Eyeshadows are a staple in any makeup collection. In fact, eye palettes are one of the most common products produced by beauty companies and independent beauty gurus. But from the hundreds upon hundreds of options out there, where does one select the best eyeshadow palette for her makeup needs? Ahead, we’ve rounded up the cream of the crop of eye palettes with 23 options, along with some shopping tips to ease the selection process.
In this article:
Best Eyeshadow Palettes Overview
Our Picks of the Best Eyeshadow Palettes
From the best in value and best in color to the best nude and best for a night out, this 23-point list holds an eyeshadow palette for any occasion.
1
Best Overall
Urban Decay Naked3 Palette
Urban Decay
Nordstrom.com
$54
This is the best eyeshadow palette ever, holding 12 shades, largely based on nudes and pinks – Strange, Dust, Burnout, Limit, Buzz, Trick, Nooner, Liar, Factory, Mugshot, Darkside, and Blackheart. It’s a mix of mattes and metallics and also includes one eyeshadow brush for application on the go. The eyeshadows included are also free of sulfates, parabens, and phthalates.
Overall, the Naked3 eyeshadow palette holds a 4.4 out of 5-star rating from near 6,500 reviews. The mix of undertones of the shades plays well on all skin tones, however, this collection might not suit those looking for muted results because of the shinier textures of the shadows. The formula of the shades is smooth and pigmented, according to users, and the packaging is sturdy and good for travel. Get this eye palette from Nordstrom or Sephora!
2
Best Versatile
Huda Beauty Desert Dusk Eyeshadow Palette
Huda Beauty
Sephora.com
$42.88
This 18-shade palette – free of parabens and sulfates – is a 2019 Allure Best of Beauty award winner. It holds a lovely mix of four textures: one glitter, eight creamy mattes, six pearl shades with shimmer, and three chrome-tint toppers. The variety of tones presents the opportunity to have fun mixing and matching for a multitude of looks.
This is the best eyeshadow palette holding over 1,000 reviews, 240,000+ likes, and an overall positive rating of 86%. The longevity of the shades has been highlighted, as well as the accurately described textures, but the pigmentation falls a little short for warmer skin tones and takes some building up. Buy Desert Dusk from Sephora or Amazon!
3
Best Budget
Lamora Matte Nudes Eyeshadow Palette
An Amazon’s Choice product, this matte eyeshadow palette features a mix of 16 warm, bronze, and smokey shades. The formula is waterproof and performs wet or dry. The packaging itself is delicate and travel-friendly, especially in terms of its size, which is 5.6 x 3.7 x 0.4 inches.
It’s been lauded for its affordable price and sturdy packaging. The pigmentation reviews fall somewhere in the middle with some happy with the color payoff, while others report having to build up. Overall, users enjoyed the variety of colors and formula but also noted that the eyeshadows wouldn’t stay on too long. Find this eyeshadow palette on Amazon!
4
Best Brights
Morphe The James Charles Palette
A collaboration between makeup artist James Charles and Morphe, this exclusive eye palette features a total of 39 deeply-pigmented shades laid out across five rows. The middle row holds 7 larger shades. The colors and textures include a vibrant mix of matte, metallic, and shimmer shades with the hues spanning purples, pinks, browns, and more.
From over 3,000 reviews, this eyeshadow palette boasts a 92% positive rating with its colors and ease of application featured heavily as positive highlights. Some have noted that the eyeshadow formula sometimes flakes, however. A few reviewers have also noted that the compact’s packaging isn’t as durable as others, so care needs to be taken. Find this bright eyeshadow palette on Ulta!
5
Best Neutral
Anastasia Beverly Hills Soft Glam Eyeshadow Palette
Anastasia Beverly Hills
Nordstrom.com
$45
A 14-shade eyeshadow palette featuring a mix of matte and shimmer finishes, Anastasia Beverly Hills’ Soft Glam also includes a double-ended brush and mirror to accommodate on-the-go touch-ups and looks. The formula is free of parabens, sulfates, and phthalates, and the shades range from beige to black for creating effortless neutral looks.
Over 2,500 people have left their reviews on this eye palette, giving it a 4.5 out of 5 stars rating. Users especially highlighted the pigmentation and easy blending. Some noted that the shimmery shades were a little hard to work with in comparison to the mattes with the formula described as dry. Overall, 95% of reviewers recommend this! Buy this eyeshadow palette from Nordstrom, Amazon or Sephora!
6
Best Warm-Toned
Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eyeshadow Palette
Too Faced
Amazon.com
$58.30
Too Faced’s Chocolate Bar palette features warm hues that largely span browns. The 16-shade eyeshadow kit’s name pays homage to the rich scent of chocolate that envelops the user upon opening the palette. This scent wafts from the shades pigmented with pure, antioxidant-rich cocoa powder.
