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In case you ever wondered, yes, beauty sleep is a real thing. While you snooze, your skin is busy repairing itself and reversing damage from things like pollutants, UV rays, breakouts, and dehydration. Night creams are the sleeper hits of your skincare routine, and the best ones on the market do their part by encouraging cell turnover and protecting the dermal barrier from moisture loss, which kicks up overnight when your skin is most permeable—and most absorbent. That means bedtime is the best time to slather on those nourishing ingredients.
How to choose the best night creams
Indeed, ingredients are the game changers in night creams, and some brands do a better job than others at combining them into holy-grail formulations. Some of the key ingredients to look for in the best night creams include ceramides to protect the skin barrier, humectants to lock in moisture, emollients to soften, acids to accelerate cell renewal, and antioxidants to brighten and exfoliate. And nowadays, we have plenty of powerful products that leave out controversial ingredients like parabens, phthalates, mineral oil, and formaldehyde—so you won’t have a hard time finding an indispensable night cream that addresses any skin sensitivities you may have.
Top night creams picks
Night creams are a saturated market—and ingredients lists are long—so we got our hands dirty to find the best, most effective formulation for every type of skin and budget.
Best lightweight moisturizing night cream: Farmacy Honey Halo Ceramide Face Moisturizer Cream
This cult-favorite cream has generated so much buzz among skincare enthusiasts and beauty editors in recent years that it’s become the must-have moisturizer, dethroning some of the biggest names in skincare. Honey Halo is one of those little-goes-a-long-way products, beneficial to every skin type including mature skin. The ceramide- and antioxidant-packed product is also free of harsh chemicals, so it appeals to clean beauty enthusiasts and those with sensitive skin.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Buckwheat honey with propolis and royal jelly blend; ceramides; shea butter; vitamin E, fig fruit extract
- Texture: Extra thick
- Benefits: Protects the moisture barrier; moisturizes; hydrates; plumps; reduces fine lines.
- Fragrance-free? No added fragrances
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-free? Yes
- Size: 1.7 ounces
- Price at publish: $48
What we like:
- Its star ingredient, buckwheat honey, comes from the Echinacea GreenEnvy plant, which contains the highest levels of chicoric acid—an antioxidant source—of any plant on record.
- Indie brand that earned its solid reputation in the skincare community
- Sustainable packaging
- Comes with a mini spatula
What we don’t like:
- Small amount for the price
- While there are no additional fragrances, the honey ingredients contribute a faint scent
Farmacy Honey Halo Ultra-Hydrating Ceramide Moisturizer 0.8 oz/ 25 mL
Best brightening night cream: Sunday Riley C.E.O. Vitamin C Rich Hydration Cream
Skincare veteran Sunday Riley makes a night cream so rich in vitamin C—one of the most effective brightening ingredients out there—that applying it to your face feels as refreshing as drinking a tall glass of orange juice. C.E.O. Vitamin C Rich Hydration Cream is formulated to repair damage from environmental pollutants, which can contribute to premature aging. Because it’s decadently thick, it’s ideal for overnight.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Vitamin C (5% THD ascorbate), hyaluronic acid, jojoba seed oil, vitamin E, shea butter, lime pearl extract, bisabolol, exopolysaccharides, turmeric
- Texture: Thick and creamy
- Benefits: Brightens, firms, repairs free radical damage, suitable for all skin types
- Fragrance-free? Yes
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-Free: Yes
- Size: 1.7 ounces
- Price at publish: $65
What we like:
- Packed with interesting, dermatologist-recommended ingredients like lime pearl extract, an alpha hydroxy acid that gently exfoliates, and exopolysaccharides, which counteract the effects of the microscopic pollutants found in smog
- Packaging is partly recyclable
- Gluten-free
- Smells great
What we don’t like:
- Small amount for the price
- Vitamin C be irritating to those with sensitive skin
- Antioxidant moisturizers (includes vitamin C) tend to oxidize quicker than traditional moisturizers, and can lose their effectiveness within one to nine months—especially when packaged in a jar that allows more air exposure.
