Budget Buys: NARS 'Albatross' VS E.L.F. 'Gotta Glow'

left to right: NARS 'Albatross' // E.L.F. 'Gotta Glow'
As most of you should know, I'm NARS obsessed. I's the one higher-end brand that I'll allow myself to splurge on & I truly feel like they have really great products. HOWEVER, I'm also a penny pincher so I love finding cheaper alternatives to expensive things I love or want. Many of you may be asking "why the hell would you buy two products that are so similar?". Well one, because I can. And two because I had the expensive version first & when E.L.F. was having a sale I decided it might be fun to see if they were dupes of things I already owned. And at $3 a piece, why the hell not!?



close ups of each on my cheekbones
Color: Both are a cream colored powder with gold micro-shimmer and golden undertones. They look nearly identical in the pan.

Consistency: Both are powders that apply smoothly over the skin and require very little blending to look natural. The ELF version actually seems to be a bit more intense on the cheeks but I think that may have to do with the amount of product that comes off with each swipe of your brush. It appears to be much softer and less tightly packed.

Fallout: NARS Albatross has nearly zero fall out. When you swish your brush across the color it only goes onto the brush. ELF 'Gotta Glow' has a LOT of fall out. When swiping it, use a super light hand or you'll end up wasting a ton of product.

Similarity on cheeks: They look identical on the cheeks. I applied one to each side of my face and was unable to tell the difference. When swatched on my arm the ELF version appeared more opaque when applied heavily.

Price: NARS 'Albatross' is a whopping $29 USD in comparison to ELF 'Gotta Glow' at $3 USD. You could buy nearly 10 ELF blushes for the price of ONE NARS blush. Ridiculous.


top to bottom: E.L.F. 'Gotta Glow' // NARS 'Albatross'
In conclusion, you might run out of the E.L.F. blush faster due to fall out and softness but you could replace it 9 times before paying nearly what you would pay for a single NARS blush. Ultimately, I would choose 'Gotta Glow' over 'Albatross' if you're looking for a beautiful highlighter with a seriously expensive counterpart. Plus they look identical on the cheeks & nobody will know the difference.







-Becca