I’ve been saying for a while now that I really don’t need a huge highlighter collection because what I like usually comes down to having the smallest possible shimmer particles, a non-metallic finish, subtle to medium intensity, and being a color that suits me. Once I find the perfect one, there isn’t much need to purchase additional highlighters. So, I’m testing that theory in 2024. I only brought my top seven highlighters to Germany (and repurchased one additional former favorite in a different shade) in order to see if I will miss having endless options or if I can truly be happy with a smaller collection. I suspect that the only reason I had as many as I did was for the pretty packaging, embossings and debossings, and/or them being limited edition. Unlike other categories of makeup that I tried to do a mini declutter and took photos of everything, I only have a picture of my main highlighter drawer from 2021 as seen below. It really doesn’t look too different from what the 2023 version would look like because I slowed down on the highlighter purchases upon realizing things got out of hand, and I was only reaching for the same few ones while still barely making dents in them.

The first five highlighters I’ll be showing here can’t be ranked. It’s impossible for me to choose which one goes above the others because I love them equally for different reasons.
The honorable mentions are products I loved, but left behind due to luggage weight limits on my flight.

I still enjoy my MAC highlighters, Becca Cosmetics highlighters, and more. However, I had to take into account the age of some of my older powders and how they aren’t fair to be compared to fresher formulas. So, this is my list of the best highlighters I own!

DISCLOSURE: All products in this post were purchased by me with my own money. I am not affiliated with any of these brands and all the links in this specific review are regular non-affiliated ones.

Tom Ford Shade Illuminate Highlighting Duo

As long as they aren’t sparkly and they’re a suitable skin tone match for me, baked gelee highlighters tend to be my favorites because of the wet effect they have on the skin. This is one of my top favorites of that type because of how smooth it looks and its versatility in impact. I’m able to make my highlighter application give light intensity to semi-high intensity with very small refined radiant particles. I reviewed several highlighters from Tom Ford and loved Tanlight specifically so much that I don’t feel the need to purchase anymore from the brand. The ability to tailor my color between the two shades is a great bonus.

Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk Multi Glow Highlighter

It’s strange to call something so wonderful a “standard” formula, so perhaps “traditional” is a better way to describe how the highlighter looks on the skin. It’s basically what I picture as the quintessential shimmery powder highlighter. The third stripe is my perfect shade for a toned down highlight, but if I want to amp it up, I add a little of the first stripe. This produces a low emphasis on texture, excluding the second stripe that has larger size shimmer particles in it. The way it looks and performs fits the criteria of everything I want in a powder highlighter, so in my eyes it’s pretty much perfect. The only aspects keeping it down is the second stripe’s difference in shimmer particle size and difficulty picking up product from the highlighters on the left and right sides of the pan. The full review with more photos and details can be found HERE.

Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Glow Glide Face Architect Highlighter (form I kept was the Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Blush & Glow Glide Palette in Tan-Deep)

The photo above shows the newest version of the highlighter that I decided to bring with me. In my review, the highlighter in the duo was pretty much identical to my Glow Glide shade in Sunset Glow. I decided to bring this one instead of the full-size I had been using, pictured below (in the compact I switched it to from its original packaging), because it’s smaller and has the bonus of having a blush with it as well. I could carry two products for the same size as one.

I mentioned in the Glow Glide review, in the same post as Dream Light, that this formula is officially my favorite of all of the brand’s highlighters. It gives the wet look I love and applies smooth like liquid because of its hybrid formula. It even feels a little damp, but it’s still a powder. It can emphasize texture if it’s too far from matching one’s skin tone, as I discovered when trying different shades in the line.
There’s something about the way it reflects in the light that I love. As for the duo, I’m calling the highlighter in there the Glow Glide formula, but it hasn’t been officially stated by the brand from what I can see, so I’ll link my original review for the duo specifically HERE too. So, in my eyes, the overall Glow Glide formula and not the duo specifically, is what I consider one of the best highlighter formulas out there.

r.e.m. beauty Interstellar Highlighter Topper

I bought Miss Saturn first, thinking Miss Mars was too dark for me based on official website photos. I can sometimes pull off dark champagne shades of highlighters, so I liked this highlighter enough to be willing to try and see if I could get a better color match. It turns out that Miss Mars is much lighter on the skin than it looks within the compact. So, it’s actually a perfect shade match for me! Because of this, I completely stopped using Miss Saturn and use Miss Mars exclusively.