Sunday Riley C.E.O. Vitamin C Rich Hydration Cream (1.7 oz)
Best budget night cream: CeraVe Skin Renewing Night Cream
One of the most popular drugstore brands among skincare experts and beauty junkies combined is CeraVe, a name you might recognize from your dermatologist’s box of free samples. You get a real bang for your buck in this thick, rich night cream, considering all the A-list ingredients inside, like beloved humectant hyaluronic acid. Skin Renewing Night Cream has powerful emollients to help soften and moisturize your skin at night, and fortifying ceramides to protect it from moisture loss.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Ceramides; peptides; niacinamide; hyaluronic acid; shea butter
- Texture: Thick and creamy
- Benefits: Hydrates; moisturizes; protects skin barrier; soothes; boasts anti-aging properties
- Fragrance-free? Yes
- Clean? No
- Cruelty-Free? No
- Size: 1.7 ounces
- Price at publish: $24
What we like:
- Has a patented feature called MVE Technology, which provides an extended release of its moisturizing ingredients
- Developed with dermatologists
- Feels “luxurious” for its budget-friendly price
- Non-comedogenic
What we don’t like:
- While it’s non-comedogenic, the thick texture may be too much for breakout-prone or oily skintypes
- Chance of bacteria contamination if you’re using your fingers to apply product straight from the jar.
CeraVe Skin Renewing Night Cream
Best luxury night cream: Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream
Augustinus Bader is a German biomedical scientist specializing in stem cell biology and restorative medicine who applied this background when creating The Cream, an anti-aging night cream. It was quickly followed by a thicker formulation, The Rich Cream. Both creams became skincare industry darlings overnight with celebrity fans including Victoria Beckham and Gwyneth Paltrow. The Rich Cream is a deeply moisturizing night cream that has visible anti-aging benefits and does everything you want a night cream to do without using harsh chemicals—which is why it outshines a few of its luxury peers.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: TFC8; evening primrose oil; squalene; vitamin E
- Texture: Thick and creamy
- Fragrance-free: None
- Size: 1 ounces / 1.7 ounces
- Benefits: Reduces fine lines, wrinkles, and hyperpigmentation; supports cell renewal; hydrates; plumps; protects skin barrier; improves skin texture; firms; reverses damage from environmental pollutants
- Cruelty-Free: Yes
- Price at publish: $180
What we like:
- Augustinus Bader products contain the scientist’s patented holy-grail ingredient, TFC8, or Trigger Factor Complex, a kind of smart ingredient that supports cell renewal and adapts to your skin’s individual needs, from reversing environmental damage to reducing the signs of aging.
- Effective at evening out tone and texture.
- Unique feel due to formulation—the water-based ingredients are suspended in oils, for a light yet rich texture.
