Benefit Cosmetics Stay Flawless 15-Hour Primer Vs. Make Up For Ever HD Microperfecting Primer

On Wednesday, I wrote a review about Benefit Cosmetics' Stay Flawless 15-Hour Primer. Long post short, it turned out to be a surprisingly great primer. But is it better than my current go-to primer: Make Up For Ever HD Microperfecting Primer? The only way to find out is with a split-face test.

In case you're new to this blog a split-face test is when I use one product on one side of my face and its rival on the other side, in order to directly and immediately see which product works better for me.

Now, normally when I do I split test, I run it two-four times and always use the same product on the same side of my face. This time though I deliberately switched which sides of my face used the primers because of the disgusting thing that popped out of the left-side of my chin late last week. Besides being elevated, it was discoloured, flakey, dry and shiny. It was gross but it was also the perfect test for a primer.

One of the biggest differences between these two products is the format. The MUFE primer is your traditional liquid primer that's nicely secured in a pump bottle (I love pump bottles because they are hygienic and help to keep dirt, oil and air away from the actual product). The Benefit primer is in a stick format, which, while convenient and ideal for travelling, exposes the product to all kind of nasties that will lead to a shorten lifespan for this item.

Both products are easy to apply and once on, the MUFE primer leaves my skin feeling a little slicker than the Benefit one. That primer feels like air while the MUFE is a touch heavier (though personally I had no problem with this).

Initially, both primers deliver the same visual results: Flawless, full coverage by my foundation. As the day progressed, the Benefit side became a little shiner but then, like I mentioned in yesterday's post, that product does say that it delivers a natural-look.

There was also one noticeable difference: When the hideous chin growth was covered by the MUFE primer, it stayed hidden until the work day was done.


The winner: This is a close one. Ultimately, I found that the MUFE primer worked better when it came to dealing with serious blemishes though both products worked great on healthy skin. I also prefer the MUFE primer's pump bottle, which is cleaner to use than the stick. However, if you have fairly blemish-free skin, are willing to toss the product when it gets to that yucky stage and prefer a barely-there primer, the Benefit product is likely for you.