Physicians Formula Cushion Foundation Review

While we’d like to think that here in the U.S., we’ve got the leg up on a lot of things, we are actually often super late to beauty product trends. Case in point: cushion foundation. It’s been a thing in Asia forever, but we’re only just starting to see it in the mainstream here recently. Surprisingly enough, though, drugstore brands are beating a lot of high-end brands to the punch by releasing their versions this spring, including Physicians Formula.

The Physicians Formula Cushion Foundation is part of the brand’s latest release, and it may look familiar if you follow me on Snapchat, since I attended the reveal party (if you don’t follow me, my username is @slashedbeauty so…). It definitely stole the spotlight among their other Spring releases that night, with its gorgeous metallic blue compact.

First of all, if you’re unfamiliar about what a cushion foundation actually is, lemme break it down for you. The name refers to a cushion inside of the compact, which is drenched in liquid foundation. When you tap an applicator sponge onto the cushion, its supposed to give you the perfect amount of product.

Physicians Formula is only about the second brand I’ve seen at the drugstore bringing the trend onto shelves for us budget beauty lovers, and I’m oh-so-thankful for it. Instead of just rushing to jump on the bandwagon, it does feel like they put thought into every aspect of the product.

The cushion foundation has SPF 50, going above and beyond what I normally see from other face makeup. Especially as things start getting sunnier here in LA, layering SPF is something I can’t afford to skip!

The compact comes with a super soft puff for application that helps blend the foundation into the skin easily. I first pop open the plastic partition that keeps the cushion from drying out, then push the puff into the cushion to pick up product. I use a patting motion to apply it to my face, and while the coverage starts out light, it can be built up to medium with a few layers. In the photo above, you can see how the foundation covered my spots and discoloration pretty well. Even when layered, the foundation feels very light and gives off a nice glow-from-within look. The finish feels very natural, giving off radiance without looking super shiny.

Now, I do have some issues with this foundation.

The first thing that disappointed me is that it only comes in three shades: Light, Light/Medium, and Medium. While Light/Medium is a close match to me, it’s still a little too pink.

Another thing that sort of disappointed me was the fact that Physicians Formula won’t be selling cushion refills of this product. One of the main draws to the cushion format, aside from the way you pick up foundation, is the fact that many brands offer refills so you can just swap out the cushion when it dries up. For now, you have to re-purchase the entire compact if you want to replace this one— and at $16.99, even drugstore beauty lovers might have a hard time swallowing that.

While this foundation would be perfect for those with normal skin, the formula seemed to gather around my dry patches throughout the day. On more balanced areas of my face, it still looked great after several hours, but my problem areas felt like they were standing out. It was super confusing, since the foundation is so liquidy to begin with.

While I wouldn’t recommend this if you have specific skin concerns, if you are blessed with tame skin, this could be a great foundation when you want to keep things light and fresh. It really does have a beautiful skin finish, and has a lot of nourishing ingredients that feel great on the skin.

The Physicians Formula Cushion Foundation has been hitting shelves nationwide over the past few months, and you can find it in your local drugstores or Ulta Beauty.