My Top 10 Makeup Brushes & Makeup Brush Kits Under $20

Today’s post has been a long time coming. I love to do lists of my top 10s and I’ve been wanting to do this one since my top 10 makeup products under $10. I’ve also done a post on my top 10 lip products under 10.  So now I’d thought I’d do one on my top 10 makeup brushes.

The first two were Top 10 under $10, but since makeup brushes tend to cost more, even for the drugstore brands, I decided to make this on Under $20. Most of the brushes in this post are under $10 when you buy them separately but in this post I will be talking about 5 of the kits some of my favorite brands offer. The best thing about drugstore brand brushes is that, yes the kits might be almost $20, but that’s for a set of 4 or more.

I love buying brush kits. You get 4-5 amazing brushes for less than one high-end brush. Just because the price is lower doesn’t mean the product is cheaply made or that they aren’t of great quality. Makeup brushes are one of my favorite things at the drugstore because of how much you get for your buck and how we'll make most of them are.

I’m not doing this one in a countdown or anything. These brushes will be listed in no particular order. I love all these brushes for different reasons. I just couldn’t organize them into a numbered list so I’m going to just write them out and tell you why I love them.

Real Techniques Starter Kit

$17.99 on ulta.com

Since a lot of the brushes in this post are RT I’m only going to talk about the quality once. They are so soft, and well made. They hold up so well to washing and the wash out so easily. They are made with 100% cruelty free synthetic hairs and the handles are made from recycled aluminum.

The handles on all the brushes I’ve tried have been very well weighted and I have loved every brush I’ve tried. It’s easy to say that RT is my favorite brush brand. I really love the brand and that’s why I’ve included a lot of them.

Now more about this kit. I love this kit! This is a really amazing kit and the name is perfect. The eye brushes in here are great for someone just starting. You can never have too many eye brushes. There are 5 brushes in this kit, the base shadow brush, the deluxe crease brush, the accent brush, the Pixel-point eyeliner brush, and the brow brush.

First let’s talk the brow brush. I love it! It is my favorite brow brush to date. I’ve used angled liner brushes but I really love this brush because it is a bit wider. It applies brow powder so beautifully. I love it! The wider design gives me more control and applies the product the way I want.

Next let’s talk the 3 shadow brushes. I love these brushes! You can never have too many eyeshadow brushes! I love these eye brushes. I use the accent brush for inner corner and brow bone, the crease brush really is the perfect crease brush, and the deluxe shadow brush is great for applying shadow to the lid or the crease.

And as for the eyeliner brush I actually use it for touch ups of foundation. It’s really think and perfect to fine details. It would work great for inner corner highlight.

Real Techniques Core Collection

$17.99 on ulta.com

I love this collection! It is the perfect beginners face brush starter kit! This kit comes with 4 brushes, the detailer brush, the pointed foundation brush, the contour brush, and the buffing brush.

I use the detailer for touching up foundation around the lips. It’s the perfect size to use on and around the lips. It’s also great for inner corner highlight.

I love the contour brush for blush! I have tried other brushes but this one is just the perfect size for my cheeks.

I love the buffing brush for foundation! I love buffing foundation in rather than using a foundation brush. I feel like it applies the product more evenly and it feels more comfortable for me.

And the foundation brush in this set is a little small so I tend to use it to set my concealer. I love the way this brush applies powder and it is the perfect sized for under the eyes.

EcoTools Eye Enchanting Duo Set

$5.99 on ulta.com

I love EcoTools! The reason there is only one set in this post is that my favorite set from them has been discontinued. It was a great set but so is this eye set. 

I love EcoTools because they are 100% cruelty free with synthetic brush hairs, recycled aluminum, and bamboo handles. All of the EcoTools brushes I’ve tried have been so soft! I love them! These eye brushes apply product beautiful!

There are 2 double ended brushes in this set. There’s the shade and define brush, which has a fluffy shadow brushes on one end and Angled liner on the other. And the Blend and Smudge, which has a fluffy crease brush on one end and a rounded smudge brush on the other. I love the shade and blend for various shadow uses, I love the angled liner for eyeshadow underline liner and the smudge is great for smudging liner for smokey eyes.

Real Techniques Mini Trio Brush Set

$9.99 on ulta.com

I bought this set because I’m a fan of short handled shadow brushes. I love the little shadow brush in this set! I love the mini face brush for applying bronzer and I love the mini foundation for concealer, cream or powder.

Real Techniques Shading Brush

$6.99 on ulta.com (only $3 at Walmart if you live close to one)

This is the bigger version of the mini shadow brush in the mini trio set. The brush head is the same size but the handle is longer. I seriously cannot get enough shadow brushes. You really can’t it’s always good to have a clean shadow brush when applying different colors of shadow.

This little brush is great for packing color on the lid adding color to the crease and for blending. It really is a little all-in-one shadow brush and if you have a Walmart nearby you can’t beat $3 for a great quality brush.

Real Techniques Powder Brush

$9.99 on ulta.com

This is the best powder brush I have ever used! It’s so big and fluffy! I love how fluffy brushes apply powders! This brush applies so evenly and it give a beautiful natural but polished look when I don’t apply too much powder.

Real Techniques Sculpting Brush

$9.99 on ulta.com

I tend to like looser brushes for bronzer but I love this one. It applies beautiful and holds enough product for both cheeks with one dip in the pan. Just apply your bronzer with a light hand if you like it on the lighter side.

Real Techniques Setting Brush

$7.99 on ulta.com

This is my other favorite brush from RT for brush. It’s a little small than the contour brush and can be bought on its own. It’s a little looser than the contour blush and I tend to use it when I want my blush to be a little less concentrated. I sometimes use it to blend out my blush after I’ve applied it with the contour brush.

Sonia Kashuk Spoolie Brush

$1.99 at Target

Everyone needs a Spoolie brush in their collection. This is a great Spoolie and it’s only $2! I love to run a clean Spoolie through my lashes before and after I curl them and before and after I apply mascara. It really separates the lashes and by separating them it makes them look longer. Some people also use spoolies on their eyebrows. I would suggest a separate spoolie for brows, clean lashes, and after mascara.

e.l.f. Studio Brushes (The Black Handled Ones)

$3 at Target

I love this whole line of brushes! I added these as a bonus in my Top 10 under $10 Products post. I added these to that post because they are $3 each and they are such amazing quality. 

When I showed mine to my sister she thought they were rabbit hair. These brushes are 100% synthetic. And so soft! Each brush is only $3 and e.l.f has an 11pc kit for $30 so you save $3 if you buy the kit. These brushes are amazing and offer a pocket friendly way to get all the brushes you need.

I’m so happy to have finally done this post! It’s been on my list since that first post of My Top 10 Under $10 Makeup Essentials. It always kept getting pushed back.

In the comments below let me know some of your favorite brushes.

Thanks for reading this post! I hope you enjoyed! If you have any questions or concerns fell free to message me.

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Disclaimer: This post is NOT sponsored. Products mentioned in this post was received it as a gift or I purchased myself. I was not paid to talk about anything mentioned in this post. All products mentioned in this post are things I genuinely love and wanted to share with you all.

Though it may seem that is post was sponsored by Real Techniques it WAS NOT. RT is just one of my favorite makeup brush brands and I genuinely love their brushes and wanted to share them with you all.