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The best night cream is thick enough to seal moisture in without clogging up your pores—and will leave you looking actually well-rested after you get those 40 winks.
You might be wondering to yourself: I’m already moisturizing twice a day like you asked, why do I need a separate face cream for morning and night? The answer’s simple: at night, your skin cells reach the peak of cell mitosis—the process of repairing and reviving your skin—and your skin is also prone to dehydration. To aid that regeneration and to keep your skin from drying out, night creams tend to be dense, forming a cushy protective barrier packed with ingredients like ceramides and squalane to take care of your skin while it’s working overtime.
Night creams can also be more intense than daytime moisturizer because you're not out in the world seeing people. Heavier products are suddenly in play. Sweating isn’t as much of an issue, so there’s less need to worry about shine. These products will put in heavy-duty work will you're conked out, and you should have one on your sink ledge.
Ingredients to Look Out For
If you’re new to night creams (or face creams in general) there are a few ingredients worth looking out for to get the most results for your buck. Ceramides are going to help boost collagen production which will improve your skin’s elasticity (the “bounce”) while soothing peptides are great for reducing inflammation and increasing skin firmness. Niacinamide is another worthy highlight, a form of vitamin B3 that evens out skin tone while calming future skin flare-ups. Squalane is like a mirror to our skin’s natural oils and when added to your moisturizer of choice functions as a mega booster. Then there’s retinol, a derivative of vitamin A, that targets fine lines, angry pores, and uneven texture. It’s best used at night to avoid skin sensitivity to irritation and UV exposure—which means it is perfectly suited for your new favorite night cream.
To help you meet your match, we’ve rounded up the best night creams based on your specific skin need and budget.
The Best Night Creams, at a Glance
- The Best Technically Advanced Night Cream: Aesop B Triple C facial balancing gel, $127
- The Best Anti-Aging Night Cream: Dr. Dennis Gross Advanced Retinol + Ferulic intense wrinkle cream, $75
- The Best Drugstore Night Cream: CeraVe Skin Renewing night cream, $17
- The Best Top-Shelf Night Cream: Augustinus Bader TFC8 cream, $175
The Best Technically Advanced Night Cream
This one's not even technically a cream! But Aesop's vitamin C-rich gel, formulated with a mix of antioxidants that lend it a distinct honey-like texture, is too good not to include. It's also Aesop's lead chemist's favorite product.
The Best Anti-Aging Night Cream
Retinol is about as close as it gets to a skin care cure-all. (The learning curve is steep, but if you're looking for long-lasting results, it's worth studying up.) The good doctor's night cream puts it to use in tandem with ferulic acid to fight fine lines and wrinkles before you even notice 'em.
The Best Fast-Absorbing Night Cream
The French know a thing or two about quality skincare for drugstore prices. La Roche Posay’s Double Repair moisturizer is packed with skin-plumping ceramides, soothing niacinamide and thermal water. That trio is like a Big Gulp for your face. Best part– its lightweight texture quickly dries down so you can enjoy the benefits without having to worry about any greasy-aftermath.
The Best Au Naturel Night Cream
If you prefer to keep it natural then shea butter is your best friend. While there are many on the market, some are too stiff to comfortably apply to the face (if you’re looking to protect your skin barrier the last thing you want to do is tug at it). Eu’Genia’s unscented butter is made from ground shea nuts blended with moringa oil so that it goes on incredibly smooth, quickly melting into the skin.
The Best Drugstore Night Cream
Cerave's always-in-stock night cream promises all the hydrating powers of its pricier competitors—thanks to an all-star lineup of skin care MVPs like hyaluronic acid, ceramides, and peptides—sans the nasty sticker shock.
The Best Top-shelf Night Cream
Long beloved by Hollywood's glowiest (and the skin care gurus that cater to them), Augustinus Bader's anti-aging option costs a pretty penny, but it's worth every cent.
The Best Collagen-Boosting Night Cream
Elemis combines algae extract with antioxidant-rich avocado and sesame-seed oils to help keep your skin hydrated in the short term—and permanently improve its elasticity down the line.
The Best Night Cream for Redness-Prone Skin
Don't let the thick consistency fool you: First Aid's niacinamide-infused night cream lathers on smooth and leaves your skin feeling that way, thanks to a soothing blend of colloidal oatmeal and moisture-locking sodium hyaluronate.
The Best Night Cream for Dry Skin
If you've prone to bouts of dryness, targeting the areas most prone to flaking in the PM (and arming yourself with a trusty SPF during the day) is the right move. SkinCeuticals' cream is formulated with a potent hydroxy acid mix, along with a soothing cocktail of aloe, chamomile, and primrose extract that works overtime to nourish the areas that need it most.
Best of the Rest
Valmont V-Firm densifying face cream
Chantecaille Bio Lifting treatment mask
Youth to the People Adaptogen deep moisturizing cream
Kiehl's Midnight Recovery night cream
Avéne PhysioLift night smoothing balm
