Understanding your skin type is an important first step when seeking out the best moisturizer for glowing skin. A common misconception is that only people with very dry skin need to moisturize, while those with oily skin do not. In reality, every skin types can benefit from a regular face cream as their formulas do more than just prevent and treat dryness: they can help maintain your skin’s moisture barrier, balance redness, and contribute to a smoother, more supple appearance. Consistent use can enhance your skin’s glow by giving it a hydrated, radiant look. Ahead, a running list of our favorite moisturizers, from lightweight gels to vitamin C-enriched creams, handpicked by Vogue editors, dermatologists, and estheticians.
Our Top Picks
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Best for Skin Barrier Repair: Augustinus Bader The Cream
- Why We Love It: Lighter in texture than Augustinus Bader’s The Rich Cream, this formula still delivers a bountiful experience, blanketing the skin with a protective barrier of non-irritating actives and hydrators from peptides to vitamin A and rice protein. These rebalance and retexturize, soothing and repairing even the most sensitive and fragile skin barriers. “This is a great one-and-done product for someone looking for a simplified routine that works both morning and night. The best results come from long-term use,” says Susca.
- Key Ingredients: TFC8, aloe vera leaf juice, amino acids, hydrolyzed rice protein, shea butter, vitamins A, B, C and E
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: All skin types
- Size: 1.7 oz
Best Korean: Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Renewing Cream
- Why We Love It: Sulwhasoo, one of our favorite K-beauty brands, delivers this cream packed with ginseng, hyaluronic acid, retinol, and salicylic acid to nourish the skin while addressing fine lines and wrinkles. Soft, plush, and weightless, this absorbs easily, delivering an immediate hydrating and brightening effect. The ginseng scent adds a relaxing touch, transforming your morning routine into a makeshift spa experience if you take a moment to breathe in the aroma. Stop and smell the ginseng, am I right?
- Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, retinol, salicylic acid
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: Fine lines, wrinkles
- Size: 2.02 oz
Best with Vitamin C: Paula’s Choice Skincare C5 Super Boost Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: Someone in search of a face moisturizer with brightening benefits and antioxidant protection should consider this option by Paula’s Choice. Powered by 5% vitamin C, this lightweight gel-cream helps even out skin tone, brighten dullness, and combat free-radical damage with consistent use. Its hydrating features arrive via a blend of peptides and polyglutamic acid to bring radiance into the skin.
- Key Ingredients: 5% Vitamin C, peptides, polyglutamic acid
- Texture: Gel cream
- Best For: All skin types
- Size: 50 mL
Best for Oily Skin: Tata Harper Water-Lock Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: This moisturizer-meets-face primer sets the stage for whatever you decide to layer on next. Hyaluronic acid is the star here, providing ample hydration while orange peptides and pomegranate seeds help to smooth the look of pores. It’s lightweight and breathable, making it ideal for oily skin types or humid days when you want a fresh, natural feel without the heaviness of traditional creams.
- Key Ingredients: Orange peptides, pomegranate spheres, macro hyaluronic acid, sugar carbohydrate complex
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: Oily skin, dryness, hyperpigmentation
- Size: 1.7 fl oz
Best Japanese: Tatcha The Dewy Skin Cream
- Why We Love It: Tatcha’s Dewy Skin Cream is a personal favorite and I’m not alone in loving it. Aesthetician Samantha Susca gives it her stamp of approval, noting that it works well as a daytime cream for those seeking a richer texture. It layers beautifully with essences and serums, and the light, pleasant fragrance is neither irritating nor overpowering. “It’s perfect for dry or dehydrated skin,” she says.
- Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, red algae, hadasei-3, biomimetic squalene, Japanese purple rice
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: All skin types
- Size: 50 mL
Best Retinol-Alternative: Ranavat Renewing Bakuchi Face Cream
- Why We Love It: Ranavat is one of those brands you’ll be thrilled to have discovered—the ingredients are so potent that you’ll wonder how you ever lived without it. A go-to from its lineup, its Renewing Face Cream is nourishing and hydrating, featuring a blend of Ayurvedic ingredients like bakuchi seed (nature’s retinol alternative), lotus flower, and ashwagandha. Clinically proven to deliver 12-hour hydration, it leaves your skin luminous for hours of wear, with a noticeable softening of fine lines and wrinkles. Apply day and night for best results.
