The Best Highlighting Drops for Every Skin Tone — and Every Budget

Highlighting drops are one of our favorite and sneakiest beauty products to date. They can be used for everything from otherworldly shimmer to just a hint of glow and everything in between. Another thing we love: They’re super customizable and can be mixed, matched and added to your favorite foundation formulas. M Crowd Influencer Julia loves them so much that she mixes them in her foundation, puts them on top of her foundation and then applies more on a finished face.

If you don’t know where to start, don’t worry — we got you. With help from one our fave makeup artists, Maybelline “IT” Team member Gabriel Almodovar, and the M Crowd, we’ve rounded up the best highlighting drops in the game for your skintone.

Our picks, ahead:

Fair

Fair skin tones can rock a variety of highlighters, but according to Aldomovar, white or silver work best.

Save:L’Oréal True Match Lumi Glow Amour Boosting Drops in Daybreak

If you have cool-toned skin and love a rosy glow, this is the highlighter for you. This ultra lightweight formula proves to be both buildable and blendable and is infused with shea butter for extra hydration.

Splurge: Iconic London Illuminator in Shine

This pink-based pearlescent highlighter is everything you want in a liquid highlighter drop — it’s shimmery (not glittery!) and plays well with other products — what’s not to love? It’s perfect for getting that wet highlighter look and blends seamlessly into skin.

Medium

According to Almodovar, medium skin tones do well with champagne or gold shades, colors that really bring out their natural, glowy, hue.

Save: Barry M Liquid Chrome Highlighter Drops in Beam Me Up

A gem from UK Brand Barry M, these highlighter drops give you the glow you desire without breaking the bank. Medium skinned babes should try Beam Me Up, a light gold shade that is being called a dupe for the Iconic London drops at less than half the price.

Splurge: Dermablend Glow Creator Drops in Gold

Known for their full-coverage foundations that cover everything from tattoos to acne, Dermablend recently released their Glow Creator drops — silky liquid highlighting drops with highly concentrated glow. At $33 a bottle, they’re a bit of a splurge, but definitely worth it.

Deep

Deep skin tones can pull off everything from a gilty glow to a deep copper sheen. Deep gold shades looks great on darker skin — so with that in mind we chose two products that will give you that fresh, dewy, look.

Save: L’Oréal True Match Lumi Glow Amour Boosting Drops in Golden Hour

We love a golden, sunkissed glow any day of the week, and this product gives you all that and more. Golden Hour is warm toned and gold with a pearlescent shimmer that will glint every time you hit the light — I know, we’re obsessed, too.

Splurge: Lancôme Custom Highlighting Drops in Golden Glow

If Lupita-level glow is your forever mood, this is the perfect addition to your makeup routine. (She recently rocked these drops on the red carpet!) Mix this in with your holy-grail foundation formula for a radiant, all over glow.