Choosing a foundation shade: undertone, coverage and skin type (Maybelline Fit Me, Bourjois, L'Oréal, Max Factor)

Buying foundation online feels like a gamble: no tester, no daylight, no shop assistant drawing a stripe on your jaw. Yet you can do it perfectly well yourself, if you know what to look for. In this guide you learn in five minutes how to determine your undertone, choose the right coverage and read the shade numbers of the most popular brands.

Step 1: determine your undertone

Your undertone is the colour that "shows through" under your skin. It does not change with the sun, your lightness does. Three quick tests:

• Veins on your wrist: if they look blue or purple, you are more likely cool. Greenish: warm. Both or hard to tell: neutral.
• Jewellery: if silver suits you better than gold, you are cool. Gold better: warm.
• Sun: do you burn quickly and turn pink? Cool. Do you tan easily to golden brown? Warm.

In foundations, cool is often called "rose", "pink" or "cool", warm "golden", "warm" or "sun", neutral "natural", "nude" or "neutral". Belgian skin types are strikingly often neutral to slightly cool; if you are really in doubt, neutral is the safest choice.

Step 2: determine your lightness

Brands work with a scale from very light (porcelain, ivory) to light (fair, light), medium (natural, beige, sand), tan (honey, caramel) to deep (cocoa, espresso). Look at your jawline and neck in daylight, not at your cheek: that is often redder. Torn between two shades? Take the lighter one, a slightly too dark foundation stands out more than a slightly too light one.

Step 3: choose coverage and finish

Coverage	What still shows	For whom	Examples from our shop
Light	Freckles and skin texture remain visible	Even skin, "no make-up" look, summer	Erborian CC Cream, Bourjois Healthy Mix, Maybelline Dream Satin
Medium	Redness and light blemishes disappear	Most people, daily	Maybelline Fit Me Matte + Poreless, Bourjois 123 Perfect, Rimmel Match Perfection
Full	Almost everything, including acne scars	Parties, photos, troubled skin	L'Oréal Infaillible 32H Fresh Wear, Max Factor Lasting Performance, Rimmel Lasting Finish 35HR
Buildable	From light to full in layers	Those who switch between day and evening	Maybelline Fit Me Luminous & Smooth, Max Factor Facefinity Compact

The finish is separate: matte (no shine, good for oily skin), satin (natural, the golden mean) or glow/luminous (radiant, lovely on dry or mature skin, less so on oily skin).

Step 4: match your skin type

Oily or combination skin

Choose matte and long-wear: Maybelline Fit Me Matte + Poreless (with clay), L'Oréal Infaillible 32H Fresh Wear or Rimmel Lasting Finish. Finish with a translucent powder such as Rimmel Stay Matte or Fit Me powder on the T-zone. A primer such as Maybelline Baby Skin Pore Eraser helps against shine and large pores.

Dry skin

Matte settles into lines and dry flakes. Choose hydrating or satin: Maybelline Fit Me Luminous & Smooth, Bourjois Healthy Mix, Maybelline Dream Satin Liquid. Apply a day cream first and wait five minutes.

Mature skin

Avoid thick matte layers, which emphasise wrinkles. Light to medium coverage with glow, applied with a damp sponge, looks most natural. Max Factor Miracle Pure and Bourjois Always Fabulous are favourites here.

Sensitive skin or blemishes

Choose "non-comedogenic" and low-fragrance, such as Maybelline Fit Me or L'Oréal Infaillible, and always cleanse thoroughly in the evening. If you have real acne, rosacea or eczema, ask a dermatologist or pharmacist for advice before choosing a foundation.

Reading shade numbers per brand

Every brand has its own logic. These are the numbers you come across with us:

Brand / line	How to read the number	Examples
Maybelline Fit Me	The higher, the darker: 100 series light, 200 medium, 300 tan. The name tells the undertone: Ivory/Porcelain cool, Nude/Beige neutral, Warm/Golden/Honey warm	110 Porcelain, 115 Ivory, 120 Classic Ivory, 128 Warm Nude, 220 Natural Beige, 332 Golden Caramel
Bourjois 123 Perfect / Always Fabulous	Low number = light; "Rose" = cool, "Beige" = neutral/warm; "foncé" = dark	51 Rose Vanilla, 100 Rose Ivory, 105 Natural Ivory, 200 Rose Vanilla, 55 Beige foncé
L'Oréal Infaillible 32H	Three digits, the name tells the undertone: Porcelain/Vanilla = light; Rose = cool; Golden = warm	015 Porcelain, 110 Rose Vanilla
Max Factor Lasting Performance	From 95 (very light) to 110+ (tan); "Beige" = neutral, "Honey" = warm	95 Ivory, 100 Fair, 101 Ivory Beige, 107 Golden Beige, 110 Honey
Rimmel Match Perfection	100 series light, 200 light-medium, 300 medium/warm, 400 beige	101 Classic Ivory, 102 Light Nude, 301 Warm Honey, 400 Natural Beige
Maybelline Dream Satin / Dream Velvet	Low numbers light, names such as Sand and Fawn are warm	030 Sand, 40 Fawn

Names and numbers as on the packaging. Know your number from another brand? Then look for the shade with the same undertone name (Ivory, Vanilla, Beige, Honey): those names are comparable across most brands.

How to test the shade at home

In daylight, apply a stripe on your jawline, towards your neck. The right shade "disappears" after a minute. Does it stay greyish or ashy? Then your foundation is too cool. Orange or yellow? Too warm. Always wait ten minutes: many foundations oxidise slightly and turn a touch darker.

In between? Mixing two shades is very normal, and a slightly too light foundation is corrected with a bronzer. A slightly too dark one becomes a bit lighter with a drop of hydrating day cream. And if you buy the wrong shade from us, an unopened pack can be returned within 14 days; read about that in our guide to buying cosmetics online.

Concealer: one shade lighter

Under the eyes, choose a concealer one shade lighter than your foundation, with a peachy undertone against blue circles. On spots, use exactly the same shade as your foundation. Popular with us: Maybelline Instant Anti Age Eraser, L'Oréal Infallible More Than Concealer and Max Factor Panstik if you want solid coverage.

Frequently asked questions

Which Fit Me shade suits light skin?

For very light skin with a cool undertone: 110 Porcelain or 115 Ivory. Light skin with a neutral undertone: 120 Classic Ivory or 118 Nude. Light with a warm undertone: 124 Soft Sand or 128 Warm Nude. Torn between Porcelain and Ivory, take Ivory: Porcelain is really very light.

What is the difference between Fit Me Matte + Poreless and Luminous & Smooth?

Matte + Poreless is for normal to oily skin: matte finish, refines pores. Luminous & Smooth is for normal to dry skin: satin glow, feels lighter. The shade numbers are the same.

Does my foundation need SPF?

It is a nice extra (L'Oréal Infaillible 32H has SPF 25), but never a replacement for sunscreen: you apply too little foundation to reach the protection factor.

How long does a foundation keep?

Usually 12 months after opening, check the PAO symbol on the packaging. If the smell changes or the product separates, throw it away. More about that in how long make-up keeps.

Brush, sponge or fingers?

A damp sponge gives the most natural, thin layer. A dense brush (such as the Real Techniques Expert Face Brush) gives more coverage. Fingers work fine for light coverage and CC creams.

Ready to choose your shade? See all foundations or the full face collection with powders, primers and concealers.