To help narrow the search and edit the noise, we tapped experts for their recommendations on the best face moisturizers.
Best Moisturizer for Dry Skin
Dry skin can often feel tight, uncomfortable, and appear flaky. Thankfully, this skin type can benefit from modern plant-based formulas and scientific breakthroughs that keep skin hydrated and feeling moisturized for hours on end.
Skinceuticals Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2
- Why We Love It: SkinCeuticals’s formula relies on a balance of essential skin lipids to restore hydration cycles w
- ithout a heavy feel. Plus, the bottle is TSA-approved, so you won’t have to skimp out as you’re packing for your next vacation.
- Key Ingredients: Pure ceramide, natural cholesterol, fatty acids
- Texture: Thick and rich.
- Best For: Dry and/or dehydrated skin.
- SPF: No
- Size: 48ml
Augustinus Bader The Cream
- Why We Love It: Augustinus Bader’s The Cream has become a cult-favorite thanks to its patented TFC8 technology—a complex blend of amino acids which is said to help promote faster healing, all while supporting the cell’s renewal process and the skin barrier. The result? Enhanced moisture levels, plus reduced lines and dark spots.
- Key Ingredients: TFC8, vitamin A, vitamin C
- Texture: Light, yet hydrating
- Best For: Dry and combination skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 30ml
Best Moisturizer for Oily Skin
Remember: even if you have oily skin, you still need to moisturize. Trying to leave skin parched in hopes of reducing sebum production will only have the opposite effect on skin—as your body will produce more oil to compensate for what it’s feeling deprived of. That said, for oily skin types, gel and matte-finish moisturizers deliver the hydration skin needs without that heavy, clammy feeling.
Tata Harper Hyaluronic Gel Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: Tata Harper’s Hyaluronic Gel Moisturizer uses chia seed water (famous on TikTok for its moisture-trapping skills), as one of its main ingredients for a weightless finish that will still leave skin feeling nourished.
- Key Ingredients: Chia seed water, tremella mushroom
- Texture: Weightless
- Best For: Oily and combination skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 1.7oz
Belief The True Cream Aqua Bomb
- Why We Love It: Whipped into a refreshing gel-cream texture, Belif’s Aqua Bomb blends Lady’s Mantle, ceramides, and glycerin to boost skin’s hydration levels and impart a fresh-faced glow. The refreshing whipped, gel-cream texture sinks right into skin—making it an impeccable face primer before makeup.
- Key Ingredients: Lady’s Mantle, ceramides, glycerin
- Texture: Gel
- Best For: feel free to just list different skin types it would be suitable for
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Best Drugstore Moisturizer
In 2023, the French pharmacy holds the drugstore secrets everyone wants to know. But if you can’t make it to Paris right this second, these picks—which you can grab as you’re running errands around town—are sure to get the job done.
Weleda Skin Food Original Ultra-Rich Cream
- Why We Love It: Use this cream from head to toe (seriously) on any areas of the skin that need a little extra love. You can also opt to apply it as a makeup primer or even a highlighter. Something to keep in mind if you have a sensitive nose: Weleda’s Skin Food is rich in essential oils, and the scent can be too heavy for some.
- Key Ingredients: Sunflower seed oil, rosemary leaf extract, sweet almond oil
- Texture: Rich
- Best For: Extra parched, dry skin.
- SPF: No
- Size: 75ml
Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentré
- Why We Love It: Embryolisse’s bestselling Lait Crème Concentré (one is said to be purchased every ten seconds) is the do-it-all natural moisturizer that can be found everywhere, from backstage at Paris shows to any French girls’ handbag. It’s also a travel essentials—and French pharmacy must—for our beauty editor, Kiana Murden, who uses it as both a moisturizer and face primer.
- Key Ingredients: Shea butter, aloe vera, beeswax
- Texture: Light and milky
- Best For: All skin types.
- SPF: No
- Size: 2.54 fl oz.
Best Moisturizer for Wrinkles
There’s never a poor time to turn to the market’s best wrinkle creams to address fine lines. Chanel’s refillable Revitalizing cream smooths skin with red camellia extract, while Augustinus Bader’s TFC8 science even comes in a mini version for those who want to test drive the industry favorite. MUTHA notes that their adaptogen-rich cream is pregnancy-safe (a rare find in this category), and Sulwhasoo’s ginseng concentrate is racking up five-star reviews. Martin also keeps iS Clinical Reparative Moisture Emulsion in his kit (also marked as Amazon’s Choice for the category), which “brightens up tone while protecting skin and diminishing wrinkles over time.”
