I love foundation, skin tints, tinted moisturizers—all of the complexion products. Even when my skin looks as close to flawless as it ever will, you’ll still catch me in a skin tint on the daily. Thankfully, one of the perks of this job is access to more beauty products than I know what to do with. My testing log is quite backed up, but complexion products are never on the waitlist for long. That being said I am pretty jaded; my bar is high and most products don’t pass the “meh” bar. So I was surprised when I tried Mac Cosmetics’s new Strobe Dewy Skin Tint and realized it’s the best thing I’ve tested all year. 

When I think about or shop Mac it’s usually for its iconic lip products whether that be a ‘90s lipstick shade I inherited from my mother or the impossible-to-over-hype Squirt Lip Gloss. I had relatively no expectations for this slightly pearlescent light coverage tinted moisturizer. 

Buy on Nordstrom$38

As a moisturizer, it’s formulated with a trifecta of hydration MVPs; squalane, hyaluronic acid, and vitamin E. A combination of plumping, moisturizing, moisture-retaining, fine line-reducing ingredients.

Strobe Dewy Skin Tint comes in just 14 shades, but I wouldn’t consider it a limited range. The tint is very sheer yet still buildable; I actually found that two different shades looked seamless on my skin. It also has a slight pearlescence that is initially daunting. When I squeezed it out of the tube I thought “oh no, this is not going to work,” but it is one of those “trust the process” products. After brushing it on my face and letting it settle, the initially scary pearlescence turned down and became glowing skin. I looked like I belonged in those first-gen Glossier ads—fresh-faced, pore-free, plump, and glowy. 

There are a few footnotes I should make. First, Strobe Dewy Skin Tint is a moisturizer, if you use it on top of a separate moisturizer, you’re likely to encounter pilling and congestion. Second, this is a very dewy formula, if your skin is exceptionally oily you may need both a primer and a setting powder. I have combination skin that leans more towards the oily side and it’s worked for me; a caveat being that on more humid days I need a setting powder, but that can be said of most of my complexion products. 

Head to Nordstrom to shop Mac Cosmetics’s new Strobe Dewy Skin Tint, my favorite product of 2024.

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