Healthy Skin
12 of the best foundations for mature skin, from £5.70
Looking for the best foundation for mature skin, but unsure where to start?
It probably comes as no surprise that our skin changes as we age. Mature skin is often dryer as the production of sebum starts to slow down. Collagen and elastin production also begins to drop off, meaning wrinkles and fine lines may become more prominent. As a result, you may find that the foundation you’ve always sworn by isn’t quite meeting your requirements these days.
When it comes to the best foundations for mature skin, look for hydrating ingredients. This includes hyaluronic acid, glycerin and vitamin E. These provide extra support for your complexion by locking in hydration (even if you’ve always tended to prefer a matte finish). This will ensure that makeup doesn’t become flaky or cake into any fine lines for a more seamless coverage.
From budget to splurge and matte to dewy, we cover all bases (pun intended). Read on for our round-up of the best foundations for mature skin.
The best foundations for mature skin
Best hydrating: Fenty Beauty PRO FILT’R Hydrating Foundation – £30
If your skin has always erred on the drier side, a hydrating foundation may be your best bet.
Fenty Beauty PRO FILT’R Hydrating Foundation has a whopping range of 50 shades, all in a natural finish that lets skin look like skin. It’s ideal for normal to dry complexions. Grapeseed oil and sodium hyaluronate give skin a nourishing hydration boost so it stays comfortable all day long.
The foundation promises a sweat and humidity resistant formula that easily builds for medium to full coverage. It also aims to even out skin without clogging pores or settling into fine lines.
Best budget foundation: The Ordinary Serum Foundation – £5.70
You don’t always need to splurge for a glowing base. The Ordinary’s Serum Foundation comes in at an affordable £5.70, without compromising on quality.
The lightweight serum foundation is available in 21 different shades in a semi-matte finish with medium coverage.
It also has staying power, promising to stay put all day without settling into any fine lines. A no-brainer budget option to us.
Best luminous foundation: Delilah Time Frame Future Resist Foundation SPF 20 – £36
Delilah products are an all-time favourite here at Liz Earle Wellbeing Magazine. The beauty brand’s Time Frame Future Resist Foundation is a go-to for mature skin.
This foundation has a light buildable coverage, which easily blends for a flawless, luminous finish.
Time Frame’s SPF 20 formula contains vitamin E, a powerful antioxidant that can help prevent environmental damage and a blend of peptides to help prevent signs of ageing.
Priced at £32, there are seven different shades available. Don’t forget to use the LIZLOVES discount code at checkout to save 20%.
Best matte foundation: Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Foundation – £36
Love a foundation with a matte finish? Charlotte Tilbury’s Airbrush Flawless Foundation comes in 44 different shades. It also has a weightless and natural matte finish that promises full coverage and all-day staying power.
Ingredients are hydrating, anti-ageing, anti-pollution and refreshing, making it one of the best foundation options for mature skin. It’s a solid bet if you struggle with hot flushes hit as it’s also waterproof.
After more waterproof makeup products to keep things in place? Read our round-up here.
Best SPF foundation: Studio10 Age Repair Perfect Canvas Foundation SPF30 – £34
While it’s important to wear a dedicated SPF all year round, using a foundation with added SPF can help us level up our protection, especially during the summer months.
Studio10 Age Repair Perfect Canvas is a serum foundation that comes in a handy compact, making it perfect for on-the-go touch-ups. The hydrating cream leaves skin looking healthy and flawless, without being heavy or cakey.
Formulated specifically for mature skin, Studio10’s foundation also helps to even skin tone and cover pigmentation, dark circles and redness. The SPF30-enhanced formula comes in five shade options, with each palette containing two different tones, so you can always get the perfect match.
You can use the LIZLOVES affiliate discount code on Studio10 products to save 20%, taking the price from £34 to £27.20.
Best medium coverage foundation: No7 Hydraluminous Moisturising Foundation – £14.95
No7’s Hydralumious Moisturising Foundation provides hydration all day long in a medium coverage. It comes with an affordable £14.95 price tag for visibly fresh and radiant skin in an instant.
You’ll find plenty of skin-loving ingredients here. From helpful antioxidants such as vitamins A, C and E, to moisturising grapeseed oil, this foundation will help to leave your skin feeling healthier, fresher and more luminous.
Best tinted moisturiser: Beauty Pie Super Healthy Skin Sheer Tinted SPF 20 – £8.30 with subscription
Although not technically a foundation, a tinted moisturiser is a makeup bag essential if you prefer a sheer and healthy glow rather than high coverage.
Beauty Pie’s Super Healthy Skin Sheer Tinted Oil-free SPF 20 has a wearable and natural skin-luminising finish, with ingredients that can help limit dehydration, such as squalane, naturally derived from olive oil.
It also contains smoothing jojoba esters and soothing liquorice extract, to blur fine lines and wrinkles for a soft-focused finish.
With a Beauty Pie membership, you can get your hands on this for just £8.30.
Best CC cream: IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream with SPF 50 – £32.50
Mature skin can sometimes be prone to redness and rosacea, often caused by hormonal fluctuations.
A colour correcting cream (or CC cream) like IT Cosmetics’ Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream can help to even out any redness, dark circles and pigmentation for the most flawless base possible.
The formula is infused with hydrolysed collagen, peptides, niacinamide and hyaluronic acid to improve the appearance of skin imperfections and reduce the appearance of pores without cracking or creasing.
If you do struggle with redness and rosacea, read our guide to the best rosacea makeup products here.
Best splurge foundation: Chantecaille Future Skin Oil-Free Foundation – £72
Fancy pushing the boat out and treating yourself to a super luxurious option? High-end beauty brand Chantecaille’s Future Skin Oil-Free foundation is perfect for dry and mature skin.
Combining luxury with pioneering, plant-derived ingredients, cutting-edge science and meticulous formulation, this foundation offers an ultra-lightweight texture and buildable formula for adjustable coverage.
Light-reflecting pigments ease the appearance of imperfections for a flawless finish. At £72, it’s not cheap, but the reviews say it’s worth every penny.
Best dewy foundation: NYX Professional Makeup Born to Glow Naturally Radiant Foundation – £10
Always trying to be glowier? NYX’s Born To Glow Naturally Radiant Foundation is super dewy, to help give dull complexions a gorgeous glow while still looking like skin.
Blending seamlessly, the formula flatters all complexions, creating a smooth finish and even tone in an expansive range of shades.
At just £10 a pop, it’s something of a fan favourite.
Best stick foundation: bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick – £30
If you love the convenience of a foundation stick, try bareMinerals Complexion Rescue Hydrating Foundation Stick.
The clean, water-based liquid stick has SPF 25 protection and includes hydrating ingredients for healthy skin.
It has an easy-to-blend texture that melts into skin for all-day wear. Plus, it’s lightweight and never cakey, with a radiant finish.
Best high coverage foundation: Smashbox Studio Skin Full Coverage 24 Hour Foundation – £31
Want full coverage without looking smothered in makeup? Smashbox Studio Skin Full Coverage 24 Hour Foundation uses hyaluronic acid and vitamin E to keep skin plump and hydrated in a full-coverage, matte finish that’s cleverly undetectable.
Despite its full coverage promises, this foundation leaves behind a weightless, comfortable feel that’s non-settling and non-creasing.
At £31, it’s not the cheapest on our list of best foundations for mature skin (nor is it the most expensive) but Smashbox promises a little goes a long way, so this should last you.
