The Best Makeup Palettes That Won’t Leave You Penniless

By Erin Lukas
Updated Jan 21, 2016 @ 5:45 pm
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Another day, another must-have palette to lust over. As much as we’d love to go out and immediately get our hands on every new collection of colors and kits our favorite beauty brands entice us with, most of the time we leave half of the colors in these releases untouched, and our bank accounts empty.

Luckily, you can have new makeup to play with and pay all your bills on time this month. Some of the best palettes that offer colors you’ll actually use are budget-friendly at $25 or less. From eye shadow collections for smoky-eye first-timers to something for the contour challenged, the following makeup palettes offer ten ways to boost the color in your routine, or simplify popular makeup application techniques without emptying your wallet.

RELATED: 5 Makeup Trends You Need to Add to Your Beauty Lexicon Right Now

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Tarte Cosmetics Tartelette Tease Palette

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$21
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Don’t know how to choose which lid, crease, and highlight eyeshadow shades to pair together? Don’t worry: Tarte’s palette includes every-day matte and luster shades side-by-side so you can mix and match to create the most flattering day-to-night look for you.

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Maybelline Eye Studio Brow Palette

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$13
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The Cara Delevingne effect is still in full force, and it looks like we’re not going to pull out our tweezers any time soon. To keep au natural brows looking their best, use Maybelline’s kit to sculpt and set the shape in place, and fill-in any sparse areas.

3 of 10

CoverGirl Goldens TruNaked Eye Shadow Palette 

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$13
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If you’re a shadow newbie, this CoverGirl palette is the one for you. The shimmery warm neutral shades can easily be worn alone, or blended for a subtle smoky-eye, if you’re feeling up for a makeup challenge.

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4 of 10

Flower Beauty Hollywood Secret Concealer Kit

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$13
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Put your best skin forward with this compact concealer kit. Its four colors include three concealer shades and a brightening primer so you can effortlessly cover up blemishes, redness, and dark circles in front of your bathroom mirror or on the go.

5 of 10

Revlon PhotoReady Primer + Eyeshadow in Metropolitan

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$8
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Spending time on a carefully blended shadow look, only for it to melt off halfway through the day is one of the most frustrating beauty blunders. Revlon solves this dilemma with the genius inclusion of a primer in this palette to help its shadows stay in place. 

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L’Oreal Paris Infallible Pro Contour Palette

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$12
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If you haven’t mastered the contouring craze despite watching an embarrassing number of tutorials, L’Oreal breaks down the journey to a chiseled face with by labeling this contour and highlight duo, which comes with a sculpting brush. 

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7 of 10

e.l.f. Blush Palette

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$6
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Blend your way to gorgeous flushed cheeks by mixing the pinks and peaches of this blush palette to create the most flattering shade for your complexion.

8 of 10

Lorac Pocket Pro Palette

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$18
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A shadow palette you can fit in your pocket? Say no more. Lorac’s travel-friendly set of shadows makes touching up shades, smoky-eyes, or lines simple, wherever your day takes you.

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NYX Cosmetics Avant Pop! Shadow Palette

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$17
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Consider this palette an eyeshadow mood-ring. Express yourself with any of its vibrant shades, which include some neutrals to balance the bold, not that you really need to.

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10 of 10

Physicians Formula Shimmer Strips Custom Eye Enhancing Shadow & Liner, Universal Looks

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$12
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When in doubt on how to do your eye makeup, you can really do no wrong with a classic smoky-eye. Physicians Formula’s set of moody eyeshadows includes every color you need to achieve the classic sultry look. 

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