I'm a liquid blush girl through and through. As someone not particularly inclined in the art of makeup and who likes to maintain a simple straightforward routine with the result being a glowy dewy look, liquid blush is just what works for me. When you think of liquid blush, what should immediately come to mind is Rare Beauty and Saie Beauty, who arguably make the most popular of those products.
I started thinking about the girls browsing Sephora, conflicted about which brand to try first and decided to compare the two, so that you don't have to. I selected three shades from each brand (shades more or less the same across both brands, or ones described as being so), and started testing them, and now it's Saie vs Rare Beauty blush—a little friendly competition. Below, I'm giving you the full rundown on each liquid blush's pros and cons.
How I Tested The Blushes
I chose to test based on four core categories: size, price, & packaging, color options, formula & consistency, and wear time. I selected the colors Lucky, Love, and Believe from Rare Beauty and the colors Spicy, Flirty, and Chilly from Saie. I wore the blushes in different contexts, but for entire days: a work day, a day of events, a weekend with friends, etc.
Rare Beauty Blush Review
Rare Beauty's liquid blush rings in at $25 for a 7.5 ml product. It comes in a tube with a doe-foot applicator and the brand offers blush brushes, making application clean and easy. Rare offers a range of thirteen shades including everything from a true red to a deep purple berry, while also offering both dewy and matte options. With a makeup as skincare approach, Rare Beauty's formula includes a botanical blend of lotus, gardenia, and white water lily to soothe, calm, and nourish. The product stayed on my face to an extent. It's perfectly normal for a liquid blush to fade throughout the day, so I ended the day with a more natural flushed look. I found the blush to be very buildable, but found myself needing to apply a couple layers. This isn't necessarily a bad thing when it comes to a liquid blush, though, considering that it makes it easier to build to your desired finish. You don't have to worry about accidentally over-applying and having to start from scratch.
Saie Beauty's 'flirty'
Rare Beauty's 'Lucky'
Saie Beauty's 'spicy'
Rare Beauty's 'love'
Saie Dew Blush Review
Saie's liquid blush is $26 for a 12 ml product. It comes in a tube with doe-foot applicators (rather than a squeeze tube), already making it a win in my book. With the applicator and a great blending brush, which Saie Beauty offers, there's no need to get your fingers dirty in the process. Saie offers a range of eleven colors all with a dewy finish. Their offering ranges from a cool baby pink to a warm terracotta, but a classic red was notably missing from the lineup. I would also argue that some of the Saie colors are similar, chilly (mauve) and spicy (warm terracotta) for example, but this could also be attributed to how they show up on my skin tone. Saie Beauty's blush includes plant-derived glycerin for hydration, elderberry fruit extract for free-radical protection, and licorice root extract for brightening. The brand's makeup with skincare approach was clear to me throughout the process as the finish wasn't dry and my somewhat sensitive and reactive skin wasn't left angry or irritated. I waited until my testing was complete to read other people's thoughts and was surprised to find that I have a completely opposing opinion to most people. Others found that the Rare Beauty blushes require less product to achieve the desired color while I found that this was actually the case for the Saie blushes. The consistency of the Saie blush was notably lighter and more serum-like than Rare Beauty's. Once the product was on my face, it wasn't going anywhere: absolutely no transferring to clothes.
Saie Beauty's 'chilly' at 2:30pm
Saie Beauty's 'chilly' at 6pm
Saie Beauty's 'chilly' at 9:30pm
Head-to-Head Comparison: The Key Differences
Saie Beauty's 'chilly'
Rare Beauty's 'believe'
Size, Price, & Packaging:
- Rare: Rings in at $25 for a 7.5 ml product.
- Saie: $26 for a 12 ml product. (I don't really need to break this down any further for you but, it's safe to say that Saie offers a better bang for your buck.)
- Rare: A range of thirteen shades with both dewy and matte options.
- Saie: A range of eleven colors, with a true red noticeably missing, all with a dewy finish.
- Rare: A thicker, more concentrated liquid formula, but feels lightweight nonetheless.
- Saie: A lighter consistency more akin to a serum or liquid-cream.
- Rare: People describe it as having a high pigmentation, but I would myself having to apply a few layers.
- Saie: A relatively small amount of product is needed for a noticeable flush.
- Rare: Drys relatively quickly, so it requires fast blending. Using a brush is recommended, but I think using a slightly wet sponge or beauty blender would work well too.
- Saie: Doesn't really dry quickly, offering more time to blend and play. A brush is recommended and, in my experience, very effective.
The Final Verdict: Saie vs Rare Beauty Blush
All in all, both blushes are great—that's literally why these are the two I chose to compare. At the end of the day, it depends on which brand has the color offering you're seeking. But if I had to choose a number one favorite out of the six blushes I tried? Saie's 'chilly'. Although described as mauve, I would argue that there are also pink berry hints.
So, to the folks browsing Sephora: I hope I've made your shopping experience a little more seamless.
