Best overall
e.l.f. Cosmetics
Halo Glow Liquid Filter
8.3Great
A $15 liquid glow booster in 15 shades, widely compared with Charlotte Tilbury's Flawless Filter for a fraction of the price.
Highlighter5$15.00
Glow · Radiance
Brightening
14 products we review are built for brightening — 36% of them serums. The ingredients doing most of the work: glycerin, hyaluronic acid and niacinamide. Most are made for combination skin, mature skin and oily skin.
Dark spots, dullness and that lit-from-within look everyone on your feed is chasing.
Top rated
The brightening podium.
The ingredients behind it
Key actives in the products that deliver brightening — tap one for what it does and how strong the evidence is.
Often paired with
Benefits that tend to come along for the ride.
14 products
Every brightening pick.
14 products
Best value
Maybelline New York
Instant Age Rewind Eraser Multi-Use Concealer
8.2Great
A $12.99 cushion-tip concealer with medium coverage and 18 shades, long a drugstore favorite for brightening under-eyes.
Concealer5$12.99
Cult favorite
NARS
Radiant Creamy Concealer
8.2Great
A cult creamy concealer with a luminous finish, buildable medium coverage and 30 shades, priced at the prestige end.
Concealer4$36.00
Best value
Timeless Skin Care
20% Vitamin C + E Ferulic Acid Serum
8.1Great
The best-known budget take on the C + E + ferulic formula: 20% L-ascorbic acid for $27.95, if you can keep it from oxidizing.
Serum5$27.95
Best value
Good Molecules
Discoloration Correcting Serum
8.1Great
A $12 tranexamic-derivative and niacinamide serum with full ingredient percentages, a budget favorite for marks and uneven tone.
Serum5$12.00
Community favorite
CurrentBody
LED Red Light Therapy Face Mask: Series 2
8.1Great
A flexible silicone red and near-infrared LED mask with simple 10-minute sessions; the Series 3 has since taken the flagship slot.
Device5$470
Best value Trending
The Ordinary
Glycolic Acid 7% Exfoliating Toner
8.0Great
A cheap, effective daily glycolic toner for smoother, brighter skin, best for resilient skin that already tolerates acids.
Toner4$9.00
Best value Trending
The Ordinary
Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%
7.9Good
A $6 cult niacinamide serum that helps many oily, blemish-prone users with shine and pores, though a vocal minority reports breakouts.
Serum5$6.00
Best value
Omnilux
Omnilux Contour Face
7.9Good
A flexible, FDA-cleared red and near-infrared LED mask from a professional LED maker; one button, one 10-minute program.
Device5$395
Community favorite
SkinCeuticals
C E Ferulic with 15% L-Ascorbic Acid
7.7Good
The benchmark 15% vitamin C + E + ferulic serum, backed by strong data and derm loyalty, at a price many find hard to justify.
Serum5$185
Best value Trending
The Ordinary
Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG
7.6Good
A budget caffeine and green-tea eye serum that visibly de-puffs for many users, but feels tacky and needs an eye cream on top.
Serum5$9.20
Cult favorite
Charlotte Tilbury
Hollywood Flawless Filter
7.6Good
Charlotte Tilbury's sheer, illuminating glow booster in 12 shades, the $50 benchmark that budget liquid-filter dupes are compared with.
Highlighter5$50.00
La Roche-Posay
Mela B3 Dark Spot Serum with Melasyl + Niacinamide
7.6Good
A dark-spot serum pairing La Roche-Posay's new Melasyl molecule with 10% niacinamide; promising brand data, mixed real-world results.
Serum5$44.99
Kiehl's
Avocado Eye Cream
7.4Good
Kiehl's rich avocado oil eye cream (formerly Creamy Eye Treatment) hydrates dry under-eyes well, but it is pricey and heavy for some.
Cream5$40.00