Laura Mercier launched her brand in 1996 with a Tinted Moisturizer among the first products. Vogue Singapore says she introduced the sheer tinted moisturizer to the US market that year, and Mercier has said she made it because women were hiding their skin under heavy makeup. It is one of the earliest of its kind, and I think the idea has aged better than most of the makeup from that decade.

That idea suits skin as it matures. Peer-reviewed reviews report that skin collagen declines by about 1 percent a year from early adulthood, and a review in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology reports a drop of about 2.1 percent per year after menopause, over roughly fifteen years. Skin tends to get drier and a little thinner, and a heavy matte base can settle into every line. So the best tinted moisturizer for mature skin is usually the one that adds glow and moisture and only a little color.

The first grid is tinted moisturizers with SPF, so the sun protection and the tint arrive in one step. The second is a wider group of skin tints, a mix of serums, sticks and drops, all built around light coverage.

Here is a test I like: swipe a shade along your jaw and cheekbone in daylight, wait ten minutes, then check it near a window. If it has settled into lines or gone orange, move one shade lighter or try another texture.

Every one of these carries sun protection, but they are not the same. NARS Pure Radiant is a lightweight cream with vitamin C and SPF 30, described as radiant and buildable, in 16 shades. Bobbi Brown's Vitamin Enriched Hydrating Skin Tint is a lower SPF 15, with up to 12 hours of hydration and a sheer coverage that the brand says adapts to a range of skin tones. Estée Lauder's Futurist Skin Tint is a silky serum foundation with SPF 20 and 85 percent skincaring ingredients. Laura Mercier's Long-Wear Tinted Moisturizer, the descendant of that 1996 launch, is a natural dewy skin tint with SPF 30 and hyaluronic acid.

Four lean mineral. Saie's Slip Tint uses 100 percent non-nano zinc oxide at SPF 35 with hyaluronic acid and licorice root for a sheer, dewy finish. ILIA's Super Serum Skin Tint has mineral SPF 40, niacinamide and hyaluronic acid, and the brand says it is safe for sensitive skin and fragrance-free. Tower 28's SunnyDays is a 100 percent mineral SPF 30 tint with light-medium buildable coverage and a natural, dewy finish. Fenty Beauty's Hydra Vizor Huez has 15 percent zinc oxide and comes in 10 shades, meant to hydrate, plump and soften the look of dark spots.

If you wear a lower SPF, pair it with a separate sunscreen, because I would not count on a thin layer of tint alone.

What I would skip: the deepest coverage option in a formula that calls itself buildable. Build only where you need it, around the nose and chin, and leave the rest bare.

This group is looser, and the point is the finish. Armani Beauty's Golden Hour is a lightweight serum tint with vitamin C, niacinamide and hyaluronic acid, and a light-catching pearl that gives a glow. Summer Fridays' Sheer Skin Tint layers to sheer-to-light coverage with squalane and hyaluronic acid, and it has tiger grass to soothe redness. MAKE UP FOR EVER's Super Boost is a gel-like tint with hyaluronic and polyglutamic acids for a non-oily radiance.

Danessa Myricks' Yummy Skin is a tinted serum with vegan collagen peptides, ceramides and squalane, meant to plump the look of fine lines. Anastasia Beverly Hills' Beauty Balm is a solid, serum-boosted stick with a peptide complex and HA microspheres for a natural finish. Charlotte Tilbury's Unreal Skin Sheer Glow Tint is a hydrating stick in 20 shades, with hyaluronic acid and daikon radish seed oil. Fenty Beauty's Eaze Drop is a lightweight tint that blurs the look of pores in a few drops, and Hourglass's Veil Hydrating Skin Tint Foundation is the hydrating one from a brand known for its textures.

Here is a trick I like: warm a stick tint on the back of your hand and press it on with your fingers rather than dragging it across the face.

What I would skip: a blurring product if your skin already feels dry. Take the glowy serum tint instead.

I think mature skin does not need to be covered. It needs to be looked after, and a good tint does that quietly, with a little color in the middle of the face.

My rule of thumb: moisturize first, wait a minute, use one thin layer, and add a second only where you need it. If you are choosing between a dewy serum and a matte cream, pick the dewy one. You can always powder later, and you cannot un-powder.

Once the base is down, my guide to the best eyeshadow for green eyes over 50 picks up where this leaves off.