Purchasing foundation online can be tricky and there are several things to consider: How dry or oily your skin is, what your skin undertone is, what your actual skin color is, and how much coverage you want.

Oily to Combination Skin: Powder Foundation

Powder foundation is very forgiving in terms of matching your skin. You only need to decide how fair or dark your skin is, and go from there. Two shades of powder can easily be mixed if you find you’re an in between shade. Powder foundation can give you full or light coverage, depending on the amount you use.

Combination to Dry Skin: Liquid Foundation

Liquid foundation will usually give you the fullest coverage, but it is the trickiest to match to your skin tone. If you’re buying foundation for the first time online, I recommend ordering 3 shade samples that you think may work for you. The samples cost a minimal amount, and it is worth it to have foundation that perfectly matches your skin! Place a small amount of each side by side between your cheekbone and jaw. Whichever one blends in completely with your skin is your perfect match. Knowing your undertone will help you – check out how to find that out here. That information will come in very handy when ordering liquid foundation online.

Combination to Dry Skin: Cream Foundation

Cream foundation can also provide full coverage, but it is lighter than most liquid foundations. Again, knowing your skin undertone is very helpful. Once you know your undertone, just select how fair or dark your skin is. If you’re still unsure, grab a few samples and use the same method as with liquid foundation.