to missing in the post. Xx
Where is the review for Maybeline!
Great reviews, but you left out the review for the maybelline one bimistake!
So which one do u prefer…??? Which one should i buy?? Ive got a dry skin!!
Whooo Huda! You should enter the Guinness book for this!! Thank you! Are any of them in darker skin tones?? I’m like NW 40
Hey Huda, thanks for a great review. Was wondering if you’ve tried the bobbi brown bb cream and what you think of it? Xö
I did try it! It is a little greasy! Sorry I didn’t include it I will add it to the review!
You didnt comment on the Maybelline bb cream!!
So which was your favourite? You also didnt include the maybelline info.
hello huda,
maybelline review has not come up..
thanx
hi, huda! i’m not familiar with BB creams but i want to give it a try, its just that i have some skin issues….i break out easily! i have some pimple scars also to deal with. Will the cream triggers more pimples? i have an oily skin by the way and just curious if its safe for my skin. thanks!
@Hudabeauty
Garnier Skin Renew Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream has a new version out for Combo/Oily Skin and it dries matte! The coverage is pretty good as well.
Thanks for the review it was great!
I was wondering if you ever tried Missha BB Creams…I have tried all the BBcreams you reviewed and Missha kinda beat them all out! LOL
A lovely post ! so ur Favorite out of the bunch is ?? …….btw u forgot to rite the review for Maybelline Dream Fresh BB Cream !
What do you think about the body shop’s BB cream?
So which one did you prefer? Also you didn’t rate the maybellene?
I have both the Dior ones and the Maybelline ones and I love them. I find myself wanting to use them more then my foundation. Everytime i wear the Dior Skin in oo3 i get so many complements on my skin. saying how flawless it is and all. Love it
Hello, I noticed no comments for Maybelline. How was that BB cream? Thanks.
which one is your favourite? Also, what is your maybelline review? xx
AMAZING REVIEW!! Very well detailed. You saved me a bunch of time and money because I have been on the ultimate hunt for my go to BB cream. I have been trying to give my face a fighting chance these days by lightening up on the foundations and moving on to BB Creams. I have had a few ‘face freak out’ moments with some of the drugstore BB creams and I moved on to the Smashbox camera ready and I really enjoyed it.However, my face looks like I dipped it into a tub of oil after a few hours of wear. With the help of some blotting sheets here and there the shine is somewhat controlled, however, I’m sure I am setting myself up for disaster when I don’t have my sheets one day.
I just recently tested the Dior BB cream at a dept store and IT IS beautiful. Love it. But, I also had a thin layer of the smashbox and a primer on already, so Idk if that warped the results. I’m sure my face won’t be happy with so much product but it held up quite well throughout the day. I haven’t gotten the chance to do a perspiration test (I sweat within 5 minutes of being outside and live in a subtropical climate) which is very important to me. How does the Dior BB hold up outside? is there need for reapplication throughout the day ( wanted to know just in case my experience was influenced by the dior and smashbox mix)? And did you apply with a brush/ sponge/ fingers?
I have a very unconventional job that has me in the office for 8 hours straight one day to being out in the sun, digging holes and planting native plants the next. It would be really helpful to find a BB cream that can gives me beautiful (but not heavy!!) coverage and lasts even when I am working outside. Or would you recommend I look into a different form of coverage? I will be doing a service trip for a month so I need something with SPF and enough coverage to conceal my faded, but still evident dark spots. I’m proud to say that I’ve come a long way with my face ( blemishes and dark spots caused from acne) and I would hate to see them undone in a month. so any help would be grand.
Sorry for the lengthy post and BTW, you got yourself a new subscriber
Hi darling! I really love to use it directly on skin and most of the time, I use my hands! If I’m in a hurry and don’t want to wash my hands in between, I will use a stipple brush like Sephora’s short mineral powder brush. The Dior BB Cream actually holds up the best in summer/hot weather out of all the BB Creams, mostly bc it is matte. The mac one holds up well too, but it’s so hard to blend, I honestly kind of hated that!
So which one is your fav??? Which one is Best for dry skin?
you forgot to comment on the maybelline one :/
hey you forgot to write about the maybelline one
what about Maybelline ??
DEF My Favorite Drugstore one!
So which one was your ultimate favorite? Btw congratulations on your lash launch
so proud 
Hi darling!! I loooved the Dior!
Finally a great review! Which one would you (Huda) stick to using on a daily basis in the end?
DEF the Dior! I just love how it looks so natural but still gives good coverage!
HUDA………. this is truely helpful. Cuts down anxiety for not finding the right product to 90%. Thank you so much for this much awaited review….
