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NARS

Natural Matte Longwear Foundation.

NARS Natural Matte Longwear Foundation
Foundation

About this product

A longwear matte foundation designed to provide full coverage with a natural, skin-like finish and extended wear time without requiring setting powder.

Full ingredients

Guru Score

68%

Mixed

4 experts · Moderate agreement
4Gurus
2Yay
1Mixed
1Nay

What they liked

  • Natural satin finish, not flat or powdery
  • Wears without setting powder all day
  • Lightweight, full coverage without caking

What they flagged

  • Shade range may need concealer to correct
  • Pricey for the bottle size

What the gurus are saying

This foundation earns consistent praise for skipping the need for setting powder while staying put all day, a rare win for people with oily skin who usually can't go without one. The finish reads as a natural satin rather than flat matte, keeping skin looking alive instead of powdery or heavy. Shade matching can be tricky and the price point of $55 gives some pause, so patch-testing and checking your undertone against swatches first may help you avoid disappointment.
Synthesized from 4 expert reviews · most recent take July 2026

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

All takes Yay takes Nay takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored
~Yay
"I am going to bring what I consider my holy grail makeup duo, and one half of it is the Nars Natural Matte Longwear Foundation. [...] I might wear it, I might wear both pieces of the duo, or I might wear neither."
Top Pick: longest-wearing foundation
All 2 takes from Skin Obsessed Mary
Fast, Forgiving Makeup at 55
"My favorite foundation these days is still the NARS Natural Matte Longwear Foundation. This is the longest-wearing foundation I own, and I love the finish. It's not too matte, despite its name -- I don't know why they called it that -- but it's also not too glowy. It's just this really natural satin finish, which is surprisingly difficult to find. The only issue is that it's just too light for me right now."
I Know Better. I'm Doing It Anyway
"I am going to bring what I consider my holy grail makeup duo, and one half of it is the Nars Natural Matte Longwear Foundation. [...] I might wear it, I might wear both pieces of the duo, or I might wear neither."
~Yay
"Nars make some of the best foundations I feel like and this new one is no exception. It's the shade Mont Blanc, which is honestly a little bit deep for me. I feel like I could go for a shade lighter than this, but it's seriously so beautiful. [...] Even though this is technically a matte foundation, it's not like a flat matte though. Like, it doesn't look lifeless. It still has a really beautiful natural finish."
All 4 takes from Allie Glines
Did the NEW NARS Foundation Just Take First Place?! (Wear Test)
"I really like this because it looks fresh, very skin-like, very healthy. It gave great coverage, it's weightless. I have no notes and it looks really pretty on the skin. There's a little tiny bit of settling in my pores, but with no setting powder, for that to happen [...] is honestly crazy. [...] I've never been able to skip setting powder with any other foundation without feeling super greasy at the end of the day, so this is a win for me. I was super skeptical going in -- I love NARS foundations, but I've never been able to do that before. I'm genuinely thrilled and impressed. I think it's definitely worth a try if you're somebody like me who has a tough time with matte foundations. I can't imagine how long-wearing this would be if I did set it. [...] This could knock out so many different steps in my routine."
NEW Rare Beauty Eye Collection... Better This Time?!
"I've been loving this NARS Natural Matte Longwear Foundation. I'm going to [...] buff it all over the skin and press it in with my sponge."
My Unexpected FAVORITES from Last Month!!
"I tried this in my video without any powder and it looked glorious all day long. I have since tried it with powder the way that I normally do in my T-zone and it looks just as good, just with a little more control in the T-zone for me. It's a really innovative, high quality foundation with really nice glass packaging, weighted, with a red pump. [...] If you have more oily skin and you want a natural, not flat, powdery matte foundation, it still looks very much like skin and it's not cakey or heavy. [...] I'm really impressed."
Umm.. Testing NEW Makeup!!
"Nars make some of the best foundations I feel like and this new one is no exception. It's the shade Mont Blanc, which is honestly a little bit deep for me. I feel like I could go for a shade lighter than this, but it's seriously so beautiful. [...] Even though this is technically a matte foundation, it's not like a flat matte though. Like, it doesn't look lifeless. It still has a really beautiful natural finish."
~Mixed
"I loved the finish. Problem is my skin congestion prone, acne prone. Heavier matte foundations like this tend to make me break out. And guess what? This one did exactly that. Loved the finish. I loved it. But like at the end of the day, I ended up with two big breakouts that weren't there in the morning. I tested it a couple times and the same thing happened. Either I had a smaller breakout that ended up being way larger at the end of the day or I had like just breakouts happening at a time when my skin was really good and it didn't correlate with my hormones."
All 2 takes from Alexandra Anele
Oh wow. I think this is it.
"I loved the finish. Problem is my skin congestion prone, acne prone. Heavier matte foundations like this tend to make me break out. And guess what? This one did exactly that. Loved the finish. I loved it. But like at the end of the day, I ended up with two big breakouts that weren't there in the morning. I tested it a couple times and the same thing happened. Either I had a smaller breakout that ended up being way larger at the end of the day or I had like just breakouts happening at a time when my skin was really good and it didn't correlate with my hormones."
So NARS has a new foundation…
"It gave me a nice glow. It didn't make my skin look too oily. [...] It's been a minute since I've worn a more full-coverage foundation, and I'm liking it. [...] Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the finish. I don't know if it's necessarily worth $55, because that's an expensive foundation, especially considering the tone is not right. [...] I do think that we were able to balance it a bit with a concealer trick -- using a slightly lighter concealer that's a little more on the yellowy side. I don't think that if you're just looking at me you'd be like, 'Her foundation is so not the match,' but I can see that it's not right. I am pretty happy with the finish overall, and I think it's something I'm going to continue using."
~Nay
"I like some Nars products, I like a lot of Nars products, but the foundation... let's not judge the foundation, let's not talk about it, let's ignore that product."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Niacinamide

Niacinamide has evidence behind it for redness, uneven tone and supporting the skin barrier, and it is usually well tolerated even by skin that reacts to most things.

Source: DermNet

Alpha hydroxy acids

Alpha hydroxy acids loosen the bonds holding dead cells at the surface. The evidence supports smoother texture and more even tone over time, and they can leave skin more sensitive to sun.

Source: NIH, National Library of Medicine

Sunscreen filters

Sun protection is the best evidenced way to slow visible ageing, and the filters are what does the work. Mineral and chemical filters both protect when a product is applied thickly enough and often enough, which is where most people fall short rather than on the choice of filter.

Source: DermNet

Frequently asked.

What is NARS Natural Matte Longwear Foundation?

A longwear matte foundation designed to provide full coverage with a natural, skin-like finish and extended wear time without requiring setting powder.

Is NARS Natural Matte Longwear Foundation worth it?

The gurus mostly approve it, but with enough reservations to keep it in the middle at a Guru Score of 68%.

What is NARS Natural Matte Longwear Foundation's Guru Score?

NARS Natural Matte Longwear Foundation holds a Guru Score of 68%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 4 expert reviewers we have collected. At least one expert has named it a Top Pick in its category.

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