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The best bronzers are the easiest, most sun-safe shortcut to give the illusion you just returned from a dreamy tropical vacation. These makeup bag staples give your skin a healthy, glowy gleam—whether you’re after something subtle or a highly pigmented matte—to brighten up an otherwise flat look, sculpt a full-face contour, or even accentuate your collarbones. (Bronzer, you magician, you.)
If you’re a newbie, don’t be intimidated: Bronzers are hard to mess up; just use a light hand (and we’ll get to more details later). To help you figure out your perfect formula, we surveyed our editors and chatted with pro makeup artists who told us what makes a product worth springing for. Scroll on, and thank us later.
Our Top Bronzers
Frequently Asked Questions
Best Overall: Saie Sun Melt Natural Cream Bronzer
Why it’s worth it: The 2024 Best of Beauty-winning Saie Sun Melt Natural Cream Bronzer is velvety, lightweight, and melty in all the right ways. Its soft formula builds easily, can be applied under or over a setting powder, or as a contour. A little goes a long way—a quality we’re always on board with—and it only takes a few swirls to amply load up your brush. In our testing, we especially liked that there’s no grey ashiness or carrot-orange hue left behind and that, despite being a cream bronzer, the formula has a nice, long wear, even when it’s hot and humid outside.
Saie also offers a handy guide for finding your perfect shade online. If you want a more low-key bronzed effect, opt for a more neutral or cooler shade (relative to your skin tone) and buff inward. More of a liquid bronzer gal? Content director Kara McGrath reaches for Saie Dew Bronze to add a dollop of definition to her complexion. “I had pretty much sworn off bronzer until this one came out (No offense, bronzer; I’m just more of a blush gal.),” she says. “I dab it on my cheekbones, nose, and forehead for a natural, dewy glow.”
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“My approach to complexion makeup is to look like I’m not wearing it at all. One bronzer that makes that easy is the Saie Sun Melt in Medium Bronze. The creamy, buildable formula melts onto skin, seamlessly blending to create shadows (minus the streaks). The end result is a sculpted complexion with lots of warmth.”
“A Best of Beauty winner for a reason, this is Golden Hour skin in a pot. The shade range is flexible, the texture is creamy, and the product melts right into the skin, giving you the au naturel effect of a subtle tan any time of year.”
Key ingredients: colloidal oatmeal, grapeseed oil, elderberry extracts
Finish: natural
Shades: 3
Best Duo: Juvia’s Place Bronzed Duo
Why it’s worth it: The Juvia’s Place Bronzed Duo palette features two buildable, powder-based mattes that are practically impossible to mess up. Each of its five color-ways is tailored to provide a natural-looking wash of color without erring on orange. Swipe the lighter shade over your nose and around the perimeter of your face for a bit of soft radiance, and the darker option for defining your cheekbones and jawline. Lots of testers use this duo as a contour/bronzer combo.
Tester feedback from associate beauty editor Annie Blay
“There aren’t many bronzers on the market that are dark enough to show up on deep skin but also warm enough that they actually bronze instead of contour. So when I discovered that the Juvia’s Place Bronze Duo does both, I was immediately sold. I became an even bigger fan the more I used the product. I tap a brush into the deeper of the two shades and sweep it across my cheekbones after applying blush and powder. Then I brush on the lighter shade sparingly above my cheekbones to blend it all out. The result is always a warm sun-kissed glow.”
- Key ingredients: synthetic fluorphlogopite (synthetic fluorine mica), talc
- Finish: soft matte
- Shades: 5
Best Dewy: Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream
Why it’s worth it: Sweep on the Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream (a 2022 Best of Beauty Award winner) for a dewy look that skips the shimmer. This formula has a balm-like, cream-gel texture that melts once it touches your skin, leaving behind a wash of warm, lush color. Each of its three shades contains light reflective pigments for a radiant sheen without looking sparkly, and the jar is large enough to accommodate the whole head of your favorite wide, dense contour brush.
Tester feedback from commerce editor Sarah Han
“This bronzer is just as creamy as it looks. I’m always rushing with application, and I’ve had a fair share of not-so-blended-out streaks but that’s not an issue with this gorgeously packaged formula. I use a double-ended Saie brush to stipple on and diffuse a light layer on my cheeks and along the sides of my nose—just enough for a tinge of warm definition. I used a very light hand in my demo here, but I can confirm Les Beige is easily buildable for the moments I actually wear a full face of foundation and my skin needs more color.”
