Sure, Instagram-friendly sets of glittery unicorn horn brushes and toothbrush-like makeup tools are fun and total vanity candy. But if you ask a professional makeup artist about the best makeup brushes on the market, their selections will be decidedly classic, refined, and time-tested — no matter if the tools are intended for use on the eyes, lips, cheekbones, or anywhere else. To prove it, we asked the pros to reveal the tools they always keep in their kits. (Some even keep multiples of them, just in case.) The following picks for the best makeup brushes include the fluffiest, sharpest, softest, and most precise ones that makeup artists swear by when creating all those stunning looks we admire so much on your favorite celebrities and on Instagram. We even added in several Best of Beauty Award winners to round out the list. The best part is one rings up at just $8, so putting together a makeup artist-approved kit of the best makeup brushes doesn't have to break the bank.
Photo: Getty Images
EYES: Best Brush for Natural-Looking Brows
“When I need to do a natural-looking full brow, the Hakuhodo J5549HBkSL Eyebrow Brush Angled never fails me. It has a wide shape I've never seen before, but it's perfect for doing 'boy brows'."
— Romy Soleimani, who did the makeup for our April 2017 cover
$22 (Shop Now).
EYES: Best Blending Brush
"This dome-shaped Gucci Blending Brush #20 is very versatile, so I have a few around. It's perfect to blend over smoky eyes and looks seamless. I use a clean one to slightly contour the nose and jawline. It won't make your makeup look too defined, streaky, or fake."
—Nick Barose, who has worked with Lupita Nyong'o, Brit Marling, and Zoe Kravitz
$49 (Shop Now)
EYES: Best Brush for Unruly Brows
The spoolie side of the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brush #12 tames even the coarsest, unruliest brow hairs to help slick them down into defined arches. The angled tip of the other end of the 2018 Best of Beauty Award winner deposits pigment with ease to fill in sparse areas.
$18 (Shop Now)
EYES: Best Blending Brush for Hooded Eyelids
"Anyone who knows me — professionally or personally — knows that I love a smoky eye look. When I do one, especially when using powder eyeshadows, I want to blend and blend some more for seamless edges. The Lancôme Blending Tip #16 Brush does just that, and because the tip of the brush is small, I can get really precise, especially when working with hooded eyelids."
— New York City-based makeup artist Min Min Ma
$25 (Shop Now).
EYES: Best Eye Shadow Blending Brush
“The Bobbi Brown Eye Contour Brush is great for applying eye shadow in the socket line of the eye. The shape of the brush makes it especially good for blending easily and evenly.”
—Wendy Rowe, who has worked with Christy Turlington, Sienna Miller, and Victoria Beckham
$37 (Show Now)
EYES: Best Cream Eye Shadow Brush
“The Stila #11 Concealer Brush is designed to be a concealer brush, but I actually use it to apply cream eye shadow. The synthetic brush has a long, flat tip, which is ideal for packing color onto the eyelid.”
—Wendy Rowe
$20 (Shop Now)
EYES: Best Brush for Cut Creases
"This little beauty, the Smashbox Definer Brush #15, is my secret weapon for giving makeup that professionally applied finish. It's for blending or even working the cut crease trend. Also, you can use it to highlight the center of the eyelid."
— Georgina Graham, who has worked with Alexa Chung, Chloe Moretz, and Jennifer Lopez
$18 (Shop Now)
EYES: Best Eye Shadow Shading Brush
“I often use my fingers when applying eyeshadow, However I do love the M.A.C. 239 Eye Shader Brush for detail work. It's flat and round, so I can use this to press shadow directly on the lid or I can use the tip to softly line along the lash line."
— Soleimani
$20 (Shop Now)
EYES: Best Winged Liner Brush
"I use the Kevyn Aucoin Concealer Brush for everything, but mostly for blending eyeliner into the lash line. It's meant to be a concealer brush and excels at it, but it also does a great job cleaning up lip lines or doing a strong cat eye."
— Fiona Stiles, who has worked with Lily Collins, Elizabeth Banks, and Gabrielle Union
$32 (Shop Now)
EYES: Best Cream and Gel Eyeliner Brush
The Smith Cosmetics 202 Microliner Brush won a Best of Beauty Award two years in a row for its stubby-yet-fine bristles that help create the fiercest flicks with simple strokes.
