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Byrdie / Chloe Jeong
Once upon a time, not so long ago, the art of contouring—using shadows and darker colors to define and reshape your face—was a makeup technique almost solely reserved for the pros. That’s most definitely not the case anymore. Thanks to a massive influx of new contouring products, not to mention the impact of a certain mega-famous, contour-loving Hollywood family, contouring is now more commonplace than ever before.
Byrdie Researched & Approved
Created by a contouring expert, the Makeup by Mario Softsculpt Shaping Stick boasts an impressive shade range, which is why it tops our list. For a more accessible option, we recommend the NYX Professional Makeup Wonder Stick, which takes the guesswork out of contouring thanks to its dual-ended design.
The secret to mastering the move? The end goal is for it to truly be undetectable, and for everyone to think that you were simply born with a bone structure that’s just that good. In order to do so, your contouring product should be two shades deeper than your foundation. You’ll want to apply it in a few strategic spots: along your temples, under the cheekbones, along your jawline, and down the sides of your nose. Then blend, blend, blend before adding foundation and highlighter to balance things out.
And when it comes to choosing a contouring product? Keep in mind that creams will always be more blendable than powders, a good option if you’re a beginner or are looking for a more natural result. Enter the beauty of a good contour stick. Not only are they super creamy, but they couldn’t be easier to use. Simply swipe one on, no extra tools or tricks are required. We narrowed down the selection for you based on shade range and ease of blending, and skin feel. After considering dozens of options, we landed on these best in show.
Best Overall
Makeup by Mario Softsculpt Shaping Stick
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Kohl's
Comes in a variety of shades
Built-in applicator
Matte finish
On the pricier side
Who else recommends it? Cosmopolitan also picked the Makeup by Mario Softsculpt Shaping Stick.
What do buyers say? 100+ Kohl's reviewers rated this product 4 stars or above.
With a list of celeb clientele that includes names such as Jennifer Lopez and Kim Kardashian, makeup artist Mario Dedivanovic certainly knows a thing or two about contouring. (After all, we really think it could be renamed kontouring solely because of how mainstream the Kardashians have made it.) This contour stick is a staple in his eponymous makeup line, and it has a creamy, buildable formula with a matte finish. We’re impressed by the fact that it comes in an extensive line-up of six shades, all with varying undertones, and has a built-in brush on the other end.
Price at time of publish: $28
Shades: 6 | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best for Fair Skin
Anastasia Beverly Hills Contour & Highlight Stick
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Anastasia Beverly Hills
Buildable color
Matte finish
Reviewers note it is hard to blend
Contouring can be tricky (heck, we may even go so far as to say risky) for those with pale skin. After all, go too dark and no matter how much you blend, it’s still very easy to end up stripe-y. That’s why this pale caramel tone is ideal for light complexions, offering full-coverage color that’s also buildable, super important when you’re trying to add shadows to pale skin.
Price at time of publish: $25
Shades: 4 | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best for Dark Skin
Fenty Beauty Match Stix Trio
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Courtesy of Sephora
Great options for dark skin
Comes with two shades and a highlighter
Sticks could be a little bit bigger
Contouring can also prove a little bit tricky when you’re trying to deepen already dark skin, but happily, there are now lots of choices for brown-skinned girls. Our girl Rihanna got it right with her stick threesome; while there’s a set of three for light, medium, and tan skin, it’s the deep shade that we really think takes the contouring cake. You get two matte colors for concealing and contouring, plus a highlight shade to finish everything off.
Price at time of publish: $38
Shades: 3 per set | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes
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Byrdie / Khera Alexander
What Our Testers Say
“If you’re looking for an uncomplicated product that takes the guesswork out of choosing your perfect shades, Fenty Beauty nailed it.” — Khera Alexander, Product Tester
Best Drugstore
NYX Professional Makeup Wonder Stick
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Courtesy of NYX
Rare drugstore option
Comes in a variety of shades
Comes with a highlighter
Reviewers note the color isn’t long lasting
This helps take the guesswork out of the whole ‘contour, then highlight’ thing. The dual-ended stick features a contour shade on one side and a precisely paired highlight hue on the other to lift and sculpt your face. It also comes in options for fair, medium, and dark skin. Not to mention that you can get it at the drugstore, which is not always the case when it comes to contouring products.
Price at time of publish: $14
Shades: 4 per set | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best for Dry Skin
Glossier Haloscope
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Courtesy of Glossier
Dermatologist-tested
Very creamy color
Great for sensitive skin
Moisturizing
Only one contour color option
Shimmery
While this may technically be called a highlighter, this bronzy hue pulls double duty as either a bronzer or contour tone. The color itself is super creamy, thanks to a (visible) moisturizing core rich in coconut, castor seed, and sweet almond oil, so it's especially great on dry skin. It not only helps the stick itself glide on seamlessly but also ensures your complexion stays dewy.
Price at time of publish: $34
Shades: 3, but only 1 for contouring | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: No
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Byrdie / Ashley Rebecca
Best Natural
ILIA Illuminator
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Courtesy of Ilia
Very creamy color
Moisturizing
Easy to blend
Can get lighter shades for highlighting
Only one contour color option
Stick could be bigger
Shimmery
An all-time favorite among team Byrdie, this chubby stick is squeaky clean. We’re talking about a formula that’s free of questionable ingredients such as parabens and synthetic fragrance and instead is loaded with natural oils, shea butter, and beeswax. It’s these guys that give this an ultra-silky texture. Use a deeper tone for contouring, and pick up a lighter shade to use for highlighting.
