Glowing Skin Secrets: Top Dermatologists Recommend Skincare That Delivers Results
If there's one person who understands skincare, it's a board-certified dermatologist. Often the go-to sources for debunking skincare myths and educating patients on the ins and outs of skin care at any given point in their lives, dermatologists recommend skincare products deep-rooted in science, backed by clinical research and data and sure to deliver results for a noticeable difference in the skin's health and therefore its appearance. If you are unsure which skincare products are best for you, we have you covered. We asked board-certified dermatologists Ashley Magovern, M.D., Medical Advisory Board member, and Connie Yang, M.D., Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology and Dermstore's Medical Advisory Board member, for their expert options. Consider this your ultimate guide to skincare that works and gets the doctors' stamps of approval.
Meet the Experts
- Dr. Ashley Magovern - Board-certified dermatologist and medical director of Dermstore’s Medical Advisory Board
- Dr. Connie Yang - Board-certified dermatologist, fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology, and member of Dermstore’s Medical Advisory Board
Skincare Products for Dry Skin
Dr. Magovern's Recommendations
SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2
2424 reviews
$155.00
"I like this cream for dry skin because it restores essential lipids to strengthen the skin barrier."
This anti-aging cream, which is formulated specifically to nourish and heal extremely dry skin, floods the skin with much-needed moisture thanks to a perfectly ratioed proportion of pure ceramides, natural cholesterol and fatty acids. This unique combination of skin hydrators helps to nourish dry skin while restoring and strengthening the skin barrier so that the skin appears smoother, softer, more refined, and well-hydrated over time.
Key Ingredients: Ceramides, cholesterol, fatty acids, an essential oil blend
Skin Benefits: Nourishes the skin, corrects signs of aging, helps to hydrate, strengthens the skin barrier
EltaMD Barrier Renewal Complex
195 reviews
$62.00
"This hydrating formula, which is packed with ceramides and enzymes, provides deep moisture."
A must-have, daily cream for perpetually dry skin, this advanced hydrating formula helps restore the skin's natural ability to hydrate while improving the skin's barrier function. It also doubles as an anti-aging cream, helping to minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, improving the skin's texture, tone, and pore size, and enhancing skin elasticity for skin that looks and feels younger.
Key Ingredients: Squalane, ceramides, vitamin E, enzymes, vitamins, essential lipids
Skin Benefits: Minimizes the appearance of fine lines, enhances elasticity, improves skin texture, tone and pore size, strengthens the barrier, restores the skin's natural hydration system, minimizes redness, promotes natural skin exfoliation
Dr. Yang's Recommendations
iS Clinical Reparative Moisture Emulsion
139 reviews
$110.00
"This incredibly hydrating emulsion, with added antioxidants, protects the skin throughout the day. It is also the perfect skin prep for dry skin before applying makeup."
This super-intensive rejuvenating and repairing moisturizer is like a tall drink of water for extra-thirsty skin. The emulsion, which features a blend of botanical extracts, peptides and antioxidants, provides hydration to the skin at all levels so that it feels moisturized and soft while helping to plump up the look of fine lines and wrinkles.
Key Ingredients: Copper tripeptide, extremozymes, hyaluronic acid, superoxide dismutase
Skin Benefits: Smooths and hydrates the skin, reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, provides deep and surface hydration, prevents environmental damage, acts as a moisturizing prep
La Roche Posay Lipikar Wash Gentle Foaming Moisturizing Wash
10 reviews
$17.99
"This is the most gentle and nourishing wash for dry, sensitive skin. It cleanses without stripping the skin thanks to its formulation, which contains moisturizing ingredients like shea butter and glycerin to soothe and soften the skin."
When finding a good cleanser for dry skin, it mustn't contain ingredients that strip the skin of its natural oils and lead to additional dryness–no one wants that. This ultra-moisturizing face and body wash, which the National Eczema Association also accepts, provides long-lasting hydration while protecting the skin from the drying effects of harsh water. The skin feels instantly soft, soothed, smooth, and incredibly clean.