- Key Ingredients: Lotus flower, bakuchi seed, ashwagandha, niacinamide
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: Fine lines, wrinkles
- Size: 1.7 oz
Best Luxe: La Prairie Skin Caviar Luxe Cream Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: You might enjoy caviar with your champagne, but just wait until you get this luxurious ingredient onto your skin. Rich and velvety, this revitalizes tired skin, leaving it soft and supple. Aside from the caviar extracts leading the formula, La Prairie also pairs it with squalane, shea butter, hyaluronic acid, plus botanical oils and extracts for a face cream sure to leave skin fresh and glowing after each use.
- Key Ingredients: Caviar extract, caviar micro-nutrients, hyaluronic acid, squalane, shea butter, ginseng root extract
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: All skin types
- Size: 3.4 oz
Best Brightening: Caudalie Vinoperfect Instant Brightening Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: “The Caudalie Vinoperfect is an excellent choice for achieving glowing skin,” says board-certified dermatologist Dr. Dendy Engelman. Its key ingredient, viniferine, is a natural brightening agent derived from grapevine sap, known to be 62 times more effective than vitamin C at reducing dark spots. This lightweight moisturizer not only enhances overall radiance but also evens out skin tone while being gentle on sensitive skin. “I often recommend this to patients who want a luminous complexion without compromising hydration.”
- Key Ingredients: Viniferine, niacinamide, natural mineral pearlizers
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: Dark spots, scars, discoloration, uneven skin tone, hyperpigmentation
- Size: 1.7 oz
Best for Travel: Dieux Instant Angel Hydrating Gel Cream
- Why We Love It: An excellent choice for sensitive skin, this moisturizer offers rich, nourishing hydration via a blend of squalane, fatty acids, and amino acids. Providing lasting moisture while reinforcing the skin barrier, its lightweight formula makes it ideal for travels when you want to streamline your routine. It pairs well with makeup, but your skin will look so dewy that you can go au naturel and still receive a stream of compliments.
- Key Ingredients: 3% moisture complex, 0.5% dipalmityl hydroxylproline, 2% barrier repair complex, 4% phytosterol, 2% meadowestolide
- Texture: Gel cream
- Best For: Dehydrated skin, compromised barrier
- Size: 50 mL
Best for All Skin Types: Summer Fridays Cloud Dew Gel Cream Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: The Summer Fridays Cloud Dew is the kind of face moisturizer we’d recommend to basically anyone because of how perfectly simple it is. A lightweight, gel-cream that absorbs into skin for a luminous finish, it’s ideal for anyone seeking a hydrating solution with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, glycerin, and amino acids that can be easily integrated into an existing skin-care routine. Plus, it’s also vegan, cruelty- and fragrance-free, making it suitable for a variety of preferences.
- Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid complex, amino acids, pineapple enzymes, glycerin
- Texture: Gel cream
- Best For: Dry skin
- Size: 1.7 fl oz
Best Cooling: Chanel Hydra Beauty Micro Creme
- Why We Love It: Chanel Beauty’s entire lineup is worth shopping, but its gel water cream is a noted expert favorite. “It’s instantly hydrating and plumping, loaded with clinically proven antioxidants, making it an excellent choice for those concerned with hydration and anti-pollution,” says Susca. Its moisturizing benefits are long-lasting, especially considering how light the texture is upon application. Pro tip: Susca likes to keep this cream in the fridge for an extra therapeutic cryo-effect application.