I have zero interest in the r.e.m. brand because their products’ packaging just doesn’t appeal to me, which is probably why I hadn’t reviewed this product until now, despite it being considered one of my top three highlighters at one point in my collection, and owning it for over a year! It’s now in my top five though, with me still being unable to label it at a specific rank among the five.

I gave Miss Mars the nickname, “The Highlighter Fixer,” because of its semi-sheer base. This is the perfect “topper” to fill gaps from highlighters with shimmer particles that are too spread out without increasing the intensity by adding it on top. The scatter effect is one I don’t mind on the eyes, but despise on my cheeks, so this product has been fantastic for me to get use out of some of the other highlighters in my collection that would otherwise have been tossed out, but I wanted to keep at least for the packaging.
It also helps to lighten the look of some of the darker highlighters if I apply it on top too, or slightly deepen ones that are too light. Technically, most highlighters can do that, but this one does it without altering the intensity level.

When used alone, this highlighter’s radiance is subtle, giving a glow from within from its micro size shimmer particles. I like the fact that it’s not very reflective because I don’t have to worry about it looking harsh in certain lighting situations.

The texture is a little drier than the others and doesn’t stick quite as well to the skin if the base products underneath aren’t dewy to help it along, but the difference is it lasting eight hours versus twelve or more. It’s still long enough lasting for my needs.
There are some uncommon colors in the range, so I cannot speak for all of them in being useful or pretty. My recommendation is for the more traditional skin tone colors from the brand.

Pat McGrath Skin Fetish: Ultra Glow Highlighter (Divine Rose)

Everything I raved about regarding the Tom Ford highlighter applies to this, but there’s more shimmer particles in this one. This shade isn’t perfect for me because it’s golden-pink. It’s very pretty, but not 100% flattering on my warm undertone because of the pink pearly element, but it looks a little more natural if I pair it with a neutral or slightly cool-toned blush. If I’m a few shades darker, as can happen during summer, this is at times too light. Currently, it works.

I’ve referenced this highlighter many times, but I don’t believe I ever officially reviewed it, so I’ll include a photo below of it on the top of my cheekbones, inner corner of my eyes, and under the brow arch. When the apartment is nearly finished being worked on, I’ll try to create a better lighting setup.

The Ultra Glow formula is my absolute favorite from Pat Mcgrath, and I’ve been waiting…impatiently…for the brand to release another shade in this formula that’s sparkle-free (unlike the Bridgerton ones), but it hasn’t happened yet.

The way people rave about the Anastasia Beverly Hills x Amrezy highlighter as if it’s the best ever made is the way I feel about this highlighter, but I wish it was in my perfect shade. I still tend to use it quite often regardless. And in terms of baked gelee formulas, this one and the Tom Ford are my top favorites within that category.

Chantecaille Sunbeam Cheek and Eye Shade

This is another gel powder formula, but it’s a little more on the shimmery side than the others and with slightly larger particles of shimmer, but it’s still smooth looking on the face and a buildable formula. The shade is the deepest that I use and doesn’t work as well during certain times of the year, but in those times I have to be more careful about the placement on the face and I make sure to apply lightly. The original review is HERE.

Gxve Beauty Check My Glow Multi-dimensional Illuminating Talc-Free Highlighter

This is one of the two newest highlighters added to my collection and most recently reviewed. This formula reminds me the most of the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfectors, but less powdery and slightly more reflective. I love that I can tailor the shade depending on which colors I mix, and I have an easier time accessing each block than the Multi Glow from Charlotte Tilbury. This is yet another smooth looking and reflective highlighter that starts at medium intensity unless a very airy/wispy brush is used. Because it’s so new, I’m cautious about ranking it, but this has the potential to become one of my most loved.