Key Ingredients: La Roche-Posay prebiotic thermal water, shea butter, glycerin, niacinamide, aqua posae filiformis
Skin Benefits: Moisturizes, provides long-lasting hydration, gently cleanses skin, helps alleviate dryness, leaves skin feeling soft, supple, soothed, and moisturized
Skincare Products for Dry Skin
Dr. Magovern's Recommendations
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream Intense Hydration
388 reviews
$38.00
"A rich, calming moisturizer with colloidal oatmeal and ceramides to soothe and strengthen sensitive skin."
Perfect for healing sensitive skin, this award-winning moisturizer provides instant relief. Suitable for those who suffer from eczema, the super hydrating rich cream also improves a weakened skin barrier, leaving the skin feeling calmer and more comfortable in just seven days.
Key Ingredients: Colloidal oatmeal, shea butter, allantoin
Skin Benefits: Treats eczema, improves and protects the skin barrier, moisturizes, calms and soothes the skin.
La Roche-Posay Toleriane Hydrating Gentle Cleanser
35 reviews
$17.99
"I like this cleanser for sensitive skin types because the formula is ultra gentle and non-stripping."
Rather than playing a guessing game with your facial cleanser and wondering whether or not it's a good match for your sensitive skin, put this safe-for-sensitive skin one into your rotation. Gentle enough to use daily and packed with skin-friendly ingredients, the cream formulation cleanses and purifies the skin for a deep-down clean without disrupting the skin's moisture barrier or pH–a win-win for this skin type.
Key Ingredients: Ceramides, glycerin, niacinamide, La Roche-Posay prebiotic thermal water
Skin Benefits: Cleanses skin, helps maintain the natural moisture barrier and pH, restores skin comfort and moisture, leaves skin feeling clean, comfortable and hydrated
Dr. Yang's Recommendations
Avene Cicalfate+ Restorative Protective Cream
79 reviews
$40.00
"This rich cream has 45 uses and is amazing for repairing a damaged skin barrier and soothing irritation. Those with sensitive skin may want this on hand for minor irritation and deep nourishing hydration."
A gentle approach is needed to treat sensitive skin effectively. This cream, which works wonders for sensitive skin, helps promote an ideal and healthy skin microbiome to undo the damage and effects that sensitive skin often faces, like dryness, redness, irritation, itching, and flaking. Perfect for everyone in your family, use it as a daily moisturizer or as needed.
Key Ingredients: Thermal spring water, mineral oil, glycerin, zinc oxide, beeswax
Skin Benefits: Hydrates, reduces redness and dryness, restores and promotes an optimal environment for skin recovery, maintains proper hydration levels for skin restoration, and minimizes the risk of allergic reactions.
Sente Dermal Repair Cream
"This lighter-weight moisturizer contains skin-soothing ingredients to help calm redness while minimizing the appearance of wrinkles. This is my go-to moisturizer for rosacea-prone skin."
Nurse your sensitive skin back to health with this hydrating reparative cream, which is clinically shown to reduce the appearance of skin redness for an improved complexion. Ultra-hydrating in nature, it also helps to strengthen broken capillaries and improve the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, all without compromising the skin.
Key Ingredients: Heparan sulfate analog, vitamin E, green tea extract
Skin Benefits: Reduces redness, improves skin tone, promotes a healthier skin barrier, decreases the look of fine lines, deeply hydrates
Skincare Products for Combination Skin
Dr. Magovern's Recommendations
PCA SKIN Hydrating Toner
116 reviews
$48.00
"This toner does a good job of balancing oil without over-drying the skin."
To help with the needs of combination skin, apply a light layer of this weightless toner to the skin. Perfect for adding a bit of hydration to combination skin while also protecting it with antioxidants from potential environmental aggressors, this daily-use toner helps to leave the skin softer, smoother and more moisturized so it's ready to face the day.
Key Ingredients: Watermelon, apple, lentil fruit extracts, glycerin, Jania rubens extract, evening primrose oil
Skin Benefits: Hydrates, removes dirt, oil and debris, softens, smooths, protects, improves moisture
Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel
30 reviews
$153.00
"I like these peels for combination skin because they exfoliate while refining the pores."
Combination skin often experiences breakouts, dryness, and a lack of radiance, which are major concerns that this two-step peel addresses. Perfect for combination skin as well as oily and normal skin types, the alpha hydroxy and beta hydroxy acid-rich pads gently exfoliate the skin for glowy skin, smaller-looking pores, less obvious lines, and a more even skin tone and texture while adding a dose of hydration for more balanced skin.
