Over 40? These are the 8 best primers to hydrate, smooth and boost glow— while keeping your make-up in place

It’s no secret that as we grow older, our skin evolves—and, typically, from our 40s onwards, it’s not unusual for fine lines to emerge, hydration levels to dip, and texture to feel rougher. Where make-up once used to glide on and stay in place for hours, it becomes common to find it clinging to dry patches or simply not looking as radiant as it once did. Thankfully, the best primers for mature skin can make a world of difference in creating a smooth, even base, improving hydration and even minimising skin concerns like pigmentation and redness.

But with so many formulas on the market, how do you know which one is best for your skin? To help, we caught up with renowned Make-up Artist Ruby Hammer MBE for some expert advice on choosing the best primers for mature skin. From illuminating bases to colour-correcting ones, we’ll be sharing our favourite formulas for keeping your make-up looking fresh, smooth and luminous.

What are the benefits of a primer for mature skin?

Before getting into what a primer can do for your skin, Ruby points out that “mature skin isn’t actually a skin type”. This means that while there are certain changes that we can expect to occur in our skin once we hit 40 and beyond, these vary person by person, so factoring in whether your skin is oily, dry, or sensitive is worth paying attention to as well.

“Some common effects of the passing years are that the tone of skin becomes uneven and loses elasticity. You can also experience dullness, fine lines, and if you're going through menopause, you may have hot flushes," explains Ruby.

Therefore, when you’re choosing a primer for mature skin you need to bear in mind what result you want from it. “Do you want it to make your make-up last longer, remove redness, hydrate, illuminate or blur the skin? A primer can help with all of these.”

How to choose the best primer for mature skin

Looking at the ingredients list is key when choosing a primer that will suit your specific needs, advises Ruby. Dry or dehydrated? She suggests looking for primers with hyaluronic acid, antioxidants and oils to nourish and moisturise, while oilier skin types may benefit from a mattifying primer with silicones to improve the longevity of your make-up.

“For uneven tone, rosacea or dark circles you may be best suited to a colour-correcting primer with ingredients that soothe the skin such as probiotics, hyaluronic acid and vitamin complexes,” adds Ruby. “Look for words on the pack such as 'calming', 'soothing' and 'gentle'”.

The best primers for mature skin

1. Armani Luminous Silk Hydrating Primer

So many make-up artists that I know rate this primer for mature skin, thanks to its deeply hydrating texture and ability to infuse even the most dull of complexions with a natural-looking glow. Formulated with shea butter and glycerin to inject dry skin with moisture, alongside light-reflecting pigments and blurring polymers, it has the remarkable ability to boost brightness, hydrate skin, and improve the longevity of any make-up applied on top. It’s a brilliant all-rounder.

2. Charlotte Tilbury Wonderglow Face Primer

When you want skin that looks dramatically more radiant and glowy than it did before, I can’t rate Charlotte Tilbury’s Wonderglow enough. Like basically everything from the brand, it aims to deliver a high-wattage glow that makes skin look undeniably brighter and more expensive-looking. And while it certainly does bring brightness in abundance, the formula itself is particularly well suited to mature skin thanks to the hydrating ingredients—hyaluronic acid, rosehip oil and peptides, to name just a few. There is a slight shimmer throughout, which not everyone will love, but I think it does help to ramp up that glass-skin effect.

3. Tatcha The Liquid Silk Canvas Primer

It might be on the pricey side, but if you have texture on your skin that you’re looking to minimise, then this primer from Tatcha is worth the investment. Formulated to diminish the appearance of fine lines and pores, it’s infused with silk extracts and silk powder to plump and hydrate those areas of texture—minimising their appearance while creating a smooth canvas for the rest of your make-up to glide onto. The effect is a soft-focus finish that makes your skin look airy and smooth yet still hydrated. Even better, there are pink and gold pearls to brighten skin and impart a subtle glow. And the ultra-lightweight texture means that you won’t even feel like you’ve added another step to your make-up routine—it’s undetectable.

4. L'Oréal Paris Prime Lab Redness Eraser Primer

Redness, rosacea, and other discolouration tend to be common skin issues as we grow older, and this primer from L'Oréal Paris aims to counteract it with a green-tinted formula. The colour itself is a bit of a make-up artist trick for counteracting redness in the skin, but it’s supported by an infusion of niacinamide to actually soothe and smooth your skin over time too. It works for up to 24 hours and also helps your make-up to grip on top, so I’d rate this when you’re out all day and need your make-up to last.

5. Laura Mercier Pure Canvas Primer Hydrating

If you find that your skin is drier than the desert and any make-up that you apply immediately finds and clings to dry patches, then this skin-quenching primer from Laura Mercier will be your new best friend. It uses a blend of moisturising glycerin, mineral-enriched water from France, and a complex of rose extracts to moisturise, protect and smooth the skin. The result is that any make-up you apply looks more vibrant, glides on smoothly, and doesn’t cling to dry patches. And while this means that your finished make-up looks flawless, your skin also benefits from long-term hydration and a strengthened skin barrier.

6. Hourglass Vanish Airbrush Primer

Oftentimes if you want a primer that’s going to dial down excess oil and minimise the appearance of pores, then you have to compromise on how comfortable or hydrating the primer is on the skin. This one from Hourglass, however, does both. As the name suggests, it has an airbrushed effect on the skin—blurring over texture like scars and fine lines to leave skin velvety-soft and even. And while it does soak up excess oil using micro-spherical powders, it never feels drying or dehydrating on the skin. In fact, it feels smoothing, refreshing and simply allows any products that you apply on top to stick around a little longer than they would otherwise.

7. Estée Lauder Double Wear Second Skin Cream Primer SPF 20

If your make-up tends to disappear by lunchtime, then this primer might be the solution. It contains polymers that flex with your natural facial expressions to help smooth over uneven texture and increase longevity. It isn’t as weightless as some others on the list—it has a creamy moisturiser-like feel—but its viscosity means that it does provide a decent grippy base for your make-up to adhere to. Plus, it has the bonus of being infused with superfine pearl powders for a subtle glow too.

8. Vieve Super Skin Nova Moisture Rich Primer

The latest launch from Vieve comes in the form of this glow-boosting primer for normal to dry skin. If you’ve tried the original primer and love the radiance that it gives, but want a little more hydration, then this is the result. The ingredients list reads like a high-end moisturiser—there’s hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, shea butter, ceramides, hyaluronic acid, beta-glucan and more. The cloud-like cream simply melts onto the skin, instantly drenching it with dewiness and comfort. And while it certainly does prep for the rest of your make-up routine, I’d place money on you skipping the rest of your products and just soaking up the glow that it provides alone.