If you buy something through my links, I may earn an affiliate commission, at no cost to you. For more information, read the full disclosure here.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning if you decide to make a purchase through my links, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. See my full disclosure here.
It’s hard to find the best translucent powders on the market that aren’t drying or cakey-looking but still lock in makeup for all-day wear. I’m pretty sure you recognize this struggle, right?
I have the best news for you because after reading this post you’ll know exactly…
- What translucent powder is the best for you
- What I like and dislike about the 22 mentioned powders
- How to apply translucent powder
Ready to find your new favorite translucent powder? Let’s go!
Top Picks
Best Drugstore Setting Powder: e.l.f High Definition Powder HD Loose Setting Powder
Jump To Review
Best Translucent Powder For Oily Skin: Anastasia Beverly Hills Loose Setting Powder
Jump To Review
Best Translucent Powder For Dry Skin: Hourglass Veil Translucent Setting Powder
Jump To Review
Best Loose Translucent Setting Powder: Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder
Jump To Review
Best Pressed Translucent Powder: Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish
Jump To Review
Best Setting Powder For Dewy Finish: Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder Glow
Jump To Review
Best Splurge-Worthy Setting Powder: Givenchy Prisme Libre Finishing & Setting Powder
Jump To Review
What’s worse than doing your makeup perfectly, wanting to set it so it lasts all day, and applying a translucent setting powder that ruins the complete look? Yeah, no we don’t want that… That’s why I’ve summed up the 22 best translucent powders, including their finish and for what skin type it’s best suited. On top of that, I’m also sharing what I like and dislike about each powder so quickly dive into the post!
22 Best Translucent Powders
Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder
- Price: $24 – $40
- Best Suited For: Oily, Combo, Normal Skin
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: A sheer, silky, best-selling powder that sets your makeup and feels refined on your skin.It applies evenly and blends effortlessly, leaving behind a modern matte finish with a touch of sheer coverage. The translucent shade works on virtually all skin types.
What I Like
- Very sheer, quite invisible coverage
- Soft-focus, blurring, matte finish
- It won’t settle into fine lines/pores and never looks cakey
What I Dislike
- Expensive (but if you get the mini, it’s less of a problem)
Read full review
Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder Glow
- Price: $39
- Best Suited For: Oily, Combo, Normal Skin
- Finish: Radiant
- What Is It: Laura Mercier’s beloved Translucent Loose Setting Powder is now available in a formula infused with pearl pigments so you can lock in your look for 12-hour wear with a healthy glow finish.
What I Like
- Very sheer, quite invisible coverage
- Soft-focus, blurring, radiant finish
- It won’t settle into fine lines/pores and never looks cakey
What I Dislike
- Expensive (but if you get the mini, it’s less of a problem)
Urban Decay All Nighter Waterproof Setting Powder
- Price: $35
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: Translucent and weightless, this setting powder blurs pores and imperfections, blocks shine without dulling your natural glow, and extends the life of foundation so there’s no need to reapply, even in hot climates. Cry, sweat, get wet—this powder helps your makeup stay waterproof and flawless for up to 11 hours.
What I Like
- Works amazing in humid, sweaty weather
- Sets makeup perfectly
- Is invisible and matte all-day
What I Dislike
- Quite expensive
Read Full Review
NARS Light Reflecting Loose Setting Powder
- Price: $39
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Radiant
- What Is It: Lightweight and easy to blend, this iconic formula is powered by NARS’ Light Reflecting Complex to create a soft-focus effect by optically fading the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and pores. Photochromic technology diffuses and adjusts to new sources of light, so skin looks perfect in person and on camera.
What I Like
- Lightweight powder that sets makeup properly
- Radiant looking without sparkles on the face
- Flawless, soft-focus finish
What I Dislike
- Quite expensive
Kylie Cosmetics Setting Powders
- Price: $24
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: The Setting Powder locks in makeup, mattifies, and minimizes excess shine all in one silky skin-breathable formula. Available in 6 natural shades this loose weightless powder was designed for all skin tones and is a must-have for keeping your makeup looking good all day long. Leaves skin with a nice matte finish without feeling dry.