Key Ingredients: Alpha beta acids, chamomile, retinol, green tea extract
Skin Benefits: Provides immediate radiance to the skin, promotes accelerated cell turnover, diminishes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, gently exfoliates, evens out skin tone and texture, calms and protects the skin
Dr. Yang's Recommendations
EltaMD UV Clear
5215 reviews
$44.00
"This lightweight daily sunscreen provides broad spectrum protection with added niacinamide and lactic acid to calm skin and refine pores. It also blends easily to suit all skin types and is safe for acne-prone skin."
Keep combination skin perfectly shielded from the sun's damaging UV rays with this niacinamide-rich SPF, which also helps to reduce blemishes and skin discoloration. Designed to protect against both UVA and UVB rays, the lightweight, hypoallergenic sunscreen gives a skin-smoothing effect, so whether you wear it on its own or under makeup, your complexion will look even and at its best.
Key Ingredients: Octinoxate, zinc oxide, niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, vitamin E
Skin Benefits: Keeps skin calm and protected, improves skin tone and discoloration, smoothes, will not clog pores
ISDIN Flavo C Ultraglican Serum Ampoules
2 reviews
$52.00
"These powerful vitamin C ampoules are packaged to ensure maximal efficacy that provides antioxidant protection against environmental stressors for a brighter, more even complexion."
Vitamin C deserves a place in every skin type's routine, especially combination skin. The supercharged antioxidant serum helps protect against oxidative damage and stress while hydrating the skin and reducing the look of fine lines and wrinkles, giving it a natural glow.
Key Ingredients: Vitamin C, ultraglycans, hyaluronic acid
Skin Benefits: Protects against free radical damage, increases skin brightness, firms, promotes improved elasticity and radiance, moisturizes
Skincare Products for Oily and Acne-Prone Skin
Dr. Magovern's Recommendations
iS Clinical Cleansing Complex
1073 reviews
$49.00
"I like this cleanser a lot of oily and acne-prone skin because it effectively deep cleans without stripping the skin."
One way to keep oily and acne-prone skin looking its best is to cleanse it twice daily with a lightweight gel powerful enough to help control these skin types. This clear cleansing gel features a blend of antioxidants, mild resurfacing agents, and nutrients to cleanse and purify without drying out the skin, leaving it soft, smooth, and refreshed after every use.
Key Ingredients: Centella asiatica, chamomile flower, sugarcane, white willow bark
Skin Benefits: Deep cleans without drying, gives the appearance of smaller pores, smooths and softens
SkinCeuticals Silymarin CF
158 reviews
$182.00
"This vitamin C and salicylic acid treatment provides antioxidant benefits and acne control in a single product."
For a skin-safe dose of vitamin C that won't disrupt oily and acneic skin, try this oil-free serum. Offering environmental protection and the ability to reduce surface oil while refining the skin and its clarity, this good-for-your-skin formulation helps prevent oil oxidation, which can instigate breakouts and accelerate aging.
Key Ingredients: L-ascorbic acid, silymarin, ferulic acid, salicylic acid
Skin Benefits: Reduces skin oiliness, protects against free radicals, improves the appearance of blemishes and limits their incidence
Dr. Yang's Recommendations
Murad Rapid Relief Acne Sulfur Mask
1 reviews
$44.00
"Sulfur is such an underrated ingredient for acne-prone skin. This mask helps absorb excess oil and stop pimples in their tracks. Also formulated with salicylic acid which penetrates deeply into pores to keep them clear."
Get acne-prone and oily skin back on track with this triple-threat ingredient mask, which reduces oil and shrinks pimples and blackheads after just a couple of uses. Perfect for smoothing out the skin texture, this easy-to-rinse-off treatment mask also doesn't come with the cracking and tight feeling that so many clay masks do.
Key Ingredients: Sulfur, salicylic acid, kaolin clay, peat extract, eucalyptus oil
Skin Benefits: Treats and prevents breakouts, removes excess oil and shine, clarifies the skin
Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel
30 reviews
$153.00
"This quick and easy two-step peel pad clears the pores and gently removes dead skin cells for a clearer, more radiant complexion. I recommend incorporating this once to twice weekly to help with breakouts and post-acne marks."
