Hide dark circles and cover blemishes with the best concealer, designed to combat all manner of imperfections
Whether you want to disguise pesky dark under-eye circles or hide the mother of all blemishes, the best concealer is an absolute must to have stashed in your make-up bag.
Rest assured that there’s one out there to help you fake the look eight hours of sleep, cover up breakouts or disguise redness, regardless of your budget. But first, a few expert need-to-knows to ensure you get your perfect make-up match.
‘Not all concealers are made equal and not all of them will do everything,’ MAC’s Global Senior Artist and BBC Glow Up judge Dominic Skinner tells us. ‘Concealers are like pairs of shoes; you need different ones for different occasions. When choosing one you need to ask yourself “what is it for?” and “where is it going?”. This will help you find your way through the forest of options.
You’ll also need to think about the type of finish you like best – matte, dewy, or demi-matte for something creamy that falls between the two.
Best concealers 2022:
- Best for dark circles: Rose Inc Softlight Luminous Hydrating Concealer, £23 | Space NK
- Best high street option: Maybelline Instant Anti Age Eraser Concealer, £8.99 | Lookfantastic
- Best long-wearing: MAC Pro Longwear Concealer, £22 | Lookfantastic
- Best for dry skin: Glossier Stretch Concealer, £15 | Glossier
- Best for doing-it-all: Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer Duo, £28 | Space NK
- Best for angry red blemishes: bareMinerals Original Liquid Mineral Concealer, £24 | John Lewis
- Best for spots: NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer, £24 | Cult Beauty
- Best for dehydrated skin: Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Concealer, £34.50 | Lookfantastic
- Best for mature skin: Charlotte Tilbury Magic Away Liquid Concealer, £24 | Charlotte Tilbury
- Most purse-friendly: NYX Professional Makeup Born To Glow Radiant Concealer, £9 | Cult Beauty
- Best for full-coverage: Huda Beauty Overachiever Concealer, £24 | Cult Beauty
- Best for covering it all up: Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Instant Retouch Concealer, £19 | Boots
- Best for brightening under the eyes: IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Undereye Illumination, £25 | Cult Beauty
- Most skin-loving: Shiseido Synchro Skin Self-Refreshing Concealer, £30 | SpaceNK
Finding the best concealer for dark circles
‘For under-eyes you need something that will set, like the MAC Pro Longwear Concealer, £22. This means it won’t sit in fine lines and won’t start lifting your mascara – which is what causes panda eyes at the end of the night,” Dominic explains.
‘You might also need a shade that’s more pink or coral than your skin tone as this will help to banish those dark circles.’ Of course, the best eye cream can also help to improve the look of dark circles and bags as well as providing a good base for your concealer of choice.
Something to note is that dark circles under the eyes are very often hereditary, so you’re not going to get rid of them completely. However, Zoë Taylor, make-up artist for Chanel, suggests facial massage before applying your concealer. ‘Lazy lymphatic drainage can really emphasise the problem, she explains. ‘Facial exercises are a huge part of any skincare routine, but don’t underestimate how much this can help with lymphatic drainage.’
She also says that: ‘Using one under the eyes is all about the light layering of products.’ She recommends colour correcting, then applying your foundation, before topping with your concealer. And blend each one into the skin with a very soft, fluffy brush.
And her final tip? Highlighter. ‘Applied with the tip of my finger and patted into the outer corners of my under eye, this is a great distraction from any of the fine lines in this area too.’
Choosing the best concealer for acne and blemishes
‘To conceal blemishes you need to go for one that has a more creamy texture,’ Dominic continues. ‘This will prevent the dry skin from around the blemish to crack and peel during the day. It’s best to go for one that is closest to your skin tone and I find that applying with fingers in a tapping motion works the best to camouflage the blemish completely.
‘For skin pigmentation and uneven skin tone, I recommend a liquid one as you can build up the coverage to a flawless finish. Plus, you can mix it into your regular liquid foundation to give it that extra red carpet finish. MAC’s Studio Fix 24 Hour Smoothwear Concealer, £19.50, is amazing, and a fashion week and award season staple in my kit.’ Pair it with a great hyperpigmentation treatment for maximum results.
What about the best concealer brushes?
Although some people prefer to use the ‘wand’ or tip of their concealer, a brush is recommended in order to ensure that you make the most of the product and get a nice, even finish with equal coverage. Size-wise, we suggest something like Bobbi Brown Concealer Brush, £25.50, or the classic MAC 195 Brush, £16.50. Alternatively, pat it into the under eye area using your ring finger – it’ll fit perfectly into the inner corner of your eye socket and under the lash line.
Concealer vs colour corrector
Colour correctors work incredibly well alongside your concealer; as the name suggests they colour correct rather than completely cover up. So for example, if you have blue or purple under your eyes, it’s useful to use a peachy, orange-toned corrector before your concealer.
On the other hand, if you have a seriously angry red blemish, then a green-tone colour corrector will take down some of that tell-tale inflamed pinkish tone before you cover up.
Our favourites are MAC Studio Fix Conceal and Correct Palette, £30, Revlon PhotoReady Color Correcting Pen for Redness, £8.99, and L’Oréal Paris Infallible Total Cover Palette, £12.99.
