BB creams are hands down one of our most favorite Korean cosmetics. When in a hurry, just a few drops of BB cream works wonders. It has moisturizers, buildable coverage, skincare, and SPF, all in one tiny tube. Who can say no to this one-and-done formula?
But unfortunately, they are not so gentle with oily skin. That’s quite naggy but that wouldn’t stop us, oily skin girls, to explore the world of BB Cream. If you have oily skin, all you have to do is consider some factors and read our list of best BB cream as we dug deeper into the ingredients, only for you.
Is BB cream suitable for oily skin?
BB creams can be too thick or overwhelming with overactive sebum and oils on oily skin but, there are some that are made only for oily skin. Look out for oil-control and hydrating ingredients that give a matte finish and does not clog pores. Choose a lightweight formula to not clog pores and irritate the skin. Also, look out for moisturizing ingredients for extra care of your skin. Most of the BB Cream does not have coverage like foundation, so if you are not concerned about blemishes, you can go for these. Just keep some factors in mind while choosing your BB Cream to suit your skin perfectly.
Factors need to consider while choosing the best drugstore bb cream for oily skin
BB Cream can be a real pain and a waste of money if you choose something randomly having oily skin. While choosing the best BB Creams, we kept some factors in mind and you should too while choosing one for yours.
● SPF and blemish remover. SPF is an everyday need whether you’re in or out. Your BB Cream must have built-in SPF in case you forgot to apply sunscreen beforehand. Also, check the thickness or coverage of BB Cream and see if it can hide blemishes if that’s your concern.
● Ingredients. Be careful about the ingredients as the wrong ones can produce more sebum resulting in the extremely oily look and washed-out color. Check if you’re allergic to even one of the ingredients. If you are, let it go.
● Concentration and thickness. If you have acne-prone skin, this one’s very important. A thick formula can clog pores and later is responsible for breakouts and pimples. Look out for lightweight ones that are hydrating yet give a matte finish. Make sure you’re satisfied with the coverage, if you’re not, there’s no purpose of that beauty balm.
● Skincare ingredients. We would personally recommend choosing hydrating ingredients instead of moisturizing one. Go for jojoba oil instead of coconut oil, keep hyaluronic acids in your list.
That’s all you need to look for.
Top 7 best drugstore bb creams for oily skin
So, we dug through all of the factors and found out 7 best BB creams for oily skin that fights oil evenly and doesn’t cause any breakout. Here are our top 7 drugstore BB Creams that stood up to our expectations.
La Roche-Posay Effaclar BB Blur:
La Roche-Posay came up with the most outstanding beauty balm any beauty guru could ever expect. Not only it gives the right amount of makeup needed, but also it takes care of your skin with its SPF, which is very important for oily and acne prone skin.
Keeping our overactive glands and sebum in mind, they build the formula with a stunning matte finish. The formula is paraben-free, oil-free, and most importantly, fragrance-free to avoid any extra ingredient- is direct to the point. The beauty balm comes in a small flattened plastic tube and the inside is what we looked for. A mousse-like smooth, blend to the touch cream feels matte whenever applied on the skin. It doesn’t let your skin produce extra sebum making it look completely non-greasy. The coverage is medium, hides blemish, redness but not extremely dark spots or pimples. You don’t have to wear extra SPF since it already has everything. But if you do, consider taking a small amount as it might start peeling off. Use a foundation blending brush to buff and that should be it.
- Very lightweight, smooth mousse texture
- Built-in SPF 20
- Light to medium coverage
- Oil, paraben, and fragrance-free
- Suitable for sensitive skin
COVERGIRL Clean Matte BB Cream For Oily Skin:
Covergirl’s clean matte BB Cream has just the right formula and coverage. Once you apply this beauty balm on your skin, it instantly glides smoothly and dries down giving a shine-free, clean matte look. Definitely stands by its name!
The beauty balm has a variety of skin tone shades, but with a huge tone gap. But that’s considerable since the coverage can be controlled and sits with every skin tone. The balm looks velvety, doesn’t dry out the skin too much (water-based) yet blocks any extra sebum production. Also, it totally hides blemishes and any dark spot with its lightweight, medium coverage formula. One unique thing it does is to blur the skin, just like the filters in our camera but in real life. You can use an illuminating primer underneath to give it a subtle glow and it will hold perfectly all day and night long. This is also breathable, so you can easily wear it throughout the whole day without having constant makeup thought. They also included hydrating ingredients in the formula so it’s both skincare+makeup! This does not feel like any other drugstore BB Cream, perfect for those who like light makeup with a little skincare.
