Editor-Approved Makeup Brushes for Every Part of Your Face

I used to be a beauty sponge girl, but brushes have won my heart lately. They’re more convenient and waste less product. Whether I’m using foundation or just concealer, I use this ultrasoft one from Hourglass every single day to apply my base. The contoured shape allows you to get into every nook and cranny, but it’s also large enough that it doesn’t take too long to cover your entire face.

If you still love a beauty blender, a buffing brush is your answer. The Brush No.1 from Merit is made from dense bristles that can be used on any product and gives your makeup a natural finish.

If you want proof that drugstore makeup brushes can hang with prestige ones, here it is. This firm foundation brush went viral on TikTok this year for its ability to seamlessly buff and blend out liquid foundation and get you flawless full coverage, all without breaking the bank or blowing your entire beauty budget. And even though it’s a drugstore pick, makeup artists like Amber Amos love it. “It’s perfect for liquid or cream foundations, and the dense short bristles allow you to blend or buff product on for a medium or fuller coverage.”

I know that this is a blush brush, but one day I used it for under my eyes, and I was pleasantly surprised by the results. Whatever cream or liquid product you choose seems to blend and disperse itself when you use the Baby Blender. It’s soft, so it doesn’t irritate the sensitive skin around the eyes, and it’s small enough for spot concealing around the face, too.

Most concealer brushes have a characteristic flat brush head, but this one comes in a unique half-moon shape that comfortably hugs the contours of the face — especially under the eyes, where a lot of the concealing action typically takes place. I have a small face, so I also use this brush to apply cream blush; its small surface area allows me to have more control.

The Backstage line from Dior is supposed to mimic being a makeup artist backstage at runways — meaning it’s a makeup brush made for quick and easy application with flawless finishes. The firm flat brush has a tapered end that makes it ideal to use for concealers and for precise application. Reviewers and makeup artists alike love the smooth finish it has.

This is another brush I don’t use for its intended purpose. I just find that the larger end is amazing for packing powder onto small, concentrated areas as well as diffusing it across larger ones, like my forehead. Meanwhile, I use the other end to make sure my eyelids and under-eye area are completely mattified so that my mascara doesn’t smudge everywhere.

Yes, this brush is incredibly pricey. But it might be the softest thing you’ve ever felt in your life. Its tapered edges make it perfect for picking up blush or setting powder and pressing it into the grooves around your eyelids and cheeks. (It’s also made in Kumano). It would be a good gift for Mariah Carey, longtime lover of fluffy things who once asked for 20 white kittens for a public performance.

EcoTools has been by my side since middle school, when I had very little pocket money to my name and a budding passion for makeup. Don’t discount the brand’s brushes just because they’re affordable. They’re as soft as can be and will last for years. This one is great for loose and pressed powders alike.

It is with great shame that I confess this: I avoided trying Makeup by Mario’s brushes for years. I just didn’t like the idea of a double-sided brush because I usually store my brushes in glass cups. However, the F4 changed my mind about Makeup by Mario brushes and dual-ended brushes in general. You can’t see it in the pictures, but both ends have unique shapes that slopes down and perfectly cup the face for precise application and blending. I use the F4 for foundation and blush too, but I especially love bronzing and contouring with it. The blend is truly effortless, and I now understand why everyone on TikTok can’t stop talking about it.

Do you remember that underpainting technique that went viral a year or two ago? Mary Philips was the makeup artist who popularized it, and she launched a brush to help you try it. Even if you don’t get her palette, the small brush heads are ideal for concealing, contouring, and highlighting with the cream products you already own.

Designed for streak-free shading, the 04 brush from Tom Ford is made with synthetic hairs and a smaller finish for precise contouring. It’s a favorite of pro makeup artist Carly Loudenburg.

Sephora’s pro brushes are all synthetic, and yet they are as soft as a newborn baby’s hand. If it’s time to let go of that dingy, decade-old blush brush you’ve been using, try upgrading to this one. You can sweep powder blushes all along your cheekbones, or you can carefully place a cream blush on the apples of your cheeks.