What I Like
- Mattifies the skin all-day
- Very lightweight formula
- Works well under the eyes
- Not powdery or cakey
What I Dislike
- The amount of product for the price
Huda Beauty Easy Bake Loose Baking & Setting Powder
- Price: $35
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Radiant
- What Is It: An easy-to-use loose powder, perfectly curated for all skin tones to create an airbrushed, long-lasting complexion, blur the appearance of pores and fine lines, and hold makeup in place all day long. This extremely light and silky texture blends seamlessly into the skin, leaving it matte with a hint of sheen for a luminous finish that controls shine throughout the day.
What I Like
- The highest shade works well to bake
- The pink shade is perfect for the under eyes
- Super lightweight and silky powder
- Leaving the skin matte with a hint of sheen
What I Dislike
- Quite expensive
Kosas Cloud Set Baked Setting & Smoothing Powder
- Price: $34
- Best Suited For: Oily, Combo, Normal Skin
- Finish: Natural Finish
- What Is It: A super soft, sheer setting and smoothing powder baked with skincare that sweeps away shine (not glow), feels like nothing, but looks like everything. Its unique airy texture gives your skin the most smooth, blurred, healthy look ever. Get the diffused, natural finish of a loose powder in a no-mess pressed powder.
What I Like
- Completely invisible but leaves a flawless, radiant finish
- Sets makeup perfectly for all-day wear
- Doesn’t leave any white cast
- Is very lightweight, blurring, and natural-looking
What I Dislike
- Makes under eyes look dry and creasing so don’t use it to set concealer
Read Full Review
Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Loose Powder
- Price: $37
- Best Suited For: Oily, Combo, Normal Skin
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: Available in six versatile shades, the setting powder gives you lightweight coverage without flashback. This product provides a waterproof, sweatproof, and smudge-proof barrier to keep makeup fresh all day and includes an ultra-soft pointed-tip puff for precise application.
What I Like
- Works well for setting the under eye
- Perfect for people that work/are in front of a camera often
- Sets makeup perfectly and stays on all-day
- Blurs fine lines and doesn’t accentuate pores/texture
What I Dislike
- Quite expensive
Dior Backstage Powder No Powder Face And Body Setting Powder
- Price: $40
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: Dior Backstage Face & Body Powder-No-Powder blurs imperfections, reduces shine, and visibly evens out the complexion for a luminous matte finish. Completely foolproof, this compact powder infused in a gel base applies seamlessly on the skin for a natural, non-powdery effect, even after multiple touch-ups.
What I Like
- Has a bit of sheer coverage that evens out the skin
- Very lightweight and invisible
- The normal to matte finish is flawless and doesn’t look dry or cakey
What I Dislike
- Expensive
Glossier Wowder
- Price: $22
- Best Suited For: Dry and Normal Skin
- Finish: Natural to Matte
- What Is It: A finishing powder that cuts shine, blurs the appearance of pores, and sets makeup Control your level of dewiness with this instant blotting powder. Won’t leave a chalky film, cake into fine lines, flatten skin’s texture or show up in flash photos
What I Like
- Doesn’t contain talc
- Weightless and mattifying without looking cakey
- It’s blurring and non-drying
What I Dislike
- Don’t get it if you’re very oily
- Oily skin needs a touch-up during the day
LYS Beauty Triple Fix Setting Powder
- Price: $18
- Best Suited For: Oily, Combo Skin
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: This clean, talc-free, finely milled pressed setting powder buffs beautifully into the skin as it blurs and locks makeup in place for all-day perfection and no white cast. Infused with niacinamide, green tea extract, and sodium hyaluronate, this weightless powder won’t accentuate texture or pores.
