Bronzer isn’t only used to look tan. The best bronzers elevate your pasty-looking complexion and give a sun-kissed glow to your face, making you look radiant and healthy.

Since a lot of us are staying indoors more than ever, our skin hardly sees the natural light from the sun. But tanning outside can bring a lot of issues such as sunburn, dark spots, and UV damage.

Here’s where bronzers come into play. Instead of going outside and risking your skin and SPF, the right bronzer to your face can make you look like you’ve just returned from a long beach vacation.

But what’s the difference between bronzer and contour? And how do you use it, and how do you pick one?

Don’t worry because we’ve got your back. We’ll answer these questions and give you our best picks for bronzers for warm-toned Asian skin to get that natural, sun-kissed look.

Bronzer vs contour

A bronzer helps give your face a radiant, healthy glow by mimicking the sun’s natural tanning effect on your skin. Since they are meant to maximise light, they are generally warm toned.

Contouring is using makeup to create the illusion of shadows on the skin to sculpt and define the face. It is a great product to use for a full glam makeup look.

You can use it to bring attention to your favourite features like your cheek and jawline or redefine features like the sides of your nose.

Unlike bronzers, contours are usually cooler, darker tones as they’re trying to imitate natural shadows.

How to use bronzer

Using a bronzer may seem complicated but it’s surprisingly easy. Just follow these simple steps to get started:

  1. Before applying bronzer, use a makeup base and foundation to prep your skin to create a perfect canvas for that perfect sun-kissed tan.
  2. Tap your brush in your bronzer and sweep it along your cheekbones and around the edges of your face like your temples and forehead. Imagine you are painting all along the places the sun usually hits your face.
  3. Blend out the bronzer in small, gentle circles so there aren’t any harsh lines and you’re left with a seamless finish.
  4. Use the leftover product on your brush to add some warmth to other areas on your face like your nose, chin, jawline, and neck.

Picking a bronzer

To choose the right bronzer for you, you must first figure out your skin type, as different types of bronzers work better on certain skin types.

For example, liquid or creamy bronzers are best for dry skin users, while pressed powders may be better for normal, oily, and combination skin.

The general rule is to pick a bronzer that is one or two shades darker than your natural skin tone. You also need to figure out whether your undertones are cool, neutral, or warm. You can use our handy skin undertone guide, but most Asians have warm undertones.

Bronzer recommendations

1. Benefit Hoola Matte Bronzer

1. Benefit Hoola Matte Bronzer

This pressed powder matte finish bronzer aims to brighten all complexions and leave them with a healthy glow. Not only that, but its also a highly versatile product as it can be used for contouring, highlighting, and face slimming too.

We love how it’s housed in a compact box that reminds us of tropical vacations with its bright colours and bamboo design. It also includes its own brush for easy application.

It retails for RM158.

Sephora

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2. RMS Beauty Buriti Bronzer

2. RMS Beauty Buriti Bronzer

We’ve got a creamy bronzer for you dry skin girls out there. Suitable for all skin tones, this lightweight and easy-to-blend formula is infused with shimmer which will help you get that extra sun-kissed glow.

What’s great is that it contains a lot of natural ingredients such as coconut oil, beeswax, jojoba seed oil, cocoa seed butter, buriti fruit oil, and more.

It retails for RM135.

Sephora

3. Klara Cosmetics G Glow Bronzer

3. Klara Cosmetics G Glow Bronzer

This bronzer may look dark but can instantly add colour to pale complexions without orange tons you can often get with a bronzer.

Formulated with high-payoff micronised pigments, this bronzer has a silky smooth buildable texture that can be used every day for a sun-kissed look all year round.

It retails for RM139.

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4. Nudestix Nudies Matte All Over Face Color Blush & Bronze

4. Nudestix Nudies Matte All Over Face Color Blush & Bronze

These dual-ended sticks have one monochromatic balm colour on one side and a brush on the other, allowing you to reapply and blend on the go.

Like its name suggests, these come in pink and peach colours for a nice natural blush and light and tan colours for a sun-kissed bronze. We recommend going with shade Bondi Bae if you have pale skin and Deep Maple, Eh for tanner skin.

It retails for RM145.

Sephora

5. Fenty Beauty Cheeks Out Freestyle Cream Bronzer

5. Fenty Beauty Cheeks Out Freestyle Cream Bronzer

This easy-to-blend, lightweight, and non-greasy cream bronzer comes in seven different shades to cater to all skin types and tones. You can even use the product as a soft contour.