Price at time of publish: $34
Shades: 4, but only 1 for contouring | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Liquid
Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Contour Wand
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Sephora
Buildable color
Built-in applicator
Only comes in two shades
Liquid formula fans will appreciate this pick. It’s super easy to dispense the product right out of the tube, then blend it right into the skin using the built-in cushion applicator. And despite the fact that it’s a liquid, it still feels lightweight and dries down extremely fast without ever streaking or smudging. Not to mention that it makes it much easier to impart more sheer color than you’d get with a cream.
Price at time of publish: $55
Shades: 2 | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Foundation
Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation Stick
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Sephora
Comes in a variety of shades
Multi-tasking formula
Water- and sweat-resistant
Not ideal for beginners
On the pricier side
Believe it, you can use a foundation as a contour color. The nice thing about that is that if you’re already using it as your base, you can stick within the line and easily find the color that’s two shades darker for the best contour tone. Regardless of whether you’re using it all over or just to sculpt your features, we’re fans of this classic. It’s creamy and hydrating, though also contains light-diffusing powders to create the appearance of smoother skin and absorb excess oil (not to mention is water- and sweat-resistant on top of all of that). Plus, there’s an option for every skin tone.
Price at time of publish: $20
Shades: 30 | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: No
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Byrdie / Khera Alexander
What Our Testers Say
"My application looked smooth, and the buildable coverage the Skin Foundation Stick provides allowed me to place more product in the areas I needed without my skin looking patchy or thick." — Khera Alexander, Product Tester
Best Dual-Ended
UOMA Beauty Double Take Contour Stick
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Ulta
Contains contour and strobing sticks
Hydrating, antioxidant-rich formula
Buildable and easy-to-blend
Contains BHT
If you’re looking to make some space in your makeup drawer, need something compact to pack on your next trip, or just like the convenience of two-in-one products, this dual-ended contouring and highlighting stick is for you. One end contains a melt-on-contact creamy contour, the other a luminous highlighter that’s infused with antioxidants and hydrating ingredients. In short? It contains all you need for a perfectly sculpted and strobed look. Also nice: The formula is long-wearing and doesn’t budge, ensuring you’ll get in a full day of wear sans fading, even if your skin is oily.
Price at time of publish: $40
Shades: 6 | Byrdie Clean: No | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best for All Skin Types
Ogee Sculpted Face Stick
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Ogee
Great for all skin types
Very creamy color
Easy to apply
On the pricier side
No matter whether your skin is dry, oily, or somewhere in between, this formula works universally well. Why? The star ingredient is jojoba oil, somewhat of a unicorn in the skincare world because it is both super hydrating and helps to balance out your skin’s natural oil production. (On top of that there’s also tapioca powder in the formula, which makes for a subtle mattifying effect.) Jojoba oil also gives this stick its mega-creamy consistency, and we also love that the chunky size makes for easy application.
Price at time of publish: $52
Shades: 4, but only 2 for contouring | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Best Splurge
Westman Atelier Face Trace Contour Stick
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Sephora
Multi-tasking formula
Two shades are very universal
Easy to blend
On the pricier side
Sure, this stick is costly, but we think it’s worth every penny for a few reasons. One, it really can be considered a makeup-skincare hybrid, given that the formula is packed with good-for-your-skin ingredients. Think things such as jojoba seed oil, oil-absorbing kaolin clay, and even special pigment technology that pulls double duty as an anti-pollution shade. Even though there are only two hues to choose from, they look great on a wide array of skin tones, and they can be blended either with your fingertips or a brush with equally great results.
Price at time of publish: $89
Shades: 2 | Byrdie Clean: Yes | Cruelty-Free: Yes
Final Verdict
Contouring can make a big difference in terms of the end result of your makeup look, and contour sticks are one of the easiest ways to do so. The Makeup By Mario Soft Sculpt Shaping Stick is our favorite since it is available in a wide range of shades and has a built-in blending brush on one end. The NYX Professional Makeup Wonder Stick is an affordable drugstore fave, a dual-ended option that comes with a highlighter, while the Bobbi Brown Skin Foundation Stick is a good multi-tasking product. Technically a foundation, it comes in 30 different shades, including plenty of great contour colors for pretty much all complexions.
What to Look For in a Contour Stick
Hydrating Ingredients
Even if your skin is on the oilier side, the addition of hydrating ingredients will help ensure the stick glides smoothly along your skin and blends in well. One universal option? Jojoba oil, which works well for all skin types. The Ogee Sculpted Face Stick contains jojoba oil and glides onto skin.
Built-In Brush
If you want to really keep it simple for yourself, consider choosing one of the contour sticks that comes with a built-in brush or sponge for blending, like the Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Contour Wand.
The Shade Options
Ideally, your contour color should be 2-3 shades deeper than your foundation color. Products that come in a wider range of options tend to make it easy to find the best shade for you. Some products, like the NYX Professional Makeup Wonder Stick, come with a contour and highlight shade for all-in-one sculpting and lifting.
How We Researched & Tested
To compile this list, our team of editors and contributors spent hours researching the best products on the market in this category, evaluating their key features—like ingredients, shade range, or design—in addition to reviews from customers and other trusted sources. Our team also incorporated their own personal experiences testing products in their own lives. We then used these insights from our research and testing to assign a star rating from one to five (five being the best; one being the worst) to certain products on the list.
Why Trust Byrdie
Byrdie contributor Melanie Rud has over a decade of experience in the beauty industry, writing for some of the biggest magazines and websites out there. Despite spending her entire career as a beauty editor, her makeup routine is admittedly pretty minimal. Since she doesn’t use contour sticks regularly, she relied on extensive research and reviews to compile this list of products.
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