Dr Dray has reviewed more than 160 products for mature skin. She approved most of them, gave about a quarter a mixed take, and skipped the rest. Her approval rate in this category is 60%, and she named a handful of products as her top picks. If you want a dermatologist's view to build your routine around, she has done a lot of that groundwork already.
What does Dr Dray recommend for mature skin?
The through-line in Dr Dray's approvals is vitamin A. She rates retinaldehyde, retinol, and adapalene as the dependable actives for mature skin, and all three are forms of topical vitamin A. She is most positive about products that also carry barrier-supporting ingredients like niacinamide and ceramides. A formula that hydrates as well as treats is one people can actually stick with. Consistent use is where the results come from. Her category winners cover a wide range. The Olay Regenerist Retinol 24 + Peptide Night Moisturizer is one. SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic is another. The investment-level Omnilux LED devices are a third, and she notes they only deliver results if used regularly.
In her words
"This Eucerin Q10 Anti-Wrinkle Face Cream is one of my favorites, it's totally underrated. At 13 percent, Q10 gets into the skin pretty well as an antioxidant. It can boost up the skin's endogenous antioxidant production, so it's a good ingredient. It's pretty well tolerated. This is just a nice rich night cream."
"Here's a product that's expensive that I actually love, it's the Josie Maran Argan Pro-Retinol with body butter. I hate the whole pro-retinol thing because there's really nothing in here that is evidence based for having retinol activity, but it is a really nice moisturizer, I love it, I love it, I love it."
"The Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Regenerating Cream, the fragrance-free one, I have been recommending for years and years and years. [...] I swear it has this instant plumping hydrating effect. And it likely has to do with the hyaluronic acid, which helps to improve the dryness, the irritation that one might experience from their very effective stabilized retinol. That's slow release, sustained action. That's a great formula with hyaluronic acid."
"Honestly, I do believe that this product has the potential to firm, brighten, exfoliate, moisturize and soothe. It also has collagen, which is very hydrating."
"I always recommend the Omnilux devices. That's what I use. They're fantastic. They're the ones who make the in-office devices. They put their devices through a lot of safety testing. So that's why I always recommend them over a cheaper device. They are an investment and I tell people this all the time. They only work if you use them. If you keep them in a drawer and you only use them on a spa night every so often, they're not going to do anything really. So they have to be used consistently."
"The Alpha Skincare 12% glycolic acid body lotion is a wonderful option. It's a really good product for moisturizing dry, rough skin texture, but with long-term consistent use may also help to improve the thickness of the skin, helping to visibly improve the appearance of crepey skin."
How many products has Dr Dray reviewed for mature skin?
Dr Dray has reviewed 166 products for mature skin, for an approval rate of 60%. 99 approved, 40 mixed, and 27 skipped.
What has Dr Dray skipped for mature skin?
Dr Dray was firm on growth factors. She reviewed The Ordinary Growth Factor 15% Solution and said growth factors do not hold up. At most, she said, they may be doing the work of a plain moisturizer. Spicule-based products like VT Collagen Reedle Shot 100 were also a skip. Her concern is foreign body granulomas, a skin reaction that can take decades to appear and is very difficult to treat. She also flagged retinyl palmitate, which is sometimes sold as a gentler retinoid option. In her view, it acts only as an antioxidant and does not deliver the collagen-boosting effects of a real vitamin A.
"I thought it looked like a nice emollient, lubricating stick, maybe like the Vaseline stick, but it smells not good, it is heavily heavily scented in a scent that lingers on the skin. It just puts out a stiff oily lubricant, it's not hydrating, it doesn't even give a gloss. You can use it on your lips but it doesn't end up making the lips very moisturized or hydrated. That scent lingers, it [...] makes the skin look greasy and shiny wherever you put it."
"Murad is charging 79 dollars for this and I don't think it's worth it, but it does have an ingredient people frequently ask me about, acetyl hexapeptide-8, otherwise known as Botox in a bottle or argireline. [...] In theory it could act like botox, but there's no way it's actually getting down to the neuromuscular junction to [...] relax and smooth out wrinkles like botox does."
"It [...] has ascorbic acid, which is [...] challenging to formulate so that it actually gets into the skin and does anything, plus some flower extracts that may have antioxidants, a peptide called argireline that they like to pretend acts like Botox [...] but it can't, so it's just hydrating there likely, and biotin, which I'm not convinced does anything topically. You get a travel size plus a full stick for 0.67 ounces total, and they're charging 58.99 for that."
"What do I think of this ingredient? I think it sounds too good to be true, it likely is. I've never used it, but honestly I would say the same exact thing even if I used it. I'm skeptical that this is doing anything to stimulate adipocyte differentiation in the face. You're applying it to the surface of the skin, how is that compound actually going to penetrate all the way into the skin, across the dermis, into the subcutaneous where the fat is, to influence fat cell differentiation?"
What should you take from Dr Dray's picks?
Dr Dray's record here is most useful when you are deciding whether a trending ingredient is actually worth it. Her category picks show that she rates genuine retinoids and proven devices over novelty. They include the Olay Regenerist Retinol 24 + Peptide Night Moisturizer, SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic, and Omnilux LED devices. What comes through in her takes is a preference for ingredients backed by real evidence. She also favors formulas that are tolerable enough to actually use long-term.
Watch Dr Dray say it
Every verdict here comes from a video. These are the moments themselves, each one jumping straight to the bit about that product.
- SkinCeuticals C E FerulicNamed a winnerWatch at 12:46
- Olay Regenerist Retinol 24 + Peptide Night MoisturizerNamed a winnerWatch at 8:15
- Omnilux LED devicesNamed a winnerWatch at 10:38
- Kahi Wrinkle Bounce Multi BalmSkipped itWatch at 4:20
- Murad Targeted Wrinkle CorrectorSkipped itWatch at 5:10
- StriVectin Super C Brightening Eye SerumSkipped itWatch at 15:56
- Sederma VolufilineSkipped itWatch at 15:09
- Augustinus Bader Rich CreamSkipped itWatch at 5:49
- VT Reedle Shot 100 CollagenSkipped itWatch at 8:30
- The Ordinary Growth Factor 15% SolutionSkipped itWatch at 7:55
- A313 Vitamin A Pommade (Retinol Ester)Skipped itWatch at 9:51
- Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair SerumSkipped itWatch at 1:07
- Peter Thomas Roth 24K Gold Hydra Gel Eye PatchesSkipped itWatch at 19:53
- Strivectin TL Advanced Tightening Neck Cream PlusSkipped itWatch at 13:46
- Perricone MD Face Finishing and Firming Tinted MoisturizerSkipped itWatch at 8:23
- Clarins Double Serum Complete Age-Defying ConcentrateSkipped itWatch at 9:05
- Sudden Change Under Eye Firming SerumSkipped itWatch at 9:49
- SkinBetter Science AlphaRet Overnight CreamSkipped itWatch at 3:46
- Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment SerumSkipped itWatch at 9:16
- Remedy Copper Peptide Complex Advanced Firming SerumSkipped itWatch at 3:35
- Medicube Collagen Jelly CreamSkipped itWatch at 12:38
- BellafillSkipped itWatch at 10:54
- L'Oreal Age Perfect Cell Renewal Midnight CreamSkipped itWatch at 7:51
- The Ordinary Volufiline 92% + Pal-Isoleucine 1%Skipped itWatch at 9:35
About this expert
See everything Dr Dray has reviewed
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This guide reflects what Dr Dray said across her videos about 166 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.