The Top 10 Best M.A.C Makeup Products, as Rated by a Makeup Artist
Amelia Singson is a Sydney-based Makeup Artist with over a decade in the industry. She loves glowing skin, bushy brows and is partial to blush on the nose. Her relationship with skincare is deep and real, and she can talk about products until your ears fall off.
If you use any kind of makeup, you’ll have heard of three little letters M.A.C.
In fact, there’s a good chance you probably own at least one (or several) of their products.
M.A.C. (which stands for Makeup Art Cosmetics) was founded in 1984 by makeup artist and photographer Frank Toskan and salon owner Frank Angelo, otherwise known as Frank and Frank.
The goal? To create makeup products that photographed well on set, and catered to all ages, genders and complexions.
My first ever MAC Cosmetics product at age 15 was a lipstick.
It was a frosted pink - ah, the good old days of the early 00s - and I never actually wore it.
But you better believe I still have it!!
When I became a makeup artist, MAC was and still is the brand I turned to to fully stock my kit with every shade range under the sun.
Every formula, finish, texture you could want was there, along with a shade to suit your complexion.
Fast forward to today and MAC is still on the pulse of what’s trending in beauty.
Even for the non-makeup artists out there, MAC products are so accessible and such a joy to wear.
To this day, MAC makeup products hold court in my favourites and allow me to take you through them now.
Top 10 MAC Products.
Let me preface this list by saying picking just 10 favourites was so bloody hard.
But I’ve narrowed it down. It's a tough gig.
So, here are the top 10 MAC products, in no particular order:
1. MAC Face and Body Foundation.
What:
A lightweight, fluid foundation with sheer to medium coverage for a long wearing, natural finish.
Why it's so good:
My ride-or-die, always and forever, go-to foundation. Looks like your skin but even better.
The water based formula activates with heat then grips to the skin for a long-wearing glowy finish that you can use all over your face and body.
Try it on the legs for photoshop-esque smoothness.
You can read a full MAC Face and Body Foundation review here.
2. MAC Extended Play Gigablack Lash.
What:
A 16-hour wear mascara that defines lashes with a petite brush.
Why it's so good:
The best mascara for lower lashes, ever.
The teeny, tiny brush on this baby allows you to get right up close to your lash line for maximum application.
The lightweight formula essentially wraps tubes around your lashes for the blackest colour that’s smudge proof, humidity proof and doesn’t come off until you’re ready.
And when you are, all you need is warm water.
3. MAC Pro Longwear Paint Pot.
What:
A long-wearing, blendable cream eyeshadow that doubles as an eyeshadow primer.
Why it's so good:
This richly-pigmented cream eyeshadow is long-lasting, applies beautifully for a seamless finish that’s waterproof, smudge proof and will last all day and night.
Not a crease in sight.
My personal favourite is the shade Groundwork - I'm wearing it in the photo above.
It is a medium, neutral taupe, for an easy natural eye look. Applied with fingers and blended out with an eyeshadow brush (more on my fave MAC makeup brushes in a bit).
4. MAC Prep and Prime Fix + Spray.
What:
A lightweight water mist packed with vitamins and minerals to soothe and hydrate the skin.
Why it's so good:
The original multi-tasking mist.
Prep and soothe dry skin, mist over the top of makeup for a more lived-in, dewy look, mist throughout the day to combat dryness.
You can even use it with your powder products to activate them eg: mist your brush before dipping into a brow powder for stronger colour.
Read our full MAC Fix + review here.
5. MAC Mineralize Skinfinish.
What:
A slow-baked powder made with MAC’s multi-mineral complex for natural, radiant skin.
Why it's so good:
I’m not normally a powder gal but I break my rules for this one.
This powder has pearl-pigments that give you a touch of coverage and diffuse shine while also leaving your skin looking fresh and radiant.
If you don’t love a powdery look but still want to set and refresh your makeup, this powder is the one.
6. MAC Powder Kiss Lipstick.
What:
This is one of my favourite MAC lipsticks. This moisturising matte lipstick leaves your lips with a soft-focus blur.
Why it's so good:
This is not your typical matte lipstick.
The formula has moisture-coated powder pigments that leave your lips looking matte, but feeling like you’ve just applied your favourite lip balm.
The result is perfectly blurred lips that don’t crack.
The brand's shade MAC Teddy 2.0 (an iteration of the cult Velvet Teddy lipstick shade, see the video above) went viral when it launched earlier in 20201.
7. MAC Makeup Brush #170.
What:
A synthetic, rounded, slanted brush for buffing out creams and liquids.
Why it's so good:
A densely packed, slighted rounded brush that blends liquids and creams like a dream! Works for blending out thick cream foundations, liquids, contours, blushes with zero streaking.
MAC brushes in general are known for being ridiculously long-lasting (I’ve had some of mine for over 10 years).
8. MAC Makeup Brush #217.
What:
A soft, densely packed brush perfect for blending and shading powder and cream formulas.
Why it's so good:
This is my favourite eyeshadow brush, ever.
The perfect size brush for any eye shape to blend out powders, creams, anything but also not so fluffy that you can’t press on product with it. Love using this to apply powder to set concealer too.
9. MAC Studio Fix Foundation Plus Powder.
What:
A 2-in-1 powder and foundation that leaves skin matte with a medium to full coverage finish.
Why it's so good:
It wouldn’t be a proper MAC list without mentioning the iconic Studio Fix Powder.
While matte isn’t always my thing, I love that this is all about giving coverage and the perfect, smooth, pore-refining effect of a matte finish.
Even if you sway to the dewy side, patting a little of this bad boy though the centre parts of the face ensures your complexion will look balanced with the right amount of dewy to matte.
And the shade range! So. Many. Shades.
10. MAC Prep and Prime Lip.
What:
A clear lip primer that moisturises, smooths and refines texture of lips.
Why it's so good:
You might not think you need a lip primer, but after one swipe of this clear, semi-matte lip balm, your favourite lippie will glide on like a dream.
Its moisturising formula makes sure your lips feel hydrated and smooth without any shine that might interfere with your lip colour of choice.
The absolute must-have product to wear with bold lip shades.
And that rounds out my top 10 MAC product favourites!
Head to my video on YouTube to see more of my MAC favourites in action.
P.S. I also may have picked more than 10… you’ll have to watch to find out.
Find more product recommendations, reviews and tutorials from Amelia in these articles...