Swipe on these acid-enriched peel pads to control excess oil, shine, and breakouts. Great for first-time peel users as well as those who are more experienced, the two-step treatment balances the skin while hydrating it so that it becomes smoother and more radiant over time.
Key Ingredients: Alpha beta acids, chamomile, retinol, green tea extract
Skin Benefits: Provides immediate radiance to the skin, promotes accelerated cell turnover, diminishes
Skincare Products for Mature Skin
Dr. Magovern's Recommendations
Neocutis Bio Serum Firm
97 reviews
$290.00
"This growth factor serum is a must for firming."
This powerful anti-aging serum, which is loaded with human growth factors and peptides, promises to improve the signs of aging for a more youthful-looking you in just one week. Get ready to kiss those fine lines and wrinkles goodbye and say hello to smoother, more refined, and brighter-looking skin.
Key Ingredients: Peptides, human growth factors
Skin Benefits: Supports collagen and elastin production, increases skin firmness, elasticity, tone, and texture, diminishes the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, hydrates, increases skin luminosity, plumps
SkinMedica TNS Advanced+ Serum
588 reviews
$295.00
"This growth factor and peptide-rich formula supports collagen production and visibly reduces fine lines."
If you crave serious changes to mature skin, this skin-rejuvenating serum dramatically improves the look of wrinkles and fine tones while evening out the skin's tone and texture.
Key Ingredients: Growth factors, peptides, botanical and marine extracts
Skin Benefits: Smooths wrinkles and lines, improves sagging skin, uneven tone and texture
Dr. Yang's Recommendations
Allies of Skin MultiPeptide & Growth Factor Advanced Lifting Serum
11 reviews
$188.00
"This serum contains a powerful combination of peptides and growth factors that target the key concerns in aging skin including fine lines, sagging skin, and decreased elasticity. It provides instant hydration to dull mature skin while also long-term improvement in fine lines and skin quality."
This clinically proven serum features an advanced blend of peptides and growth factors to provide a lifting effect to the skin. Plus, the creamy, lightweight formula also helps to promote collagen production deep within the skin to regenerate and repair the skin.
Key Ingredients: Growth factors, peptides, MSM, copper lysinate, phospholipids, glycolipids, Dermcom
Skin Benefits: Hydrates and firms the skin, improves skin smoothness, reduces the appearance of wrinkles
ISDIN Eryfotona Actinica Mineral Broad-Spectrum Face Sunscreen
16 reviews
$73.00
"This ultralight mineral sunscreen is formulated with DNA repairsomes to actively repair sun damage, perfect for those with a history of extensive sun exposure."
Sunscreen is a skincare nonnegotiable and this ultralight, quick-to-absorb mineral-based one provides superior protection. It also helps to undo the effects of past sun damage so that the skin is healthier and well-protected without any greasy finish.
Key Ingredients: Zinc oxide, DNA Repairsomes, vitamin E
Skin Benefits: Protects the skin from the sun and helps repair existing sun damage
Shop Additional Dermatologist-Recommended Skincare
Medik8 Liquid Peptides Advanced MP
$92.00
Jan Marini Transformation Cream
85 reviews
$128.00
iS Clinical Youth Eye Complex
120 reviews
$120.00
SkinMedica HA5 Rejuvenating Hydrator
683 reviews
$184.00
The Bottom Line
The results of your skincare routine are only as good as the products you use, meaning that if you are not curating your skincare regimen to your skin type, you may not see much improvement in your skin. Rather than trying to figure out what's best for your skin, take the advice of skin experts and incorporate dermatologists' recommended skincare products into your daytime and nighttime routine to reap the benefits and enjoy healthier, more youthful, and better-looking skin.
Elise Minton Tabin is an award-winning beauty journalist, editor, and beauty expert with more than 16 years of experience. She previously held the title of Executive Beauty Editor at NewBeauty magazine, where she reported on beauty, plastic surgery, anti-aging, health and wellness. She was also instrumental in the launch of the beauty supplement brand Hush & Hush. A self-professed beauty junkie and retinol and sunscreen pusher, Elise knows what’s new, what works and who’s the best to go for every procedure under the sun. Follow Elise on Facebook, Instagram, and on her beauty blog, elisetabin.com
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