What we don’t like:
- High price tag
- Bottle is not recyclable
- Oils may not react well with certain skin types
Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream with TFC8® Face Moisturizer 1.7 oz/ 50 mL
Best retinol alternative cream: OLEHENRIKSEN Goodnight Glow Bakuchiol Sleeping Crme
Get ready to hear a lot about bakuchiol, a plant-based, dermatologist-recommend ingredient that mimics retinol in its ability to boost collagen production, reduce fine lines, and treat other signs of aging, but is more gentle than retinol, especially if you have sensitive skin. The vegan OLEHENRIKSEN Goodnight Glow Bakuchiol Sleeping Crème combines bakuchiol with alpha hydroxy acids to form a deeply penetrating night cream for all skin types.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Bakuchiol; Edelweiss stem cell; glycolic acid; lactic acid; hibiscus flower extract; red algae extract; licorice root; chamomile extract
- Texture: Gel-like and creamy
- Benefits: Reduces fine lines and wrinkles; treats hyperpigmentation; firms; improves skin texture; moisturizes
- Fragrance-free? Contains less than one percent
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-free? Yes
- Size: 1.7 ounces
- Price at publish: $60
What we like:
- Bakuchiol is gentler than retinol but provides almost identical benefits
- Smells like lavender
- Good for all skin types
What we don’t like:
- Could be irritating
- Could be comodogenic
- Small amount for the price
OLEHENRIKSEN Goodnight Glow Bakuchiol Sleeping Crème 1.7 oz/ 50 mL
Best for combination skin: EltaMD PM Therapy Facial Moisturizer
Thanks to a combination of ingredients that treat acne-prone skin, dry skin, mature skin, and even eczema, the vegan EltaMD PM Therapy Facial Moisturizer is a great night cream for people of all ages with finicky skin that’s oily in some places, dry in others, and perhaps sensitive, too. It contains what you’ll see in a lot of ingredients lists these days: niacinamide, which is a form of vitamin B that helps build keratin, regulate oil, protect the skin barrier, minimize pores, treat dark spots, and a lot more.
- Active ingredients: Niacinamide; hyaluronic acid; hydrolyzed rice protein; thioctic acid (antioxidant); vitamin E, linoleic acid (ceramide)
- Texture: Thin to medium weight creamy
- Fragrance-free? Yes
- Size: 1.7 ounces
- Benefits: Protects from moisture loss; reducing signs of aging; regulates oil production; encourages cell turnover; promotes collagen; firms; reduces inflammation
- Cruelty-free: No
- Price publish: $41
What we like:
- Non comedogenic
- Oil-free
- Great for all skin types
- Lightweight
What we don’t like:
- Can be irritating to sensitive skin
- Isn’t as “creamy” in texture as some night creams
EltaMD PM Therapy Facial Moisturizer (1.7 oz.)
Best for dry skin: Laneige Water Sleeping Mask with Squalane
Hydration is this night cream’s middle name! When it comes to healing dry skin overnight, beauty experts swear by Laneige Water Sleeping Mask, a lightweight gel cream that you actually apply after your everyday night cream, then wash it off in the morning. It contains a naturally occurring lipid called squalene that locks in moisture, along with other super hydrating ingredients. Because this Korean beauty product is so gentle, you won’t have to worry about further irritating your dry skin.
Specifications
- Active ingredients: Squalene; hyaluronic acid; probiotics
- Texture: Gel-like
- Benefits: Hydrates, supports the skin barrier, softens, brightens
- Fragrance-free? Less than one percent
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-free? Yes
- Size: 2.3 ounces
- Price publish: $32
What we like:
- Reef safe
- Packaging updated to use less plastic
- Lightweight
- Great value
What we don’t like:
- Best used in conjunction with another night cream
LANEIGE Water Sleeping Mask with Squalane 2.3 oz/ 70 mL
Best for extremely dry skin: Barrier Triple Lipid-Peptide Face Cream
Extremely dry skin stands no chance against this heavy night cream that uses some of the best humectants and emollients on the market, like hero ingredient shea butter. The clean, gentle moisturizer contains a patented lipid complex which protects the dermal barrier by mimicking it. This night cream specializes in retaining moisture, treating flakiness, and soothing parched, irritated skin.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Lipids, shea butter, comfrey leaf, oat extract, panthenol,
- Texture: Extra thick
- Benefits: Hydrates; moisturizes; brightens, treats fine lines and wrinkles
- Fragrance-free? Yes
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-free? Yes
- Size: 1.7 ounces
- Price at publish: $54
What we like:
- It contains hyaluronic acid particles that are tiny enough to penetrate.
- Is dermatologist-tested
- Has won many awards
- pH balanced
- Comes in refillable jar
- Jar is recyclable
- Packaging is made from Forest Stewardship Council-certified, 100 percent recycled paper using vegetable-based inks.