$17 (Shop Now)
EYES: Best Under-Eye Concealer Brush
"The Laura Mercier Camouflage Powder Brush might be for powder, but I use it for cream. The size is just like my finger — except you should never use your finger to apply concealer under your eyes. It gets floppy and cakey.”
— Nick Barose
$28 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best All-Purpose Foundation Brush
One of the most innovative 2018 Best of Beauty Award winners in the tool category is this two-in-one brush. One side of the Shiseido Daiya Fude Face Duo is a seemingly fluffy brush for sweeping on powder formulas. However, the center of it is composed with densely packed bristles to make sure products go on evenly and seamlessly. The other end of the brush is topped with a cushiony gel that has a fingertip-like application effect for tapping on liquid and cushion formulas. It will help you keep your hands off your face and create a more hygienic makeup routine.
$40 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best Brush for Liquid Foundation
"I love the aesthetic of the YSL Y-Brush and how easy it makes my job when doing base. I load liquid foundation directly on the bristles and apply it onto the skin in a circular motion. I can also apply foundation with my fingertips then buff it in with the brush. I also use it to prep the skin when with face lotion, just as I would with liquid foundation."
— Min Min Ma
$45 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best Brush for Highlighter
"The Sigma Beauty F03 High Cheekbone Highlighter Brush is great for your highlighter, but I almost always use it for contouring the hollows of the cheek and around the perimeter of the face. The bristles are both fluffy but firm, making it ideal to deposit color and blend."
— Carissa Ferreri, who has worked with Gina Rodriguez, Annette Benning, and Alexis Ren
$20 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best Contouring Brush
Not only is the EcoTools The Wonder Color Finish Brush a 2018 Best of Beauty Award winner, it's also a drugstore pick. Its densely packed bristles help carve out the hollows of your face for Kardashian-like definition.
$7 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best All-Purpose Cheek Brush
“The Surratt Artistique Highlight Brush is like the Tesla of makeup brushes. It's so sleek and perfectly thought out. The balance of the handle and the brush head is perfect. The hairs are incredibly soft, allowing the most even and lovely application of product. I use this for blush, highlighter and contour. It's just so pleasurable.”
— Fiona Stiles
$115 (sephora.com).
FACE: Best Powder Bronzer Brush
After being dipped in the right bronzer shade, the Best of Beauty Award-winning BareMinerals Supreme Finisher Brush ensures the warm hue defines your face without any blotchiness or muddiness. You're sure to be left with a seamless, natural-looking glow.
$28 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best Concealer Brush
“The Marc Jacobs Beauty The Conceal Full Cover Correcting Brush pats and blends concealer right into skin and hard-to-reach inner corners of the eyes with its fluffy tips. It’s like if a flat concealer brush and a dense eye shadow blending brush had a baby. You can also use it for applying concealer, primer or color corrector to lids before shadow.”
— New York City-based makeup artist Susie Sobol
$30 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best Powder Blush Brush
Angled at 45 degrees, sweeping color onto your cheeks with the IT Cosmetics Heavenly Luxe French Boutique Blush Brush #4 is a breeze. The blush brush has won a Best of Beauty Award three years in a row for this reason alone. Its ergonomic handle and teddy bear-soft bristles help, too.
$35 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best All-Over Powder Brush
“The Nars Yachiyo Kabuki Brush can be used for setting powder, bronzer, or blush and is a great all-around face brush. It's big enough for all-over powdering but small enough for creating a healthy glow with blush.
—Georgina Graham
$55 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best Concealer Brush for Blemishes
The curved, flat edge of the Best of Beauty Award-winning Lancôme Camouflage Brush #8 is perfect for patting concealer on top of breakouts without any cakiness or creasing.
$28 (Shop Now)
FACE: Best Brush for Setting Powder
“I love the Real Techniques Setting Brush for setting makeup with loose powder, especially for smaller areas of the face like the middle of the forehead, under the eyes, around the nose, and on the chin. I actually never use a big powder brush since it takes shine away from where I like to keep it.”
— Susie Sobol
$8 (Shop Now)
LIPS: Best Brush for Lipstick
"The only lip brush I use is the Chanel Angled Lip Brush #33. I have so many of them. The angle makes it easy to define lips and fits on every curve."
—Nick Barose
$32 (Shop Now)
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