This wallet-friendly, multipurpose brush is beloved by professionals, including makeup artist Emily Cheng, who works with celebrities like Blackpink’s Jennie, Billie Eilish, and Gracie Abrams. “It’s super-versatile,” she says. “I can use this for everything on the face, including buffing, applying blush, and contouring.” Makeup artist Amy Chin agrees and says she likes to use this brush for precise application. “The bristles help naturally blend and create a soft look to the skin,” she explains.

As one reviewer wrote, “If you’re on the fence about this product, jump over it.” IT Cosmetics makes great value brushes that are so soft you will want to stroke them all over your face as a form of self-soothing. This blush brush gets rave reviews because it’s packed with fluffy bristles and cut at a soft angle to mold perfectly to your cheekbones. It’s perfect for blending and diffusing even the brightest of blushes.

Whereas I usually apply my cream highlighters with my fingers, I have to use a brush for my powders. Since I don’t want to look like Edward Cullen (no offense), I like to use a smaller, more delicate brush to kiss the top of my cheeks with product. This prevents sparkles from going anywhere I don’t want them. This Picasso (a K-beauty brand) brush is also one of my favorites for powder blush.

The name says it all: This asymmetrical brush literally hugs your cheeks, making it extremely easy to apply powder highlight regardless of your skill level. The chiseled shape (inspired by the shape of a shark tooth) is also great for highlighting other curved, protruding things on your face, like the bridge of your nose, brow bone, Cupid’s bow, and collar bone. Plus it’s pink.

Fan brushes are a makeup-artist favorite for applying highlighter because they’re so delicate that you can get a fine layer of product on your face. Its flat fan shape neatly sweeps away any excess product, like annoying eye-shadow fallout or a contouring session that got slightly out of control, with zero smudges or streaks. If you need more excuses to run this soothing fan of fluff all over your face, it’s also great at applying a thin, even veil of setting powder and turning the application of creamier things like tinted moisturizers into a spiritual experience.

While this brush is meant to work on all eye shapes and sizes, you’ll especially appreciate it if you have smaller eyes like me. You can blend cream, liquid, and powder formulas with the larger end all over your lidd, and the smaller end is a tiny pencil brush to help smudge out the upper and lower lash lines. If you have a lot of lid space to work with, though, it may take longer than usual to cover your entire eyelid with shadow.

This brush was also specifically designed for smaller and hooded eyes. It’s one of Cheng’s favorite eye-shadow tools. “I love how tapered it is and smaller than your average blending brush,” she says. “I use it for finer detail blending on the eyes.”

This soft shadow brush will get you any eye-shadow look your heart desires. Sweep shadow for an even wash of color, press and pat shadow using the flat side to build more color, or use the rounded tip to target shadow along your lash line.

The tip of this brush is a straight line — all the better for ensuring that your eyeliner doesn’t end up crooked. Dip this into eye shadow or gel eyeliner to stamp on liner at your lash line. Or use it to softly blend your eyeliner deeper into the roots of your lashes, to make them look thicker and darker. Used either way, it will help fix and prevent wobbly liner.

If you want fuller-looking brows, this can help. One end has a delicate, slanted brush that makes it easy to draw sharp, individual hairs. The other holds a fine pronged spoolie that you can brush through brows to blend pigment so that they look natural.

Sometimes, I like to apply cream blushes on my lips. Dipping my fingers into them over and over to reapply feels unhygienic, so I always have this Victoria Beckham Beauty brush on hand. It has a pointy tip that allows me to line my lips with a cream formula if I want to, and I can also cover my entire lip with whatever color I’m working with. But my favorite quality is that it has its own cap, so I can throw the tool in my bag and not have to worry about it smearing blush or lipstick onto everything.

What’s more perfect than a two-in-one option? This Chanel brush has an angled brush so you can precisely outline your lips and a flatter side to apply color and blend. Angela Levin highly recommends Chanel brushes for their elegant finish and their longevity.