15 Highlighters That Will Give You The Perfect Illuminating Effect

Basically, highlighter is face makeup that attracts light, creating the illusion of brightness and height, hence that lit-from-within look.  

When applied correctly, highlighter can help lift and brighten the overall appearance of your face, and it can help give your complexion that dewy, luminous look that everyone's seeking. 

[Also Read: 4-Step Coffee Facial For Younger Looking Skin]

Why Do You Need Highlighter?

• You can add a highlighter on top of your cheekbones to add dimension to your face.
  When light hits the higher points of your face, the highlighter makes your face look younger and fresher.
  
  
• You can apply highlighter to your cupid’s bow after you apply lipstick to get cleaner looking lips and also to make your pout look bigger and fuller.
  
  
• If you have a small forehead and you want to make it look a bit longer then you can dab a bit of highlighter above your brows. This will give your forehead a nice polished and longer look. Those who have extremely oily skin can gladly skip this.
  
  
• Apply a bit of highlighter under your eyebrows and above them after you have filled them in. This will accentuate the eye area and will emphasise the shape of your brows making them arched up and providing you with a mini facelift.
  
  
• Apply your highlighter down the bridge of your nose to make your nose appear longer and thinner. Do not forget to gently blend foundation a shade or two darker than your natural skin tone on the sides of your nose too.

[Also Read: How To Get A Dewy Look With And Without Makeup]

Here I am recommending 15 highlighters that you won't regret using...

1. M.A.C Mineralize Light Highlighter

This luxurious and velvety soft domed face powder gives you the most radiant finish. Add highlights by strategically buffing this to the high points of your face, or blend all over for a sheer and luminous glow. 

This features M.A.C’s 77-Mineral Complex and Vitamin E. 

Pros:

• Mineral-based product
• Non-acnegenic
• Dermatologist tested
• Finely-milled, soft and smooth texture
• Long-wearing
• Suitable for all skin types

Cons:

• Not cost-effective

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2. Lakme Absolute Illuminating Blush, Shimmer Brick

This limited edition palette by Lakme comes with a hint of shimmer and a luminous silky formula to make your cheeks glow. It helps you create a red carpet lustre every day.

Pros: 

• Comes in two beautiful palette shades (Pink and Coral)
• Pigmented colours
• Blends easily
• Long-staying
• Affordable

Cons:

• No Applicator

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3. Bobbi Brown Highlighting Powder

The light-reflecting powder gives your complexion a high-impact, light-reflective glow. Sweep this on to bring a luminous, sheer colour that’s ideal for highlighting and strobing.

Pros:

• Silky texture
• Comes in two shades (Pink Glow and Bronze Glow)
• Blends beautifully
• Makes skin look illuminated
• Classy packaging with a mirror

Cons:

• Expensive
• No applicator

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4. Maybelline New York V-Face Duo Stick

The stunning V-Face Duo stick by Maybelline makes it simple to define, shape and highlight your features like a pro. This is available in two shades from light to medium and medium to dark skin tones.

Pros:

• 2-in-1 benefits of highlighter and contouring stick
• Creamy texture
• Blends easily
• Great for everyday use
• Never feels patchy
• Good staying power
• Affordable

Cons:

• Limited shades
• Not suitable for very oily skin
• Contour shade does not suit the average Indian skin tone

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5. NYX Professional Make Up Away We Glow Liquid Highlighter

This gorgeous, new liquid highlighter by NYX comes with a light-reflecting formula is wonderfully creamy yet light-weight shades. For irresistible illumination and a shimmery finish, just dab and blend it out to add luminosity to any look– be it soft or intense. It comes in 5 different shades.

Pros:

• Creamy consistency
• Light-weight
• Buildable
• Beautiful dewy finish
• Blends well

Cons:

• Dries quickly, so you need to work fast with it
• Not very long-staying

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6. Revlon Photoready Skinlights Face Illuminator

The Revlon Face Illuminator can be worn alone to highlight and brighten or over a foundation to banish dullness and even out skin tone. It gives you a lit-from-within look with its light-capturing crystals and photo-chromatic pigments. It’s available in 3 shades.

Pros:

• Illuminates without adding shimmer
• Soft and creamy texture
• Blends easily
• Brings a very natural glow
• Long-staying

Cons:

• The nozzle does nothing to control the product flow
• The fragrance is a tad bit much
• Not even slightly shimmery (for those who prefer at least a little shimmer)

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7. Colorbar Radiant Glow Face Illuminator Glamour

This one-of-a-kind product instantly gives your complexion a perky and vibrant look. It enhances makeup and brightens the complexion, giving your face a natural glow.

