How to choose the right face moisturizer

A face moisturizer is essential in any skin care routine. A face moisturizer helps hydrate the skin, sealing in moisture to maintain a smooth, healthy skin barrier.

While there are endless moisturizers to choose from, it can be challenging to pick the best face moisturizer for your skin type and skin care needs. Some skin types may need thick creams, while others work better with lightweight gel formulas.

This guide will help you find the right moisturizer by covering ingredients to look for, ingredients to avoid and the best face moisturizers for different skin types. Knowing the exact ingredients and types of moisturizers that can help your skin will make the face moisturizer selection process more manageable and help you see better results quickly.

In this article:

Key ingredients to look for in a face moisturizer

Knowing what ingredients to use in your skin care routine is important because everyone’s skin is unique. Before introducing a new face moisturizer to your routine, scan the ingredients list to familiarize yourself with those that might cause breakouts or dryness or other unwanted effects due to an allergic reaction to the ingredients.

When searching for a good face moisturizer, look at the key emollients and humectants in the product.

Emollients are ingredients that can help soothe and hydrate the skin.¹ On the other hand, humectant products draw and retain moisture from the deeper layers of the skin into the outer layers.² These ingredients will also help smooth your skin and even out texture.

Here are a few examples of humectants and emollients to keep an eye out for on face moisturizer labels.

Hyaluronic acid

One popular ingredient in the skin care world is hyaluronic acid, which is known for its intense moisturizing qualities.³ Perfect for a face moisturizer, hyaluronic acid is a powerful humectant; one gram of hyaluronic acid can bind up to six liters of water.⁴

It’s an active ingredient in many moisturizers, including CeraVe’s AM Face Moisturizer with SPF 30.

“Hyaluronic acid attracts moisture from the deeper layers of the skin or the environment,” says board-certified dermatologist Sanober Pezad Doctor. “Since it’s a powerful ingredient, you’ll want to be careful not to use it in dry conditions, as it can cause dehydration in the skin as it seeks more moisture. Hence, make sure you apply products containing this ingredient over damp skin.”⁵

Ceramides

When shopping for your next face moisturizer, you’ll want to look out for those that contain ceramides. Ceramides are emollients — waxy lipid molecules that hydrate the skin — and help keep the skin barrier healthy.⁶ They work by linking the skin cells together to retain moisture in the skin and forming a protective barrier. Ceramides can keep unwanted external pollutants away from your skin barrier.⁷

Retinol

For those interested in a powerful product to help reduce the appearance of aging, try a face moisturizer that contains retinol. Retinol helps improve texture and reduce fine lines and pigmentation.⁸

If you’re new to retinol, start slowly with a small, nighttime application.⁹ While retinol can be an ingredient in face moisturizers, you’ll also find retinol infused into other products like serums. A retinol serum can be a great addition to your skin care routine, but a moisturizer is still needed.

While the benefits of retinol are well reported, this ingredient isn’t for everyone. Someone with allergies or lots of redness or inflammation might not be a good candidate.¹⁰ It is always recommended to consult a dermatologist before adding a retinol product to your routine, especially if you have sensitive skin, facial redness or inflammation.

Using retinol makes your skin more sensitive, so it's crucial to use it as directed and apply sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher daily to help protect against the sun’s UV rays.¹¹

Ingredients to avoid in a face moisturizer

Besides looking for beneficial ingredients, you should also scan the ingredients list for potentially harmful ingredients. While not directly harmful, certain ingredients can aggravate your skin, especially if your skin is sensitive or you have known allergies.

Colors and perfumes

While fragrances can make a product smell appealing, the constant use of fragrant products can cause adverse skin reactions, including a fragrance allergy.¹²

Colored dyes are made with chemicals that can cause an adverse skin reaction. If you’re unsure whether your skin reacts to dyes or fragrances, you’ll want a physician to do a skin patch test on the inner surface of your arm before you start applying the moisturizer to your face.¹³

Too many acids

If your face moisturizer has an acid, and the rest of your skin care routine does, too, you could be overdoing it with too many active ingredients.