Chanel N°1 de Chanel Revitalizing Cream
- Why We Love It: A Vogue verified product (and skin-care line), the star ingredients here—red camellia extract and oil—are meant to revive skin and improve elasticity, while helping keep the skin barrier intact. Glycerin, a humectant, additionally draws water back into the skin while lactic acid gently exfoliates. This lauded wrinkle cream is housed in a refillable tub, too.
- Key Ingredients: Red camellia extract, glycerin, lactic acid
- Texture: Velvety-soft
- Best For: Mature skin.
- SPF: No
- Size: 1.76oz.
Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream
- Why We Love It: Recommended by New York board-certified dermatologist, Claire Chang, MD, K-beauty brand Sulwhasoo’s moisturizer is a “silky, luxurious cream that uses the anti-aging power of ginseng, which has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and skin brightening benefits,” she told Vogue previously. And it’s supposed to begin restoring collagen in as little as 48 hours.
- Key Ingredients: Ginseng saponins, ginseng root extract, squalane
- Texture: Silky-soft
- Best For: Fine lines and wrinkles
- SPF: No
- Size: 60ml
Best Lightweight Moisturizer
Lightweight moisturizers are a first choice for many who fear breakouts or just aren’t a fan of greasy textures. Optimal for layering, these earn a spot in any beauty vanity year-round—not just during warmer months.
Kiehl’s Calendula Serum-Infused Water Cream
- Why We Love It: This lightweight water-cream combats everything from dullness and dryness to uneven texture.
- Key Ingredients: Calendula flower extract, glycerin,
- Texture: Ultra-light gel
- Best For: Oily or combination skin, or to use in the summer
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Tatcha Water Cream
- Why We Love It: Martin says Tatcha’s Water Cream is “hands down my go-to for the summer or anywhere you’re dealing with humidity and heat.” As global director of artistry and education for the brand, safe to say, he’s tested it on many, many skin types.
- Key Ingredients: Japanese wild rose, Japanese leopard lily
- Texture: Lightweight
- Best For: Oily or combination sin
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Best Night Cream
The skin notoriously does its best repair work after hours, which makes night creams with smart ingredients an important step for all skin types. You’ll wake up looking renewed and dewy—trust us on this one.
Noble Panacea The Absolute Rejuvenation Night Balm
- Why We Love It: Noble Panacea’s single-serving sachets are an insider favorite thanks to time-release technology that delivers the right amount of ingredients at the right time. Enjoy the benefits throughout the night and wake up with more firm, even skin over time.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, peptides, lactic acid
- Texture: Luxurious and rich
- Best For: Mature skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 0.8ml each
Fresh Lotus Anti-Aging Night Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: Super lotus and peach leaf extract come together to minimize the signs of aging, strengthen the skin barrier, refresh the skin, and protect against free radicals. Consider this cream a hangover cure for your face.
- Key Ingredients: Super lotus, star fruit leaf extract, vitamin E
- Texture: Ultra-rich
- Best For: Dry, combination, and oily
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Best Moisturizer for Combination Skin
Combination skin types are always looking for the right balance—nothing too rich, but also nothing too drying. Thankfully, there are plenty of options to choose from.
Glow Recipe Plum Pump Hyaluronic Cream
- Why We Love It: Glow Recipe’s refillable Plum Plump Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizer caters to multiple skin types, incorporates hyaluronic acid (which holds a thousand times its weight in water), and sits in adorable packaging.
- Key Ingredients: Polyglutamic acid, hyaluronic acid, plum and ice willowherb
- Texture: Whipped gel cream
- Best For: Combination skin, or seasonal use.
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Kate Somerville HydraKate Recharging Water Cream Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: This product has raked up a nearly perfect five-star review—and it’s pretty easy to see why. The brand’s AquaPort Technology delivers up to 24 hours of hydration that goes deep into the skin for lasting benefits. The formula also features blue light-activated algae extract to combat the signs of aging caused by tech screens.
- Key Ingredients: Rosemary peptide complex, blue light-activated algae extract
- Texture: Gel-like
- Best For: All skin types
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Best Non-Comedogenic Moisturizer
Non-comedogenic basically means it nourishes skin without creating congestion. To restore protective barrier function, “look for ingredients like hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, and ceramides in a non-comedogenic formula,” says facial plastic surgeon Dr. Yael Halaas.
