Humans are curious beings, and makeup lovers may be the most curious of all. Don’t tell us you haven’t tried to clock the blush the person across from you on the bus is applying or sneak a peek at the lipstick rolling around the bottom of your friend’s purse. Sure, social media has given us unfettered access to personal beauty routines, but there’s nothing more thrilling than a spontaneous and unsponsored makeup sighting IRL. That’s what’s so exciting about the Allure Readers’ Choice Awards: They let you glimpse what thousands of fellow beauty lovers have stashed in their makeup bags, but without having to squint, stare, or snoop.
What are your fellow beauty enthusiasts loving right now? They’re relying on classic, time-tested formulas like the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer and Benefit Cosmetics Hoola Matte Powder Bronzer. They can’t get enough of Rare Beauty’s buzzy liquid blush and highlighter, and they know a good drugstore deal when they see one (looking at you, Maybelline New York Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara and Nyx Professional Makeup Epic Ink Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner). But that’s far from everything. Keep reading to discover all of this year’s fan-favorite makeup products. It’s not being nosy—it’s being well-informed.
Be sure to check out our other 2025 Readers’ Choice categories, like skin care and Breakthroughs, to see if your favorite products made the cut.
All the Winning Products:
- Favorite Lipstick: YSL Beauty Loveshine Lip Oil Stick, $45
- Favorite Lip Gloss: Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer, $22
- Favorite Foundation: Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Foundation, $49
- Favorite Concealer: Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer, $32
- Favorite Bronzer: Benefit Cosmetics Hoola Matte Powder Bronzer, $36
- Favorite Blush: Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, $25
- Favorite Highlighter: Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer, $27
- Favorite Eye Shadow Palette: Makeup by Mario Master Mattes Eyeshadow Palette: The Neutrals, $52
- Favorite Eyeliner: Nyx Professional Makeup Epic Ink Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner, $10
- Favorite Brow Product: Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow+ Volumizing Eyebrow Gel, $27
- Favorite Mascara: Maybelline New York Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara, $13
- Favorite Makeup Tool: Beautyblender Original Makeup Sponge, $20
- Favorite Nail Polish: Essie, $10
- Favorite Press-On Nails: Facile Reusable Press-on Nails, $18
Readers’ Choice Awards: Makeup
LIPSTICK: YSL Beauty Loveshine Lip Oil Stick
Is it a lip oil? A lipstick? Honestly, it doesn’t matter, because we’ll keep swiping YSL Beauty’s Loveshine Lip Oil Stick, whatever it is. Allure editors can’t get over how the formula makes our lips look and feel, and it appears our readers can’t either. Infused with a generous amount of hydrating passion fruit oil and softening fig-pulp extract, the bullet glides on effortlessly, leaving behind hydrated lips with a layer of gorgeous, gleaming color on top. Available in 23 glamorous shades, these lip oil sticks contain enough pigment to wear on their own, but can also be worn over lip liner for an ultra-luminous combo.
LIP GLOSS: Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer
Every swipe of the Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer is bursting with shine and hydration (and it’s not just because the doe-foot applicator is so huge). Whether the finish is holographic, shimmery, or sheer and creamy, the shea butter in this extravagant formula leaves lips feeling soft and supple, while the universally flattering hues—handpicked by Riri—ensure everyone can enjoy what you all agree is the boss of glosses.
FOUNDATION: Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Foundation
Readers have once again professed their love for the Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Foundation, a rare full-coverage formula that doesn’t smother the skin and crack up by midday. There are so many reasons to fall head over heels for this formula! Thanks to moisture-locking humectants (like propanediol), the featherlight liquid feels hydrating and comfortable—a surprising feat for a foundation that’s so budge-proof—while soft-focus pigments render imperfections nearly invisible. Not to mention, with 44 shades, everyone can relish in Charlotte’s airbrush-machine in a bottle.
CONCEALER: Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer
The reason nearly every makeup artist we’ve ever spoken to shouts out the Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer is that, when it launched in 2013, the cover-up set the standard for what a good liquid concealer should be. The silky, long-wear formula glides on easily, blends into skin seamlessly, and doesn’t settle into fine lines, thanks to hydrating ingredients like glycerin and vitamin E. It has the perfect amount of pigment to cover whatever you want to conceal (redness, pimples, or dark circles) with a luminous finish that leaves skin looking fresh.
BRONZER: Benefit Cosmetics Hoola Matte Powder Bronzer
The Benefit Cosmetics Hoola Matte Powder Bronzer was a rarity when it launched almost a quarter-century ago. It was the first shimmer-free, neutral-toned pressed-powder bronzer that left you looking sun-kissed rather than orange or dusty. Four more shades and thousands of fans later, the original Hoola Matte Powder Bronzer remains unchanged, and is as reliable and flattering as ever.
