Ready to break up with—or take a break from—full-coverage foundations? The best BB creams and CC creams offer ample hydration and sheer, buildable coverage for a second-skin finish. There are differences between both formulations (which we’ll get to below), but at their core, both BB and CC creams provide blemish-concealing coverage and infuse skin care (hi, peptides, hyaluronic acid, and SPF) into your makeup routine. Effectively, you’re getting the best of several worlds—what more could we ask?
Though they’ve been around for decades, many of these makeup-skin care hybrids have found their way back to virality. We tapped our team of full-time beauty lovers and a few professional makeup artists to help you find the best BB and CC creams for all the lit-from-within energy you didn’t even know you needed. Happy blending!
Our Top Picks
Frequently Asked Questions
Best Overall: IT Cosmetics Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream SPF 50+
Why it’s worth it: There’s more than one reason IT Cosmetics’ Your Skin But Better CC+ Cream won a Readers’ Choice Award three years in a row. Aside from a heaping serving of broad-spectrum SPF 50, this formula delivers nourishing additives that bridge the gap between skin tint and moisturizer. You’ll get a cocktail of collagen, peptides, hyaluronic acid, snail mucin, and antioxidant-rich vitamins A, B, C, and E, all of which work in tandem to hydrate, plump, and improve skin texture over time.
It’s no wonder that makeup artists like Neil Scibelli and Brielle Pollara consider this the gold standard of BB and CC creams. “The CC+ Full coverage foundation SPF 50+ truly corrects any uneven skin tone, hyperpigmentation, and redness, and also blurs pores—while still leaving a natural finish on the skin,” attests Scibelli.
“The coverage of this CC cream cannot be matched. As someone who still fights active breakouts, this cream provides amazing coverage for all blemishes, dark spots, and scars. It brightens my whole face, lasts all day long, and the SPF is perfect for long summer days when you need coverage and extra protection.”
- Key ingredients: titanium dioxide (9%), zinc oxide (6.3%), niacinamide, collagen, peptides, hyaluronic acid, vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin E
- Finish: natural
- Shade count: 22
Best Shade Range: Kosas BB Burst Tinted Gel Cream
Why its worth it: Why mix shades to create a match when Kosas’ BB Burst exists, complete with a 24-shade lineup. (This number may seem mid-range compared to traditional foundations, but most BB creams on the market have around 10 shades or less.) Our editors love this BB cream for its smooth, barely-there feel, which can be credited to a hydrating duo of humectants: sodium PCA and saccharide isomerate, a hydrator derived from sugar molecules. To round out the formula, Kosas’s BB cream is infused with copper peptides to promote skin elasticity and zinc for its redness-neutralizing properties.
“This formula is the definition of weightless—if I don’t apply it using a mirror, I truly question whether I put it on or not. It can be a little tricky getting the undertones just so, but once you’ve found the perfect color, it’s Second Skin City. Truly imperceptible coverage that blends easily and wears ridiculously comfortably. It’s my ideal summer skin tint.”
- Key ingredients: copper peptides, zinc, sodium PCA, saccharide isomerate
- Finish: natural/semi-dewy
- Shades: 24
Best Coverage: Cle Cosmetics CCC Cream
Why it’s worth it: The CCC Cream from Cle Cosmetics combines the best aspects of BB and CC creams into one do-it-all formula (with that extra “C” for good luck). This broad-spectrum SPF 50 skin tint hydrates and nourishes skin with an impressive blend of hyaluronic acid and glycerin, a humectant that attracts water. To even out your complexion, the cream contains microcapsulated pigments that burst and spread to provide seamlessly blendable medium coverage. Just make sure you spend time actually blending this formula out, as it comes out white straight from the tube.
“For the past five years, not a single complexion product has swayed me from Cle’s CCC Cream, and I’ll tell you why: it requires zero effort whatsoever. I can just squeeze a pea-sized amount onto my fingers and slather it onto my face without care and still get a glowing, even, my-skin-but-better result. It sinks in like a skin-care product—and has the ingredients to match—so it never creases, smudges, or cakes.”
- Key ingredients: titanium dioxide (9.19%), octinoxate (7%), octisalate (3%), Micro Capsule Technology, hyaluronic acid, glycerin, vitamin E
- Finish: dewy
- Shades: 12
Best for Dry Skin: Dr. Jart+ BB Premium Beauty Balm SPF 40
Why it’s’ worth it: Dr. Jart+’s BB Premium Beauty Balm was one of the first Korean skin-care products to hit Sephora shelves, and man, are we glad it happened. Let us review the reasons why this breathable formula is such a hit. First, it’s designed to address hyperpigmentation—soy, licorice, vitamin C, niacinamide, and arbutin are the discoloration-fading show-stealers, and broad-spectrum SPF 40 provides extra protection against new dark spots forming. (As with all SPF-spiked makeup, even if it’s above SPF 30, we always recommend wearing a standalone sunscreen underneath.) This formula also makes skin look smoother with the help of adenosine, a sugar molecule that speeds up cell renewal, which is why this is one of NYC-based makeup artist Jamie Dorman’s go-to BB creams.
Tester feedback from commerce editor Sarah Han
“During my first-ever Sephora run in high school, my mom allowed me to get two items, and this was one of them. For someone who had yet to try base makeup, I figured a BB cream was the best introduction. While the formula has probably been tweaked throughout the years, Dr. Jart+’s Premium BB Tinted Moisturizer still holds strong. Most days, I only wear concealer, but if I’m looking to even out my entire complexion, this formula has just enough coverage while still looking like my skin. Plus, ingredients like glycerin and niacinamide lend a healthy glow.”