These active ingredients, also known as alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs), can commonly be found as glycolic acid, lactic acid, citric acid, malic acid and tartaric acid. These acids work by peeling the skin for a rapid cell turnover, making them useful for reducing the appearance of damage or aging.¹⁴

“For those with drier skin, a face moisturizer that’s heavy on these acids can irritate the skin and cause an adverse reaction, since the skin barrier becomes vulnerable,” says Dr. Sanober Pezad Doctor. “If you’re unsure which acids to apply to your skin, take the guidance of your dermatologist to see what works best for your skin type.”¹⁵

Face moisturizers for different skin types

Skin care has no “one-size-fits-all” solution. Since everyone’s skin is different, you’ll need to find a face moisturizer that works well with your skin.

Even after identifying your skin type, you’ll need to consider external factors like weather and season. Depending on where you live, you may need to opt for a seasonal skin care routine.

For dry skin

People with dry skin types should consider thicker creams and ointments.¹⁶ Look for moisturizers with hyaluronic acid to help your skin feel fresh and hydrated.

For example, CeraVe’s Skin Renewing Nighttime Face Cream contains hyaluronic acid and niacinamide.

For oily skin

Even if you have oily skin, your face still needs hydration. Oily skin is often a sign of overactive sebaceous glands.¹⁷ Gel-based moisturizers can provide lighter hydration.¹⁸

Consider products like the Bioderma Sebium MAT Control moisturizer.

For combination skin

Combination skin often means that some parts of your face are dry while others are oily. Consider applying moisturizer to the dry parts of the face and skipping the oily parts.¹⁹

For sensitive skin

Having sensitive skin means taking extra precautions. Those with sensitive skin should consider choosing products that are labeled as fragrance-free as some fragrances may trigger a skin reaction. If you have sensitive skin, you should reach for a hydrating and nourishing moisturizer without strong, active ingredients.²⁰

For example, consider a moisturizer like Avene’s Tolerance Control Soothing Rich Face Balm for Sensitive Skin Barrier, which is free from fragrances and preservatives.

Tips for applying face moisturizer

After finding the right face moisturizer, it’s time to apply it properly. While some moisturizers have more specific directions, follow these tips from Dr. Sanober Pezad Doctor to get the most out of your product.²¹

• Apply moisturizer as the second-to-last step if using a separate sunscreen.
• Apply your moisturizer within a few minutes of washing to help trap in existing moisture.
• Avoid overdoing it with your face moisturizer. In most cases, a dime-sized amount of product is enough.

Face moisturizer is a crucial step in your skin care routine and deserves proper attention. While it’s easy to pick the “trendy” choice, you should focus on a product that works best for your skin type.

Frequently asked questions

How do I choose a face moisturizer?

Before purchasing a face moisturizer, decide what skin type you have. Whether it’s oily, acne-prone, dry, combination, normal or sensitive, knowing your skin type will help determine which face moisturizer is best.²²

What are the best ingredients for face moisturizers?

Most face moisturizers are formulated to hydrate and restore your skin. Dr. Sanober Pezad Doctor recommends looking for a face moisturizer containing emollient and humectant ingredients that absorb everything from your skin care routine and lock it into place.²³

What should be in a good face moisturizer?

According to Dr. Doctor, the right moisturizer is the one that works with your skin type and potential skin sensitivities. Regardless of your skin care goal, the best face moisturizer for you is the one that can help keep your skin’s barrier healthy and hydrated. If you have a specific skin issue you want to target, such as dry or irritated skin, your moisturizer should have adequate ingredients that can help soothe and replenish your skin.²⁴

Should you use body lotion on your face?

Dr. Doctor says, “Body lotions are often formulated keeping the skin dynamics throughout the body in mind. Facial skin differs in terms of its thickness, the number of sebaceous glands, its greater exposure to UV light, environmental pollutants, etc. Hence, one needs to be careful before one considers using a body lotion on the face.”²⁵

It's important to use products that are specifically designed for facial skin to avoid any unfortunate effects.

This content is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult your health care provider before taking any vitamins or supplements and prior to beginning or changing any health care practices.