The Best Urban Decay Eyeshadows + Overview
Urban Decay Eyeshadows
I believe I have reviewed and rated the majority of the existing range, though there are probably a still a few I haven’t come across. This list will contain some shades found in permanent palettes (unfortunately, at this time, we don’t have anything in the system that distinguishes something available only in a permanent palette vs. permanent single). I hope it helps! (You can see the full list of shades sorted from best to worst here.)
I’d love to hear about your must-have eyeshadows from Urban Decay, and if you’ve tried any, I’d love it if you could take a moment to leave a quick rating or write a review!
I love UD’s eyeshadows! My collection consists mostly of palettes, with a few full sizes that I replaced as I hit pan. I think my absolute #1 favorite is Toasted, which is in Naked 1. I hit pan so I bought a full size for my 4-pan BYO palette. It’s a pinky coppery brown and the texture is so buttery… it’s just beautiful. I used to wear it almost every day with Virgin (probably my all-time fave eye highlight shade, btw!) and Sin. Clearly I fear no shimmer lol.
lol! 😉 Naked1 is still a great palette.
My favs: Mildew, Roach, Deep End, Zodiac, Snare, Last Call, Mushroom, Gravity, ACDC, and the Electric Palette.
Great picks, Alice! Mushroom is amazing.
It’s not a color I would have ever bought on its own, but I got the Dangerous palette and decided to try it out, and ended up loving it!
I forgot all about Last Call! Thanks for the reminder, Alice!
Last Call is really underrated I think. I like to use it with Sonic and Alchemy from Vice3.
Toasted! You forgot Toasted!!!!!!!!!!! ??It’s so universally flattering.
It’s a nice shade, just didn’t make the official top 35 🙂
Toasted is so gorgeous. My favorite!
What an amazing list. There are even a few shades I don’t own (yet). I love UD’s purples, greens, teals and blues. I think they overall do an amazing job with them, especially when compared to most brands’ efforts. Now if they’d only make Gash permanent again.
They have a lot of amazing shades!
Riff is my favorite, of all time. Color: perfect for my blue eyes, copper brown hair and fair, warm coloring. Lasts all day; applies easily and smoothly. Just a little sparkle keeps it from being flat, but not so much so it feels odd in a somewhat conservative office setting. Great neutral against which I can play other colors. I actually have bought a few of these to hoard, just in case UD discontinues.
Riff is a pretty one, Anne!
Meh. I have yet to be impressed with anything Urban Decay. I bought tonic and snare. I’d give these eyeshadows a C+ at most. Just mentioned to me. Lol
I’m so sorry to hear that, Erica! I hope you returned the products then!
Well the Ulta I bought them from is an hour away. They are sitting in my drawer. Every UD product I have ever bought just sits or I toss it. I should never bother with them. Lol
Can someone please tell me what blue/purple color eye shadow that is in the very first photo on this post?! The one in between the light lavender and the gray/green eye shadows?
Dive Bar
Definitely a few of my personal favorites both listed above, plus I have other HG shadows within UD’s range.
Roach, X, Chase, Smog, Fireball, Tease, YDK, Sin, Verve, Mushroom, Rock star, Dive Bar all make the cut for me out of what I own. Also love the satin and shimmers in Naked Smoky, but manage to make all but Password and Radar work very well for me over primer. I really hope they make Junkie, flashback, Burn and Protest PERMANENT!
Lots of great picks there, Nancy! 🙂
Heck, yeah, Junkie needs to be permanent!
I love the colour, but my single of Bender was weirdly terrible – very dry and powdery, and it was hard to get pigment with a brush. I tried getting a replacement but it was the same. Bad batch maybe?
That said, my Naked Basics and custom quad with Lost, Blunt, Chase and Moonflower get very regular use from me. They’re pretty standard colours but I would recommend them all.
That is strange! I wonder if it was indeed a bad batch. Mine is from the original launch of the newer formula (so it is the newer formulation), but it’s probably a couple of years old now.
Haha that’s my problem w UD eyeshadows. I find them dry and powdery.
Nice list! I’m printing this and holding onto it. As you know, I’m an UD fan and their shadows are no exception. I got Bender for Free! Pretty awesome, huh?! ?
Bender for free! Awesome 😀
Yep, I know I’ve told you this Christine. On UDs website , if you sign up for their rewards program, you get to pick a free single shadow ( any one you want!) the month of your bday with a purchase of any amount.
My favorite is Sellout, it’s like a cooler version of Sin
Pretty shade!
I bought both the original Naked palette and the Naked 3. I ended up giving them to my daughter because they irritated my eyes too much. I loved the colours but the fallout was awful. I tried them with several quality primers but none of them helped. I want so badly to buy the Spectrum palette but I don’t want to risk the disappointment. ?
