Urban Decay Naked Basics Review & Dupes
I hesitated a long while on purchasing this palette, and it turns out my instincts were dead on! I figured there would be a great many dupes in this palette, especially when compared to MAC. However, what I didn’t expect was the low quality of the eyeshadows ‘Faint’ and ‘Crave’ in this palette. The first four shades are superb in pigmentation, color payoff, lasting power, blendability, etc. but the contouring shades left much to be desired.
Therefore, whether you’ve purchased this palette and you’re looking for better alternatives for those two duds, or you don’t want to waste the money, but want to recreate a look you’ve seen somewhere, allow me to share the dupes with you!
Naked Basics vs. MAC
Bottom Row (L to R) Shroom, Ricepaper, Blanc Type, Wedge, Espresso, Typographic
As you can see in the swatches, some of the MAC shades are more exact dupes than others. Here are the minor differences worth mentioning between each dupe:
- UD Venus vs. MAC Shroom =Venus has more of a white base compared to Shroom
- UD Foxy vs. MAC Ricepaper = Foxy is more matte; Ricepaper has a little bit of shimmer
- UD Walk of Shame vs. Blanc Type = W.O.S. is a little more pink/pigmented than Blanc Type
- UD Naked2 vs. MAC Wedge = Wedge is slightly more orange compared to Naked2
- UD Faint vs. MAC Espresso = Dead on; no real discernible difference
- UD Crave vs. Typographic = I almost compared Crave to Carbon, but Crave applies more like Typographic; a light smokey black, leaning more gray after application (fades quickly too)
Naked Basics vs. Naked1
Bottom Row (L to R) Virgin, Naked, Buck, Creep
Naked1 had more comparable shades to the Naked Basics palette than Naked2, but the dupes were not as exact as some of the MAC eyeshadows mentioned above.
- Venus vs. Virgin = Virgin is pinker/warmer compared to Venus, which comes off more white
- Naked2 vs. Naked = Very similar but Naked2 is more neutral compared to pinker tones in Naked
- Faint vs. Buck = Faint is noticeably darker than Buck, which is also more orange than Faint
- Crave vs. Creep = Different finishes; Crave is matte, Creep has glitter
Naked Basics vs. Naked2
While this palette had the least amount of dupes in it compared to Naked Basics, I still felt they were worth mentioning, just in case there was anyone who was curious . . .
- Venus vs. Bootycall = Much like Virgin from Naked1, Bootycall leans more pink than Venus
- Foxy vs. Foxy = not much needs to be said here! LOL!
- Crave vs. Blackout = both are matte shades but Blackout has TEN times greater color payoff and lasting power compared to Crave
Karah
Great work Zabrena!
UD’s Naked Basics Palette is really a waste of money. Unless, you don’t have the MAC eyeshadows, or one of the other Naked palettes. The MAC eyeshadows are really exact dupes for the Naked Basics Palette and seem to be better in this case. Good job Z!
Zabrena
Thanks, Karah! I completely agree! If I didn’t do what I do there’s NO WAY I would have ever purchased this one for myself! So disappointing.
Sophie
The Basics palette is so great for travel though! I wouldn’t risk traveling with a whole Naked1 or 2 palette, but the packaging for the Basic palette is so sturdy and small enough to fit in a purse.
Zabrena
Nahhh, the Naked palettes travel beautifully! Stick ’em in a purse and you’re good to go! 😀
Mariella
Zabrena, thank you so much for this. I’ve seen such divergent reviews of this palette. Some people say it’s the best every day neutral/work/travel friendly palette in the world and others, like you, have commented on the poor quality of some of the shadows and also the lack of difference in some of the shades (especially Foxy and Walk of Shame). Thanks for reassuring me that passing on this was the right thing to do, not just because the colours are so dupe-able but also because the quality isn’t what it should be.
Zabrena
Anytime! I was so disappointed, especially for this being Urban Decay. I haven’t come across an eyeshadow of theirs that was chalky before this palette. I never expected that from a higher end brand!
Gina
Great job here Z and love all the options you gave. I bought this palette since I got a rare coupon from Ulta 20% off UD which only comes 2x a year so I like it so far because its matte. I have nothing but shimmer at home, but loving your dupes:)
Zabrena
Alright! At least you were able to save some money on it! I could see this being a good addition if you have a lot of shimmers already; I do like the first four shades!
goofygurl79
Thanks…now I can save money for something else…love how you do comparisons of mac shadows to these pallettes it helps my pocket book so much and my conscious because I feel so bad and dumb wasting money on something that looks almost the same as something I already have 🙂 Thanks again.
Zabrena
I feel exactly the same! I’m so happy you found it helpful! 😉
Nicola de Vries
Thanks for the review and dupes. I totally agree with you. I bought this palette and was completely underwhelmed. I just found that there wasn’t enough variety in the palette.I thought the first three colours were too similar, and a little redundant. A beautiful all-over lid colour would have done this palette the world of good. I am impressed that they listened to their customers and brought out a matte palette, but I think they could have done a much better job. I sound like I’m being whiny and picky but to prove that isn’t true I absolutely love the Naked 2 palette! I thoroughly enjoy it and am very pleased I bought it.
