The Best CC Creams to Even Out and Mattify Oily Skin

The easy part is deciding to give up your foundation because of the oily and heavy feel. The actual struggle is not knowing what to replace it with! With all the tinted moisturizers, BB creams, maybe some skin tints, and even tinted sunscreens, it gets so confusing! But don’t fret. CC creams are the perfect base for people with oily skin because they offer so much!

Otherwise known as a color-correcting cream, CC cream is all about “correcting” your skin tone. And in the case of oily skin, the need usually arises from redness from acne.

But once you find the right CC cream for your unique skin, one that is oil-free or non-comedogenic, and actually color-correcting, it has the potential to replace at least 3 of your products; primer, foundation, and sunscreen. Here’s how.

You can use a CC cream under your foundation to cancel out any discolorations such as redness and dark spots. This will take your foundation game to a whole new level.

You can also use a CC cream instead of a foundation because CC cream is lighter and it won’t aggravate acne on oily and acne-prone skin. It’s the perfect foundation alternative for lightweight, summer makeup.

Sun protection and skincare benefits are among the additional benefits. That’s why a CC cream is a must-have if you have oily skin. It’s an all-in-one product that can save you a lot of time in the morning. Not to mention, a lot of money!

Even though there are some great options out there, BB creams can still feel heavy on oily skin. And tinted moisturizers may lack the necessary coverage as they’re mostly about the moisturizing aspect of things.

So compared to BB creams or skin tints, CC creams stand on that sweet spot where you get the perfect base with a satisfying amount of skincare.

The Best CC Creams For Oily Skin

Below are the best CC creams for oily skin to even out your complexion without smothering it.

1. It Cosmetics CC+ Cream Oil-Free Matte With SPF 40

Every single ingredient in this CC cream is carefully selected to manage oiliness. Let’s forget about the perfect coverage for a second. The color-correcting cream is formulated with charcoal, clay, and tea tree extract. Sounds familiar? Because if you have oily skin, these ingredients are already in so many of your skincare products.

Charcoal and clay are incredibly helpful in managing the excess oil and reducing shine. And anti-inflammatory tea tree extract has redness-reducing benefits. The CC cream also has collagen to plump up the skin and peptides to give you a bit of extra anti-aging benefits.

The shade range is incredibly rich, so there’s a shade for every skin tone. The cream applies easily and shields the skin with SPF 40 while evening out the skin tone! With an oil-free formula, medium-high coverage, and a perfectly smooth matte finish, this is the best CC cream for oily skin for a flawless complexion.

Coverage: Full
Finish: Matte
Size: 1.08 oz/ 32 ml
Good to Know: Mineral SPF

2. Supergoop! CC Screen 100% Mineral CC Cream SPF 50 PA ++++

This one is made with mineral sunscreen and it’s perfect if you have oily and sensitive skin or if you’re prone to redness or rosacea. It’s a tinted sunscreen so it color corrects, gives you a bit of coverage, and a high level of sun protection! The broad-spectrum SPF 50 provides day-long and non-sensitizing protection.

Meanwhile, natural tint gives you buildable coverage for a base that still looks like skin. The formula is oil-free and also contains antioxidant-rich botanicals to amplify your protection. So if your primary focus is sun protection and skincare, this all-in-one option is great for oily skin that needs high protection.

Coverage: Light/Medium
Finish: Natural radiant
Size: 1.6 oz/ 47 ml
Good to Know: Mineral SPF, cruelty-free, clean, vegan

3. Dr. Jart Cicapair Tiger Grass Color Correcting Treatment SPF 30

First of all, this multi-tasker is the reason why you actually don’t need to obsess over oil-free formulations. This CC cream is not oil-free. But it’s one of the best CC creams that will simplify your skincare and makeup game to a great extent! This is a green-tinted, K-beauty CC cream that also works as a primer, foundation, and sunscreen.

It has a little bit of thickness to it so you need to slowly work it into your skin. But once it settles down, it leaves your skin smooth, matte, flawless, and even! It’s also great for blurring out large pores, covering acne, and canceling acne-related redness. Because it packs anti-inflammatory goodies like Centella Asiatica too.

I also use this to calm my redness from rosacea. And on the days I don’t want to wear makeup, I pair this with Nars Creamy Radiant Concealer and I’m done! It never broke me out! But remember that this has mineral sunscreen in it, so just make sure you properly remove it from your skin in the evening.

Related: Full Review of Dr. Jart Cicapair Tiger Grass Color Correcting Treatment SPF 30

Coverage: Medium/Full
Finish: Matte
Size: 1.7 oz/ 50 ml
Good to Know: Scented

4. Thrive Causemetics Buildable Blur CC Cream Broad Spectrum SPF 40

This is another oily-skin-friendly formula with impressive skin benefits. The CC cream is oil-free and contains skin-nourishing botanical extracts too. Additionally, it has the potent antioxidant vitamin C to actually help brighten the skin tone and fade dark spots.

It’s also the perfect skin shield against free radical damage from the sun and pollution. With a wide shade range, you can find the best match for your skin tone to cancel out redness and cover up imperfections including acne, pores, and fine lines. The coverage is buildable and the finish is natural.

Coverage: Light/Medium
Finish: Natural radiant
Size: 1 oz/ 30 ml
Good to Know: Cruelty-free, vegan, contains both mineral and chemical SPF

5. Clinique Moisture Surge CC Cream Hydrating Color Corrector SPF 30

Dehydration causes oily skin to produce more oil to compensate for the lack of moisture. It also gives you a dull and tired-looking complexion. For oily and acne-prone skin that could use hydration and radiance, this one comes to the rescue. The oil-free CC cream boosts the skin’s hydration with hyaluronic acid and squalane.

These two give you a healthy and radiant complexion as opposed to a matte and flat one. It’s an all-in-one skin saver to care for the skin while maintaining natural makeup with breathable coverage. Slather on for an all-day shine-free complexion.

Coverage: Light
Finish: Natural
Size: 1.4 oz
Good to Know: Contains both mineral and chemical SPF, fragrance-free

So these are some of the best CC creams for oily skin. You can use them for coverage without the need for a heavy foundation and get an even skin tone. Of course, you get all the skincare benefits, which might help with acne too. If CC creams are not your cup of tea, check out our round-up of the best tinted moisturizers for oily skin.

What To Look For in CC Creams For Oily Skin

Coverage

CC creams come in varying coverages. Some are as low as skin tints and some are as high as foundations. But usually, the CC creams with medium coverage offer the best level of makeup benefits combined with skincare benefits. And they’re the ones to reach for if you need the best of both worlds. When you step into the realm of full coverage products, you usually sacrifice skincare and the consistency of the product becomes pretty similar to foundation, which defeats the purpose.

Finish

CC creams, just like any other base product, can be matte, natural, or dewy. So just because something is oil-free doesn’t mean that it will be mattifying. If you have very oily skin, or your skin tends to get oilier during the day, pay extra attention to the finish of your CC cream. Go for matte finish CC creams to cover all the basis. If that’s not an option, go for a natural finish option but definitely stay away from highly luminous finish CC creams because even if they look beautiful in the beginning, they can look greasy later in the day.

Formulation

And lastly, because you’ll be wearing this all day long, make sure your CC cream is suitable to use on oily skin. It means that it has to be either oil-free or non-acnegenic or non-comedogenic This is to prevent it from clogging your pores and causing breakouts. Additionally, if you have oily and sensitive skin, make sure your CC cream is free of irritants such as fragrance.

Read Next: The Best Drugstore Non-Comedogenic Foundations