CYoung has reviewed more than 30 products aimed at mature skin, and her record sits at an approval rate of 55%. That means roughly half made the cut and the rest did not. She is particularly outspoken about products she considers overhyped, and she names names.
What does CYoung recommend for mature skin?
When CYoung approves something, there is usually a practical reason behind it. The Innisfree Black Tea Youth Enhancing Serum she calls her Holy Grail and says she has bought it multiple times, as has her mother in her sixties. IOPE Super Vital Cream she now uses as both her face cream and her eye cream at night, saying everything else feels too light by comparison. She recommends the COSRX 6 Peptide Skin Booster Serum for all skin types and has done so for about two years. The Haruharu Wonder Centella 4% Tranexamic Acid Dark Spot Go Away Serum she praises for its gel formula. It sits lightly enough for oily and acne-prone skin, and for anyone in a warmer climate who usually finds dark-spot serums too heavy.
In her words
"This is my Holy Grail, the Innisfree black tea ample, so famous, a high moisturizing ample. [...] I used it about two years ago and loved it so much that I gave it to my mom, who is in her sixties with very dry skin, and she used it too. This is the product with the highest repurchase rate, and I'm not the only one, when I look at reviews there were a lot of people who bought it a few times. The texture is awesome, it's very moist and spreads well."
"The IOPE Super Vital Cream is amazing, it even works as an eye cream, but it's not sold at Olive Young. These days my nighttime eye cream and face cream is this, I've stopped using other options because everything else feels too light. I'm using the IOPE Super Vital Cream, it gives so much glow, and for my skin I don't feel much tingling around my eyes, so I use this thick cream for my face and as my eye cream too."
"I have recommended this cosrx peptide serum for about two years now, all skin types can go ahead and use it. It has multi-peptides in it and feels like a watery toner, but it's amazing if you pair it with a retinol, no problem at all."
"After testing it and [...] using it continuously, I think this line works pretty great. I felt like an eye cream has to actually work like an eye cream, if it's too light, like Beauty of Joseon, why even use it, it dries too quickly. This one works like a proper eye cream and it contains 50 different peptides, which definitely helps slow aging. I'd put this in S tier. However, if you have oily combo skin and live in tropical weather, even young skin can find this one a bit heavy."
"This dark spot serum has a gel formula, so if you live in a tropical country and never liked sticky products, or you have oily acne prone skin, you will love it. There is no problem adding it to your skincare routine because it is not too heavy, everybody can handle it. It has tranexamic acid and is very low irritant, and they also have a 4 percent version."
"What I really like it and repurchasing many times is the Abib toner pad. This one I like it much more liquid and bigger. So after I put this one at my restroom and then after I shower, I just while drying my hair, I just put it here for the quick sheet mask and still doesn't dry out. So it's great. Using for all skin types, totally recommended and pretty much doing the promotion a lot at Olive Young too."
How many products has CYoung reviewed for mature skin?
CYoung has reviewed 33 products for mature skin, for an approval rate of 55%. 18 approved, 7 mixed, and 8 skipped.
What has CYoung skipped for mature skin?
Several Medicube products land firmly in skipped territory for her. She calls the Medicube Collagen Jelly Cream the worst of all the moisturizers she tested, saying it feels like Vaseline and does not actually hydrate from the inside. The Medicube Collagen Night Wrapping Mask she describes as uncomfortable to wear overnight, hard to apply without a brush, and no more hydrating than a normal serum. She also skipped the Anua Collagen Retinol Refining Gua Sha Cream on value grounds, pointing out that once the cream is gone the packaging is rubbish, and that one proper gua sha tool will outlast any of these. Her word on all three is the same: save your money.
"This has the highest hydration level of all sixteen moisturizers I tested, but it feels almost like Vaseline. I cannot understand why people love this. If you have oily combo skin you will really hate it, it just feels like putting on Vaseline. It has a thick, occlusive texture but I do not feel like it is actually moisturizing on the inside. It is just a viral product, so if you only listen to one thing from me, save your money and skip this one. It is the worst of all the products I tried."