What we don’t like:
- Some find it smells funny
- Could clog pores if you have acne-prone skin
- Small amount of product for the price
Skinfix Barrier+ Triple Lipid-Peptide Refillable Face Cream 1.7 oz/ 50 mL
Best firming night cream: First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Hydra-Firm Night Cream
This ubiquitous night cream consistently makes the cut with beauty editors and beauty junkies alike for very good reason: It provides visibly firming results. The best seller fights other signs of aging, too, like fine lines, wrinkles and uneven texture. It has some pretty nourishing ingredients that do the trick, including soothing oatmeal.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Colloidal oatmeal; sodium hyaluronate; niacinamide
- Texture: Rich and buttery
- Benefits: Firms; hydrates; moisturizes; treats fine lines and wrinkles; improves texture
- Fragrance-free? None
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-free? Yes
- Size: 1.7 ounces
- Price at publish: $44
What we like:
- Dermatologist-tested
- Safe for sensitive skin
- Addresses dark circles
- Contains coenzyme Q10
What we don’t like:
- Emollient ingredients could stain your pillows
- Rich texture could trigger breakouts for oily skin types
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Hydra-Firm Night Cream 1.7 oz/ 50 mL
Best for all skin types: Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Refillable Moisturizer with Ceramides
Sephora’s mega-popular clean brand, Drunk Elephant, makes a rich, thick night cream that suits every type of skin and has anti-aging properties. Lala Retro cream has the all-important ceramides—a triple blend—to protect against overnight water loss as well as oils and plant-derived lipids to pack in the moisture and antioxidants to protect against free radicals.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Ceramides; African oils; phytosphingosine, glycerin; green tea extract
- Texture: Rich and creamy
- Benefits: Moisturizes; protects the moisture barrier; soothes; restores; combats fine lines; firms
- Fragrance-free? Yes
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-Free? Yes
- Size: 1.69 ounces
- Price at publish: $62
What we like:
- Clean brand
- Has won awards
- Non-greasy
- Refillable container
- Potent blend of all the best night cream ingredients
What we don’t like:
- On the pricey side
- Oils could trigger breakouts with certain skin types
Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream
Best for sensitive skin: COSRX Snail Mucin 92 Repair Cream
This news might have been a little slow to get to you, but snail mucin—a.k.a. snail mucus—is one of the hottest ingredients in skincare right now. You’ll find the curious component in some Korean beauty products, like this top-performing COSRX night cream. Snail secretions happen to be incredibly soothing to irritated skin. So the question of snails remains, especially for escargot enthusiasts: to put them on your face or in your stomach?
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Snail mucin, hyaluronic acid
- Texture: Thin and creamy
- Benefits: Soothes; moisturizes; hydrates; plumps
- Fragrance-free? Yes
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-Free? Yes
- Size: 3.52 ounces
- Price at publish: $26
What we like:
- Excellent value
- Non-greasy
- Trendy
- Can reduce the appearance of blemishes
What we don’t like:
- Can be drying to some skin
COSRX Advanced Snail 92 All In One Cream | SOKO GLAM
Best for acne-prone skin: Paulas Choice CLEAR Oil-Free Moisturizer
It’s important to choose a water-based night cream when treating acne-prone skin, and this oil-free one by trusted brand Paula’s Choice tops the list. The lightweight, antioxidant-rich gel moisturizer won’t clog pores or contribute to breakouts, but it’ll provide just the right amount of moisture to regulate your skin’s oil production. It uses a potent blend of popular ingredients.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Niacinamide, ceramides, licorice root, pumpkin, blueberry antioxidant
- Texture: Gel-like
- Benefits: Reduces breakouts; clears pores; minimizes redness
- Fragrance-free: No
- Clean? No
- Cruelty-Free?: Yes
- Size: 2 ounces
- Price at publish: $29
What we like:
- Uses natural antioxidants
- Has recyclable packaging