- Key ingredients: octinoxate (6.8%), octisalate (4.5%), titanium dioxide (4.8%) zinc oxide (5%), niacinamide (2%), glycerin (5%), soy extract, licorice root extract, vitamin C, arbutin, adenosine
- Finish: natural/semi-dewy
- Shades: 4
Best for Redness: Erborian CC Red Correct SPF 25
Why it’s worth it: The CC Red Correct, a moisturizing tint from Korean-French brand Erborian, is a creamy, redness-neutralizing option for days when acne, rosacea, or a random flush kicks in. This Allure Best of Beauty Award winner provides light-to-medium, radiant coverage and is infused with Centella asiatica extract, a soothing, irritation-reducing ingredient. Since the SPF coverage is less than 30, be sure to apply sunscreen beforehand.
“The result is a lovely, less red and slightly dewy finish—just how I like it. I don’t wear much makeup besides mascara and a touch of bronzer, so mastering the dewy-not-wet look is super important to me. It’s how I let my skin shine through. Most days when I wear Erborian’s CC Red Correct, I don’t even need concealer, which goes to show that this stuff is legit.”
- Key ingredients: octinoxate (6%), octisalate (2%), titanium dioxide (2.34%), zinc oxide (3.84%), Centella asiatica extract
- Finish: radiant
- Shades: 1
Best for Mature Skin: Clinique Age Defense BB Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 30
Why it’s worth it: Most BB and CC creams have the texture of tinted moisturizers, but the Moisture Surge CC Cream by Clinique feels more like a lightweight foundation. (Clinique suggests spot-applying the CC Cream where skin looks red or dull for lighter coverage. For fuller coverage, wear it as a skin-blurring tinted primer under your usual foundation.) This oil- and fragrance-free CC cream color-corrects redness, dullness, and sallowness with its mix of soothing aloe vera extract, anti-inflammatory caffeine, and moisturizing squalane. Maybe that’s why Pollara is such a big fan. “This lightweight formula provides just enough coverage to mask imperfections,” she says. “Formulated with antioxidants, this product protects the skin and prevents signs of aging and skin damage.” It all adds up to a tinted masterpiece that diminishes the look of fine lines and discoloration.
- Key ingredients: octinoxate (7.5%), octisalate (5%), titanium dioxide (5.2%), zinc oxide (3.2%), aloe vera extract, caffeine, squalane
- Finish: natural/semi-dewy
- Shades: 4
Best Drugstore: Maybelline New York Dream Fresh BB Cream
Why it’s worth it: Maybelline’s Dream Fresh BB Cream is a certified drugstore diamond. For just 10 bucks, this lightweight, SPF-loaded, oil-free, non-comedogenic formula delivers sheer coverage with just the right hit of hydration. It brightens, blurs, and leaves your pores happily unclogged. TLDR: Cheap, effective, and basically a no-brainer. The only catch? A limited shade range that unfortunately tops out at a latte-like hue (an expansion would be much appreciated). Still, it’s surprisingly adaptable—so even if your shade doesn’t look spot-on in the tube, it might just blend right in.
- Key ingredients: titanium dioxide (2.0%), glycerin
- Finish: natural
- Shades: 5
Best Priming: L’Oréal Paris Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream
Why it’s worth it: Another wallet-friendly winner: meet L’Oréal’s Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream. This multitasker checks all the boxes—hydration, seamless second-skin coverage, and an evened-out tone. On days when you’re craving something more matte and opaque, this stuff doubles beautifully as a primer under foundation or concealer. Bonus: it’s packed with vitamins C and E, plus tiny Beautifying Beads—encapsulated pigments that burst and blend effortlessly as you apply.
- Key ingredients: vitamin C, vitamin E, Beautifying Beads
- Finish: sheer
- Shades: 4
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the difference between BB creams and CC creams?
BB and CC creams have many similarities: radiant finishes, moisturizing ingredients, and often, broad-spectrum sun protection—but they’re two different genres of product. According to Scibelli, Pollara, and bicoastal makeup artist Tomy Rivero, CC creams are designed to color-correct (CC stands for “color correct,” after all) discoloration, redness, and sallowness, while BB creams “are a form of a lighter-weight foundation with skin-care benefits, usually light in coverage for a barely-there, ‘no makeup’ look,” says Rivero. While BB creams are mainly for anyone who wants low-maintenance, dewy coverage, Scibelli says that CC creams are great for someone who’s looking to neutralize redness, cover sunspots, or smooth uneven skin tone. “CC creams typically contain more pigment for buildable coverage,” he says.
“A BB cream, which usually stands for a beauty balm, is a multiuse product that acts as a primer, foundation, moisturizer, and sunscreen,” explains Los Angeles-based makeup artist Brandy Allen. In addition to hydrating and evening skin tones, BB creams treat your skin to hydrating, brightening, blemish-eviscerating, and fine-line-filling ingredients like antioxidant vitamin C, according to Dorman.
How do I apply BB and CC creams?
As if BB creams and CC creams didn’t have enough benefits, both are also extremely easy to apply. Both Allen and Dorman agree that you can use just about any of your favorite tools to smooth these effortless formulas onto your skin—even if said tool is your hand. “You can use a sponge, foundation brush, or your fingers, and gently dab the product for a natural, skin-like finish,” says Allen.
Meet the experts
How we test and review products
Before reviewing any makeup, we ask questions about a number of factors: What ingredients are in it? Does the brand offer a wide shade range inclusive of consumers with all skin tones and undertones? Is it safe for readers who have sensitive skin or wear contact lenses? Is it on the affordable side or more of a splurge? Is its packaging consciously designed or needlessly wasteful?