What I Like
- Doesn’t contain talc
- Mattifies and sets makeup
- Quite lightweight powder
- Affordable powder
What I Dislike
- It’s not for under the eyes
- Accentuates dry areas (skip this powder if you have dry skin)
Read Full Review
bareMinerals Mineral Veil Talc Free Setting Powder
- Price: $30
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte or Radiant (there’s a matte and radiant version available, I prefer the matte)
- What Is It: All the soft translucence of the original Mineral Veil finishing powder with a touch of warm tint. The finishing powder infuses your skin with softness and light while gently absorbing oil and minimizing the appearance of lines and pores. It goes on completely sheer and is versatile enough for all skin tones.
What I Like
- Doesn’t contain talc
- Matte, blurring, and flawless finish
- Not cakey or accentuating pores/fine lines
What I Dislike
- Radiant one can look a bit flaky and is very shimmery
Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish
- Price: $45
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: This breathable, micro-fine powder technology gives you an immaculate complexion that acts like a luxe, micro-fine cashmere veil on top of your skin for a bright, perfecting finish. This product doesn’t cake or sit in lines. Rose wax and almond oil hydrate the skin throughout the day and enable the powder to blend on flawlessly, while reducing shine.
What I Like
- Truly mattifies the skin, all day long
- It’s invisible but the finish is flawless
- Doesn’t cake or sit in lines/wrinkles
What I Dislike
- Expensive
Read Full Review
Saie Airest Radiant Loose Setting Powder
- Price: $30
- Best Suited For: Oily, Combo, Normal Skin
- Finish: Radiant
- What Is It: The Setting Powder is packed with clean ingredients like squalane to lock in hydration and give skin a plump, moisturized appearance plus low-level mica for effortless luminosity. Saie’s formula has a weightless, velvet-cream texture that blends in seamlessly and leaves a radiant glow without looking heavy.
What I Like
- Doesn’t contain talc
- Doesn’t look or feel heavy or overdone
- Very natural, softly radiant finish
What I Dislike
- The packaging doesn’t dispose of the product easily
IT Cosmetics Bye Bye Pores Translucent Pressed Setting Powder
- Price: $30
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: Developed by plastic surgeons, this setting powder is infused with silk, collagen, antioxidants, and peptides to ensure it won’t settle into wrinkles while delivering an airbrushed look. Keep this translucent setting powder in your makeup bag for mattifying touch-ups.
What I Like
- Pores appear smaller
- Sets makeup properly
- Doesn’t look cakey
What I Dislike
- Noticed some white cast
- Oily skin needs a touch-up during the day
Fenty Beauty Pro Filt’r Instant Retouch Setting Powder
- Price: $34
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: This silky loose powder works all day to reduce shine and blur the look of pores, fine lines, and imperfections for a hyper-smooth filter that won’t flashback. Eight versatile shades melt into your unique skin tone, letting you set, perfect, and brighten without caking or settling.
What I Like
- Shade Lavender is perfect for brightening the under eye
- Mattifies and blurs all day long
- Doesn’t look cakey at all
- Sets makeup properly
What I Dislike
- Packaging is bulky
- The holes are a little too small so the product doesn’t come out easily
Givenchy Prisme Libre Finishing & Setting Powder
- Price: $58
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Radiant
- What Is It: An ultra finely milled setting powder that resists caking and is designed to mattify, blur, & illuminate the complexion for a perfected makeup result. Each loose setting powder shade combines four unique colors—two for correction and two for radiance.
What I Like
- Evens out the skin tone
- Mattifying and blurred effect all-day
- No settling into fine lines/wrinkles
- Perfect for the under eyes
What I Dislike
- Expensive
- Quite heavy scented
e.l.f High Definition Powder HD Loose Setting Powder
- Price: $6
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Natural to Radiant
- What Is It: This setting powder ensures you’re always insta-ready by subtly blurring fine lines, pores, and blemishes for a radiant complexion. The loose, light-as-air formula delivers translucent coverage that blends effortlessly onto your skin, giving you a smooth soft-focus finish that won’t cake or crease.