Honorable Mentions:

Hatice Schmidt Labs Highlighter and Nabla Skin Glazing Luminous Pressed Powder

I listed both products in this category because they’re so incredibly similar, but I didn’t bring mine from Nabla because their best shades for me are too light or too dark. I didn’t bring the one from Hatice Schmidt Labs because I planned to get the darkest shade while in Germany. Both of these I reviewed and discussed previously. For some reason, the brand has Medium and skipped Tan to go straight to Deep. Deep turned out to be not much darker than Medium (which probably explains the lack of need for Tan). The base color is medium-deep, but it’s not opaque, so the pearly colored shimmer/pigment lightens the color overall. The way it looks on the skin reminds me of Chantecaille’s highlighter, but much more reflective and intense in direct light. But because of that sheerer base, it can be subtle if using the right tools. It also tends to look subtle in many lighting situations in Germany because it’s so dark here! I’m used to the Florida brightness and sunshine. The Deep highlighter shade doesn’t pop on me unless light hits my cheek perfectly. This can be a benefit or downside depending on someone’s preferences.

Melt Cosmetics Digital Dust Highlighter

It might specifically be the Genesis shade from Melt in this formula that I love because I bought Nova just before this trip and it was just “nice,” but not special upon first impression. Plus, I rarely reached for the Digital Dust Duos again either several months after I reviewed them since they weren’t the perfect shades for me. It’s a little less refined than the other highlighters I’ve discussed already, but still pretty smooth. It has a great wet effect. It’s very reflective in the light and Genesis is an even more flattering tone than PML’s Divine Rose because it leans even more gold than pink on me. I left it behind because there are just so many others already that are like this and I wanted a small amount in my first wave of products I brought over. However, it’s definitely coming in the second wave.

Guerlain Meteorites Light Revealing Pearls Of Powder

The original one I purchased (having removed the stars) gave the ultimate subtle glow. I’ve been looking for a good replacement since 2015 or 2016. In that length of time, I’ve purchased three others in the hopes I could replicate the experience. The first was the pressed trio, but the issues were the shades and pearliness (pearls on my skin tone tend to have an ashy effect), another set of meteorites I don’t believe I ever reviewed (and later sold) that had red-bronze balls too deep and too red toned to suit me, and most recently a gold powder-gel one that is a bit light for me and just looks alright on the skin.

I stopped using my original meteorites after five years because of fear of using makeup so old, but I’m tempted to bring it over anyway and start using it again and give up trying to find a replacement. Then again, it might even be too subtle for my tastes nowadays.
Just before I left, I tried out Melt’s new glaze powder which had a similar effect based on my first impression. It’s possible that one is the best replacement I’ll be able to get, even if it’s not from Guerlain themselves.

This is quite random, but speaking of Guerlain, I skipped getting anything from their Glittery Tiger themed holiday launch (the palette specifically). However, I bought a sweater for the season that reminded me of a mashup of those ideas and made me feel like I wasn’t missing out in some strange way. Plus, thanks to Black Friday sales, it cost the same as a single lipstick case!

Colourpop Super Shock Highlighters

One of the best features of the Super Shocks is the ability to get a cream-like wet looking effect on the face without it actually being dewy on the skin. Some of the Super Shocks can be more glittery than shimmery. My preference are the ones with the smallest of shimmer particles. I loved Parasol at first, but my tastes started changing and I wanted something a little deeper. Others I attempted to purchase since then were not the perfect shades. The best one came from the Avatar collaboration collection. I considered bringing that one specifically, but the formula requires a dense brush and works best with synthetic bristles. I’m still on my fude kick, so it will come later. This gives me a chance to use my top eight for most of 2024 before I reintroduce the honorable mentions to my updated collection.

That’s everything for today’s post! I hope it has been helpful. Thank you for reading!

-Lili ❤