We Tried Kosas’s New Tinted Gel Cream — & The Verdict Is In

When Kosas launched, it did so with a punchy tagline of "makeup for skincare freaks." That ethos was perhaps best exemplified with the Tinted Face Oil, a light-coverage, dewy-finish skin enhancer (read: not a foundation, that came later). It was immediately a hit among savvy beauty editors and red carpet celebrities (including my celeb crush, Rami Malek, at the 2019 awards circuit) alike.

However, a Kosas Instagram post from earlier this year teased that the beloved product was being reimagined with a better-than-ever hero complexion formula (two years in the making, including 38 previous iterations). As if on cue, BB Burst has arrived — and with very large shoes to fill. Billed as a tinted gel-cream, the product was made for a "my skin but better" finish that felt like your favorite moisturizer but with light, buildable coverage. It also touted ingredients like sodium PCA (a form of hyaluronic acid), copper peptides, and zinc oxide to balance and strengthen skin. Ahead, read along as four Refinery29 editors give the versatile new product a spin.

"I’m a fan of basically anything Kosas does, so when the brand announced that a tinted gel-cream was in the works, I was immediately all ears. I have oily skin, so I already gravitate towards lightweight textures in terms of skin care and makeup, but BB Burst surpassed my lofty expectations. I applied one pump to my entire face using clean fingers and couldn’t believe how healthy and luminous (not greasy) my skin looked. Later that day, I was on a video call with a skin-care brand, and the founders showered me with compliments on how I looked on-screen. (!) Shade 22 was also a spot-on match for my light-medium olive skin, and it blended beautifully. I could see myself pairing this with a concealer if I wanted more coverage, but TBH, it’s gorgeous all on its own." —Karina Hoshikawa, Senior Writer

"I was first influenced to try this skin tint — it’s definitely lighter than a foundation — by Kelly on TikTok. She has the kind of skin that looks like she’s just gotten a facial and explains that the Kosas BB Burst is what she’d been using. I got it, and I rate it 9.5 out of 10. It’s really the perfect skin tint for me. It’s lightweight, easy to rub in with my fingers, and has a hyaluronic acid-like bounciness that leaves my skin looking glowy without any glitteriness that sometimes gets loaded into skin tints. My skin looks like skin — I’ve been fielding lots of compliments on my skin (read: not my makeup) since using BB Burst. I’m only docking half a point because I would love it if there could be an SPF in there for added sun protection. Otherwise, it’s a winner." —Megan Decker, Beauty Editor

"Honestly, I don’t think I’ve actually used a BB cream before, so I was excited to try this one. I haven’t used foundation in manyyyy years and instead solely use concealer and contour products, but they don’t fully hide my skin’s natural redness or my large pores…so here comes Kosas' BB Burst to save the day. I opted for shade 20, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was a perfect match for me (even without testing it in person before getting it). After applying my skin-care routine and some primer to my combination skin, I rubbed the BB cream in with my fingers to one half of my face for a “before and after” test. The formula was drier than I anticipated and didn’t give me as much of the creamy glow that I had wanted. But it didn’t actually dry out my face. It was also apparent that it calmed down my redness and blurred my pores when I compared my skin to the cream-free half of my face, so that was a major win for me." — Victoria Montalti, Associate Affiliate Writer

Review: "Now that I’m in my (cough) mid-30s, I’ve realized that foundation just doesn’t really work on my skin, so I’m constantly on the hunt for a BB cream or skin tint. Really, all I need is something to even out my splotchy redness without looking cakey or creasing. Kosas BB Burst did the job and more. Not only did my skin look even, but it looked fresh and natural. I’ve been loyal to Dr. Jart’s BB Cream for as long as I can remember, but I find that it can look heavy and show my skin texture, especially when it’s so dry in the winter. The BB Burst melted right into my skin, blending in seamlessly, and making me look like my skin…just better. It’s definitely lighter than a foundation, so if you’re looking for a lot of coverage, this is not that. But a few dabs of concealer can help with any spots that need some extra correcting with barely any effort. I personally love that it has skin-care ingredients in the formula to keep my skin moisturized and happy beneath my makeup. I have a feeling I’m going to be wearing this all spring long." —Charlotte Lewis, Sexual Health & Wellness Writer