Karah
Nicola,
I don’t think your being ‘whiny’ or ‘picky’. When we buy palette’s or eyeshadows from UD or any makeup company, we expect the best! not dupes or very similar eyeshadows from other makeup companies. I think I can safely say we all have spent a lot of money on makeup. I think it is reasonable to expect palettes and eyeshadows not to be always dupable! To be fair, not all of them are, but there should be much more original eyeshadows and palettes. We shouldn’t have to feel awful when we purchase an eyeshadow or palette ,and it’s so dupable,and we feel that we have wasted hard earned money. It would be wonderful if one time when Zabrena does a review on palettes, she would say something like,” All of the eyeshadows in this palette are wonderful, original and not very dupable”. I’m sure Zabrena would love to say that! Now Nicola, what I said is ‘whiny’ and ‘picky’ and a few other things! 🙂 I guess I don’t think it’s to much to ask for original eyeshadows once in awhile, especially when we spend so much for them. Well, this is my rant for the day! 🙂
Mariella
I agree with Karah! And not all that long ago, we were pretty much shopping “in the dark” – before blogs and review sites, all we had to go on were the print ads from the companies (which made every product sound perfect) and how they “look” in-store. I don’t care if it’s a cheap or expensive product, I think we have a right to expect good quality, though I do have a higher expectation when the product is higher priced. No one should feel like they’re wasting their hard-earned money on something that turns out to be sub-standard.
Zabrena
Such great points, Mariella! What did we ever do without the internet?! LOL I remember when it first came out and how we had to go to the library for everything before its arrival. Haha!
Mariella
Z, I don’t know what it’s like in the US but in Canada, there was a time when you simply couldn’t return cosmetic or skin care products (I’m way older than you and I’m talking about the 70’s and 80’s). If you didn’t like it, you were stuck with it – too bad, so sad. If it didn’t work as promised, again, you were stuck with it. The only person I recall being able to return something was a friend who had a bad allergic reaction to something from Ultima II (see, I said it was a long time ago) – the counter took it back. But beyond that, you were stuck with a product AND the bill for it – no returns and “too bad, so sad”. Now, at least we can return things (though I’ve only returned one item in the past 10 or more years) but even better, we can learn about them before we fork over our cash.
Zabrena
YES! Haha! I would love to be able to pick up a palette just once and say, ‘I can’t dupe it!’ Haha! 😀
Zabrena
I completely agree! It feels like this palette was just thrown together to me to get it on the market with no real effort put into it, as you said. I would definitely liked more variety in color and less duping from previous palettes (i.e. Foxy!).
Mariella
And yet some reviews call this a “can’t live without it” palette. Now, I guess we’re all different and have very different tastes and opinions but I am so weak that when I read these reviews and also saw the cute, compact “compact” in store, I almost caved. I am so glad I didn’t. A similar sized palette with better colour choices IS something I’d go for, though. I do like the size of it.
Marie Hermann
I recently bought the Basics Palette because I own mostly shimmers. Unfortunately, I have very hooded eyes and could never quite get my eye makeup ‘right’ and after some searching the web AND YouTube found that matte shadows may be helpful. Hence, Que the Naked Basics Palette! (I don’t own any Mac products at all.) So after playing with it for a bit I seem to have gotten a better grip on my eye makeup, but I do have to say how disappointed I am in how chalky it is. I wasn’t expecting that from a ‘higher end’ product. I also wish they would be more matte friendly and make a few more colors. :-/
Zabrena
I could not agree with you more, Marie!
It’s disappointing to see their ratio of shimmers to mattes.
And then to top it off, when they do make a matte palette, they’re chalky.
*sigh* Oh, UD! 🙁
Blue
I don’t have the Naked Basics palette so I can’t make a comparison, but it looks to me MAC’s Omega might also be a close dupe for UD’s Naked2. Omega is a great alternative for those who find the original UD Naked to be too warm.
Stephanie Rodriguez
Thank you for this! I wanted to buy this and heard great things but decided on a all matte Sonia Kashuk palette instead and I’m glad since 2 of the colors weren’t that well.
vien1854
Yes I have! I think if you are a fan of the neutral eye colors and is a frequent traveler, this palette would be perfect for you. Otherwise, it is just a simpler repeat of the Naked 1/2 palettes. =)
Annie
It seems like the Mac colors are more original. I’d been eyeing the Naked basics palette, but I could never bring myself to purchase it, because of the lack of quality that I’ve experienced with the Naked 2 palette. Even though this is Matte, the lighter colors, even with primer always feel chalky on my skin, and I literally find myself digging into the palette to pick up some color. With that being said, the Mac/s eyeshadows are soft, lush, and pigmented. I literally have to lightly sweep over the shadow and BOOM! It’s already on my brush. Overall, even if I’m going to pay a serious amount for the formula that works best for me, I feel it’s worth it, because mac hasn’t failed me yet.
jessica
Thank you so much for this review! I literally was about to order this palette because I felt like the beauty community just could not stop raving about it. When I saw your blog post, I realized I literally have every single Mac dupe of this palette with the exception of blanc type (but I have brulè so, close enough). Thanks for saving me some money! 🙂 I do like the basics packaging, but I can see now it’s definitely not worth the $30 and hearing my husband complain about how I already have 75 of the same eyeshadows. haha
Paula
Zabrena, Thanks for this post! It helps me so much, very good job ;D
Sarah Thatcher
Hey Zabrena! Any plans on doing some MAC dupes for the second Naked Basics palette? I’m thinking that the case would probably be the same as this one as far as dupability goes… Not sure I wanna spend the money if there are colors I already own that are similar :/
Gemma
Completely agree on the palette review! I do love the Naked2 color though. Have you seen a dupe for it that’s not more pink/orange? I love the slightly grey tones in it. Thank you!