What I Like
- Lightweight, easy-to-apply powder
- Blurs and softens the skin
- Doesn’t accentuate fine lines/wrinkles
What I Dislike
- Not for the under eyes
- Be careful with flash photography
Hourglass Veil Translucent Setting Powder
- Price: $46
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Normal
- What Is It: Bless the skin with a naturally flawless finish with Hourglass Veil Translucent Setting Powder, an ultra-refined loose powder that settles onto the skin to disguise imperfections and ensure that foundation and concealer are set to perfection.
What I Like
- Doesn’t contain talc
- Blurs the skin and minimizes the look of pores
- Doesn’t accentuate fine lines/wrinkles
- Very lightweight, flawless-looking powder
What I Dislike
- Expensive
Anastasia Beverly Hills Loose Setting Powder
- Price: $38
- Best Suited For: Oily Skin
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: Perfect, brighten, and set makeup in place with the ABH Loose Setting Powder. Available in four natural-toned shades and one universal translucent shade, this silky formula gives the complexion a seamless, soft-focus effect while blurring the look of imperfections and extending the wear of your makeup.
What I Like
- Works really well to set the undereye
- Doesn’t settle into fine lines/wrinkles
- Works well to bake the face
- Mattifying without looking cakey
What I Dislike
- Doesn’t last all day, needs a touch-up
Pat McGrath Sublime Perfection Setting Powder
- Price: $39
- Best Suited For: Normal, Dry, Combination, and Oily
- Finish: Matte
- What Is It: his ultra-weightless, buildable, loose setting powder delivers major soft-focus effects. A sheer veil of coverage ensures skin looks naturally refined with a divine finish. With a silky, luxe, velvety feel, it blurs the look of imperfections for long-lasting makeup that stays flawlessly in place.
What I Like
- Has a blurring effect, softens the look of pores
- Soft, silky, and lightweight texture
- Sets makeup properly
What I Dislike
- Little too much coverage
- The packaging doesn’t dispose of the product easily
ILIA Soft Focus Finishing Powder
- Price: $34
- Best Suited For: Oily, Combination, and Normal Skin
- Finish: Natural to Matte
- What Is It: This superlight, talc-free formula is milled five times—most powders are milled three—for an airy feel and a soft-focus finish that doesn’t feel powdery. With a blend of aloe, rosemary, and oil-balancing bamboo, it hydrates and softens the feel of skin while cutting shine and blurring imperfections.
What I Like
- It’s a talc-free setting powder
- Slightly brightening effect if you use it to bake
- It’s natural, blurring, and matte looking
What I Dislike
- Can look a little dry (especially if you have dry patches or dry skin)
What Is Translucent Powder Used For
Translucent powder is a powder product that can be used to set your makeup. It often contains silica, which helps smooth out the skin and make it look more youthful. This type of powder is used to set makeup that’s already on your face, such as foundation and concealer. It also works well when you want to remove the shine on areas like your T-zone (forehead, nose, and chin).
Translucent powders come in different colors and formulations to fit different skin tones and skin types. The most common ones are white/off-white and pressed or loose powders which are called translucent, they don’t contain (barely) any actual color. Others may have a subtle sheen that gives the appearance of a glow. While all of them will help set makeup, not all will do so equally well and will look as good. That’s why I just summed up the best translucent powders on the market, this way you don’t have to waste your money.
FAQ
Translucent powders will help set your makeup. Some of the best translucent powders will leave your skin looking blurred, not cakey and have a matte or radiant finish.
Sort of but not exactly. Both have the function to set makeup, but a translucent powder is, as the word says, not visible while a setting powder can be translucent or have some coverage.
You need to have your skin type in mind because not all powders will work for all skin types. On top of that, try to pick a translucent powder that’s close to your own skin tone to make sure it’s truly invisible.
shop the post
Related Posts
Makeup Reviews • Product Reviews
Urban Decay All Nighter Waterproof Setting Powder Review
Posted on
Makeup Reviews • Product Reviews
Laura Mercier Translucent Powder: The Best To Set Makeup Effortlessly
Posted on
