best skin illuminating primer
If you have been looking for the best illuminating primer, you have landed on the right page. A primer plays an important role in your whole makeup routine. Not only does it fill in your pores and smoothens out your skin but it also literally “primes” and preps your face for the layers of makeup to follow. It minimizes your pores, conceals your blemishes, and evens out your skin tone to give that flawlessly smooth base for your makeup. Now, along with all the benefits of a regular primer, an illuminating primer, as the name suggests, brings out your natural skin radiance as well.
We’ve gathered together our top picks of the best illuminating primer for mature skin, best illuminating primer for dry skin, and best illuminating primer for oily skin to help you get the glowing skin of your dreams.
best skin illuminating primer
NARS Radiance Primer SPF35
Perfect for all skin types, the NARS Radiance Primer SPF35 adds a sheer, pearlescent sheen to the skin in a lightweight, oil-free formula. Boasting a Radiance Boosting Complex, the Radiance Primer instantly perks up dull, tired looking skin to reveal a lit-from-within glow.
In addition to enhancing the staying power of your makeup, the NARS Radiance Primer also protects your skin against harmful UV rays with an SPF of 35.
Perfect for: sun protection.
Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm
So hydrating and infused with pearl particles to add a beautiful glow to your skin, the Bobbi Brown Extra Illuminating Moisture Balm is perfect for dry and dehydrated skin which looks a little lacklustre.
With different shades to flatter and enhance a variety of skin tones, it helps your makeup to stay in place and look beautiful all day long. Skin is left plump and hydrated with a lit-from-within glow.
Perfect for: dry skin.
benefit POREfessional Pearl Primer
Smooth your pores and add glow to your complexion with the radiance boosting benefit POREfessional Pearl Primer. Particularly wonderful for oily and combination skin types, the oil-free primer glides over the skin, smoothing your complexion and adding much needed luminosity.
Leaving a soft matte finish, with the Pearl Primer skin looks ever so naturally radiant and is left perfectly prepped for your makeup.
Perfect for: oily or combination skin.
Yves Saint Laurent Touche Éclat Blur Primer
Perfectly prepping your skin for makeup, the radiance-boosting Yves Saint Laurent Touche Éclat Blur Primer evens out your skin tone and minimises pores while leaving behind a beautiful glow.
Flecked with golden shimmer, the mattifying and blurring formula helps to balance the skin and keep oils at bay so your skin looks so smooth throughout the day and is perfect for all skin types.
Perfect for: all skin types.
Physicians Formula Spotlight Illuminating Primer

A pastel-peach shade that’s bound to get you hooked, this dewy illuminating primer is the only friend your makeup products need. It’s also a primer you’ll want to befriend for life as it comes with 5 unique filtering pearls that provide an enviable glow and improve your skin tone. It also contains antioxidants, which help your skin to heal on its own because who wouldn’t want youthful-looking skin forever? Additionally, it comes with Optical Blurring Agents that reduce the appearance of pores and spots to reveal a smooth surface. It’s a safe choice for people with sensitive skin as it is clinically tested and approved by a dermatologist.