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Aquafor

Aquafor.

Aquafor

About this product

A petrolatum-based occlusive ointment designed to seal in moisture, protect skin, and support healing of compromised or irritated skin.

Best for

Dry skinSensitive skin

The Guru Index verdict

86%

Approved

Approved · 86%
Guru Certified
Broad expert consensus
10Reviewers
10Approved
0Mixed
0Skip

What the gurus are saying

Gurus consistently praise Aquafor as one of the safest, most minimalist products for compromised skin, especially post-procedure (microneedling, laser, peels) and wound care. The thick, occlusive formula with minimal irritant ingredients is noted as ideal for barrier repair and dryness. One concern: lanoline in the formula may trigger eczema flares in sensitive individuals, though experts note this varies by person. A standout use case is lip care, where it's favored for lasting hydration overnight.
Synthesized from 10 expert reviews
Every take, in full

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

All takes Approved only Skip only Mixed only Hide sponsored
Approved
"The very basic, most safest way to do this at home is just hyaluronic acid for a couple more hours. When it starts getting dry, spritz it with mineral water and then you put on Aquafor. And you don't do anything else before you go to bed. You don't wash that off. You don't manipulate it. You don't do anything weird with it. You don't try to put on retinoids or actives or any sort of even cream that has any sort of scent in it, any perfume that is in there. It you're going to prolong your healing. So the basics are things that your body your skin is not going to react to. It's not going to be an active where it's going to be stingy. So basics, hyaluronic acid, mineral water, Aquafor, that's it. And leave that on. Don't do anything with it. Let it just do its thing."
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"The very basic, most safest way to do this at home is just hyaluronic acid for a couple more hours. When it starts getting dry, spritz it with mineral water and then you put on Aquafor. And you don't do anything else before you go to bed. You don't wash that off. You don't manipulate it. You don't do anything weird with it. You don't try to put on retinoids or actives or any sort of even cream that has any sort of scent in it, any perfume that is in there. It you're going to prolong your healing. So the basics are things that your body your skin is not going to react to. It's not going to be an active where it's going to be stingy. So basics, hyaluronic acid, mineral water, Aquafor, that's it. And leave that on. Don't do anything with it. Let it just do its thing."
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"best serum for immediately after microneedling Aquafor"
Approved
"Aquafor is just such a gentle product, but it is an ointment texture, so it's very, very thick. I apply it to specific dry areas or dry patches. Occasionally, like in the winter, the insides of my elbows sometimes will get dry and red, and a little bit of this does the trick and it seals in everything else underneath it. It's also a nice treatment for after peels and laser treatments because it's so gentle. It's got mineral oil, ceresin, lanoline alcohol, panthenol, and glycerin, so it's very low on the irritant scale and a little bit of it goes a long way. A tube like this will last a long, long time."
All 2 takes from No BS Beauty
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"Aquafor is just such a gentle product, but it is an ointment texture, so it's very, very thick. I apply it to specific dry areas or dry patches. Occasionally, like in the winter, the insides of my elbows sometimes will get dry and red, and a little bit of this does the trick and it seals in everything else underneath it. It's also a nice treatment for after peels and laser treatments because it's so gentle. It's got mineral oil, ceresin, lanoline alcohol, panthenol, and glycerin, so it's very low on the irritant scale and a little bit of it goes a long way. A tube like this will last a long, long time."
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"Aquafor is a really nice product with a very minimal ingredient list, so it's great if you did like a laser treatment or had an aesthetician peel or something like that. After I did one of the laser treatments, I had these little boxes and I tried to put on something else to soothe it, but I think the preservatives or slip ingredients in it caused it to be irritating, so I wiped it off and I put the Aquafor on and then it was all good."
Approved
"He's right to use only Aquafor really for a few weeks. You don't want to go in with a 10 step routine. It's basically a wound. It's an open wound."
All 2 takes from Dr. Vanita Rattan
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"He's right to use only Aquafor really for a few weeks. You don't want to go in with a 10-step routine. You can't, it's basically a wound. It's an open wound."
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"He's right to use only Aquafor really for a few weeks. You don't want to go in with a 10 step routine. It's basically a wound. It's an open wound."
Approved
"Aquafor, which is petrolatum jelly, is one of the least irritating things that you can use on the skin and it will basically help to replenish your skin and get it back on track and purge out any of the things that were causing the sensitivity in the first place. It's just basically a great reset."
Approved