- Key ingredients: coconut oil, pinnata leaf extract, vitamin E
- Finish: dewy
- Shades: 3
Best Matte: Milk Makeup Matte Cream Bronzer Stick
Why it’s worth it: If shimmery formulations aren’t your thing, you’ll dig this creamy, matte formula. The Milk Makeup Matte Cream Bronzer Stick comes in five neutral, warm-leaning shades, creating the perfect middle ground between a contour product and a bronzer. This Best of Beauty-winning formula is infused with moisturizing coconut alkanes, antioxidant-rich mango, and apricot extracts to nourish skin as you wear it. You don’t need to limit use to your face, either. Swipe the stick across your collarbones, arms, and legs if body contouring is your thing.
Tester feedback from Shipin
“Hello, versatility! I love that I can use this stick for whatever makeup look I’m going for: no-makeup-makeup or a more glammed-out look. It’s goofproof to apply since it blends so easily (even over textured, often flaky skin like mine). I tend to drag the bronzer directly over my face to place the pigment, and it never tugs—it glides. But you can also dab your brush over the top of the stick for a bit more precision.”
- Key ingredients: mango extract, apricot extract, coconut alkanes
- Finish: matte
- Shades: 5
Best for Contouring: Patrick Ta Major Sculpt Crème Contour & Powder Bronzer Duo
Why it’s worth it: The Patrick Ta Beauty Major Sculpt Crème Contour & Powder Bronzer Duo, which comes in three shades, offers the best of both bronzey worlds: a soft powder for subtle bronzing moments and a more pigmented cream for added intensity. Technically, this is a bronzing and contouring palette, so you can use the powder formulation for a more muted look, cream for defining your natural contours and creating shadows, or combine the two for multi-faceted results. We love the versatility of this Best of Beauty Award-winning compact.
“The beauty of Patrick Ta’s Major Sculpt duo is that you can create added dimension by layering cream and powder formulas. The cream contour applies like butter (I usually use stamping motions to press in the product), and the powder just gives my complexion an extra oomph—it’s super blendable and leaves a silky-smooth finish.”
- Key ingredients: mica, jojoba seed oil, coconut oil, glycerin, sunflower seed wax
- Finish: demi-matte
- Shades: 5
Best Applicator: LYS Beauty No Limits Cream Bronzer
Why it’s worth it: The ever-creamy, Best of Beauty-winning LYS Beauty No Limits Cream Bronzer has a balm-like formula that sculpts and contours while delivering hydrating sodium hyaluronate, a plumping derivative of hyaluronic acid, in the name of creating a glowy (never greasy) finish. To top off the nourishment, antioxidant-rich rosehip oil softens the look of dark spots and delivers moisture. Keep in mind that this bronzer stick is ultra-pigmented, so we recommend using a dense bronzing brush or makeup sponge to apply and blend. Don’t fret if you overdo it because the No Limits Cream Bronzer’s tint easily blends out to a sheerer finish.
New York City-based makeup artist Jamie Dorman says this cream bronzer is one of her favorites for its wider range of undertones. “It can be so hard to find bronzer shades for dark skin with options for people who want a warmer or cooler tone,” she says. “This product comes in multiple undertones and has a silky formula that will make skin look naturally tan.”
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“My contour game is pretty pathetic. A few swipes across my forehead, down my cheekbones, and along my jawline is the extent of it—applied with my fingers. This bronzer/contour stick makes it so much easier; the mess-free tool chisels even better than my digits.”
- Key ingredients: rosehip oil, green tea extract, sodium hyaluronate
- Finish: demi-matte
- Shades: 7
More bronzers to consider
- For a primo, blurry bronzing powder that puts Facetune to shame, Charlotte Tilbury’s 2024 Best of Beauty-winning Airbrush Matte Bronzer is an excellent pick. “This balances great color payoff with a buildable formula—perfect for anyone who’s heavy-handed with powders, like me,” says social media director Kassidy Silva. Take into account this pressed powder isn’t as opaque as creamier options, but sometimes all we want is a sheer formula that subtly enhances our complexions.
