The 8 Best Makeup Sponge of 2022

Beauty Blender was founded by Rea Ann Silva, a professional Hollywood beauty artist who does makeup for Emmy and Oscar-winning celebrities. The Beauty Blender is the world’s first egg-shaped seamlessly makeup sponge, which has been very famous in just a few years. The Beauty Blender has been loved by many makeup artists and celebrities and highly recommended by internet-famous makeup influencers on You Tube.

Beauty Blender has been ranked as "Best of Beauty" by the authoritative beauty magazine Allure many times, and frequently used by makeup artists in the backstage dressing rooms of grand award ceremonies such as Emmy Award and Oscars. Beauty Blender is more skin-friendly and softer than similar products. It will not cause allergies. You should wet it with water after squeezing out. The super-bouncy makeup sponges has a moderate hardness and fluffy texture, but it does not absorb too much cosmetics, so you need not worry about you will waste a little.

In addition to applying base makeup, Beauty Blender can also be used to apply loose powder, eyeshadow, contour or highlighter and other makeups. There are many colors for options. The pink version is the best selling product; the white version is the softest one and suitable for people with sensitive skin; and the black version has the hardest texture, which is more suitable for professional makeup artists to match with dark-colored beauty products, such as cream foundation and contouring products. Besides, there are some limited seasonal colors. Beauty Blender also launched a seamless blush makeup sponge with a smaller size.

It should be noted that the Beauty Blender with a dark color may shed dye for the first couple of washes, and this condition will be improved after washing several times. Therefore, it should be stored separately from light-colored products. You’d better replace a makeup sponge every three months for the sake of personal hygiene.

Real Techniques developed rapidly with the help of social medium and became a promising brand in makeup tools industries. The founder Samantha Chapman and her sister Nicola first set up a beauty channel on YouTube to attract female audiences around the world, then officially launched the brand Real Techniques in 2011.

Real Techniques makeup brushes have been ranked as the "best makeup brushes" by many beauty magazines. It is difficult to use complicated brushes for most makeup beginners. Real Techniques released MIRACLE COMPLEXION SPONGE® made of a latex-free hydrophilic foam, which is non-irritating. It swells up to a decent size when dampened, which is suitable for liquid foundations; and it can be used dry when applying powder cosmetics. Compared with Beauty Blender, the shape design of MIRACLE COMPLEXION SPONGE® fits the contour of the face perfectly.

Like Beauty Blender, the fluffy sponge of the Real Techniques can spread easily to create a seamless and airy finish. However, it is not as soft as the Beauty Blender. Beauty Blender product quality is inconsistent. Makeup sponges are easily break when cleaning, and it will flake after long use.

Shu Uemura is a brand named after its founder (a Japanese makeup artist), which was acquired by L'Oréal in 2002. Shu Uemura is the pioneer of fashion theme makeup in the world and is good at expressing advanced concepts by matching colors. There are two types of makeup sponges mostly recommended: Lightbulb Sponge and Pentagon Sponge.

Lightbulb, Lancôme MULTI-FUNCTION PRECISION MAKE-UP SPONGE, and Dior backstage professional-grade DIORSKIN FOREVER FLUIDE SPONGE are all made of NBR with hard texture, but the Lightbulb sponge is more skin-friendly among them. The makeup sponge is gourd-shaped, which helps cover blemishes to create a seamless finish. There is a layer of oil-absorbing substance on the top to absorb the excess oil on the face.

Shu Uemura also released 4-piece PENTAGON SPONGE for the convenience of travelers, which are made of natural rubber (NR) with the lowest price among all makeup sponges. Most of them are used as disposable makeup sponges, but actually Shu Uemura PENTAGON SPONGE can be washed 4-5 times. It can fit the contour of the face perfectly for the angular design with a soft touch. The PENTAGON SPONGE can be used wet or dry, which has higher quality compared to other makeup sponges made by fast-moving consumer brands.

Shu Uemura has launched a series of classic single products since it hit the market. Shu Uemura also has a comprehensive makeup sponge products.

Lancôme is a French brand founded by Armand Petitjean in 1935. As a world-renowned high-end cosmetics brand, Lancôme is involved in skin care, cosmetics, perfume and other industries, which targets mature women aged 25 to 40 with higher education levels and higher income levels.

TEINT IDOLE ULTRA MAKEUP SPONGE is ranked fourth in makeup sponge category in the Japanese COSME. It can fit the contour of the face perfectly with its diamond-shaped design, and it will not flake after repeated washing. However, this makeup sponge is only available in Japan.

MULTI-FUNCTION PRECISION MAKE-UP SPONGE is made of NBR which has a hard texture. Although it is not skin-friendly enough, it is softer and bouncier than Dior’s makeup sponges with the same texture. Besides, the price is high. It is not recommended for beginners.

