Il Makiage launched at the height of the Instagram makeup era in 2018. Fast forward to 2025, and the brand is still hyped for its hero products. One of its bestsellers is the viral woke up like this flawless base foundation, which is available in 50 shades. The f*ck I’m flawless multi-use perfecting concealer is also hugely popular, as are two of its mascaras.
It’s a mid- to high-end brand, similar to Ilia, Makeup By Mario, and Hourglass, with skin base products ranging from $30 to $45, and mascaras costing $29. Where it differs, though, is that it’s online-only, meaning you can’t test the products before you buy them — so you’ll have to trust its shade-matching service, which has been designed to help you find a color match at home. Don’t let this put you off because there’s a 30-day no-questions-asked free returns policy, so you can send back anything that you don’t love.
To help you find the Il Makiage products that are actually worth your money (and see if the brand’s bestsellers really are worth the hype), I ordered the brand’s bestsellers. I also put the shade-matching service to the test to see how accurate it was. Here’s how I got on.
How I tested
I first researched to find the highest-rated Il Makiage products on social media and its website, and chose one product within each category, from complexion to brows to lips. After applying my usual water-based serum and sunscreen, I tried the products for a week. I did one minimal makeup look with just concealer, blush, and lip products, and a second full-face look using the cult ‘woke up like this flawless’ base foundation, plus products for eyes and lips. I took note of each product’s staying power throughout the day and evening. I also assessed the brand’s color-matching tool to see if it actually works.
Why you can trust IndyBest U.S. reviews
Ava Welsing-Kitcher is a beauty editor and writer with years of experience. Having reviewed everything from the best drugstore mascaras to Beyoncé’s Cécred haircare line, she’s tested products from big and small brands. She knows what to look for when it comes to formulas that are actually worth your money, and is unafraid to tell you her honest opinion on each one. For her review of Il Makiage’s products, she’s assessed the strengths and shortcomings of the makeup, so you can be sure her verdict on each is thorough, honest, and fair. If the color pay-off was poor, the finish questionable in photographs, or the product tricky to cleanse, Ava has detailed this.
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Il Makiage f*ck i’m flawless multi-use perfecting concealer
Makeup product type: Concealer
Shades: 30
Why we love it
- Easy to blend
- Excellent staying power
Take note
- Not medium-full coverage as advertised
Despite being described as medium to full coverage, I needed at least two layers of Il Makiage’s f*ck I’m flawless multi-use perfecting concealer to feel like any redness, blemishes, and dark circles were slightly covered. The formula was very blendable, but felt more like a lightweight BB cream than even a skin tint, let alone a concealer. Just like with the foundation, the shade match was great (shade 8).
The click-and-brush applicator was really easy to use and the perfect delivery tool for the more watery consistency. The finish on my skin was glowy without looking greasy, and I didn’t need to powder more than once throughout the evening — plus, it lasted well and didn’t separate or crease right up until bedtime.
Buy now £31.00, Ilmakiage.com
Il Makiage black card mascara
Makeup product type: Mascara
Shades: Black
Why we love it
- Instant but subtle definition
Take note
- On the pricey side
Out of the entire lineup, Il Makiage’s black card mascara was my favourite pick. The wand — which has a double-sided comb shape with long and short teeth on either side — did a wonderful job of depositing just the right amount of formula onto my lashes, and sweeping them into a fanned-out, defined look.
It lasted all day and night without smudging or transferring, even in a California heatwave, and was super easy to remove with just some coconut oil and Fenty Beauty’s total cleans'r remove-it-all cleanser.
Buy now £29.00, Ilmakiage.com
Il Makiage woke up like this flawless base foundation
Makeup product type: Foundation
Shades: 50
Why we love it
- Lightweight buildable coverage
Take note
- A little cakey
Il Makiage’s headliner base product has gathered stellar reviews for its shade-matching capabilities, thanks to the website’s quiz. After answering questions about my coverage preference and skin type, I selected the closest skin tone match from what appeared to be AI-generated model images. The most important part of the quiz helps find your undertone, with questions about tanning and sunburn and what metals and colors look best on you. It features a section to compare to your usual base brand — however, it’s missing a product and shade section (which other beauty brands and retailers like Sephora incorporate), meaning that a crucial step in the shade-matching quest is missing.