"I've been asked about beauty devices, especially the Medicube ones. I tried it and it's not worth the money, so I just resold it. I think you don't really need it, and actually if your skin is more sensitive, more mature, or more dry, using it can make things even worse. Using a device like that every day for a couple of months isn't as effective as going to a dermatologist and getting something done, so I don't think it's worth that much."
"It's a small amount for the price, and it looks amazing on the skin the moment you put it on, but it's very uncomfortable while you're wearing it because you have to leave it on the whole night. There's too much stimulus on the skin and the texture is runny, so if you don't have a brush you can't even apply it properly. On top of that, the hydration is nothing more than what you'd get from a normal serum. [...] Save your money."
"Anua calls this a collagen and gua sha cream for the face. It's basically the same as the Medicube one, just a different color but the same shape, even the packaging [...] and the twist mechanism are the same. It's a little expensive, about thirty dollars, and it's kind of fun, but please don't waste your money buying both. [...] Why waste money on a single use gua sha shaped cream like this? Once the cream is gone it's trash, just buy one proper gua sha tool that lasts forever instead."
What should you take from CYoung's picks?
Her category winners are the Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Bakuchiol Eye Cream and the Abib Glutathiosome Dark Spot Vita Touch Toner Pads, the latter a product she says she keeps repurchasing. Her praise across the board tends to go to things she has actually used long enough to trust. And when something is more hype than result, she says so plainly.
Watch CYoung say it
Every verdict here comes from a video. These are the moments themselves, each one jumping straight to the bit about that product.
- Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Bakuchiol Eye CreamNamed a winnerWatch at 8:11
- Abib Glutathiosome Dark Spot Vita Touch Toner PadsNamed a winnerWatch at 2:50
- Medicube Collagen Jelly CreamSkipped itWatch at 1:40
- MedicubeSkipped itWatch at 30:29
- Medicube Collagen Night Wrapping MaskSkipped itWatch at 1:47
- Anua Collagen Retinol Refining Gua Sha CreamSkipped itWatch at 8:54
- Purito Tranexamic Acid 6% Niacinamide 10% Retinaldehyde Toning Booster SerumSkipped itWatch at 3:11
- Medicube PDRN Pink Collagen Gel MaskSkipped itWatch at 2:35
- Skin1004 Probio-Cica Enriched CreamSkipped itWatch at 13:16
- Estée Lauder Futurist Hydro Rescue FoundationSkipped itWatch at 8:10
- Innisfree Black Tea Youth Enhancing SerumRated itWatch at 9:18
- IOPE Super Vital CreamRated itWatch at 4:01
- COSRX 6 Peptide Skin Booster SerumRated itWatch at 11:50
- Numbuzin No.9 NAD+ Retinol Volumetox Eye CreamRated itWatch at 7:27
- Haruharu Wonder Centella 4% Tranexamic Acid Dark Spot Go Away SerumRated itWatch at 10:44
- K-Secret Soul 1988 Eye Cream Retinal Liposome 4% and Fermented BeanRated itWatch at 8:26
- COSRX Retinol 0.1% CreamRated itWatch at 12:04
- Medicube PDRN Pink Collagen Capsule CreamRated itWatch at 10:44
- Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum: Ginseng + RetinalRated itWatch at 13:54
- Medicube PDRN Pink Peptide SerumRated itWatch at 2:33
- Equalberry Bakuchiol Plumping SerumRated itWatch at 6:25
- Skin1004 Madagascar Centella Probio-Cica Bakuchiol Eye CreamRated itWatch at 9:57
- Missha Perfect Cover Serum BB CreamRated itWatch at 5:15
- VT PDRN Essence 100Rated itWatch at 13:37
About this expert
See everything CYoung has reviewed
Related guides
This guide reflects what CYoung said across her videos about 33 products for mature skin, aggregated by The Guru Index. Sponsored takes are excluded. The approval rate is the share of these products she approved. It is general information, not medical advice.