Pros:

• Beautiful shade of highlight (champagne rose with gold undertones)
• Suits all skin types
• Long-staying
• Adds instant radiance to your face

Cons:

• Packaging (click-pen which makes it a task to get a product out even after 6-7 clicks)
• Not buildable
• Dries quickly

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8. Lakme Face Sheer Highlighter- Sun Kissed

The sheer highlighter for the perfect finish and shine. The product promises to give you sun-soaked iridescent pigments that help layer and highlight your cheeks. It’s an absolute fine powder that spreads and blends perfectly without getting smudged. 

Pros:

• The very fine shimmer gives an excellent finishing
• Reasonably priced
• Tiny mirror on the lid
• Sun-kissed shade gives a natural glow
• Compact packing and travel-friendly

Cons:

• Sponge applicator needs to be rubbed hard to see the effect

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9. Makeup Revolution London Strobe Highlighter Ever Glow Light

The ever glow lights highlighter renders you with beautifully illuminated skin. It’s a pigmented one with a smooth and soft texture, making it long staying and easy to apply. Use it for a perfect non-shimmery and natural glow.

Pros: 

• Highly pigmented
• Stays for long
• Suitable for everyday makeup
• Smooth, soft and lightweight texture
• Travel-friendly packing
• Gives natural glow
• Suitable for sensitive skin

Cons:

• Slightly Expensive

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10. Maybelline New York Face Studio Master Chrome Metallic Highlighter

Maybelline metallic highlighter gives you an intense glow in no time. It has high pigmentation and is creamy in nature. Most of the highlighters are powder-based so you would find this different.

Pros:

• Perfect highlighter which makes the face glow
• Nice packaging
• Affordable
• High pigmentation

Cons:

• Does not last long
• May not suit all skin tones

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11. Coloressence Shimmer Highlighter

Another highlighter which is apt in making your skin glow instantly is the Coloressence shimmer highlighter. It contains fine pigments which are very effective in highlighting your makeup.

It provides high pigmentation, is longlasting and affordable.

Pros:

• Good pigmentation
• Makes the skin glow instantly
• Contains micronized pigments which highlight makeup
• Affordable
• Long-lasting

Cons:

• Too Shimmery

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12. Maybelline New York Face Studio Strobing Stick Highlighter Nude

This illuminating highlighter stick helps you add dimension to eyes and face. Its creamy and soft texture with micro-fine pearls glides smoothly and highlights beautifully for a glowing look. 

Its strobe effect makes the skin shine brightly with a nude glow by enhancing the cheekbones, cheeks, eye area and spotlight centre of the face. Use this strobing stick to get the velvety matte finish.

Pros:

• Nude shade good for Indian skin tones
• Strobe stick easily to use
• Long-lasting
• Suitable for all skin types, even sensible one
• Dermatologist tested
• Non-allergenic and non-comedogenic
• Creamy consistency

Cons:

• Not cost-effective

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13. Nykaa Glow Getter Highlighting & Illuminating Duo

The Nykaa highlighting duos are available in 3 shades, 24K Glam, Glitterati and Moonshine. The highlighters are infused with unique light-diffusing particles that give a natural effect to the cheeks and photograph really well. 

Pros:

• Affordable highlighter duo in India with a creamy formula!
• Twos are always better than one! You get two highlighting shades at the price of one.
• Gives a strobed effect to the cheeks.

Cons:

• Not for all skin types

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14. NYX Professional Makeup Born To Glow Liquid Highlighter

This product from the drugstore brand NYX is best suited to be used with your foundation to achieve that lit-from-within glow.

Pros:

• Affordable and best illuminator for Indian skin with a good shade option for the deeper complexion.
• It's a multi-tasking product.

Cons:

• Some people find the glitters in the product too chunky.

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15.  MAC Prep+Prime Highlighter

This pen-style highlighter brings a sheer, soft wash of colour to the skin. You can add radiance just where you want with its precision applicator. Use this over your makeup to highlight and under your makeup to brighten and prime. 

Pros:

• Light-weight and long-wearing
• Provides instant radiance
• Non-drying
• Dermatologist tested
• Non-acnegenic

Cons:

• Expensive
• Pen-type click packaging

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16. L.A. Girl Velvet Contour Highlighting Stick

This contour-highlight stick helps highlight, strobe and brings your best face forward with its feather-light texture. Enriched with the goodness of Jojoba Seed Oil, Shea Butter, and Cocoa Seed Butter, this product comes in 3 gorgeous shades. 

Pros:

• Gives a beautiful matte finish
• Does not highlight pores and imperfections
• The shimmer is very fine and gives a subtle glow
• 2-in-1 product
• Affordable

Cons:

• Not very long-lasting
• Can’t be applied directly from pan stick
• The packaging is quite flimsy

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Things To Keep In Mind While Using A Highlighter