The last thing you want on a hot and sticky summer day is a face of full coverage foundation dripping down your neck. Enter tinted moisturizers! A great lightweight alternative to foundation, this product usually feels and looks lighter (as in less coverage) on the skin. While it’s meant to moisturize and even out your skin tone, it doesn’t have enough pigment to cover most acne scarring or breakouts. You can layer a concealer underneath or on top of your tinted that’s the same color as your skin should you need a bit more coverage in certain areas. Many have an SPF built right in, making it the perfect thing to wear to the beach without looking overly made up for a day outside. Take a look at our list of the best of the best and let those freckles shine through!

Photo by Anna Wolf styled by Morgan Gibbons Makeup Junkokioka Hair Ashley Rubell

If you’re going for something clean and chemical free, W3ll People makes an incredible tinted moisturizer with so many benefits to your skin. The broccoli seed oil, algae and pomegranate base deliver nutrients to the skin, and a mineral SPF 30 will keep you protected under the summer sun. Coverage with the Bio Tint is exactly what it should be, a perfect happy medium between wearing foundation and wearing nothing at all - makes you feel like a natural beauty and a health goddess!

Simply the best! Find it at select Target and Whole Foods locations

A tried and true favorite with women everywhere, the Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer. I’d like to take this opportunity to set the record straight, it’s pronounced “Mer-see-ay” (she’s French). Back in my makeup counter days I can’t tell you how many people asked me where the Laura MERCER counter was. Anyway back to the product! People love it for its skin-perfecting quality without looking like you’re wearing any makeup at all. Comes in three awesome formulas- The original, Illuminating, and Oil-free. I love the original, but the illuminating is pretty if you want all over J-Lo glow plus coverage in one product, should your overworked highlighter need a break for the day.

A 2018 beauty award winner from Allure, the Bare Minerals Complexion Rescue Tinted moisturizer is another must-try. While Bare Minerals isn’t quite as clean as a brand like W3ll People, they do cut out some of the real nasty stuff found in so many cosmetics today, like mineral oil, parabens, and phthalates. This formula has mineral sunscreen SPF 30 (better than a chemical one) and includes a plant-derived Squalane which is so hydrating and a great natural ingredient to keep the skin looking youthful. This is a nice formula if you have normal to dry skin and like a dewy finish.