9 Best Foundations for Red Skin

Foundation is a great way to even skin tone, smooth complexion, and create a solid base for the rest of your makeup! Finding the right shade can be difficult, especially when you factor in things like skin undertones or color-influencing skin conditions. In particular, skin with redness can be some of the most challenging to shade match. On top of that, you also have to consider your skin type and the type of skin finish you are looking for in makeup products like foundation. When it comes to foundations for red skin, we’ve got you!

Keep reading for a full list of foundation recommendations tailored to your skin wants and needs! 

What Is Red Skin?

Red skin is any skin that has redness in it! If you look in the mirror and see any hint of red visible on your face, then the foundations listed below are for you! Red skin can be caused by a lot of things: rosacea, sensitive skin, and even something as simple as undertones.

Rosacea is a very common, but complex skin condition in which your face flushes red and tiny, red blood vessels beneath the skin become visible. Some people have a constant red hue while others experience flare-ups of redness that come and go. Rosacea can also cause small red bumps on the face that have the appearance of acne. While it is most common in fair skin tones, anyone can have it! There are a whole bunch of foundations dedicated to masking the textured caused by rosacea here.

If you have sensitive skin, redness can come from a whole host of causes. You could have acne-prone skin that shows redness because of inflammation, or your skin could turn a bit red because of an allergic reaction to something. Sunburns — although temporary — can leave your skin feeling swollen and sensitive and give you a red glow that you want to cover!

Finally, you could just have red undertones! No sensitivity. No medical diagnosis. Just good old undertones.

What Are Red Skin Undertones?

If you thought finding your skin tones match in foundation was difficult, wait until you hear about undertones! Undertones are the less obvious colors that lie underneath your surface skin tone. Sounds complicated? Let’s break it down.

There are three types of undertones that anyone can have: warm, cool, and neutral. Warm undertones are yellows, oranges, and golden shades. Cool undertones are pinks, blue, and (you guessed it!) reds. If you have neutral undertones, that just means you have a combination of both warm and cool undertones present in your skin.

For the purposes of this article, if you have natural redness in your skin, that just means you have cool undertones! This doesn’t really mean anything other than that you have to look for foundations that compliment your undertones.

9 Best Foundations for Red Skin

As I said before, everyone has different wants and needs when it comes to foundation! To account for those, this list of best foundations for red skin is going to be broken up into light coverage, medium coverage, and heavy coverage. You can decide what kind of look you’re aiming for and go from there.

Best Light-Coverage Foundations for Red Skin

These foundations are going to do the work of neutralizing redness while giving only a light, breathable coverage. They’re great for that no-makeup-makeup look or a simple daytime makeup!

#1 IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream

IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream

This cream foundation gives you all the lightness of CC cream and more! With SPF 50, this cream is a great option for those with condition-caused redness as it allows for one less product to be put on the skin. The combination of sunscreen and foundation coverage protects the skin.

IT Cosmetics CC Cream is specially formulated to color-correct, so you can wave goodbye to your redness! This is a dewy skin foundation with a natural look, so all 12 shades really will look like your skin (but better!).

#2 Tower 28 Beauty SunnyDays SPF 30 Tinted Sunscreen Foundation

Tower 28 Beauty SunnyDays SPF 30 Tinted Sunscreen Foundation

The debate between skin tints vs. foundation can be a bit confusing, but there’s nothing confusing about love for this product! It’s fragrance-free, vegan, and contains a reef-safe SPF, so you can do good for your skin while doing good for the planet.

There are 14 shades to choose from. The light coverage and lightweight nature of the product allow it to cover all ranges of redness without cakiness.

#3 Dior Dreamskin Fresh & Perfect Cushion

Dior Dreamskin Fresh & Perfect Cushion

This liquid foundation is a bit different from the rest! It comes in a compact with a cushion to collect and apply the foundation. Dreamskin is light-coverage and made for evening skin tone. Containing the special ingredient Longoza Flower, this cushion foundation is especially effective for those with mature skin.

There are 5 shades to choose from. People who have tried this product frequently report improvements in skin texture and having an “airbrushed” quality to their finished makeup.

