

MAC NC40 and NC42
MAC NC40 is a medium beige with golden peach undertone for medium skin.
MAC NC42 is a true medium beige with golden undertone for medium skin.
Buying foundation is such a hit or miss thing for me. Somehow I always end up with a shade that’s completely wrong for me. And then I discovered this fantastic megathread at r/MakeupAddiction where the makeup aficionados there listed all the popular foundation shades that matched their skin tones.
I wanted to make that super useful resource easier to use, so I’ve extracted the shade info from the thread and sorted it by MAC shade.
The full list contains all the MAC shades.
Enjoy!
Don’t know your skin tone or MAC shade?
If you don’t know your skin tone or MAC shade, use the Find Your Foundation Match by Skin Tone Visual Guide to determine your skin tone before viewing the shade matches/equivalents below.
Top rated MAC NC40 to NC42 foundations/concealers
If MAC NC40 is too light for you and NC42 is too dark for you, these foundation/concealer shades might suit you:
Find Your Foundation Match Mega List
Want more foundation/concealer matches? Check out the Find Your Foundation Match Mega List.
More beauty resources
Best Blush for Medium Skin, According to Reddit
Best Blush for Fair Skin, According to Reddit
Maybelline Foundation Finder: What the Numbers Mean and Finding Your Perfect Shade
Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Concealer Swatches and Shades Guide
MAC Foundation Shades for Indian Skin
Beige Skin Tone — How It Looks Like (Visual Guide)
Comments 6
Absolutely love this!
For me MAC NC40 is a tad too light, and MAC NC42 is a tad too dark.
Please list more brands and shades that will also be perfect.
Thank you ❤
Girl I am the same way. Have you tried Frankie Rose cosmetics? I use the color oatmeal and is just perfect. I also blend frankie rose cosmetics and urban decay shade 7. together and it gives me a littel more color when im on the tanner side. TRY it out.
Author
Thanks for the tip, MJ!
Hi,
“For me MAC NC40 is a tad too light, and MAC NC42 is a tad too dark.” I hear you girl .
Have you tried NC41 in studio fix fluid and powder? I find it absolutely perfect ….
Author
That’s good to know, Ankita! Thanks for sharing!
Author
Hey Jacqueline, so glad you found the list useful. We’ve added more brands and shades to the list. Enjoy!