Shade Macchiato is a great light-medium brown bronzer with muted, warm undertones and a satin finish, suitable for most Asian skin tones.

It retails for RM158.

Sephora

6. Guerlain Terracotta Light the Sun Kissed Healthy Glow Powder

6. Guerlain Terracotta Light the Sun Kissed Healthy Glow Powder

A pressed-powder bronzer, this product almost resembles a spinning wheel with its three different alternating shade and the middle round shade of brownish beige. Because of its different colours, it is more versatile as you can blend and play with each shade.

This vitamin-infused bronzer is more on the subtle, as the shades are a little lighter than other bronzers. We recommend #03 Natural Warm which contains golden-peachy tones as well as light to medium browns.

It retails for RM241.

Zalora

7. Huda Beauty GloWish Soft Radiance Bronzing Powder

7. Huda Beauty GloWish Soft Radiance Bronzing Powder

This pressed powder bronzer comes in a gorgeous duo-tone marble swirl that easily lets you go from a natural, sun-kissed tan to a full glam look that can last up to 12 hours.

Try the shade Light for a peachy-brown with soft, warm undertones for pale skin or Medium for a light brown with warmer, orange-leaning undertones for darker skin.

It retails for RM130.

Sephora

8. Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow

8. Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze & Glow

One of Charlotte Tilbury’s bestsellers, this pressed powder bronzer offers a satin sheen without any brassiness or patches. Infused with pigment and pearl, you’re sure to get a sun-kissed radiance.

The product also comes with a highlighter, allowing you to further accentuate your looks for a celebrity-like glow up. The Light to Medium shade works best on pale or light skin.

It retails for RM390.

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9. Bobbi Brown Bronzing Powder

9. Bobbi Brown Bronzing Powder

Highly pigmented, this soft matte powder glides easily onto your skin for a luxurious, beach-side tan. It carefully brings together reds and browns to create the tones of a true tan for a natural-looking bronzed effect.

Shade Medium is a warm-toned medium brown that would suit most Asian skin tones, and you can easily build the product for a darker tan.

It retails for RM209.

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10. Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess Powder Bronzer

10. Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess Powder Bronzer

This ultra-lavish bronzing powder is velvety, lightweight, and oil-free, which is perfect for oily skin. What’s more is that it has an oil-control complex to maintain comfortable and shine-free skin while adding a natural sun-kissed glow.

Everything comes together in a gorgeous tortoiseshell-coloured mirrored compact and it also comes with its own brush. We recommend shade Medium, which should suit most Asian ladies.

It retails for RM222.

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11. Tarte Amazonian Clay Matte Waterproof Bronzer

11. Tarte Amazonian Clay Matte Waterproof Bronzer

Housed in a sleek faux leather mirrored square compact with a magnetic closure, this bronzer contains ingredients such as pure water to moisturize your face and vitamins A, C, and E to fight pollutants and signs of aging.

Hotel Heiress is a great medium neutral bronze tone with no red undertones that is good for light to medium tan skin. Plus, it has a chocolate scent to it that is simply delicious.

It retails for RM130.

Sephora

12. Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Bronzer

12. Anastasia Beverly Hills Cream Bronzer

This weightless creamy bronzer blends into a matte, seamless finish with comfortable wearability. You can easily use this to contour and define your face as well.

Shade Sun Kissed would be good for those with pale to light Asian skin tones who want that natural, slightly tanned glow.

It retails for RM160.

Sephora

13. NARS Matte Bronzing Powder

13. NARS Matte Bronzing Powder

NARS always has solid makeup products, and its bronzer is no different. This award-wining bronzing powder comes in four buildable shades for a long-lasting matte warmth.

Laguna is a moderately warm-toned, light-medium brown that should look good on most Asian skin tones, especially those with tan skin.

It retails for RM160.

Zalora

14. Clinique True Bronze Pressed Powder Bronzer

14. Clinique True Bronze Pressed Powder Bronzer

Our final bronzer on the list, this formula is a lightweight powder but builds easily for a desirable level of bronze. Oily girls can use this too as it is long wearing and oil free.

It does have a slight shimmer to it so you can have that extra boost of sun-kissed radiance. Shade Sunblushed could be good for those with light to tan skin.

It retails for RM144.

Zalora

Featured image credit: Collective Beauty and Lizzy Grace