Essence

See reviews of these products

Cream Eyeshadow"These are beautiful."$5.99

@carmelnicolebeauty reviewing Essence The Rose Edition Eyeshadow Palette at 07:54 in a YouTube Shorts video

The Rose Edition Eyeshadow Palette"The metallics in here are beautiful, absolutely gorgeous, but the mattes are not up to a whole lot."$14.99

@carmelnicolebeauty reviewing Essence Mono Eyeshadow Glitter at 11:02 in a YouTube Shorts video

Mono Eyeshadow Glitter"My favorite out of the three is definitely this one."-

@andreamatillano reviewing Essence Mono Shadow Pearly at 24:46 in a YouTube Shorts video

Mono Shadow Pearly"They are equally beautiful just in a little bit of a different way."-

@andreamatillano reviewing Essence Mono Eyeshadow Pearly at 11:38 in a YouTube Shorts video

Mono Eyeshadow Pearly"I also really like the pearly eyeshadow formula."$3.99

@tati reviewing Essence Blend & Line Eyeshadow Stick at 06:18 in a YouTube Shorts video

Blend & Line Eyeshadow Stick"It's a $1.99. Go and grab this. Especially if you have green eyes or blue eyes."$3.99 Mono Eyeshadow Matte$4.99

@elm0zwrldyt reviewing Essence Art Gallery Eyeshadow Palette at 06:45 in a YouTube Shorts video

The Art Gallery Eyeshadow & Eyeliner Palette"This black eyeshadow I can already tell is going to be a little bit gray."$14.99

@andreamatillano reviewing Essence Mini Eyeshadow Palette at 13:35 in a YouTube Shorts video

Mini Eyeshadow Palette"These palettes come with three matte shadows and one metallic shadow."$9.95

Browse more

Cream Eyeshadow

4.9Variant: Oyster

“These are beautiful”
“I cannot get enough of these”20:36–20:39
“These go on beautifully”
“These are great because you can absolutely sheer them out if you want something a little bit softer, but you can also build them up to look really intense”
“They're so so creamy”
“They glide on beautifully, but then they lock down and stay in place all day long”21:26–21:33
“You don't have to prime your eyelid first”21:33–21:38
“These feel like luxury shadows”21:44–21:47
Source: Best drugstore makeup launches of 2026 so far - May 25, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

4.9Variant: Pearl

“If you're looking for a more affordable option and you like a glow on the eyes, these are amazing”17:18–17:22
“I love it for like brightening up the lid”
“The other shade Rose I'll use as like a true one and done and it's perfect”18:07–18:11
Source: My #1 favorite makeup product in every category - May 13, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

4.9Variant: Pearl

“This is just honestly one of the best Essence products”16:50–16:59
“Like one of the best products on the market right now”16:57–17:04
“It's so incredibly easy to work with”
“Look how pretty this is”17:26–17:30
“It's like a very soft metallic kind of leaning satin”17:40–17:46
“It gives like a glow to the eyes without being too over the top”17:46–17:53
“It is really creamy”17:51–17:56
“Super easy to apply and kind of blend out, but then once it dries, like it's not going anywhere”17:51–17:57
Source: Drugstore makeup under $10 that is so good - May 3, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

4.9Variant: Rose

“Such a pretty shade”22:13–22:16
“This is such a good formula”22:48–22:50
“This is such a beautiful shadow”23:01–23:05
“It is a metallic cream shadow, but I feel like if you really blend it out, it has a little bit more of like a natural not like full-on satin finish. Like it definitely still looks like a metallic on the eyes, but it's not like so over the top intense. So, it does look very natural, very soft and pretty”
“It takes 2 seconds to blend out, a little bit on the lower lash line, a little bit of like a brow bone shade, and that's it. Like it is truly so fast and just really beautiful if you're someone who is like an eyeshadow fan”24:00–24:06
Source: New drugstore makeup launches for spring 2026 - Apr 19, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