- Key Ingredients: Camellia oil extract, camellia alba, blue ginger
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: Dry skin
- Size: 1.7 fl oz
Best Viral: CosRx Snail Mucin 92% Repair Cream
- Why We Love It: Fans of the viral snail mucin essence will be pleased to learn that CosRx also offers a repair cream from the same collection powered by 92% snail mucin, allowing you to double down on your love for the ingredient. Like the serum, this gel cream hydrates and plumps the skin, strengthens the skin barrier, and soothes any irritation. It’s great for dry and dehydrated skin, as well as acne-prone and sensitive skin types, thanks to its relatively straightforward formula.
- Key Ingredients: Snail mucin
- Texture: Gel cream
- Best For: Dry skin, acne-prone, sensitive skin
- Size: 3.52 fl oz
Best for Dry Skin: U Beauty The Super Hydrator
- Why We Love It: “Probably the richest in texture on this entire list, this product has a specific client,” says Susca, who describes it as “the ultimate rich cream.” The texture is thick like a balm but feels almost watery when worked into the skin, delivering a glazed donut finish. “I love using this when cycling a retinoid into my routine or after a professional peel. Its intense richness also provides unmatched relief for dermatitis.”
- Key Ingredients: Vitamin E, fatty acids, argan oil
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: Anti-aging
- Size: 15 mL
Best Primer: Victoria Beckham x Augustinus Bader Cell Rejuvenating Priming Moisturizer
- Why We Love It: Here, Augustinus Bader and longtime fan Victoria Beckham teamed up for a collab of the decade. Pairing the benefits of a primer with that of a moisturizer, Susca says it offers a substantial base for makeup application while providing the nourishment of Bader’s patented TFC8 complex. Susca recommends using it with a tinted SPF and powder on top for a minimal yet polished look that holds up well even in summer heat and humidity.
- Key Ingredients: TFC8, natural black tea ferment, papain (papaya enzymes), micro algae extract, avocado oil
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: All skin types
- Size: 1 oz
Best for Everyday: iS Clinical Reparative Moisture Emulsion
- Why We Love It: Clinical is the keyword here, as this formula is packed with pharmaceutical-grade botanicals, peptides, and antioxidants to make your skin glow like you’ve just left your practitioner’s office. Not only is it incredibly hydrating—like an ice-cold glass of water on a hot summer day—but it also reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles while helping to protect the skin from environmental aggressors.
- Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, superoxide dismutase, copper tripeptide growth factor
- Texture: Cream
- Best For: Oily, sensitive skin
- Size: 1.7 oz
What to Look For in a Moisturizer for Glowing Skin
- Ingredients: When shopping for a moisturizer, board-certified dermatologist Nkem Ugonabo, MD, advises looking for ingredients like ceramides, niacinamide, and hyaluronic acid, which typically indicate hydrating and gentle properties.
- Texture/Finish: Regarding texture, Ugonabo generally tells patients that a cream is often more moisturizing than a lotion. “So if you have dry skin or eczema, I would likely recommend a cream. If you have oily skin, you might prefer a lightweight lotion or gel-based moisturizer.”
- Skin Type: “Moisturizers are key for hydrating the skin and can also help repair damage to the skin barrier, such as that caused by harsh ingredients like exfoliants,” explains Ugonabo. People with oily or combination skin may prefer a lightweight, gel-based moisturizer that doesn’t feel heavy on the face. Sensitive skin types should look for moisturizers with simple ingredients (e.g., fragrance-free, dye-free) to minimize irritation. Dry skin types should opt for thicker, richer cream moisturizers that help lock in moisture.
Does moisturizer make your skin glow?
“Regular use of a moisturizer can definitely contribute to your skin ‘glowing’ by giving it a hydrated, supple appearance,” Ugonabo. Your choice of face cream locks in moisture—boosting the efficacy of the essences, serums, and other hydrating elixirs that come before it. With dryness kept in check, skin can appear fresher, plumper, and yes—glowing.
Meet The Experts
- Dr. Nkem Ugonabo is a board-certified dermatologist at UnionDerm in New York.
- Dr. Dendy Engelman is a New York City–based board-certified dermatologist and Mohs surgeon who specializes in medical and cosmetic dermatology.
- Samantha Susca is the lead esthetician at Casa Cipriani New York Spa.