Best Medium-Coverage Foundations for Red Skin

#4 Armani Beauty Luminous Silk Perfect Glow Flawless Oil-Free Foundation

Armani Beauty Luminous Silk Perfect Glow Flawless Oil-Free Foundation

The name of this foundation might be a mouthful, but it is a cult favorite among the Rosacea community. It is lightweight and blends seamlessly into the skin. In addition to being for all skin types, Luminous Silk comes in two different finishes! 30 shades of a glowy, radiant finish, and 40 shades of a natural finish.

It is oil-free and buildable, so it will not suffocate your skin. A great perk for those with sensitive, reactive skin!

#5 Koh Gen Do Aqua Foundation

Koh Gen Do Aqua Foundation

The Aqua Foundation is here to hydrate! Formulated with the brand’s unique blend of oils and butters, this product promises long-term hydration and skin health. The color of this natural-finish foundation is made of soft-focus pigments which work to blur out skin texture and pores and minimize the appearance of discoloration.

With a relatively high price tag and only 10 shade offerings, this foundation might not be for everyone; however, for those who can swing it, this Koh Gen Do foundation does wonders for neutralizing redness.

#6 Maybelline Fit Me – Matte + Poreless Liquid Foundation

Maybelline Fit Me – Matte + Poreless Liquid Foundation

If you’ve been following along with our other foundation articles then you’ve DEFINITELY heard this name before. It ranks #1 on our list of best drugstore foundations, and fits right in the ranks here!

Fit Me is oil-free and won’t clog your pores. Great for those with acne-prone skin! With 40 shades and a cult following, you can’t go wrong with this foundation to cover up any unwanted pigmentation.

Best Heavy-Coverage Foundations for Red Skin

#7 IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Redness Neutralizing Color-Correcting Cream

IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Redness Neutralizing Color-Correcting Cream

IT Cosmetics strikes again, but this time it’s with full coverage! This cream product comes in a jar, which is pretty unique for a foundation. It’s formulated for all skin types, and it’s made to last long past sundown. It only comes in 3 shades, but they are the shades most afflicted by redness.

It’s blendable, color-correcting, and hydrates the skin as you wear. What more could you ask for?

#8 Clinique Beyond Perfecting Foundation + Concealer

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Boasting 35 shades or oil-free, 24-hour wear, Clinique’s foundation/concealer hybrid is a powerhouse product. This is a very full coverage foundation, so any hint of redness will vanish with one swipe!

The cool thing about this foundation is that it eliminates the need for a concealer — unless, of course, you’re contouring. One product to cover, smooth, even, and conceal? Sign us up! Beyond Perfecting is great for those with textured redness because it deals with both skin concerns.

#9 Dermablend Smooth Liquid Camo Foundation

Dermablend Smooth Liquid Camo Foundation

This one goes out to all of those with Rosacea and reactive skin! Dermablend’s foundation was formulated and tested by dermatologists. It doesn’t contain any ingredients known to irritate medically-caused redness and is all kinds of hypo-allergenic.

Liquid Camo comes in 14 lightweight shades and boasts a wear time of 16 hours! While it claims to be medium coverage, reviews indicate that it is indeed a heavy coverage foundation. The added SPF 25 is also a bonus!

When Do You Use Foundation on Red Skin?

Use it whenever you want! If you have redness all the time, these foundations are great for daily use. If you have redness that fluctuates, you can also just pick one up for the days when you want to neutralize that extra color. Foundations for red skin might be specially formulated for specific skin conditions and contain more color-correcting power than normal, but they really are just foundations! Wear them whenever, however, and wherever you want.

Don’t feel like you need to cover any part of your skin if you don’t want to! We just wanted you to have the resources to do so if you please.

Final Thoughts

Having unwanted redness in your skin can be difficult, especially if there is an underlying medical condition causing it. Whether you have rosacea, sensitive skin, or red undertones, there is a foundation that can work for you!

Daily wear of foundation is tricky. If you want some extra information on making your face makeup last all day, we have a whole article full of tips and tricks to make your foundation stick!