- Lightweight luminosity is synonymous with bronzing drops, and bronzing drops are synonymous with Drunk Elephant. The 2024 Best of Beauty-winning D-Bronzi Anti-Pollution Sunshine Drops protect against free radicals while giving off subtle warmth.
- For a liquid bronzer with a versatile applicator, pick up Makeup by Mario’s SoftSculpt Bronzing & Shaping Serum. With this bottle, you’ll get a pump top and a cushy-tipped wand, so you can float between precision and soft-focus, loosey-goosey blending. It’s also equipped with hyaluronic acid and vitamin E for a hydrating, antioxidizing boost.
- The cheap, cheerful, precise, and contour-ready E.L.F. Halo Glow Contour Beauty Wand has all of TikTok talking for its warmth-mimicking magic. This liquid bronzer’s plush applicator allows for neat application and a silken, creamy formula that blends like a dream.
Frequently Asked Questions
How should I choose a bronzer?
Like foundation and concealer, bronzer can veer quickly off course if you use the wrong shade for your skin tone. As a general rule, steer clear of any bronzers that look too orange or too gray, as these hues can make you look unnaturally tan or washed out. It’s a good idea to check out how the color looks on your skin in natural light to ensure it’s a spot-on match.
If you have fair skin, New York City-based makeup artist Elisa Flowers recommends looking for a shade or two darker than your natural skin tone and always using a light hand when applying. Those with light-to-medium complexions can also benefit from choosing shades one or two hues darker than their natural skin color. However, neutral options will always look the most organic when it comes to undertones. “Be sure to avoid bronzers that appear overly orange or red-toned in the pan, as they will only become more intense when you apply them to the skin,” says Flowers.
People with tan, olive-toned skin can get away with wearing most bronzer shades as long as they don’t stray too far from their natural skin color, says Flowers. However, she also says to choose terracotta hues with a hint of red, as they look beautiful on tan complexions.
Finding a suitable bronzer can be especially tricky for those with dark and deep complexions, as fewer options on the market cater to melanated skin. Still, brands like LYS and Fenty Beauty are getting it right with a more comprehensive, inclusive range of shades.
What’s the difference between powder, cream, and liquid bronzers?
Apply your bronzer to the areas of the face where the sun would hit, including the top of your cheeks, along your hairline, nose, middle of the chin, and forehead, according to Brielle Pollara, a New York City-based makeup artist. “Using a brush, apply onto the skin using light strokes,” she told Allure. “Make sure to blend well into the skin for a natural finish.” That said, there are nuances to application techniques, depending on the type of formulation you use:
Liquid bronzers can be used under your complexion products, alone as an all-over glow booster, or concentrated on specific areas of the face for a more contoured appearance. “With any liquid product, I always recommend using a dense brush to apply it,” says Pollara. “This will give you more control over the product placement.” For a softer, natural-looking finish, she suggests applying your liquid bronzer to the back of your hand and picking up product with your brush before applying it to your face.
Similar to a liquid formula, apply your cream bronzer with your fingers onto the top of your hand and use a dense, angled brush to transfer the product to your skin, per Jamie Greenberg, a Los Angeles-based makeup artist and founder of Jamie Makeup. “I like to first place the product here because it allows the formula to warm up and it’ll lay better on the face,” she says. Tomy Rivero, a makeup artist based in New York City, recommends moisturizing your skin before applying your cream bronzer for ultra-dewy results. “Spray your setting or hydrating mist right before your cream bronzer application,” he says. “Not only does it help the bronzer go on smoother and more evenly, but once the moisture dries down, it naturally sets the cream bronzers for a more skin-like finish.”
Cream and liquid bronzers tend to have buildable, opaque formulations, whereas powder bronzers are sheerer in pigment. You can layer for more intensity, but bronzer powders are overall more helpful for a subtler definition or on top of your denser creams and liquids. Los Angeles-based makeup artist Daniel Chinchilla previously told Allure to tap any excess bronzer off your makeup brush before applying, since “a little goes a long way.” He suggested applying your powder bronzer from your temples down to your cheeks for natural-looking warmth.
Meet the experts
How we test and review products
Before reviewing any makeup, we ask questions about a number of factors: What ingredients are in it? Does the brand offer a wide shade range inclusive of consumers with all skin tones and undertones? Is it safe for readers who have sensitive skin or wear contact lenses? Is it on the affordable side or more of a splurge? Is its packaging consciously designed or needlessly wasteful?
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