Oh, your poor eyes! 🙁
These beautiful colours remind me of how good UD is – great quality and pigmentation across a broad range of colours. My favourites are: half baked, mushroom, haight, s & m, bender and deep end.
I don’t own any single UD shadows, but have lots in my palettes.
My favourites from those are: Pistol, Busted, YDK from Naked 2
Vice 2: Madness, Derailed, Damaged and Ambush. All great colours.
Thank you so much for this overview Christine – it is fantastic.
My pleasure, Genevieve! Thank you for sharing your faves!
I’d forgotten about Derailed and also Stash from V2. And I meant “Ambush”, not “Armour”…I always mix up those 2. I don’t think I have Armour but I think Ambush is a dupe, which is another reason I confuse them all the time. I’m so glad I got Vice2 – some great and wearable colours and some pops of excitement!
8/12 of Naked 3 are on this list, which I b fully support! One of the best palettes I’ve ever bought.
Yay! 😀
I have mostly palettes and a few singles. Was surprised to see several colors I wasn’t aware of. I like to do a gold, bronze, brown eye as it lights up my blue grey eyes. Prefer matte for crease bc of age and a bit of crepiness, however that’s spelled
Sounds like a great combo for your eye color, Susan!
Christine, this is great! I can see that I need to add Bender, Radium, Haight, Snare, and S&M to my collection (I do have Tonic). I do like UD’s eyeshadows very much, but the Naked palettes don’t really excite me, and the quality in the LE palettes is often uneven. I think focusing on high-quality singles in the colors I love is the way for me to go 🙂
Spectrum is one of their better LE palettes that is recent!
Yes, I love my Urban Spectrum palette 🙂 I also really like my Electric palette. The color Freak from that palette is one of my all-time favorite eyeshadows.
So few people have Snare (certainly here in Canada but even on MUA, I think mine is the only review for it!) – it’s so difficult to get because it’s only available at Sephora stores inside J.C. Penney or through UD’s site. I love so many of my UD shadows and palettes. Colours that stand out for me – Snare, Mushroom, MIA, Toasted, Smog, Suspect, Loaded, Haight, Deep End, Midnight 15 (I think it’s LE), Deeper, Half Truth, Dragon (from Vice 3) and Undone (Naked2Basics). Wow….I didn’t realize just how many are favourites til I stopped to think about it and I could probably go on and on….
I wonder why it is that Snare isn’t as popular as other shades!
From their palettes I love Stark, Skimp, Cover and Blackout. Holy Grail contoured eye right there. The only single I own is Lounge, good color that works on everyone. That’s all the UD I own! I have put them on my list multiple times but ultimately bought singles from MAC and MUG because they offer pans. I really wish UD did that. I wouldn’t even care about how they priced them, it’s just about the convenience.
What brush do you use with Blackout?
A flat liner brush from BH http://www.bhcosmetics.com/products/brush-5-flat-liner-brush
to line upper and/or bottom lash. It’s precise enough to make a good line close to the lashes, wide enough to get the job done quick, and soft enough to double as a smudger.
Hey Christine! I know you provided the links, but is there any way you might consider also including the swatches in a post like this? Or swatches instead of product photos, if it would be too long otherwise? That would make things a lot easier for people reading on mobile devices 🙂
There’s a large button that says “get swatches” in the post so you can view swatches!
Okay I need to get Bender now! 🙂 Some of my favorites are Lounge and Tonic.
Awesome!
Hi, I love UD shadows. My favorite is Stray dog. Looks like nothing but a very complex cool shade. Beautiful!
That’s a nice shade!
Oh, I so miss my Naked3 palette! My mum ‘tidied up’ our bedroom when we were away in Italy last year and I don’t know where it is. I suspect either it’s been thrown out or put away in their attic. Believe me, I was furious when we came back to find everything changed and ‘tidied up’. Unfortunately the flat belongs to my parents and they think they have the right to do what they like with it without asking us. I did buy a cheap W7 dupe but it’s not as good and not the same. Maybe I’ll just buy another one and enjoy using it again. I love my Urban Spectrum palette too!
Oh no! I hope you can find it 🙁
I’ll keep this for future reference! I love UD shadows. My favorites are Lounge, BootyCall, and Half Baked.
Yay!
Sin is probably my favorite all over the lid eyeshadow. I love UD eyeshadows. Naked1 and 2 are my most used palettes by far.
Sin is a classic 🙂
I’ve considered getting Toasted and Roach as they are some of the only warm shadows I can pull off well that are of that color depth. I also like Mushroom too.
Nice!
I’m surprised Buzz made it so high on the list, mine is absolutely terrible! I do enjoy all the other Naked3 shades on this list, though. I have 8 Urban Decay palettes, but I don’t have any single UD eyeshadows (except for one Moondust). I’m planning on purchasing Sidelined soon though, it’s gorgeous!
Naked3 is interesting, because a lot of people love it but many find it one of UD’s worst palette, so it is strange!