MAC Superb Skinfinish vs. Laura Mercier's Rose Rendezvous Comparison

Last year's Laura Mercier Rose Rendezvous Face Illuminator sold out incredibly fast when it first came out.  I know a lot of people were unable to get their hands on it and had to pay outrageous prices on Ebay.  When MAC's Superb made its debut this week, I've seen many rumors of this being a good dupe for Rose Rendezvous. As expected, Superb made its round among the beauty community and was sold out pretty quick from MAC's website.  I personally love Rose Rendezvous (reviewed here) not only for its beautiful design but also for the incredibly lovely texture.  I mainly purchased Superb as a backup but also to see if it is an exact dupe for Rose Rendezvous. Are you also wondering the same thing? Let's find out together now shall we?

In the pan, both look quite similar although I suspect MAC Superb seems a tad more bronzy? What I do know is that both have beautiful, intricate designs. I really cannot tell the difference between the two in the finger swatches either. However, the texture is slightly different between the two.  Laura Mercier feels a bit grittier with the extra shimmers whereas Superb is a tad smoother.

Perhaps we can see a difference at another angle?

Swatch on my skin taken by window light shown below.  Ok so these two look practically the same side by side.  Can you tell the difference? I can't!

Let's wrap up and call it a day. There's not much else to see  right? Well, not quite...

Now can you see the difference? When I tilt my arm slightly, I can see that these two are not exactly the same.  Superb leans more bronze in comparison to Rose Rendezvous, which is rosier.

The shot below also shows you how much more shimmery Rose Rendezvous is compared to MAC Superb.  This is the slight "grittiness" that I feel in the finger swatch that I had mentioned earlier.

Last shot in sunset lighting. Although these two are quite similar, they are not exactly the same.

On my cheeks, Superb is noticeably darker compared to Rose Rendezvous. I used the same brush, tapped the product the same number of times, and swiped them onto my cheeks to do the comparison.  I'm not sure if you will see the difference on your skin but I definitely saw it on mine. Superb feels more pigmented and is not as shimmery compared to Rose Rendezvous.

Bottom Line: Although they may look the same if you look at the swatches straight on, they are not the same once tilted at an angle.  Even in the pan, you can tell that Superb is peachier, bronzier compared to Rose Rendezvous.  Do you need both? Well, if you missed out on Rose Rendezvous, I would say find yourself a Superb right away.  If you already have Rose Rendezvous, this is really a great addition/backup to add to your collection.  Rose Rendezvous was sold for $42USD and this is only $29USD.

Will you be adding Superb to your collection? Were you expecting these 2 to be different?