Dr. Somji Skin has reviewed more than 10 moisturizers, and his approval rate sits at 75%. Most products made the cut, but the ones he passed on are worth knowing about. He looks at ingredients first, and value for money is never far from his mind.
What does Dr. Somji Skin recommend in moisturizers?
A clear thread runs through the products he rated well: does the formula actually do what it promises? He praised the Rhode Barrier Restore Cream for sealing in moisture and working well after retinol, which matters for anyone with dry or reactive skin. He liked the Cetaphil Rich Hydrating Cream for being thick enough to stop moisture loss overnight, and called out its niacinamide, panthenol, and vitamin E. The INKEY List Bio-Active Ceramide Repairing & Plumping Moisturizer + Barrier Strengthening got a strong nod for its essential fatty acids and glycerin, which he said calm and nourish the skin barrier. The Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Acid Cream Moisturizer made such an impression that he started handing it out on set. And for anyone dealing with milia or bumpy texture, he pointed to the CeraVe SA Lotion for Rough and Bumpy Skin and its salicylic acid as a solid option at home.
In his words
"I'm going to apply the Rhode Barrier Restore Cream, [...] a great moisturizer that is absolutely key for me. This pairs really well and [...] seals in the moisture and locks everything in beautifully. It would be good because [...] if she was using things like retinol and dry skin, then she could lay this on afterwards."
"This is a rich night cream from Cetaphil which is much thicker. It's still got the nice niacinamide, the panthenol, the vitamin E in it, but it's really going to stop any moisture loss because it's thicker in texture."
"The INKEY List is great at repairing the skin barrier. It's got loads of essential fatty acids, triglyceride, and glycerin in this product. It's fantastic for nourishing that barrier and just calming the skin down."
"I have this, it's prescribed to me and I've had it for a really long time, but it's the Epiduo Gel, fantastic. It's proven for acne and breakout, changed the game for me."
"I use the LANEIGE Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Acid Cream Moisturizer. I take it, rub it, and lather it all over. Literally the first time I used this, I woke up and I thought my skin was a baby's bottom, it was so soft. Because everyone's skin was so dry while we were filming, I ended up getting a bunch of their moisturizers and products for the rest of the cast, and in the trailer for hair and makeup, and everyone started using them and becoming addicted."
"If you want to treat this at home then using things like CeraVe SA Lotion are a great option because it's got salicylic acid in there that prevents buildup of milia"
How many moisturizers has Dr. Somji Skin reviewed?
Dr. Somji Skin has reviewed 16 moisturizers, for an approval rate of 75%. 12 approved, 0 mixed, and 4 skipped.
What has Dr. Somji Skin skipped in moisturizers?
The products he passed on share one problem: the price does not match what is in the bottle. He looked at the Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide Cream and found the peptides so far down the ingredients list that he called it, in practice, an olive oil cream. He said the same of the Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream Rescue & Recovery Moisturizer. It feels pleasant, he said, but nothing in the formula is likely to change your skin, and the price puts it up against clinic-grade products that outperform it. He also flagged the La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5 with a caution: layering something that thick risks clogging pores, which is worth knowing for anyone prone to breakouts. And the Clinique Clarifying Lotion One drew a specific concern about witch hazel, which he said can make already-sensitive skin more sensitive over time, plus artificial colouring in the formula.
"Now if you put olive oil in your skin it's going to feel like this, it'll feel good. But hey, you are overpaying for this product. You know it's marketed as a polypeptide cream, but the peptides are so low down on the ingredients list that it may as well not be a peptides cream. It's basically an olive oil cream."
"It feels nice as a product but there's nothing in these ingredients that are going to do anything for your skin. The ingredients are probably not going to change your skin. It's all about the price you're paying. If you're going to be paying like kind of High Street prices, these are great formulations but these are the same prices as some of the things that I stock in my clinics and my patients would kill me because they'd say look, my skin hasn't done anything."
"La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5, which is really popular, some people put this on like nappy rash, all sorts of things, is a soothing repairing cream but if you layer this, if you layer anything too thick, it's going to be comedogenic. So there's a word of warning and cautiousness. I wouldn't put it in any products now because there's so many other things that you can add, you've got olive oil derived ceramides to help with the barrier, for instance."
"On their website it's designed for people with very dry sensitive skin. [...] If we look at the ingredients of this clarifying lotion, it does have witch hazel in it, which [...] I'm not a big fan of because of the tannins involved and how it can actually make sensitive skin like this a little bit more sensitive over time. It does have coloring in there with yellow coloring and blue coloring, which is a little bit disappointing."
What should you take from Dr. Somji Skin's picks?
Dr. Somji Skin's read on moisturizers comes down to ingredients over image. He is generous when a formula earns it, but he will say plainly when a product charges premium prices for ingredients that do not back it up. For dry or sensitive skin, his approved picks lean heavily toward barrier-supporting formulas with ceramides, fatty acids, and gentle occlusives. And if you are eyeing something at a high price point, his record suggests it is worth checking where the hero ingredients actually sit on the label.
Watch Dr. Somji Skin say it
Every verdict here comes from a video. These are the moments themselves, each one jumping straight to the bit about that product.
- Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide CreamSkipped itWatch at 15:10
- Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream Rescue & Recovery MoisturizerSkipped itWatch at 17:34
- La Roche-Posay Cicaplast Baume B5Skipped itWatch at 6:16
- Clinique Clarifying Lotion OneSkipped itWatch at 5:49
- Rhode Barrier Restore CreamRated itWatch at 7:33
- Cetaphil Rich Hydrating CreamRated itWatch at 4:57
- The INKEY List Bio-Active Ceramide Repairing & Plumping Moisturizer + Barrier StrengtheningRated itWatch at 2:36
- Epiduo GelRated itWatch at 16:34
- Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Acid Cream MoisturizerRated itWatch at 13:08
- CeraVe SA Lotion for Rough and Bumpy SkinRated itWatch at 3:19
- Cetaphil Daily Facial MoisturizerRated itWatch at 4:51
- Cosmelan 2 CreamRated itWatch at 3:19
- The Ordinary Natural Moisturizing Factors + HARated itWatch at 2:26
- Clinique Moisture Surge 100H Auto-Replenishing HydratorRated itWatch at 10:02
- CeraVe SA Cream for Rough and Bumpy SkinRated itWatch at 4:56
- CeraVe Daily Moisturizing LotionRated itWatch at 10:53
About this expert
See everything Dr. Somji Skin has reviewed
Expert rankings
Related guides
This guide reflects what Dr. Somji Skin said across his videos about 16 products in moisturizers, aggregated by The Guru Index. Sponsored takes are excluded. The approval rate is the share of these products he approved. It is general information, not medical advice.