Shani Darden Skin Care Hydration Peptide Cream
- Why We Love It: Shani Darden’s squalane-rich Hydration Peptide Cream is an oil-free moisturizer featuring hydrosella as well as squalane to protect the skin barrier, give you up to 72 hours of hydration, and seal in moisture—all without clogging pores.
- Key Ingredients: Peptides, hydrosella, squalane
- Texture: Rich
- Best For: All skin types
- SPF: No
- Size: 75ml
Skinfix Barrier+ Skin Barrier Restoring Gel Cream
- Why We Love It: Free of fungal blemish triggers, Skinfix’s gel cream also sports Sephora’s Clean + Planet Positive seal of approval, along with clinical results showing the formula’s ability to improve the skin barrier function in just one hour, and lock in moisture for up to three days.
- Key Ingredients: Zinc PCA, niacinamide
- Texture: Gel cream
- Best For: Sensitive and reactive oily skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Best Moisturizer with SPF
Let’s be honest here: Any good skin-care routine has to feature SPF. Not only does it protect against sunburns, but it’s the best way to prevent premature aging. Perhaps your ideal sunscreen for face actually doubles as a moisturizer.
Lancôme Rénergie Lift Multi-Action Dark Spot Correcting Cream SPF 30
- Why We Love It: This lightweight moisturizer is what we call a one-and-done kind of product. It helps firm, lift, and even out skin tone, all while providing sun protection with SPF 30. Just make sure to apply at least 15 minutes before going out in the sun—then reapply every two hours after that.
- Key Ingredients: Linseed extract, glycerin
- Texture: Thick and creamy
- Best For: All skin types
- SPF: Yes
- Size: 2.6oz
Cerave Ultra-Light Moisturizing Lotion SPF 30
- Why We Love It: Halaas likes CeraVe for its broad-spectrum SPF that “won’t clog pores or cause acne flare-ups.” With hyaluronic acid, ceramides, and SPF 30, rest assured this drugstore classic will keep skin in tip-top shape.
- Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, ceramides
- Texture: Light
- Best For: All skin types
- SPF: Yes
- Size: 50ml
Best Moisturizer for Extremely Dry Skin
Extremely dry skin calls for a thick cream that can provide deep nourishment—sans irritation.
Topicals Like Butter Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: Topicals created a buttery mask for reactive and eczema-prone skin to soothe even the most sensitive faces thanks to calming ingredients like colloidal oatmeal and green tea in the formula.
- Key Ingredients: Colloidal oatmeal, madecassoside, green tea
- Texture: Rich cream
- Best For: Dry, irritated skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
Avène Hydrance Rich Hydrating Cream
- Why We Love It: Glowbar founder Rachel Liverman (a third-gen esthetician) likes Avène Cold Cream as a “rich and creamy moisturizer that provides intense hydration, leaving even the driest skin feeling smooth and supple.” Its modern update to the old-school favorite comes in the form of sensitive-skin-friendly Hydrance Rich Hydrating Cream, which can reveal skin that’s up to four times more hydrated after a month of use.
- Key Ingredients: Thermal spring water, shea butter, glycerin
- Texture: Rich and thick
- Best For: Extremely dry skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 40ml
Best Moisturizer for Acne-Prone Skin
For inflamed and acne-prone skin, balance is key—so is hydration. “Acne is often a reason patients avoid using proper moisturizers, but in fact, moisturizing acne-prone skin can help suppress oil production and speed healing of the skin,” says Weiser.
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel with Hyaluronic Acid
- Why We Love It: This oil-free water gel, formulated with hyaluronic acid, is perfect for anyone with acne-prone skin. It helps your face stay hydrated, without clogging pores.
- Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, glycerin
- Texture: Gel-like
- Best For: Dry, acne-prone skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 1.7oz
Biossance Squalane + Probiotic Balancing Gel Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: Weiser likes this “dewy” Biossance gel that “leaves skin radiant without causing occlusion that can lead to skin congestion and blemishes.”
- Key Ingredients: Squalane, aloe vera
- Texture: Gel
- Best For: Acne-prone skin
- SPF: No
- Size: 50ml
How often should you apply face moisturizer?
A good rule of thumb is to use a moisturizer after every time you wash your face, so typically twice a day—morning and night. “This helps ensure your skin’s moisture content remains constant over a 24-hour period and you get the benefits of keeping your skin hydrated, such as softer, more elastic, and younger looking skin,” says board-certified dermatologist Dr. Adam Mamelak. However, sometimes there are exceptions.