Lancôme rarely advertises for makeup sponges, so few people know it. In addition to the above two makeup sponges, Lancôme also released the LES ESSENTIELS DE MAQUILLAGE, which can be applied easily with a soft touch.

Make Up For Ever is a professional makeup brand founded by Dany Sanz in 1984, and it is also the only makeup brand of the world luxury group LVMH. The "MAKE UP FOR EVER Makeup Professional Academy", established by its founder, Ms. Dany Sanz, is known as the "Harvard of Makeup Industry" and has trained numerous outstanding make-up artists for brands such as YSL and Lancôme.

The ELLIPSE SPONGE SOFT TEXTURE is the best-known one among Make Up For Ever makeup sponges, which is suitable for applying makeup to large area. It is made of imported high-density sponge which can improve the covering power of foundation, and you may feel soft. However, this make sponge is not suitable for dry use. It should wet makeup sponge with water to make it bouncier and softer.

There are two makeup sponges with flat design, namely Make Up For Ever and Sponges. Make Up For Ever is egg-shaped, which is denser than Sponges and fits every corner of the face. The ultra-dense material can be matched with various types of foundations. Sponges are perfect at providing coverage in smaller areas such as the eyes area and on both sides of the nose due to the smaller curvature at the edges.

Make Up For Ever not only releases many famous cosmetics but also produces high-quality makeup tools. Although there are only three types of makeup sponges, they have specific functions.

M·A·C is a brand co-founded by professional makeup artist, photographer Frank Toskan, and Frank Angelo who runs a chain of hair salons in Toronto in 1985. M·A·C was acquired by Estée Lauder Group in 1998. M·A·C always surprise people for its avant-garde style and bold colors.

M·A·C ALL BLENDING SPONGE is made of latex-free NBR with a hard texture, which is suitable for applying cream or liquid foundation or other cosmetics.

M·A·C also has two-sheet replacement makeup sponges, which are smaller than ALL BLENDING SPONGE. You can use it for a long time after washing, or you can replace it after use, which is convenient and hygienic. However, this sponge contains natural latex. People who are allergic to natural latex should choose carefully.

The shape of M·A·C PRO PERFORMANCE SPONGE is similar to Lancome’s MULTI-FUNCTION PRECISION MAKE-UP SPONGE, but it is more convenient to use. However, this makeup sponge is not dense enough, so it will not swell up when damped. M·A·C PRO PERFORMANCE SPONGE is not soft and skin-friendly enough.

Crayon-shaped SOFTPOINT SPONGE APPLICATOR has the same texture as the ALL BLENDING SPONGE, which is suitable for foundations and makeup products of various textures. But the SOFTPOINT SPONGE APPLICATOR has a high price and it is difficult for beginners to use.

M·A·C has comprehensive makeup tools in various styles. Makeup sponges under M·A·C have different and special shapes, which are worth buying.

Shiseido is a famous Japanese cosmetics brand founded in 1872. Compared with skin care products, Shiseido makeup sponges are not prominent with normal shapes, which seems not much different from fast-moving consumer makeup sponges. However, as a historical brand, Shiseido offers different makeup sponges for different purposes.

#104, #105 and #114 are basic makeup sponges under Shiseido, which can be used wet or dry to apply pressed powder while not recommended to apply liquid foundation and cream products.

It is recommended to use a dense makeup sponge to apply a thicker liquid foundation or powder and cream product, such as makeup sponge #108, #110, #112, #118, and #119. #118 and #119 are the most popular among makeup sponges released by Shiseido. #118 is diamond-shaped while #119 is drop-shaped. #119 can create a better makeup effect with a higher price.

As a historical brand in the cosmetics industry, Shiseido always performs well in makeup sponges. If you don’t know how to choose, you can try Shiseido.

Dior is a French luxury brand in the perfume, fashion or makeup industries founded in 1947. Dior adheres to the concept of elegant and gorgeous styles. When the egg-shaped sponge became popular, Dior also followed the trend and then launched two types of egg-shaped makeup sponges.

Dior has created two types of makeup sponges. Black makeup sponge is the DIOR DSK STAR FDT FL SPONGE. The oval shape is only used to contour and create a natural finish. However, it is not useful enough as it is usually used in professional makeup backstage, which is not suitable for applying foundations. DIOR DSK STAR FDT FL SPONGE is gradually replaced by white makeup sponges.

The white version is the BACKSTAGE BLENDER. It is made of NBR with a hard texture. It is suitable for applying concealer rather than liquid foundation products.

Dior's two makeup sponges tend to be used for contouring, which are different from standard makeup sponges, so it targets specific consumers.