Night Creams That Are Like a Fairy Godmother For Your Skin
There's nothing like a night face cream to supercharge your sleep. The skin-cell renewal process peaks during the night hours, as our skin switches from its daytime protect mode to its nighttime repair mode. But while this is a time for our skin to rest and naturally recover, it is also a time when our skin can potentially use a helping hand. Our skin is more susceptible to moisture loss during the night hours when sebum production (the process by which our skin produces moisture-trapping oil) slows down. This puts our derma at a disadvantage when it comes to ensuring it's able to hang on to those hydrating molecules. If you've ever skipped your nighttime moisturizer and awoken with tight or extra-dry feeling skin, that might be why. So what's a gal to do? It's simple: Find the best night cream for your skin concerns and get in the habit of applying it religiously. Whether your skin is dry, combination, oily, or stressed, there's a nighttime moisturizer to match your needs. Also keep in mind that there are certain times when your skin might need an even more potent boost of hydrating, line-plumping, soothing, or softening benefits, which is where our picks for night face masks come in. Take a gander through these nighttime moisturizers and find the glow-getting solution your skin has been dreaming of.
Related Items
Laneige Water Sleeping Mask
BUY IT: $25; sephora.com
When your skin is giving you a case of the dulls, give it a boost with this fan-favorite sleeping mask. One of the major culprits of sallow-looking skin is lack of moisture. Slather on this mask before hitting the pillow and full hydration, courtesy of skin-care hero hyaluronic acid, is just a sleep away. And to help you drift off, it calls on the brand's Calming Sleepscent (an infusion of rose, sandalwood, and orange flower) that's designed to calm and soothe the senses, while evening primrose and apricot extracts increase skin luminosity.
Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide Moisturizer
BUY IT: $68; sephora.com
You can use this super calming cream a la carte, or as a mix-in with your go-to bedtime skin-care regimen. It packs a punch of peptides, amino acids, and growth factors that improve signs of aging (think texture and firmness) while acting like a moisture-loving glue so not a hint of hydration escapes.
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Hydra-Firm Night Cream
BUY IT: $40; sephora.com
If you have nightmares about waking up with dark circles (again), give this ultra-rich cream with sodium hyaluronate (an ingredient that smooths and boosts hydration) and niacinamide (used for restoring texture and tone of skin while bringing back that youthful bounce) a try. It also calls on colloidal oatmeal to calm stressed skin, which makes it a perfect choice for pairing with other heavy-duty skin-care ingredients like retinol.
Belif Aqua Bomb Sleeping Mask
BUY IT: $34; sephora.com
If you're looking for a night cream that feels like it's not even there, this isn't it. But, trust me, if it's hydration and I-can't-believe-it's-this-soft skin is what you're after, you won't bat an eye at a little extra layer of formula sticking around while you catch your z's.
Kiehl's Since 1851 Ultra Facial Overnight Hydrating Mask
BUY IT: $38; sephora.com
Wake up to baby-soft skin after a night spent cuddling up with this moisture-packing mask. To increase the appearance of skin elasticity and overall youthful plumpness, glycerin pulls moisture molecules to the surface, while squalane (an ingredient that mimics the skin's natural oils in its moisture-retaining powers) ensures that hydration sticks around for the long haul.
Olay Regenerist Retinol 24 Night Facial Moisturizer
BUY IT: $28.99; target.com
For a retinol with all the benefits and significantly reduced irritation—and at a price point that won't make you cringe—Olay's Retinol 24 line is unmatched. This super rich formula absorbs quickly to penetrate deep into the skin's surface for maximum results. It's bolstered with vitamin B3 to help reduce signs of retinol-related irritation so all your left with is results.
RoC Multi Correxion 5 in 1 Restoring Night Cream
BUY IT: $24.49; target.com
When you lighten dark spots, while refining skin texture and boosting hydration, you'll find a complexion that looks like it's turning back the sands of time. This cream does it all, plus lifts, reduces wrinkles, and evens skin tone thanks to the brand's exclusive resorcinol-based technology that gives the skin's natural nighttime renewal process a major boost of productivity.
CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion
BUY IT: $9.49; target.com
Skin-barrier repairing ceramides and line-plumping, hydration-boosting hyaluronic acid star in this lightweight moisturizer that certainly holds its own among the lineup of best drugstore night creams. Like all CeraVe products, this one was developed along with dermatologists, so you know you can count on the non-irritating and hypoallergenic promises.
No7 HydraLuminous Overnight Recovery Gel Cream
BUY IT: $14.99; target.com
Oily skin types, this one's for you. This gel-cream absorbs into the skin nearly on contact, leaving no sticky residue behind. But, don't let the invisible feel fool you: It provides a deep boost of hydration and coats the skin in protective antioxidants thanks to a powerhouse combination of benefits from vitamins E and C, and mulberry extract—a skin-brightening ingredient derived from mulberry trees.
L'Oreal Paris Age Perfect Anti-Sagging + Even Tone Night Moisturizer
BUY IT: $12.49; target.com
This formula bolstered with innovative soy seed proteins, rich in skin-firming and skin-tone evening amino acids, is formulated for women age 50+. It goes to work while you snooze so you wake up to a younger, brighter looking complexion.