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The 14 Best Korean Makeup Brands to Shop for Next-Level Glow

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If you’ve ever stepped into a Sephora, an Ulta or even your local CVS, you have likely come across K-Beauty products. Known for their sensorial textures and advanced ingredients, K-beauty has gone from a buzzy new phenomenon to a regular part of our routines in the last several years.

And when you’re ready to venture beyond the essences and sheet masks, it’s time to give Korean makeup a try. Spiked with skincare ingredients like hyaluronic acid, everyday products like foundation and lipstick deliver natural-looking coverage and color that looks as good as it feels on your skin.

From a glow-inducing blush to a creamy lip tint that doesn’t dry out your pout, here are 14 of our favorite Korean makeup brands (and a hero product from each line) to get you started on your shopping journey.

8 Asian-Owned Beauty Brands to Shop and Support Now


best korean makeup brands amorepacific
Sephora

1. Amorepacific

Try: Color Control Cushion Compact Broad Spectrum SPF 50+

You can think of AmorePacific as the L’Oréal of Korea; it’s a storied beauty conglomerate with a ton of brands that sit under it (some of which are also on this list). AmorePacific also has a line of premium products that are primarily skincare focused, but the one exception is their cushion compact, which is beloved for its lightweight, yet surprisingly buildable coverage and SPF 50.

innisfree
Innisfree

2. Innisfree

Try: Matte Mineral Setting Powder

Innisfree is one of the aforementioned brands that sit under AmorePacific’s umbrella. The budget-friendly line is known for featuring local ingredients like green tea that’s sourced from their own fields on Jeju Island. Though there are tons of products to choose from, a longstanding favorite for many is this pore-blurring powder that soaks up excess shine and leaves your skin with a smooth, velvety finish that lasts for hours.

missha
Stylevana

3. Missha

Try: Dare Tint Matte Tattoo

Fun fact: Missha was one of the first brands to bring BB cream to the masses. Its M Perfect Cover BB Cream is still one of our favorites (as is its essence), but currently we’re loving the Dare Tint Matte Tattoo. The rich color goes on super-smooth for a natural-looking matte finish that will last the whole day.

best korean makeup brands joah
JOAH

4. Joah Beauty

Try: Crystal Glow Tinted Luminizer Stick

Joah, pronounced “Jo-Ah” means “I like it” in Korean: a cheeky but accurate name for a brand that aims to infuse a bit of fun into your beauty routine. If you happen to spot Joah in your local CVS, make sure to pick up its Crystal Glow Tinted Luminizer Stick, which gives your skin a healthy, non-sparkly glimmer.

best korean makeup brands kaja
Sephora

5. Kaja

Try: Wink Stamp Wing Eyeliner Stamp & Pen

Here’s a little beauty trivia for you: Kaja, which translates to “let’s go” in Korean is the first Korean makeup brand that was co-founded with Sephora. As such, the colorful line is packed with portable products that fit easily into the palm of your hand and seriously deliver on color. If we had to choose just one MVP from the stacked lineup, we’d go with the eyeliner stamp (which we’ve written about before) because it makes nailing the perfect flick infinitely easier.

best korean makeup brands vdl
Ulta

6. Vdl

Try: Lumilayer Primer

By now you may have heard of something called “glass skin.” (ICYMI: It’s a K-beauty trend that refers to when your skin is so smooth and glowing that it looks like a piece of glass.) This luminescent primer by VDL gives you just that. Packed with prismatic pearls, it softens any fine lines and brightens sallow skin as soon as you put it on. We like to layer it under our foundation and pat a little extra on top as a highlighter.

best korean makeup brands tonymoly
Amazon

7. Tonymoly

Try: Petit Bunny Gloss Bar

It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Tonymoly is one of the brands that helped K-beauty gain mainstream recognition when it first started trickling into our collective psyche. With its banana-shaped hand creams and this bunny capped lip balm, who could resist? We’ve been through countless tubes of the balm because of the way it lightly tints our lips with a wash of color and leaves them coated with ample shine. Plus, the slim bullet is easy to maneuver so you can apply it on the go without having to worry about it getting everywhere.

best korean makeup brands banila co
Amazon

8. Banila Co.

Try: Mung-Moong Paw Brush

Skincare fanatics may already know Banila Co. for its cleansing balm (it’s seriously the bomb), but the brand also has a selection of makeup products—from a lip tint to an eyebrow pencil. Our top pick, however, is this paw-shaped brush that you can use to apply your foundation, blush or bronzer. The bristles feel super soft against your face and blend in makeup like a dream.

best korean makeup brands etude house
Amazon

9. Etude House

Try: Tint My Brows Gel

Etude House is a classic in Korea; since its launch in 1985, it’s become one of the most recognized beauty brands in the country—and beyond. (If you’re ever in Seoul, we highly recommend checking out one of the brick-and-mortar stores, which look like a giant doll houses and are packed with beautiful products at accessible price points.) Our top pick is the Tint My Brows Gel, which garnered a lot of buzz for its long wear time (up to three days for some).

best korean makeup brands cle cosmetics
CLE Cosmetics

10. Cle Cosmetics

Try: CCC Cream

Created with the modern (read: multi-tasking) woman in mind, Cle Cosmetics offers a tightly curated collection of makeup and skincare products that streamline your routine. One to add to your cart immediately: The CCC Cream, which is a primer, foundation and sunscreen in one that wears like a second skin. This can be attributed to the micro capsule technology that basically separates the skincare ingredients from the foundation pigments until you rub it onto your skin, so you get optimal coverage and hydration with every application. The results are satiny and smooth, and not in the least bit cakey.

touch in sol
Touch in Sol

11. Touch In Sol

Try: Pretty Filter Glowdient Palette

Touch in Sol operates under the ethos that “makeup should be a joyful and exciting moment” and “should never be a tiring or stressful experience.” To which we say: Here, here! Start with the #Glowdient Palette, which features five shimmery shades that can be used as eye shadow, highlighter or blush and that can be layered on top of one another to create even richer, deeper hues.

best korean makeup brands 3ce
Stylenanda

12. 3ce

Try: Take a Layer Multi Pot

For on-trend colors, we always look to 3CE. Whether it’s the brand’s acclaimed velvet lipstick or the eye shadow palettes, you can count on the brand to deliver fresh hues and satisfying pigment. Add the Take a Layer Multi Pot to your carts for a creamy tint that can be used on your cheeks, lips and lids. The buttery texture melts into skin with a few light taps of your fingertips.

peripera
Amazon

13. Perpipera

Try: Ink the Velvet Lip Tint

No one does lip products quite like Peripera. The whimsical brand is known for its array of colorful shades and fun textures, which is on full display with their Velvet Lip Tint. With a light, mousse-like formula that glides on seamlessly and dries to a velvety finish, it delivers an impressive punch of color without desiccating your lips despite extended wear.

best korean makeup brands clio
Stylevanna

14. Clio

Try: Clio Waterproof Pen Liner

The brainchild of professional makeup artists, Clio is a true O.G. in the K-beauty space. Given the brand’s vast offerings, we’ll start you off with a fan favorite: the waterproof pen liner. The fine-tipped applicator creates the finest of lines and sharpest of flicks. Best of all, the inky formula actually holds up against sweat and oily lids.


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Jenny Jin Headshot Vertical 2023

Beauty Director

Jenny Jin is PureWow’s Beauty Director and is currently based in Los Angeles. Since beginning her journalism career at Real Simple magazine, she has become a human encyclopedia of...