Beauty Tips & Inspiration
The best highlighters 2025
Glitter-free, head-turning highlighters for skin that positively glows
Nothing will take your skin from lacklustre to luminous faster than highlighter. But is stick or liquid highlighter better? Which shade looks best? With an overload of options, the process of finding your dream gleam can be tricky.
Whether you’re in the market for a little luxury or a beauty bargain here are the very best highlighters of 2025, designed to make your skin sing.
How to pick your perfect highlighter
SKIN TONE
- Deeper skin tones take bronze, yellow and gold highlighters well for added warmth.
- Medium tones can go deeper or lighter, depending on preference. Copper and champagne shades blend beautifully, while icy hues are great for sculpting.
- Lighter skin tones work best with champagne and pastel pinks.
FORMULA
- Powders can be easier to use than liquids and create a more sculpted finish.
- Liquids tend to look more natural and are better suited to acne-prone skin (powders can over-texturise skin).
- Creams universally suit all skin types (especially dry) and, when applied to any ‘high points’, offer a hypernatural highlight.
- Sticks are easy to use on the go. Lightly press the product into the skin, especially if you’ve used a powder prior, so you don’t disturb the rest of your makeup.
FINISH
- Powders are buildable, and best applied post-setting powder for a more dramatic, long-lasting (and photogenic) finish.
- Blush/highlighter hybrids are multi-use and great for adding a molten-like gleam.
- Liquids and balms are ideal for those who prefer a natural, dewy skin finish, while clear balms are The One for glass-like glow.
WHERE TO APPLY
Use highlighters to amplify the areas where the light would naturally hit your skin – the so-called ‘high points’ of your face (cheek and brow bones, plus the nose and cupid’s bow).
5 of the best highlighters
5 of the best highlighters
For ‘lit from within’ skin – Charlotte Tilbury
For ‘lit from within’ skin – Charlotte Tilbury
Beloved by beauty editors and A-Listers alike, Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Glow Glide Face Architect Highlighter combines the rich pigment of a pressed powder with the skin-gilding satin texture of a liquid highlighter. Available in seven shades, it delivers long-lasting radiance without creasing, caking or settling.
Best liquid highlighter – Sculpted By Aimee
Best liquid highlighter – Sculpted By Aimee
A weightless liquid highlighter that melts effortlessly into the skin, Sculpted By Aimee Liquid Lights Highlighter has fast become a fan favourite. Why? It’s completely foolproof, and the three natural shades give long-lasting golden-hour glow, with a side of springtime dewiness.
For a glass-like glow – Chantecaille
For a glass-like glow – Chantecaille
This luminous gel-crème primer instantly blurs and perfects the complexion for a healthy-looking glow. Chantecaille Sheer Glow Rose Face Tint is packed with powerful botanicals that moisturise and smooth the skin, giving a sheer, effortless glow (sans sparkles). This is skincare-infused makeup at its finest.
Best powder for long-lasting glow – Hourglass
Best powder for long-lasting glow – Hourglass
With 5-star ratings as standard, Hourglass Ambient Light Powder diffuses and softens surrounding light with groundbreaking photo-luminescent technology. Choose from six shades to sweep on to cheekbones, or use it as a finishing powder over foundation for a soft glow (without cakiness) that lasts all day.
For an instant flash of light – Clinique
For an instant flash of light – Clinique
Just one swipe of Clinique Chubby Stick provides the most stunning flash of light to the skin. The crayon-like design is a joy to use for precision application on cheekbones, temples or wherever you want some glow, yet it’s the easy-blend texture that makes it truly iconic.
