Battle of the drugstore loose powders for oily skin

As an oily skinned gal, it’s a constant battle to find makeup products that prevent oil and keep you matte and smooth for as long as possible. For me, a matte primer and foundation has always been key, and now the discovery of loose powder has changed the game too. Having to have so many different products just for my oily face gets expensive, so I wanted to try out the cheaper drugstore versions of loose powders and see which ones work and which ones come out on top! So lets commence the battle of the drugstore loose powders for oily skin…

Collection Sheer Loose Powder Translucent

This is a loose setting powder enriched with silk and Vitamin E to give a soft-focus finish and controls shine and minimises imperfections. It also says it contains UVA and UVB sunscreens (but never substitute this for actual SPF!). Even though it is described as translucent, it is a coloured powder but that goes on fairly translucent in that it doesn’t alter the colour of your foundation but it isn’t white or invisible. The performance of this is that it doesn’t leave skin matte past lunch time, but definitely more matte than without using any powder at all. I still need a quick dab with my trusty beauty blender around lunch time. This costs £2.99 for a big 20g and you can get it here*. I’d score it 6/10.

Natural Collection Translucent Powder

This is the cheapest of the lot and is quite surprisingly one of the better ones of the bunch. It’s a colourless translucent powder enriched with Camomile, with a bit of a shimmer but nothing too heavy or obvious, just a subtle glow. The mattifying aspect of the powder is great (even though the description of the product doesn’t actually mention it’s mattifying, it is!) and it lasts me past lunchtime before oil starts to come through and even then, it just looks glowy rather than oil slick central. I can get away without dabbing if I had to but I prefer too by mid-afternoon. This is an absolute steal at £2.49 for 9g! Get it here*. I’d give it a 7/10.

Barry M Cosmetics Ready Set Smooth Translucent Powder

This is a translucent invisible powder to eliminate shine and excess oil, whilst minimising the appearance of imperfections and helping to keep makeup long-lasting. This was one of the first ones I tried and is one of my favourites. It keeps me matte for 75% of the day and the powder doesn’t escape everywhere despite the plastic sifter and it applies really nicely. It’s also really affordable at £5.99 for 5.2g, get it here*. I’d score it 7/10.

Carter Beauty Setting Standards Baking Powder

This is a new brand I’d never heard of before and as it was so affordable I thought I’d give this a try too. It aims to mattify the skin, even out complexion, diminish fine lines, discolouration and blemishes whilst sitting light and undetectable all day long. It applies quite white and needed blending more than the others, it feels quite chalky and by 12pm I had to re-dab with my beauty blender as I was oily all over my t-zone by then. This is big 30ml which equates to 30g and costs £5.00 and you can get it here*. I’d give it a 5/10.

CYO All Set Fixing Powder

CYO is a Boots brand that I heard was being discontinued but it’s still around so I assume it’s staying and I really hope it does because this is a good’un! This loose powder sets make-up in place to extend wear, reduces the look of pores, fine lines & other skin imperfections, feels weightless and invisible on skin and is long lasting. This applies really nicely and if you put enough on, it keeps you matte until mid-afternoon – anything post-lunchtime is amazing for me and I can get away without dabbing away the oil if I had to. It has a colour to it so it doesn’t give you a white cast and it sets makeup well. This is £4 for 15g and you can get it here*. I’d give it a 8/10.

NYX Professional Makeup Studio Finishing Powder

This is a translucent powder described as “a miracle in a jar”. It’s 100% pure mineral silica for setting foundation or wearing alone. The luminous white Powder goes on neutral and works on all skin tones and leaves your skin looking radiant and luminous with a for a flawless matte finish. It has a bit of a shimmer to it, but it isn’t overly obvious like others, and my goodness it keeps you matte alll day! If I put enough on, I can go an entire day at work without needing to top up which is incredible for me! It feels so silky soft and almost slightly cooling too, it feels much better quality than the others. I’d give this a 9/10! This costs £9 for 6g and you can get it here*. It is one of the smallest sizes of them all and the most expensive but the quality is amazing.

Comparison table

Winner of the battle of the drugstore loose powders

The winner of the battle of the drugstore setting powders for oily skin is… NYX! It probably comes as no surprise that the most expensive one is best, although I do wish this wasn’t the case! CYO is a close second, with Natural Collection and Barry M following up in third. Have you tried any of these? What did you think?

Related: Which Dermalogica Moisturiser is best for oily skin?

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