The shades on this 100% cruelty-free eyeshadow palette are named after chocolate and include a muted matte brown, a creamy matte beige, a deep grey-brown, a soft fawn matte, a medium brown matte, a soft pale pink matte, a dark espresso with gold sparkle, a plum chocolate with golden sparkle, a deep plum brown with purple sparkle, and a similar pearl-based one. There are also six metallic ones: a rose gold, two varying shades of pink-bronze, a medium bronze, an antique gold, and a ballet slipper pink.
The Chocolate Bar is the best eyeshadow palette for those looking for soft, warm tones that are said to blend easily, apply smoothly, stay on for long-wear, and offer a pigmented finish. Creases and a little too much sparkle are the only two things noted against it. Buy it from Nordstrom or Amazon!
7
Best Design
Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Snap Shadows Mix & Match Eyeshadow Palette
Fenty Beauty
Sephora.com
$25
This portable, mini six-shade eye palette allows for another Fenty palette to be snapped on to make a 12-pan mix. It’s cruelty-free and gluten-free and mainly features neutrals.
This eyeshadow palette is a fairly new product on the market and so has around a few hundreds of reviews so far with an average B+ rating. So far, people have noted its creamy and easy-to-blend formula, but the colors don’t show as easily as others do, in which case, using a base is recommended. Grab it from Sephora in True Neutrals, which is our favorite shade combo!
8
Best Nudes for Every Skin Tone
Huda Beauty The New Nude Eyeshadow Palette
Huda Beauty
Sephora.com
$65
This 18-shade nude eyeshadow palette spans mattes to shimmery hues, offering a mix of warm and cool shades for every skin tone, including rosy, copper, taupe, and more.
Out of the 18 shades, there are 10 mattes, 4 pearl shimmers, two glitter-based shades, a pearl shade, and a concealer base. The mattes feature aloe vera and coconut oil to ease application, while the glitters are infused with a type of silicone that enhances pigmentation and longevity. The formula for the shimmers combines acacia, jojoba, and sunflower wax, for a shinier finish and dimension.
Overall, this is the best eyeshadow palette with a 4.5-out-of-5-star rating with users loving the pigmentation and formula. Some have noted a slight chalkiness to the shimmers and have reported trouble in blending. On the whole, reviewers have dubbed it as a versatile palette. Buy this Huda Beauty eye palette from Sephora or Amazon!
9
Best Value
Beauty Glazed Gorgeous Me Eyeshadow Tray Palette
Beauty Glazed
Amazon.com
$22.99
This 63-pan drugstore eyeshadow palette comes with an eye styling tool kit of seven pieces. The shades offer a mix of finishes from matte and creamy to shimmery, and the hues span nudes and grays along with distinct bright colors like turquoise and yellow. Overall, reviewers love the color options and the pigmentation, but the brushes included aren’t living up to the quality of eyeshadows. Grab it from Amazon!
10
Best Matte
Tarte Tartelette Amazonian Clay Matte Eyeshadow Palette
The Tartelette eyeshadow palette features a nice mix of 12 matte shades that range from light to deep. They’re arranged in three rows of four, each representing one look. The formula is free of parabens and phthalates, as well as mineral oil, gluten, and sodium. The shades included are cream, nude, warm brown, chocolate, pale pink, mauve, mulberry, dark plum, ivory, light brown, taupe, and black.
With over 2,000 reviews, this eye palette holds a 4.5 out of 5 stars. Reviewers have highlighted its longevity and ease of blending. A few have noted that while the pigmentation is vibrant, they weren’t happy with the result on their fair skin – subject to preferences. Buy it from Sephora or Amazon!
11
Best Pressed Powder
ColourPop Truly Madly Deeply Pressed Powder Eyeshadow Palette
This 16-pan eye palette is one of ColourPop’s most coveted products. It’s cruelty-free and includes a mix of matte and glitter formulas across mauves and pinks. Out of 100 reviews, 100 would recommend this to a friend. The pros heavily highlighted are the pigmentation, easy blending, longevity, and good value. The only con listed is difficulty with keeping the glitter from entering the eyes. You’ll find this romantic eyeshadow palette on Ulta.
12
Best for a Night Out
Pat McGrath Labs Mothership V Eyeshadow Palette in Bronze Seduction
Pat McGrath Labs
Sephora.com
$125
An Allure Best of Beauty award winner, this MUA-approved luxury eyeshadow palette contains 10 shades featuring golden champagne, tawny terracotta matte, golden bronze, rose gold, color-shifting chartreuse, blackened matte violet, bronzed taupe, matte mahogany, molten metallic crimson, and glistening white gold.