My results were the natural matte finish in shade 130, which was a pretty close match for my neutral-warm undertone and in-between-seasons skin color. I had to look through the images of arm swatches for a while to verify — most of the swatches look very ashy and cool-toned, but I decided to trust the process.
My only regret was opting for the matte finish — but that’s nothing on the brand. As a skin tint and concealer lover with freckles, I only opt for foundation when I want a perfect base or a fuller face of makeup in the evenings. I usually opt for a dewy finish that I can softly mattify with my most highly treasured Charlotte Tilbury airbrush flawless finish setting powder.
Il Makiage’s formula settled instantly into every pore and fine crease, making my skin look a little worse. But at least it didn’t look too cakey or create a weird wash over my freckles, which shone through the foundation quite nicely. As a lightweight, creamy liquid texture, it felt comfortable on the skin and photographed nicely. As the day went on, it looked pretty much the same as it did upon application, although I did need to blot my T-zone a couple of times.
Buy now £45.00, Ilmakiage.com
Il Makiage mineral baked blush instant brightening blush
Makeup product type: Blush
Shades: 8
Why we love it
- Can be used wet or dry
Take note
- Takes some effort to deposit on skin
In my experience, mineral baked blushes (and bronzers) either show up boldly on the skin or struggle to show up at all. Unfortunately, this one fell into the latter category, despite opting for the boldest orange-peach shade in the lineup: toxic. It took several swirls with the brand’s tulip brush (which I feel is overpriced at $48) for any pigments to appear on the brush, and so many layers to get the color to slightly show up on my cheeks that I nearly gave up.
Swiping my fingers onto the blush picked up more pigment than the brush, but it deposited streakily onto my face and looked chalky. Though the blush can be applied wet or dry, I only tried it dry — so it may fare better as an ultra-subtle blush topper with a misted brush. It didn’t last throughout the evening, but left my cheeks drier and more mattified than the rest of my face.
Buy now £36.00, Ilmakiage.com
Il Makiage infinity lip cream long-wear matte lip color
Makeup product type: Matte lipstick
Shades: 29
Why we love it
- Plenty of shades
Take note
- Can dry out lips
Matte lip paints were at their most popular when Il Makiage launched in 2015, a true relic of “Instagram makeup” alongside extreme contouring and razor-sharp liquid liner wings. I was obsessed with them, especially KVD’s Lolita shade and Stila’s beso red, and still use them sometimes if I need a bold color that will truly last for hours.
Il Makiage’s formula was pretty drying from the start, which is expected from a liquid lipstick of yesteryear, and there are now many more innovative new formulations from brands like Violette FR (the petal bouche is my top liquid formula hands down) that don’t make lips look wrinkly and dried out.
I received two shades that were both cool-toned pale nudes — matte chill and matte glory — and unfortunately, both looked very grey and beige on me. Although I used to like that look, I wish I’d been able to try one of the deeper or red shades to truly enjoy it. The creamy formula was very opaque and didn’t budge for hours. But it was quite difficult to remove, so I had to scrub at it a lot with a face towel and a cleanser.
Buy now £30.00, Ilmakiage.com
The verdict on Il Makiage makeup
It was interesting trying out Instagram circa 2010s-style makeup again, but with today’s beauty trends favouring high-performance formulas, I’m not sure how well Il Makiage would hold up. The skin and face products were the most disappointing, with product descriptions that differed from their actual finish and effect on my skin, which is a common complaint about the concealer and foundation that I’ve seen on makeup forums on Reddit.
The best quality was the shade matching, which surprised me with how accurate it was, given that I was slightly dubious about the quiz, and others online have been almost completely satisfied with the shade they were assigned, also. I did really like the mascara, but there are drugstore mascaras for a third of the price that perform just as well.
I wouldn't purchase any of these products myself, but the foundation’s shade range is impressive and good for anyone in a pinch who needs to order something online rather than try things on in-store.
For more, read our review of the best drugstore makeup products that actually work