Don’t forget to check our Marie Claire vouchers site before you shop for the latest offers and discounts from your favourite brands – think, LOOKFANTASTIC, Cult Beauty and Boots
Rose Inc Softlight Luminous Hydrating Concealer, £23 | Space NK
Best concealer for dark circles:
The brainchild of Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Rose Inc is the beauty industry’s new favourite brand. And its concealer is the standout product, if you ask us. It’s very hydrating and super brightening wherever you apply it, but particularly great for that under-eye area. Ideal if you have kids and want to keep those dark circles at bay.
Maybelline Instant Anti Age Eraser Concealer, £8.99 | Lookfantastic
Best high street concealer:
There’s a reason why this was Britain’s number one concealer last year. Just as it says on the tube, it satisfyingly erases dark circles, blemishes and any dark spots. The sponge applicator means that you can never apply too much, which also helps to make it perfectly buildable too.
MAC Pro Longwear Concealer, £22 | Lookfantastic
Best long-wearing concealer:
MAC’s Pro Longwear Concealer is super lightweight and applies much like a foundation, before sinking into the skin. It covers all manner of skin issues – like pigmentation, blemishes and dark circles. It’s super long-wearing, leaving you with a flawless matte finish, and it goes without saying that make-up artists love it.
Glossier Stretch Concealer, £15 | Glossier
Best concealer for dry skin:
Dry skin works well with most types of concealer, but the more nourishing the better as it won’t cake or cling to any flakes or dry patches and make them more noticeable. Glossier’s Stretch Concealer ticks that exact box, with a creamy formula that has a glowy finish. It’s a brilliant, buildable concealer that’s particularly great for brightening the under-eye area. As it’s so lightweight it’s not great for covering angry spots – look for one with more coverage for blemishes.
Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer Duo, £28 | SpaceNK
Best does-it-all concealer:
An industry favourite, Laura Mercier’s Secret Camouflage is iconic for a very good reason. The two different shades mean that you can cover blemishes and brighten the under eye area simultaneously. It also allows you to create your own custom shade and thus the perfect coverage. We love the new pen-style applicator as it allows you to be really precise.
bareMinerals Original Liquid Mineral Concealer, £24 | John Lewis
Best concealer for angry, red blemishes:
Super creamy, super blendable and super buildable. This concealer is a dream to work with. A lighter shade will help to brighten and blur the under eye area, whereas one that matches your skin tone exactly will work well at hiding any unsightly spots and marry well with your foundation.
NARS Soft Matte Complete Concealer, £24 | Cult Beauty
Best concealer for spots:
NARS’ oil-free formula is every blemish-prone skin’s dream with seriously magic coverage and staying power. The soft-focus finish blurs imperfections and lasts for hours without creasing or caking. Plus the inclusion of peptides, vitamins A, C & E, and hyaluronic acid mean your skin gets a treat, too. We recommend using a thin pointed brush to ‘erase’ any blemishes, before using the warmth of your (clean) fingers to gently blend the edges for subtle spot coverage.
Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Concealer, £34.50 | Lookfantastic
Best concealer for dehydrated skin:
The brand’s foundation of the same name is a bestseller and a cult classic among beauty lovers (not to mention celebrities, with everyone from Meghan Markle to Kim Kardashian reportedly in its famous fan club). The concealer is just as good – luminous on the skin, without being shiny. It moves with skin, rather than creasing into lines.
Charlotte Tilbury Magic Away Liquid Concealer, £24 | Charlotte Tilbury
Best concealer for mature skin:
Ms Tilbury herself says that this is like ‘Spanx for the under eye [area]’. What she means is that it’s capable of covering a multitude of sins; blemishes, dark circles, pigmentation – you name it, this will conceal it. It’s popular for a reason (several, actually).
NYX Professional Makeup Born To Glow Radiant Concealer, £9 | Cult Beauty
Best purse-friendly concealer:
NYX is one of the most popular affordable make-up brands on the high street, and it’s not hard to see why. So often concealers and used to mattify and disguise parts of the face, but sometimes what you want is to brighten and illuminate. This purse-friendly concealer works beautifully alongside a dewy-finish foundation.
Huda Beauty Overachiever Concealer, £24 | Cult Beauty
Best concealer for full coverage:
There is nothing that this concealer won’t hide. Seriously – it’s full coverage and takes no prisoners. Which won’t suit everyone, but if you have particularly red and inflamed blemishes that you want to disguise all day, then this is the formula for you. The metal applicator is also soothing and good at de-puffing tired eyes.
Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Instant Retouch Concealer, £21 | Boots
Best concealer for covering it all up:
Long-wearing and unrelenting, this concealer is the dog’s bollocks when it comes to added coverage. And no one can argue with the shade range; with so many options spanning a broad spectrum, you are pretty much guaranteed to find your perfect match. Thank you, Rihanna.
IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Undereye Illumination | £26, Cult Beauty
Best concealer for brightening under the eyes:
If you suffer from dark under eye circles even when you’re getting enough shut-eye, this is the formula for you. Ultra brightening and illuminating, it doubles up as a concealer and an illuminator. Genius. Avoid using on blemishes, because when covering spots, you don’t want to brighten the area and draw attention to the zit.
Shiseido Synchro Skin Self-Refreshing Concealer, £30 | SpaceNK
Best skin-loving concealer:
This is a brilliant concealer, which it should be for that price. As with all of Shiseido’s make-up, the formula is packed full of skin-loving ingredients that work with the skin not against it. It blurs imperfections and leaves skin dewy, glowy and healthy-looking.