- Lightweight texture
What we don’t like:
- For some, it may not be hydrating enough
Paula's Choice CLEAR Oil-Free Moisturizer 2 oz/ 60 mL
Best organic night cream: Youth To The People Superberry Hydrate Glow Dream Overnight Face Mask
One of the most buzzed-about night creams in organic skin care is this clean, vegan overnight face mask by Youth to the People. From beauty experts to skincare lovers, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t rave about the Superberry Hydrate + Glow Dream Overnight Face Mask, which you wear over your regular night cream and wash off in the morning. The formulation uses antioxidants and deeply hydrating ingredients to infuse your skin with moisture all night long.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Vitamin C, squalene, hyaluronic acid, superberries
- Texture: Thick and creamy
- Benefits: Plumps; hydrates; moisturizes; brightens; improves texture; fights free-radical damage
- Fragrance-free? Yes
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-free? Yes
- Size: 2 ounces
- Price at publish: $52
What we like:
- Has won beauty industry awards
- Has a cult following
- Recyclable packaging
What we don’t like:
- Best used in conjunction with a more traditional night cream
Youth To The People Superberry Hydrate + Glow Dream Night Mask with Vitamin C 2 oz/ 59 mL
Best night cream for hyperpigmentation: Eight Saints Up The Anti Anti Aging Night Cream
Hyperpigmentation, also known as dark spots, is caused by sun damage, hormones, and age. If you’re seeing spots, invest in a night cream with skin-lightening ingredients like alpha hydroxy acids and vitamin C. Eight Saints Up The Anti Anti Aging Cream uses a combination of lactic acid and niacinamide (vitamin B) plus other effective ingredients to do the hard work while you sleep.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Niacinamide, peptides, hyaluronic acid
- Texture: Fluffy
- Benefits: Fades dark spots; increases collagen production; plumps; firms; smooths; brightens
- Fragrance-free: Yes
- Clean? Yes
- Cruelty-Free? Yes
- Size: 2 ounces
- Price at publish: $39.60
What we like:
- Made in the U.S.A.
- 30-day return policy if you don’t love it
What we don’t like:
- Green tea scent could be off-putting to some
Eight Saints Up The Anti Anti Aging Night Cream
Best night cream for mature skin: Skinbetter AlphaRet Overnight Cream
Beauty experts have anointed Skinbetter AlphaRet Overnight Cream a holy-grail anti-aging skincare product, and the potent product has earned every bit of its stellar reputation. Its secret to banishing fine lines and wrinkles, firming sagging skin, and improving tone and texture is a cocktail of retinol, alpha hydroxy acids, and a whole host of the most powerful, dermatologist-approved ingredients in anti-aging skincare. It’s also formulated to be non-irritating despite its drying ingredients.
Specifications:
- Active ingredients: Retinoids; lactic acid; glycolic acid; CoEnzyme Q10; peptides; ceramides; squalene; niacinamide; hyaluronic acid, vitamin C and E
- Texture: Whipped
- Benefits: Reduces fine lines and wrinkles; firms; plumps; hydrates; brightens; improves tone and texture; neutralizes free radicals
- Fragrance: None
- Cruelty-Free? Yes
- Size: 1 ounce
- Price at publish: $135
What we like:
- Has undergone dermatologist-led clinical trials to prove effectiveness
- Has won scores of industry awards
- Packs all the best premium ingredients into one product
- Contains the coveted CoEnzyme Q10—a hard-to-find anti-aging superstar
What we don’t like:
- Luxury price point
How we selected the best night creams
My research started with a list of the most common skin issues, compiled from background research with skin experts and my own personal experience working in the beauty industry for well over a decade as a journalist. Then, initial research was expanded upon by identifying key ingredients that address each concern effectively, along with the most reputable brands and formulations that align with the aforementioned skin concerns. These were also put to the test based on personal experience. Each pick was analyzed further by scouring through reviews and progress/customer photos.
The information presented here is created independently from the TIME editorial staff. To learn more, see our About page.