- Lightweight, oil-free formula
- Water-based (best for dehydrated skin)
- Light to Medium Coverage
- Covers blemish and imperfections
- Gives a completely matte, shine-free look
- Has a variety of shades
Burt’s Bees BB Cream:
We are no stranger to Burt Bees products and their Beauty Balm with SPF 15 didn’t disappoint us a bit. Like always, they focused on skincare more with their makeup products, and honestly, that’s a plus point for all the everyday makeup lovers.
They called it a ‘tinted moisturizer’ and we couldn’t agree more. Think of all the skin hydrating and antioxidants that you can think, you’ll see most of them here. The formula has Noni extracts and the fruit ‘Noni’ is known for its anti-aging properties and a source of antioxidants. All the illuminating, hydrating one-and-done texture that evens the skin tone, conceals dark spots and blemishes in just one tube. The application of this BB cream is pretty simple. You don’t need to prime or apply your SPF or anything before. If you have any dirt or unclean face, clean it with a cleanser and you don’t even have to moisturize. Take a small amount on your finger and apply it to your skin. This might feel sticky at first but once you blend it, it dries down to a very hydrating and plump look that blocks overactive sebum. A great drugstore deal at this price point!
- A lightweight foundation with SPF 15
- Contains noni extracts
- Reduces visible fine lines and wrinkles
- Illuminating, hydrating yet mattifies
- Mostly made with natural ingredients
Tarte BB Tinted Treatment 12-Hour Primer Broad Spectrum SPF 30:
Tarte is equally as good in their skincare game as their makeup. Now, when they combined both of them and created ‘tinted treatment’ which is both skincare and makeup, that was a big step up. With its outstanding results, they made it to our top 7 list and you will know why.
First of all, the formula is amazing. It’s oil-free yet tinted, works as a primer to use underneath or instead of foundation. The texture is explained differently from person to person. Some say it’s velvety or silky and many more, but whatever it is, they all agree to one term- creamy. They formulated the texture to melt directly on the skin and glides like butter when massaged with fingers. Even though the cream formula appears silky, velvety, it dries down to a completely matte finish yet hydrating. The coverage was enough to satisfy, it did hide dark zones, wrinkle, fine line, and didn’t crease at all. Since it doesn’t contain full pigments, don’t expect it to cover extreme dark spots or redness. Otherwise, it does a pretty decent job.
- Oil-free tinted moisturizer
- Works as a primer and moisturizer
- Buildable coverage from light-medium
- Melts into the skin, very velvety
- Brightens skin, blurs wrinkles & fine lines
Dr. Jart+ Premium Beauty Balm SPF 45:
When this drugstore product said premium, it did not lie at all. Starting from the packaging to the texture of the formula, everything feels premium and worth the money. As they claimed, they built the formula so that all skin types can get that premium feel and that didn’t make us doubt at all.
While the formula may lure everyone into buying this beauty balm, the actual drawback is the shade range. There are only two shades but there’s not much to worry. They are self-adjustable and the coverage is buildable. The packaging is the one to look for. The tube is made of hard plastic (cannot be squeezed) and has a pump! Before using this balm, cleanse, and tone for a better result. This beauty does both; hydrating and moisturizing. No need to wear extra SPF because of its built-in features. Continuous use can reduce fine lines, aging signs by promoting collagen, and possessing anti-aging properties. We undoubtedly would love to take care and makeup our skin at once flawlessly!
- Primes, hydrates and moisturizes
- Built-in SPF 45
- Promotes natural collagen & anti-aging properties
- Self-adjustable
- Great for all skin types
- Best for dehydrated skin
Rimmel Match Perfection BB Cream Foundation Matte:
Rimmel BB Cream is our most affordable drugstore product yet gives high-end results in the list. This is a 9-in-1 formula so basically you will need nothing to use before, instead or after you apply this. There is absolutely no need for retouching after hours since it carried a pretty decent look even after 10 hours.
The one-and-done formula was the prime attraction. Even though the texture is very creamy and kind of thick, it glides smoothly on the skin using your fingers. The coverage is buildable if you use a brush but even after 2 layers of this, you would feel nothing on your skin. Just one layer of this is more than enough for the whole day and for a foundation-y look, use a sponge or brush! It hides the blemishes and redness completely with the coverage and works great as a concealer. You can get the glowing effect if you use a nice moisturizer underneath. It’s incredibly long-lasting throughout the day and if you love a little bit tan on your skin, that’s what you are looking for!
