Fenty Beauty Just Replaced Its Most Iconic Foundation—3 Editors Put Its “Flexible” Full Coverage to the Test

When Fenty Beauty launched in 2017, it pretty much rewrote the rulebook on what “inclusive” meant within the beauty industry—and brands have spent the better part of a decade catching up. At the centre of it all was Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation, which launched with 40 shades and quickly became one of the brand's defining products. So, when Fenty announced earlier this year that its hero foundation was being retired, the stakes were high for whatever came next.

That replacement arrived last week in the form of Pro Filt’r Fluid Flex Natural Matte Longwear Foundation. After three years in development, it comes in 50 entirely new shades and promises flexible, medium-to-full coverage that moves with the skin, plus 12-hour wear and resistance to sweat, humidity, and transfer.

Of course, foundation is one of those products for which a single review only tells you so much. Skin tone and undertone are only part of the equation; there’s skin type, texture, pigmentation and redness to consider, not to mention whether you want your base barely there or reassuringly full coverage.

So, rather than give you one verdict, three beauty editors with different skin tones, types, concerns and coverage preferences put the new Pro Filt’r through its paces. Here’s how it performed.

How We Test

All three editors wore the foundation from morning until evening, going about their usual daily routines to see how it performed in real-world conditions. Each assessed the formula for ease of application, shade and undertone match, blendability, initial finish and coverage, as well as how it wore throughout the day and interacted with their individual skin type and concerns.

The Verdict

Ata-Owaji Victor

Skin type & concerns: Combination skin with areas of pigmentation

Shade: 526N

Ata's Verdict: When a brand attempts to reformulate or relaunch a holy-grail product, I tend to hold my breath, and with dewy, skin-like formulas dominating recent launch cycles, I wondered, whether with this new launch Fenty Beauty would opt to abandon its matte heritage to chase the glow?

Thankfully, their reimagined Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation doubles down on its roots while feeling skinlike upon application. Despite being encased in a sleek, upgraded bottle, this medium-to-full coverage formula feels distinctly tailored for lovers of 2016-era full beats—without the heavy, mask-like feel. It captures the original's seamless soft-matte finish. I found that in order to achieve full-spectrum coverage it did require a slightly more generous pump than other foundations with similar finishes.

As someone with persistent hyperpigmentation on the lower half of my face, finding a formula I can use all over without looking flat, chalky, or pulling orange is a constant struggle. This product, however, didn't disappoint; my best current shade in the new launch (526N) delivers a rich, neutral colour payoff that blended into my skin seamlessly. I’ve been loving using the brand’s sun Stalk'r Bronzer as a contour-as-bronzer this summer, and found that it was easy to add in dimension post-foundation without feeling like the colours had blended into one.

While 526N is my ideal late-summer match (as in I was struggling to see where foundation began and skin ended) I’m interested to see if I’ll need a shade step-down as my tan fades.

Lottie Winter

Skin type & concerns: Combination, prone to oiliness & redness

Shade: 186N

Lottie's Verdict: I'm pretty picky when it comes to foundation and rarely stray from a few select favourites. But this one has, without exaggeration, blown me away. The coverage is substantial—enough to even out pigmentation and redness without requiring much in the way of concealer—yet somehow it still looks fresh and natural rather than heavy or overly made-up.

What impressed me most, though, was the finish. For a long-wearing, natural-matte foundation, there’s a surprising amount of life to it. It gives my skin a really lovely glow, but crucially never tips over into looking oily, even as the day goes on. As someone whose skin can get quite shiny by lunchtime, that balance is incredibly difficult to find: my skin still looks like skin, just smoother, more even and considerably more even and poreless.

The longevity also really impressed me. It sets quickly—I initially worried I wouldn’t have enough time to blend—but doesn’t seem to harden onto the face or possess that mask-like quality of some long-wear formulas. It moves with the skin and stays supple. As the day went on, the finish became ever so slightly more luminous, but never greasy, and I didn't feel the need to powder or retouch it once.

It's rare that a foundation manages to give me the coverage and staying power I want without sacrificing the fresh, skin-like finish I prefer, but this definitely does both. Consider me converted.

Nessa Humayun

Skin type & concerns: Dry skin

Shade: 186N

Nessa's Verdict:

I’m rarely a foundation wearer, I prefer light tints or a smidge of concealer all over, which makes me picky when it comes to foundations—but I have to say, I love this formula. Initially, I was a little put off when I read that it was matte and long-wearing, as that normally means cakiness, but this foundation moves with the skin, and blends effortlessly; you can build it up or sheer it down depending on how much coverage you want. I find that I get ample glow (my desired finish) with just one coat, and if I add a little where needed, like my under-eyes, I don't need any concealer either.

Kudos to the team for providing such a comprehensive range of shades (there are 50) and multiple undertones (neutral, olive, cool, rosy, warm, golden, and peach). I’m olive-skinned with pink and neutral undertones, so it can be tricky to find something that works, but this is just seamless on my skin; any blemishes, discolouration and pigmentation disappear. It’s made it into my daily rotation, and that’s a rare feat for a foundation.