8 neutral eyeshadow palettes that are actually incredibly exciting

If you’re keen on the ‘get you a palette who can do both’ idea, look no further than this pretty yet practical matte and metallic mix. With every must-have neutral from creamy vanilla to glistening chocolate, you won’t want for anything else, regardless of whether you’re creating a daytime office look or something sultry for after-dark. TBH, though, we’d buy it solely for that burnished bronze – ooft.

$86 at MECCA

Bargain palettes with incredible pigment payoff (and tons of shades) are Morphe’s specialty across the board, but this 18-colour shadow line-up has to be one of our very favourites. It mixes matte, metallic and shimmer finishes, and houses all your classic toffees and taupes as well as some out-of-the-box neutral options like terracotta and plum, too. Pretty damn good for 28 bucks.

$28 at Morphe

Consider this topaz-inspired eyeshadow edit a subtle (okay, maybe not subtle – it’s pretty damn statement-making) reminder that neutrals can still be as fun, glitzy and glamorous as any other shade family. The colours definitely run warm, veering into ginger territory to add a little extra uniqueness, and their incredible depth means they’ll stand out gorgeously against an array of different skin tones.

$44 at Sephora

Prefer to stick to classic mattes and subtle shimmers? This guy’s got your back, offering eight elegant sculpting and defining shades. Your champagne, caramel or coffee-coloured look won’t be going anywhere anytime soon, either, thanks to the built-in eyeshadow primer. Bonus points for the buildable, blendable formulas, too – it’s the perfect palette for taking a look from day to night in minutes.

$94 at Sephora

This is a ‘desert island’ palette if we’ve ever seen one: it’s loaded with every single shade you’d need to create any look from subtle (a little matte taupe across the lid, with some cocoa in the crease perhaps) to striking (we’re visualizing ‘firecracker’, the vibrantly shimmery copper layered over a mahogany shadow wing). Plus, the slimline palette is super portable, so you can always keep it close by for touch-ups.

$74 at Sephora

One of the biggest bummers with chrome-style shadows is that the mega-watt metallic look is often accompanied by a whole lot of fallout. Not with this crease-proof quartet, though: it features the brand’s clever Prisma shadow formula, which means the shades offer a high-pigment powder finish but you won’t find any shadow on anything except your eyes (and damn, will they look good on those).

$20.99 at Chemist Warehouse

A mini palette is a must-own in our books; you never know when you’re going to need an entirely new eyeshadow look at a moment’s notice, and you’ll never regret housing a neutral edit in your handbag. Allow us to suggest this peachy situation – it features a few hues from across the blush, bronze and berry spectrum and the shades are so blendable you can legitimately nail application on the run.

$46 at Sephora

Okay, bear with us: we know there are technically a few jewel tones in here (we’d tell you to not look at the upper right hand corner colour, but hey, you’re only human), but it also happens to be one of the most fabulously versatile neutral lineups we’ve ever seen. Honestly, we never knew we needed a matte mustard hue until we tried it, and now we’ll never go back, but the foiled shimmer shades certainly don’t hurt either.

$106 at Sephora