- 9-in-1 skin formula
- Creamy texture, Glides smoothly
- Controls extra shine and mattifies
- Conceals dark spots and circles
- Built-in SPF 15
- Long lasting and lightweight
Garnier SkinActive BB Cream Oil-Free Face Moisturizer:
Garnier Beauty benefit cream has been here for a long time and is an absolute cult favorite. This is actually a tinted moisturizer so they focused on skincare more, something that drugstore products rarely do. It has SPF 25 with UVA and UVB protection. So basically you are getting all the skin protection that you will ever need.
The cream texture is very velvety and glides seamlessly onto the skin. It’s available in 3 sizes so you can test it out first. But sadly, it has only one shade but that’s universal. Since they focused on skincare more, the tint is very sheer and the coverage is light yet, buildable if you use brushes. The self-adjustable formula adjusts to your skin tone and gives a healthy glow. The balm minimizes pores and even the skin tone almost instantly and stays like this for up to 8 hours. It’s completely matte but still has that healthy glow that makes your skin look very hydrating. We think it does a fairly good job at this price range and our skin loves it. Worth a shot!
- Stands for Beauty Benefit Cream
- All-in-one moisturizer
- SPF 25 with UVA and UVB protection
- Dermatologically tested
- Instantly brightens and conceals
- Sheer coverage, healthy glow
Should I use BB cream every day in oily skin?
BB Creams are not really kind to oily skin but with the ones, we chose for you, there’s absolutely no doubt. Using BB cream every day is a lot hassle-free choice, so we are sharing our routine to use BB cream every day on oily skin:
● Clean the whole face using a hydrating cleanser or you can double cleanse. Remove any dry patches on your skin.
● When your face is half dry, apply toner and you’re done with the first phase.
● Take the BB cream and apply all over your face in dots. Blend with your fingers. For more coverage, buff with a foundation brush and apply more layers.
And voila!
How to apply bb cream on oily skin to get the most out of it?
A little trick will help a long way! We’ll share some of our tips to apply beauty balm on oily skin and level up our game.
● Double cleanse will have that stripping effect and directly applying BB cream after that, will make your skin more hydrating. Try to use an oil-control cleanser to double the effect.
● If you’re not getting enough coverage, mix your BB cream with your foundation (should match your skin tone) in a 1:1 ratio and buff with a foundation brush.
● Mixing BB cream with a soothing cream will help a lot to tone up the ashy effect. Use fingers to dab and blend.
● Use mattifying powder and setting spray if you want the look extra matte.
Bonus: Mix red/orange/pink lipstick with BB Cream and that’s your liquid blush!
FAQs:
● What’s the difference between BB cream and CC cream?
While BB Cream stands for ‘Beauty Balm’, CC Cream is for ‘Color Correcting’. BB Cream is formulated targeting tinted moisturizer as in, a foundation with skincare benefits. But CC Cream focuses more on correcting targeting spots and areas like redness or blemishes with more coverage. People love to use it underneath the foundation for that extra coverage for redness and sallowness. You can both be together and see the bomb effect.
● Do I need to apply anything before BB cream?
That actually depends on the formula. Most of the BB Creams are formulated with hydrating and moisturizing effects so you don’t actually need any extra products. Just clean your face thoroughly and make it oil-free. If your BB Cream doesn’t have built-in SPF protection, then consider using a layer of your sunscreen. But make sure you buff with a brush or else it will peel out.
● How is the coverage of BB Creams?
Generally, it varies from light to medium but you can manipulate the coverage, that’s what makes BB Creams unique. If you use your fingers to blend, it will give the coverage that it was supposed to. For more coverage, take a foundation brush and buff your BB Cream with it. Mix a little bit of foundation if necessary. If you think that’s too much, take a wet beauty blend and dab!
● How do I choose my BB Cream shade?
Unfortunately, there’s not enough freedom about it but try to choose the closet shade you can find. If you are still confused, take a self-adjusting formula and you’ve got nothing to worry about.
Actually, BB Creams are pretty flexible so if you ask us, they are an absolute necessity for your vanity. Consider all the factors we mentioned above and choose your suitable BB Cream and see how your skin will thank you. So, you are welcome!