BLUSH: Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush
With Rare Beauty, Selena Gomez set out to create a product line that made applying makeup easy for the average beauty lover—and there’s no better example of this than the Rare Beauty Soft Pinch Liquid Blush. Silica and botanical extracts (lotus, gardenia, and white lily) give the formula an ultra-silky texture that’s mind-bogglingly easy to blend and manipulate, whether you choose to do so with your fingers or a fluffy brush. The only way to mess up when applying this blush is to start off with too much. It is intensely pigmented, so the tiniest dot is all you need to give cheeks a soft veil of color—though you can build it up to a more serious, Selena Gomez-level flush if you prefer.
HIGHLIGHTER: Rare Beauty Positive Light Liquid Luminizer
Housed in packaging that’s similar to the Soft Pinch Liquid Blush, Rare Beauty’s Positive Light Liquid Luminizer offers another demonstration of Gomez’s makeup-made-simple mantra. In this case, the product is a lovely liquid highlighter that seamlessly blends into the skin to deliver a radiant (but never sparkly) sheen. Just use the doe-foot applicator to sprinkle your shade of choice (there are nine) onto the high points of your face, then blend out the pearlescent liquid with your finger or a small, fluffy brush. The result is a dimensional glow that can be applied for a sheer finish or layered until it gleams.
EYE SHADOW: Makeup by Mario Master Mattes Eyeshadow Palette: The Neutrals
This year, Allure readers’ favorite eye shadow palette is also the most practical; but there’s nothing basic or boring about the 12 neutral hues (creams, tans, and browns) in Makeup by Mario Master Mattes Eyeshadow Palette: The Neutrals. The shades are inspired by ’90s neutrals, as well as natural materials and textures, making them richer, more flattering, and more inclusive than the chalky tones from that era. Keeping ease in mind, the powders themselves are intentionally not heavily pigmented so that you can effortlessly blend and build up the color without going overboard.
EYELINER: Nyx Professional Makeup Epic Ink Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner
Not too stiff, not too pliant, the superfine tip of Nyx Professional Makeup’s Epic Ink Waterproof Liquid Eyeliner creates the sharpest of lines with the longest of lifespans. “This has been a staple since my college days: It’s affordable, super-pigmented, easy-gliding as heck—and I’m so here for the color extensions!” says commerce editor Sarah Han, referring to the nine shades that have been added to the original six. “The pink injects a dose of fun for special occasions or,” she adds, “any day I’m feeling a little down.”
BROW: Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow+ Volumizing Eyebrow Gel
With its tiny spooley brush and 10 shade options (including the coolest of grays, the palest of blondes, and the deepest of black-browns), Benefit Cosmetics Gimme Brow+ Volumizing Eyebrow Gel combs in the ideal amount of color to build up brow hairs. Examine the wand up close (like, really up close) and you’ll realize that its itty-bitty fibers are doing the bulking, stealthily latching onto brows to fill them in and fluff them out in the most natural way possible.
MASCARA: Maybelline New York Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara
At $13 a tube, the price is right for Maybelline New York Lash Sensational Sky High Mascara. But according to our readers (and most of TikTok, basically), so is the wand and the formula, even for sparse lashes. “My short, straight, and superbly stubborn lashes instantly perk up with one coat (and the help of a lash curler),” says Han. The secret is the silky, blendable pigments, as well as the conical-shaped brush and spiky, synthetic bristles that comb through and fan out your lashes simultaneously.
MAKEUP TOOL: Beautyblender Original Makeup Sponge
Ah, the Beautyblender Original Makeup Sponge. The incredible, inedible egg-shaped makeup sponge that’s launched hundreds of imitations. None, however, match the masterful, makeup-blending skills of the original. The proprietary, latex-free material was designed not only to absorb less product but also to push makeup onto the skin and lift off any excess, leaving you with a natural-looking finish. As for the shape, the tapered tip and wide base make easy work of buffing, stippling, and blending creams or powders along every curve and contour of your face.
NAIL POLISH: Essie
Blanc and Ballet Slippers, Mademoiselle and Mint Candy Apple, Licorice and Allure: Essie has created shades so iconic, you can picture them immediately (perhaps one of these shades is on your nails right now). But it’s not just the brand’s knack for creating beautiful hues that landed it on this list. “My relationship with Essie goes way back: It was a red shade that got me temporarily banned from painting my nails when I was in kindergarten because I spilled it all over our white bathroom tiles,” says content director Kara McGrath. “That ban has been lifted for 30 years, but Essie—with its long-lasting formula, vast array of shades, and relatively low price point—remains a staple in my massive polish collection.”
PRESS-ONS: Facile Reusable Press-on Nails
The word “facile” means “easy” in Italian and French, and we’d bank on that being one reason the brand is taking home this award. The Facile Reusable Press-on Nails are super-straightforward to apply, either with the incredibly strong adhesive tabs or the professional nail glue included in each kit. The variety of sizes means there’s a press-on in the kit to fit every one of your nails (and your neighbor’s). And we’d be remiss not to mention the designs: From elegant to goth, each and every option is molto bella and tres tres belle, if you ask us.