"I like to use it around the eyes. When I have tears that run down, this is a little landing area for my tears. I wake up with redness and irritation there. If I do not fall asleep with a small amount of Vaseline or Aquafor there."
All 2 takes from Dr. Daniel Sugai
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"I like to use it around the eyes. When I have tears that run down, this is a little landing area for my tears. I wake up with redness and irritation there. If I do not fall asleep with a small amount of Vaseline or Aquafor there."
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"Aquafor is a great thing for wound care and has a lot of different uses. If you have a cut or scrape, I like petrolatum whether it's Aquafor. They make a body spray and you just hold it a few inches away from your skin and spray it. For wound care, totally use petrolatum for a non-infected wound to help protect it and then cover it with a Band-Aid. If you want to slug and get a little dewy finish, apply a petrolatum ointment over say your moisturizer or your hydrating serum, especially on the cheekbones, just a pea size amount and you can really glow up and get a nice dewy finish. If you have really oily skin or if you're dealing with acne you might want to avoid slugging because you don't want to clog the pores. If you're using acne medications like say retinoids or prescription retinoids, you don't want to occlude with a generous layer of ointment like petrolatum because that will really seal it in, it might do too much and penetrate too far and cause irritation. If you have dry cracked heels, when your skin is damp so you get out of the shower, layer a nice generous layer of Aquafor or spray over your heels and put a sock over it, go to bed, the next day your heels would be nice and fresh and smooth."
Approved
"A little while after completing my evening skincare routine, I would apply a thin layer of ointment all over my face. I was really surprised to find the next morning that my skin wasn't tight or dry. It felt healthy and hydrated. I went from using Vaseline to Aquafor to Caravee to Prequel because each of them was more elegant than its predecessor."
Approved
"She's doing Aquafor, that's about the best that you can do at this point. There's no infection so stay away from triple antibiotic, stay away from Neosporin. You can also use plain Vaseline or my personal favorite on wounds like this is Dr. Rogers Restore."
Approved
"I personally have been using Aquafor, which is about 41% petrolatum, on my lips for over a decade at this point. This is my main lip balm. I personally like Aquafor because it has the right mix of additional humectants and emollient ingredients in addition to the occlusive petrolatum. I also feel like it's long lasting. That's why it's my favorite for lips. It lasts me all night long. I never wake up to dry and parched lips."
Top Pick: lip balm
All 2 takes from Kelly Driscoll
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"I personally have been using Aquafor, which is about 41% petrolatum, on my lips for over a decade at this point. This is my main lip balm. I personally like Aquafor because it has the right mix of additional humectants and emollient ingredients in addition to the occlusive petrolatum. I also feel like it's long lasting. That's why it's my favorite for lips. It lasts me all night long. I never wake up to dry and parched lips."
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"I personally have been using Aquafor, which is about 41% petrolatum, on my lips for over a decade at this point. This is my main lip balm. You don't need special lip balms and lip masks and sleeping lip treatments, just use a petrolatum-based ointment. I personally like Aquafor because it has the right mix of additional humectants and emollient ingredients in addition to the occlusive petrolatum. I also feel like it's long lasting, and that's why it's my favorite for lips. It lasts me all night long. I never wake up to dry and parched lips."
Approved
"Beyoncé has perfect skin with this and one report says that she applies Aquafor to her skin every night. Applying a moisturizer to your skin isn't necessarily going to give you younger skin although it can help to plump up any wrinkles."
Approved
"You can also use Aquafor, an ointment that's petroleum jelly, mineral oil, lanoline. It's a great option as well. You don't necessarily have to use plain petroleum jelly, but it is like the most cost-effective thing. When it comes to wound healing whether it be a blister, a cut, keeping the wound bed moist and hydrated is the name of the game so that those new skin cells can migrate in and fill in the defect."
All 2 takes from Dr Dray
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"Aquafor is an excellent excellent ointment to cut down on transepidermal water loss and help facilitate barrier recovery. But the lanoline in there can be problematic in the situation of patients who have underlying eczema. It's not necessarily that lanoline is bad that you must avoid it, but it's about understanding how this ingredient could be a problem for subsets of people, especially in certain situations where they are in the midst of a flare of eczema."
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"You can also use Aquafor, an ointment that's petroleum jelly, mineral oil, lanoline. It's a great option as well. You don't necessarily have to use plain petroleum jelly, but it is like the most cost-effective thing. When it comes to wound healing whether it be a blister, a cut, keeping the wound bed moist and hydrated is the name of the game so that those new skin cells can migrate in and fill in the defect."
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