LoveXOXO
What a great post! There are so many different BB creams/swatches here. I love when blogs include a big selection of one type of product in order to compare them.
Was the Dior your favorite? I bet it was super expensive though.
It was definitely on the pricier side, I did also like Estee Lauder and Maybelline BB Creams so you can definitely get one at every price:)))
I didn’t like garnier either felt too thick and I had to powder it to mattify , I’d rather wear foundation than the garnier BB cream. I’ll try Dior next
HI Huda! Laaaoove ur blogs! ive gotten oily skin…which bb cream would you recommend? also can i wear it during summers ?
The MAC one was nice darling! It dried completely so it should be blended quickly, but it literally had NO grease!
The maybelline review is missing lol
Would love to hear what you thought of it
I use loreals bb cream (i thinks its called magique) it has these microcapsules that give a very nice finish and makes my pores look smaller. Also not too much coverage and its very lightweight. You might want to try it
Hi Huda, I’m really in love with your blog, a serious question please please answer me, My only wish is to remove the dark black circles around my eyes what is the best remedy?
Thanks xx
This was a great review! I bought the Garnier BB Cream, and didn’t like the color or consistency of it. So I started mixing it in with my regular moisturizer- and I love it! Since it is so dry here in the winter months, the moisturizer is perfect, and it gives me a nice color, and my skin looks radiant. I will definitely try the Dior next though.
wow so many BB creams
Hey huda a perfect timing & on-trend as usual, thanku. Were u able 2try out the Bobbi brown version? I went in looking for a tinted moisturizer &they sold me BB cream. I felt it to be thick, pasty & very heavy- I literally felt like in was wearing a mask & I’m an avid BBrown supporter so was severely disappointed. Went to body shop & got their version which was soooo much lighter but since i have an olive skin tone, it seemed to make me look greyish, but the sales lady sold me a vitamin c skin boost to wear underneath & 3 days later I’m covered in breakouts (which I never ever get) so in my quest for light coverage & all-in-one-ness, I’m now back to being a spotty teen
Hi Huda. I too am Middle Eastern (Lebanese) and have similar skin tone (olive, with dark brown eyes and hair). I just purchased the STILA Stay All Day 10-in-1 HD Beauty Balm (recommended to me in the store by a salesperson). I was operating pretty much in the dark, because I don’t know much about BBs, but I bought it today BEFORE reading your review here. Can you tell me if you know anything about the Stila Stay All Day 10-in-1 HD Beauty Balm, and/or what you think of it? Thanks! : )
hi Huda, i want to ask you, if Talc powder can causes damages to face skin or has any harmful sides on face because i am actually used to put it on my face after i put on my sun screen cream as an alternative of a makeup powder?? please i need you to reply this..thanx
Huda what about BB cream from Bobbi brown ?
I have it, don’t like it at all! I will add it in:)
hey huda , so do you advice me to use the BB cream daily i have oily skin so what do you advice me
U tried a lot but not all:) try Lancôme and Givenchy with top of Mac mineralize skin din fish lighter shade! Plz try n let me know?
I tried the Estee Lauder Day Wear Anti-Oxidant BB Creme SPF 35 and at the end of the day my face was so oily. Which one would you recommend for oily skin.
Try Lancôme you will luv it i am sure:) awsum thing and my tip is apply skin mineralize by Mac top of it! If u want more coverage!otherwise it’s enough in it!!
Huda you are amazing!!!! Thank you sooo much for taking the time to share with us . Def going to try a few..
Huda I do have a quick question. Not sure if you watch Kourtney and Kim take
Miami. Anyhow Kim’s skin seems to be shiny with a nice glow a lot to the time. Do you think it has any thing to do with bb creams or something different ? Been dying to find out what she puts on her skin. That nice shiny glow it amazing.. Please share if you have any idea.. Thanks Beautiful…
Pretty cool Blog – I’ll be passing it on.Also, I’m happy to locate numerous useful information here within the post.
LOVE this review!!! I’m a huge BB cream fan too, and went through a tonne! LOL! Keep it up!
Dior BB is the best in the market
LOL, i have it, just hadn’t gotten around to trying it! There are so many new ones lately! Will post a review when i do get around to it! XOXO
Hi Huda! Love your blog. Just got to know that your blog is my friend’s beauty secret! Good going.
I use Maybelline BB cream, but on dry days it’s hard to spread. Should I moisturise before applying BB cream? 
Thank you <3 love this review, i'm always looking for the best BB cream but so far i dont think it works, atleast for me
Hi darling! Have you tried the Teint Visionnaire? Just did a review on my blog, honestly I’ve only been using this since I got it!
