Makeup Artists and Editors Agree: These 8 Korean Blushes Are Worthy of a Professional Kit (and Your Makeup Bag)

Format: Cream or balm | Finish: Natural-glowy | Shades: Six

Pros: Soft, creamy texture, featherlight formula, easy to blend, easy to build, natural finish, can be used on lips and cheeks.

Cons: None.

Celebrity makeup artist Lila Childs loves Clio’s Essential Lip & Cheek Blush Tap. “It gives you that perfect bouncy watercolor flush,” she says. Zhang is also a big fan of this balmy blush. “My favorite Korean blush brand is Clio,” she says. “I love their formulas because they’re very sheer, soft, and easy to work with. You can slowly build the color, so it gives you that really fresh, natural-looking flush while still allowing your skin to show through.”

“For application, I personally love using a brush because it gives me more control and a really seamless finish. I usually start at the center of the cheek and blend horizontally outward in a soft V shape, with the point of the V extending toward the outer cheek. I find this placement gives you a very natural flush while also making the face look more lifted.”

Format: Powder | Finish: Velvety-matte | Shades: Seven

This affordable, internet-viral blush offers an airbrushed effect, thanks to micro-fine particles that set, smooth, and blur the skin (they don’t sink into pores or highlight skin texture they way other powder products do). The seven shades are inspired by dried fruit—think blueberry, peach, mango, and lychee. They offer a natural bloom of soft, velvety color. “Natural” is the key word. This isn’t the blush to use if you want bold color payoff, especially on deeper skin tones.

Pros: Soft, airy texture, featherlight formula, easy to blend, blurring finish.

Cons: The shade range is limited, and some people might prefer bolder pigment.

Format: Liquid | Finish: Dewy | Shades: Eight

This liquid blush delivers a dreamy, dewy finish, thanks to a formula that’s infused with rose flower water and a blend of fruit extracts. It feels like a serum on the skin, blends easily, and can be built up for more color payoff. It’s the blush I reach for when I want a natural-looking, summertime flush year round.

Pros: Soft, hydrating texture, featherlight formula, easy to blend, dewy finish.

Cons: It might be too dewy for oily or acne-prone skin types.

Format: Cream | Finish: Dewy | Shades: Six

This blush delivers bouncy, hydrating color to the lips and cheeks (I love a multi-tasking product). The lightweight balm glides smoothly onto the skin and can be worn sheer for a subtle wash of color or built up for vibrancy without any heaviness or patchiness. Plus, it features complexion-enhancing, mood-adaptive colors. Translation? Each shade looks slightly different on everyone who wears it. It even offers real skin benefits, thanks to vitamin E, raspberry seed, avocado fruit extract, and Hyal-Spheres. The latter is a moisture-volumizing ingredient that makes the skin look plump and hydrated.

Pros: Soft, balmy texture, hydrating and plumping formula, easy to blend, easy to build, dewy finish, can be used on lips and cheeks.

Cons: None.

Format: Cream | Finish: Blurred, matte | Shades: 25

Korean blushes do blurred finishes the best (there, I said it). This blush is the perfect example of a product that delivers dreamy, cloud-like color. It comes in 25 shades (an impressive range, too), and has a cool, pudding-like texture that reminds me of a certain mousse foundation formula from the early 2000s (IYKYK).

Pros: Bouncy, pudding texture, easy to blend, easy to build, blurred finish, good shade range, can be used on lips and cheeks.

Cons: None.

Format: Cream | Finish: Dewy | Shades: Four

If you like your blush to be truly seamless, and downright glowy, I recommend adding Lilybyred’s Luv Beam Cheek Balm to your shopping cart. The creamy texture is highly buildable, so you can wear it sheer or opaque without any pilling or patchiness whatsoever. It’s easy to apply with a brush, makeup sponge, or just your fingers, and the heart-shaped packaging is adorable. My only complaint? The shade range is lacking.

Pros: Smooth, creamy texture, easy to blend, easy to build, dewy finish.

Cons: The shade range is limited.

Format: Liquid | Finish: Ultra-dewy | Shades: 15

Here’s another highly rated liquid blush. It delivers a dewy splash of color; I’d go as far as to say it’s “juicy,” which is why I wear it whenever I’m going to an event where I’ll be photographed. Most recently, that was a wedding in which I was a bridesmaid. I find that it makes my skin look plump, hydrated, and super glowy on camera. With that said, it doesn’t have the same staying power as other blush formulas on this list, and it’s not the best product to wear on hot, humid days, as it can slip or look too shiny for my looking. With that said, if you love a “glazed donut” finish, this is the blush for you.

Pros: Soft, hydrating texture, featherlight formula, easy to blend, ultra-dewy finish.

Cons: The shade range is limited for deeper skin tones, and it might be too dewy for oily or acne-prone skin types.

Format: Liquid | Finish: Dewy | Shades: 11

This liquid blush has an ampoule-like texture, meaning it’s extremely hydrating and well-suite for dry and/or mature skin types…or anyone who loves a dewy finish for that matter. It features an impressive 50% moisture essence base, but it’s not sticky or streaky, which is why it’s a go-to product for luminous, dewy color. And the shades! They’re stunning. I don’t think there’s a single one that I wouldn’t wear.

Pros: Soft, hydrating texture, featherlight formula, easy to blend, dewy finish, good shade range.

Cons: It might be too dewy for oily or acne-prone skin types.