Since the summer is still in full force, I decide to keep testing affordable drugstore setting sprays. Anything that keeps my makeup looking good all day is worth a try, in my opinion. Sometimes I skip this step in my morning routine and by mid-day, I wish I’d taken the extra minute to set my face. This humidity has just been unreal, because by the end of the day it looks like I didn’t even put makeup on that morning.
If you’re in the market for something that will keep your makeup on through all this heat, you’re in the right place! This beauty battles series comes out every two weeks here on the blog, and it’s where I test out three similar products to see which one is the best. This particular beauty battle is very different from the others I’ve done, because (spoiler alert) each setting spray performed really well. I was so happy with the way my makeup looked with each one. There were a couple of differences in application, size of spray, and scent that factored into this battle.
This series is all about:
Milani Make It Last Setting Spray
To be completely transparent, this beaut battle was not an entirely blind test. I have tried this E.L.F. setting spray before, but it has been a couple years since I’ve used it. This is extremely affordable at $6 for 4.1 ounces. If memory serves me correctly, this also lasted a long time. This time around, I was not impressed by it.
Performance aside, because each setting spray set my makeup all day long, I really thought about application, the size of the spray, and any other factors that might affect my opinion.
That being said, I did not like this setting spray for two reasons. One, the size of the droplets were very large. The mist was not fine enough to spray evenly over my face. I could see larger droplets of the setting spray drying down on my face,which is just not a good look. Two, it does not dry quickly. I assume that the size of the droplets causes it to dry slower, but I really prefer my setting spray to dry quicker than this one.
This setting spray comes in at $7.99 for 2.02 ounces. It’s a bit pricier per ounce compared to the E.L.F. setting spray. There is absolutely no scent to this at all, which I really appreciate. The mist is very, very fine. It’s so nice to spray this all over my makeup after I’m done powdering. It dries very quickly, so I can get on with the rest of my makeup quickly. I have been so, so happy with this setting spray. I’ve been reaching for it more often than the others.
Milani Make It Last Setting Spray
To round out this beauty battle, I tried a setting spray from one of my favorite drugstore makeup brands. This one costs $8.99 for 2.03 ounces. I really expected to like this one, but the scent was too much for me. It would be great if every makeup brand could just make unscented products, because this one is just as wonderful as the NYX setting spray. The mist was fine, although the area of the mist was smaller than the NYX spray. It dried down quickly. The scent was just too much. Other than that, it’s a great setting spray.
I think it’s pretty obvious which setting primer wins this beauty battle! The NYX First Base Primer Spray is so good, I really have been reaching for it over and over again.
How about you? What’s your favorite setting spray?
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Other Beauty Battles that might interest you:
Sephora Pore-Perfecting Primers
Rebecca has been writing about style, beauty, and lifestyle topics since 2011. Thank you so much for reading this post! Feel free to leave any questions or comments below. I love hearing from you!