Hey Huda, Could you also check out the BB from Body Shop…i hv been looking to buy that…would love your advise on it. Thanks
i tried most of them above too ( since ages a huge fan of BB cream and don’t like classic foundations at all (used tinted moisturisers for a while before BB cream came to Europe, finishing with a transparent lose powder, which im loving to fix my BB cream too)… i’m a huge Clarins fan, n i love the BB cream from them, but i tried Loréal’s BB cream too, n i must say it’s awesome, please do a review on that, im using the light skin version, as im lebanese with a very creamy white skin (which i wish it would go more into olive, but this is my naseeb obviously
) the consistence is awesome, it’s basicly similar to an elder tinted moisturizer from Estée Lauder, with a white cream which is including mini pigment balls, which are blending awesome on skin, and assimilating with your skin tone…. would like to know your opinion about it
I would like to kno abt body shop bb cream as well asmaybelline too..wch s best among them???
I love the Maybelline BB Cream, it’s def my favorite at that price level, but I have not tried the Body Shop BB Cream honestly
Garnier BB and L’Oreal “Youth” BB have a noxious, heavy perfume — why???
Very very helpful, I picked up Smashbox BB its just awesome for my skin.. thanks Huda
Thank You Huda for this indepth review…. It really Helped Darling !!
I think you should just pick ONE! Or at least one in each price range. The reason we all come to you is for you to sort them for us! Confussed tho….what did you think of the Maybelline vs the Dior?
You should definitely try the Missha Signature real complete bbcream, my absolute favourite. It’s an asian one but it doesn’t give your skin an ashy appearance as those usually do. It’s spf 25 and it protects and hydrates the skin well while not being shiny or greasy at all. I could even find a true match for my skin, which isn’t easy cause I’m an extremely pale-skinned (no rosy undertones for me) redhead. The coverage is medium but I put a bit of moisturizer in it (and this after I slathered a lot on my mug too!) because my skin is very dry and because I’ve no particular skin problems except for a few little red capillaries, so I can go sheer. It’s mat but not excessively and provides a very natural finish and furthermore it’s cheap, which isn’t bad at all…
Awesome review! Extremely helpful!!! Maybe you could do one on Moisturizer next ?!?!?
I am in love so far with Garnier but I have dry skin..I am looking for a lasting bb cream..I live in hot weather and the foundation I use I can swim and sweat in and it does not come off. I have heard Dr Jart’s BB creams are amazing..I agree on the reviews I have tried almost everyone there..Garnier I still stick with.Thought Lauder would be good since I use Double Wear foundation but didnt like it. Thank you for the reviews of the ones I have not tried.I have a few more myself to conquer and get samples to try from Sephora.
Thanks for doing this! It’s a HUGE help! Can you also do a review of Josie Maran’s Argan Tinted Moisturizer? There are lots of mixed reviews about it, and I’d love to hear what you have to say. Thanks!
The Shiseido is the N°1 EVER ! Does not name itself “perfect” without a reason
Huda have you tried the Tarte one?? I looove it!
Hi darling! Actually, I haven’t! Is it good?
I’ve been using Garnier’s BB cream for the past year. Just about finished with the bottle and searching for another brand to try out. Garnier’s IS a bit too thick and the “light” is borderline too dark for some people that are actually “light”. I did, however, find that by putting on my regular moisturizer (Alba’s), then the cream, it goes on less thick and less dark. Then I’d follow it up with a mineral veil powder. Although there was no review for Maybelline’s, it obviously looked horrible. I was hoping to find another BB cream from a drug store that is better than Garnier’s; but perhaps I’ll splurge on the Dior I’m hearing great things about. I also recently read about Sephora’s…. let me know if you ever try that one.
you have tried the western bb creams… if bb creams that we’re talking about, you should opt for the asian brands…skin79, skinfood, missha, encara, etc are the best ones out there depending on your skin type
Hi darling! I have tried the Eastern ones, a few actually! They are quite nice, but many of them were very light and also lightening my skin quite strongly
I need a BB cream WITHOUT SPF as I sweat profusely when I apply SPF as makeup on my face. I’m also oily. Does anyone have any recommendations? So far it looks like STILA is the best for me. Id like to hear some other ideas as well!! thanks Julie, Chicago.
tarte is amazing..feels like butter without the grease
gives great coverage and just a little goes a long way..spreads easily
Hi what is your opinion on the clarins bb cream do u think ill breakout from the cream ,i have combination to oily skin.i use clarins ever matte,as for me its the best foundtation.
I every time used to study article in news papers but now as I am a user of internet
thus from now I am using net for articles, thanks to web.