Index / What Works / James Welsh on dry skin

James Welsh on Dry Skin: His Category Winners and a Sharp Safety Bar

Across more than 130 dry-skin products, he approves most of what he sees, but his skips often come down to safety failures rather than formula boredom.

James Welsh · 115 products reviewed · 194 mentions analyzed · Last reviewed 14 October 2026
68%Approval rate
78 Yay15 Mixed22 Nay

More than 130 dry-skin products in, and James Welsh knows exactly what he is looking for. He approved about two in three of them and named a handful of outright category winners. His dry-skin record carries an approval rate of 68%. And when he rates something well, or skips it, he always tells you exactly why.

What does James Welsh recommend for dry skin?

One thing ties his approved takes together: the skin barrier. He looks for ingredients like squalane and ceramides, which help skin hold onto moisture. He also wants cleansers that rinse clean without leaving skin feeling tight or stripped. The Krave Beauty Matcha Hemp Hydrating Cleanser is what he calls his most-used cleanser ever. The Manyo Factory Panthenol Essence Toner is his go-to for calming redness and healing a damaged barrier. He has a texture preference too. His ideal moisturizer feels rich going on but melts into something lighter, so it hydrates without sitting heavy on the skin.

In his words

"Their honey mask is a product that I'm going to love like forever."
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"This is probably one of my most staple products ever. As in like, it's always coming back and forth in my routine. It's always a cleanser I fall back on. In fact, when I'm testing new products, it's one of the cleansers I use because I know how well my skin reacts to it. Great for when your skin is stressed out, you want to focus on maintaining the skin barrier. Matcha for antioxidants. We've got hemp seed oil in here as well."
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"It does have a slight fragrance, which has never been an issue for me. If you want glowy, dewy, well-hydrated, plumped-up skin without irritation or that sunscreen feeling, this one's perfect. I've been reaching for it nonstop over the vast majority of my sunscreen collection."
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"This is just one of the nicest most hydrating cleansers I've ever used and I don't usually team the term hydrating with a cleanser but when there's 50% glycerin in a cleanser it's obviously going to be hydrating. It's such nice texture. There's aloe, there's oat extract, arginine as well so all soothing and helping to support the skin barrier. You get your money's worth with this cleanser."
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"I don't care what anyone says or what your opinion is on Hailey Bieber as a person. This is good. This is a proper occlusive style balm moisturizer, kind of their version of the La Roche-Posay Cica Plast, but [...] in a much more cosmetically elegant way. It has a hyaluronic acid complex and polyglutamic acid which is [...] so nicely hydrating, murumuru butter, and ceramides for barrier support. It's designed to seal everything in overnight and it's really not that heavy as it sounds."
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"It's a very unique texture but it's so so nice. Whenever [...] I use thick masks I will wash my face the next day but to me that's just a sign that my overnight mask did a good job. Really unique, a really nice unique product. I feel like ABIB haven't been getting the attention that a lot of their products deserve and this could potentially [...] be their big viral product."
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How many products has James Welsh reviewed for dry skin?

James Welsh has reviewed 115 products for dry skin, for an approval rate of 68%. 78 approved, 15 mixed, and 22 skipped.

What has James Welsh skipped for dry skin?

The products he skipped fall into two groups: safety concerns and formula disappointments. He skipped the Drunk Elephant B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum after US regulatory notices flagged one of its ingredients. That ingredient can interact with preservatives to form potential carcinogens. He also skipped the Drunk Elephant Lala Retro Whipped Cream after testing found yeast and bacteria in the product. The Fenty Beauty Dew N Plump Hydrating Nectar Glow Serum he skipped for simpler reasons. The formula struck him as very basic, with nothing that made him think 'wow.'

What should you take from James Welsh's picks?

James Welsh is a precise reviewer. He takes product safety as seriously as he takes ingredient quality. His category winners are a strong place to start for dry skin. His approved takes tell the same story every time. He wants barrier ingredients and cleansers that do not strip. He wants moisturizers that melt into the skin rather than sit heavy on it. When he skips something, he tells you exactly why.

Watch James Welsh say it

Every verdict here comes from a video. These are the moments themselves, each one jumping straight to the bit about that product.

About this expert

James Welsh

See everything James Welsh has reviewed

Related guides

James Welsh on sensitive skinJames Welsh on oily skinJames Welsh on MoisturizersJames Welsh on Cleansers

This guide reflects what James Welsh said across his videos about 115 products for dry skin, 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.