4.8Variant: Cocoa

“They have this metallic creamy finish”0:41–0:45
“I saw somebody say that these are dupes for the Charlotte Tilbury cream eyeshadow”0:53–0:58
“It just feels really creamy, but there's a lot of pigment as you can see”1:11–1:18
“I think even the side with no primer blended really nicely”2:01–2:07
“I love a one and done product, especially if you don't like to do a lot”2:07–2:12
“I think the cream eyeshadow, speaking of it, is a winner”14:23–14:28
“There's also no cracking or creasing with that cream eyeshadow so far”15:39–15:46
“The cream eyeshadow is one of the best products of the day”
Source: Full face of Essence makeup under $10 - Mar 28, 2026

juicyjas1.1M subscribers

4.8Variant: 01 Rose

“This is beautiful. It works well by itself or with an eyeshadow primer”8:28–8:33
“I've used this on its own and it does not budge. It does not crease or anything like that”8:33–8:37
“If you're looking for a super affordable longwearing eyeshadow, like cream shadow, this is gorgeous”8:39–8:44
“I think that Essence was trying to dupe like the Charlotte Tilbury cream shadows. And I've never used the Charlotte Tilbury ones, but I will say these Essence ones are so good. Creamy, longwearing, beautiful”10:31–10:47
“This rose is such a beautiful color. It's a beautiful rose gold”
“I like these better than like the L'Oreal shadow sticks. Like, I think that these Essence cream shadows last better than even those L'Oreal shadow sticks”10:43–10:50
“With lasting power, these are on par to the Maybelline um Coloray, like their their tattoo cream shadows”10:56–11:02
“I do think that the product this is more creamy than those Maybelline color tattoos. And so I think you just get like a better application with these Essence cream shadows”11:03–11:14
Source: Full face of the best affordable makeup of April 2026 - May 2, 2026

Julie Dawn Beauty69K subscribers

4.8Variant: 03 Oyster

“It's a beautiful bronzed bronzy color, like everyday kind of bronze, like warm bronze taupe”9:29–9:36
“I loved the way that this looked on the eyes and it lasted just as good as the rose one”
“With these cream shadows, you really don't need to use an eyeshadow primer to get them to last. Like, they last so well on their own”9:51–9:57
Source: Full face of the best affordable makeup of April 2026 - May 2, 2026

Julie Dawn Beauty69K subscribers

4.5

“These are absolutely fantastic”7:13–7:17
“They are just fantastic”7:18–7:21
“I have pretty much every color now and they are completely worth it”13:36–13:41
Source: Full face of new Essence makeup: hits, misses & absolute gems - Mar 23, 2026

Carmel Nicole21K subscribers

4.5

“If you are looking for a dupe for the Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise, they're right here. Four quid a pop”9:30–9:34
Source: Drugstore makeup favorites I'd repurchase first - May 14, 2026

Carmel Nicole21K subscribers

4.2Variant: Oyster

“This Essence eyeshadow is really lovely”9:40–9:47
“I really enjoy it because it has more of a cream to powder kind of texture”9:45–9:54
“I actually think it's pretty reminiscent to the strobe highlights from RMS”9:51–10:01
“I think that this is way more of like an RMS strobe lights kind of product. It has that creaminess, but then it sets down like a powder would”10:07–10:16
“Perfect as like a one and done shadow”10:23–10:30
“I will say you need to work in layers with it because it dries down. So, just be a little bit patient with it”10:26–10:34
Source: Not all cheap makeup is worth it...here's what actually is - May 2, 2026

Amanda Z128K subscribers

4Variant: 02 Pearl

“Very not dry. Creamy, there we go”
Source: Affordable drugstore makeup under $15 - Jun 3, 2026

Taylor Wynn862K subscribers

The Rose Edition Eyeshadow Palette

2.5

“The metallics in here are beautiful, absolutely gorgeous, but the mattes are not up to a whole lot”7:40–7:47
“If you're expecting super intense mattes, you're not going to get it”7:54–7:58
“The mattes are the biggest disappointment in this palette for me”8:39–8:43
“If you compare this to one of the Catrice eyeshadow palettes, there is a difference. There really is”8:58–9:07
“I think if I was you, I would just maybe put that fiver into one of the cream eyeshadows because they are phenomenal”
“This is worth it for the metallics on its own because they are just beautiful. But the mattes, nah, not for me”10:05–10:11
“I don't think you need this. I think you will be disappointed with the mattes”13:09–13:14
Source: Full face of new Essence makeup: hits, misses & absolute gems - Mar 23, 2026