With 4.4 stars and an 84% positive rating, this palette is geared more towards special occasions than an everyday look. A few reviewers mentioned difficulty in blending, but the directions recommend applying on wet or dry lids, using glitter adhesive for the shimmery shades. Find this on Sephora!
13
Best for Travel
Urban Decay Born to Run Eyeshadow Palette
The best eyeshadow palette for travel aficionados, this 21-pan palette holds a mix of muted and bold hues to create a variety of looks for any occasion. Mattes, shimmers, and metallics lie in this with each shade created with Urban Decay’s Pigment Infusion System for smooth texture, longevity, and ease of blending.
It’s paraben-free and cruelty-free and holds an 85% positive rating. Reviewers were quick to highlight its pigmentation, easy application, long-lasting formula, and variety of colors. Some did note a bit of flaking, smudging, and creasing, however. Grab this eyeshadow palette from Ulta or Amazon!
14
Best for Eye Contouring
Kat Von D Shade + Light Eye Contour Palette
Kat Von D
Sephora.com
$49.50
Spanning neutral, cool, and warm shades to suit every skin tone, this eyeshadow palette is divided into three sections – geared for eye contouring to enhance the eyes. Three larger pans holding base shadows are placed above each section. The formula is free of parabens, phthalates, and sulfates.
This product features 85.6K likes and over 2,000 reviews with a 4.7-out-of-5-star rating. Aside from reviewers noting fallout from the pans, they’ve mentioned it’s easy to apply and blend with a great color payoff. Find this eye palette on Sephora or Amazon!
15
Best for Everyday
Natasha Denona Biba All Neutral Eyeshadow Palette
Natasha Denona
Sephora.com
$129
Paraben-free and cruelty-free, this is a 15-pan eyeshadow palette filled with the most commonly used shades on a daily basis, such as mauves, burgundies, browns, warm greys, and black. The finishes are a mix of mattes and metallics with 12 mattes and three metallics.
It holds an 86% positive rating with the palette’s shades described as buttery smooth, highly pigmented, and long-lasting. Its price has been noted as being a bit on the higher end in comparison to others, but many think it’s worth it. Find it on Sephora or Amazon!
16
Best Luxury
Charlotte Tilbury Luxury Eyeshadow Palette
Charlotte Tilbury
Nordstrom.com
$53
This four-shade palette comes in 12 different sets with 11 shimmer palettes and a matte option. The formula is sulfate-free, as well as gluten-free. Each palette contains Prime, Enhance, Smoke, and Pop. Use Prime as a base, Enhance to build, Smoke for a touch of drama, and Pop for some shine.
Aside from featuring a higher-than-average price tag, a few reviewers have noted that the colors are a bit warmer than shown in the image. Overall, the color payoff and formula longevity and crease-resistance check all the marks. Find this eyeshadow palette on Nordstrom or Sephora!
17
Best for On-the-Go
NARS Voyageur Eyeshadow Palette Mini
This mini eyeshadow palette holds six shades across a variety of finishes – matte, glitter, and satin. Its small size and compact nature make it appealing for travel makeup kits. Its formula is also versatile, as the shades can be used as a liner as well – applied both wet and dry. The palette is available in different color options: Quartz, Copper, and Suede.
The colors and quality are highly featured, with just some having difficulty in blending. This NARS palette is exclusively available on Sephora.
18
Best Mineral
Sleek MakeUp Vintage Romance Eyeshadow Palette
Sleek MakeUp
Amazon.com
$9.99
This eyeshadow palette holds 12 mineral-based shades featuring shimmers and mattes. The colors include purples, blues, and golds, perfect for creating a variety of looks. Its rating is a solid 4-star from the 1,054 reviews given. Aside from reviews split on longevity and ease of blending, overall, users are happy with the pigmentation, easy application, and crease-resistance of the shades included. Find this on Amazon!
19
Best Shimmer
Huda Beauty Nude Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette
Huda Beauty
Sephora.com
$29
Available across Nude Light, Nude Medium, and Nude Rich, this mini eye palette features nine different shades of nude. The sets contain mattes, shimmers, and metallics with Nude Light holding light and creamy praline tones, including peach, champagne, and brown. Nude Medium features chestnuts and deep browns, while Nude Rich spans pink-toned hues.
With a 4.2-star rating across near 400 reviews, this Huda Beauty eyeshadow palette is praised for its pigmentation, color payoff, and smooth application. The shimmer pans, though, have been noted to be vulnerable and prone to breaking, so extra care needs to be given during handling. Find this on Sephora!