Carmel Nicole21K subscribers

Mono Eyeshadow Glitter

4.9Variant: Blushed Stardust

“My favorite out of the three is definitely this one”10:26–10:30
“If you were only going to pick up one single shadow from their new launch, this is the one to buy”10:38–10:42
“It is so pretty, so sparkly, so stunning on the eyes”10:45–10:49
“It gives your eyes like that scattered glitter effect”10:47–10:51
“I think it's actually better than the Urban Decay Moondust Shadow in Space Cowboy”10:51–10:55
“Not only is it more affordable, I actually like the texture and the finish of this one even better”11:05–11:11
“It is a powder shadow, but it has this smooth almost creamy texture to it”11:11–11:16
“You really don't get any fallout, which is amazing when it comes to a glittery shadow”11:16–11:20
Source: I tried all of the newest essence makeup (what's truly worth trying) - Jun 11, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

4.8Variant: 02 Rosy Sparkle

“This is a stunning eyeshadow. It is very wet-looking”10:41–10:47
“If you like wet-looking eyeshadows, you will love that”11:02–11:08
“I would pick something like this over the Moon Dust from Urban Decay. That is stunning and for two quid, what?”11:08–11:13
“Absolutely insane. Beautiful. Wow”13:29–13:36
Source: Full face of new Essence makeup: hits, misses & absolute gems - Mar 23, 2026

Carmel Nicole21K subscribers

Mono Shadow Pearly

4.5

“They are equally beautiful just in a little bit of a different way”24:44–24:48
“These give you more of like a smooth metallic shine rather than a scattered glitter effect”24:46–24:52
“Again, so so smooth, extremely creamy”24:57–25:01
Source: Best drugstore makeup launches of 2026 so far - May 25, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

Mono Eyeshadow Pearly

4.2Variant: Golden Glow

“I also really like the pearly eyeshadow formula”11:34–11:40
“This is more ideal if you want just like a nice smooth even metallic”11:38–11:42
“This again, so smooth and creamy”11:55–12:00
“This feels like a high-end shadow, but it's $5”11:58–12:06
Source: I tried all of the newest essence makeup (what's truly worth trying) - Jun 11, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

Blend & Line Eyeshadow Stick

4.8Variant: Full of Beans

“It's a $1.99. Go and grab this. Especially if you have green eyes or blue eyes”6:13–6:18
“The tone in here is perfection. It has just I don't even know like a hint of coppery red in here. It's chocolatey mocha. Beautiful metallic”6:18–6:26
“You can pop this on the lash line pretty carelessly. Go in, take a brush, bam, bam, bam. You're going to blend it out. You're going to have a smokey eye in 2.2 that cost you $2”6:29–6:36
“Also, update update. We're going back a few steps, but like the longevity factor of this $2 shadow stick, stop it”8:48–8:56
Source: Best Drugstore Makeup of 2025 - Dec 26, 2025

Tati7.9M subscribers

The Art Gallery Eyeshadow & Eyeliner Palette

“This black eyeshadow I can already tell is going to be a little bit gray”5:34–5:42
“Look at how easily this eyeshadow is blending out”6:45–6:50
“It's actually kind of fire”6:50–6:53
“It is buildable. Like when you first lay it down, it's pretty gray. It's not like a true black, but you can build it up”6:52–6:56
Source: Full face of Essence Cosmetics - Feb 7, 2026

em ma570K subscribers

Mini Eyeshadow Palette

4.2

“These palettes come with three matte shadows and one metallic shadow”13:22–13:26
“I think they're really, really nice”13:35–13:38
“I think these are going to be ideal for those of you that don't want to spend a ton of time blending your eyeshadow and for those of you that like more of a buildable formula”13:47–13:54
“This formula is very powdery, very thin, but you can build it up to get more intense pigment, which is great”13:58–14:05
“The matte shadows are super smooth, very easy to work with”14:05–14:10
“The metallic shadows give you like a beautiful sheen to the eyes”14:09–14:13
“They look great without fading or smudging”
Source: I tried all of the newest essence makeup (what's truly worth trying) - Jun 11, 2026

Andréa Matillano362K subscribers

Brand note

Essence is the drugstore brand that keeps surprising creators with how good the formulas are for the money. The Super Peptide Glossy Lip Treatment comes up most often — a non-sticky, high-shine gloss with a smooth, hydrating feel that people compare favorably to high-end options. The Soft Touch Butter Bronzer also gets consistent praise for its soft, blurring, easy-to-blend texture. The main trade-off across the line is limited shade ranges, which creators note can exclude a lot of skin tones.

Shop paths

Essence Site Amazon Ulta

Some links are affiliate links.