20
Best for Smokey Eyes
Melt Cosmetics Smoke Sessions Eyeshadow Palette
Melt Cosmetics
Sephora.com
$48
Featuring a mix of matte and metallic textures across eight shades spanning yellows and greens, the formula used for this eyeshadow palette is vegan, cruelty-free, and gluten-free, as well as free of parabens. The colors presented are inspired by the cannabis plant.
It holds an 89% positive rating and 4.5 stars, as it’s touted for easy and smooth application, as well as no fallout. Users have asked for more matte shades to help in transitions, though. You can find this palette on Sephora or Amazon.
21
Best Drugstore
NYX Professional Makeup Warm Neutral Ultimate Shadow Palette
NYX Professional Makeup
Amazon.com
$12.99
A palette full of neutrals with a formula that is easy to blend and cruelty-free, this NYX collection holds 16 pans spanning orange and red shades. 87% of users would recommend this eyeshadow palette because they’ve found the shadows to apply smoothly, blend easily, offer great color payoff, and last longer on the lids than other formulas. Some have noted creasing and have also mentioned that the compact case needs care during handling. Find this on Amazon or Ulta!
22
Best for Makeup Pros
Sephora Collection Sephora PRO New Nudes Palette
Sephora Collection
Sephora.com
$68
This eyeshadow palette offers a lovely mix of colors that will work year-round, tending to all looks and occasions. It features 28 shades of rose and warm hues that hold a mix of matte, metallic, and satin finishes. From romantic rose and pink shades to go-with-everything browns and neutrals, this is the best eyeshadow palette for makeup artists with soft and creamy powder shadows to achieve any look imagined.
The variety of colors and their color payoff are widely highlighted in this product’s reviews, with a few noting fallout and chalkiness. Overall, there’s an 87% positive rating on it. Buy this eyeshadow palette from Sephora!
23
Best Blushed Neutrals
Maybelline The Blushed Nudes Eyeshadow Palette
Maybelline
Amazon.com
$7.99
This 12-shade drugstore eye palette holds nudes and pinks infused with rose gold pigments for bolder finishes. It’s the best eyeshadow palette that offers hues, which work for any occasion. Aside from a weak compact case, users have noted that the eyeshadows aren’t that long-wear, though. However, it offers good value for money through its color payoff, smooth application, and ease of blending. Find this on Amazon or Ulta!
What to Look for in the Perfect Eyeshadow Palette for You?
- When shopping for an eyeshadow palette, consider your skin tone, and undertone. Warm colors are the best for warm skin undertones, while cooler shades look best on cool skin tones. Those with neutral skin undertone can try both territories.
- Your eye color also plays an important role. Lighter colors flatter best blue eyes, richer, bright tones look good paired with green eyes, muted shades are best for those with gray eyes, metallics compliment hazel eyes, while those with brown eyes are the luckiest to try any shades.
- There are four eyeshadow palette formulas to choose from – pressed powder, baked powder, cream, and pigmented. Pressed powder is the most common, with a longer shelf life, a longer-lasting wear, and a wider shade range. Baked powder can be applied wet or dry, offering a nice velvety finish. Cream formulas provide the richest color payoff, however, they tend to crease. Pigmented formulas are the longest-lasting, yet they require professional makeup application skills.
- The six basic eyeshadow textures or finishes in an eye palette are frost, metallic, matte, shimmer, glitter, and satin. Frost shadows are sheerer, perfect for using as a highlight. Metallics stand out with their reflective quality. Matte options offer the richest color payoff, and longest-lasting wear. Shimmer and glitter shadows are great for creating party looks, while satin finishes have a semi-matte, semi-shimmer finish, perfect as universally flattering everyday options.
Other than the eyeshadow formulas and finishes, your skin, and eye tones, here are some general tips to keep in mind:
- Basics: When choosing an eyeshadow palette, it’s best to opt for one with your everyday basics in it, like nudes and smokier shades.
- Range of Shades: It’s easy to be tempted by one gorgeous shade in a multi-shade palette. Instead of shelling out a considerable amount of cash for one hue, invest in an eyeshadow palette that holds a majority of (or all!) shades you’ll actually make use of.
- Range of Finishes: Similarly, find a palette that holds different textures if you’re a fan of mixing up between mattes, shimmers, and the rest. After all, it’s good to have options when you’re thinking of changing your look around!
- Size: Large palettes might seem like the best options around, but it’s worth keeping in mind that they’re a hassle to carry around. Stocking up on some smaller palettes – duals and quads – might fare better, especially when you only want to make use of a certain group of shades at a certain time: simply pack that one palette rather than bring the whole collection around. It’s good for saving space too during travels and opens your collection up to playing with different brands in a monetarily responsible way.
Photos via @laura_kuruc, Instagram, Sephora