Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum

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 Yay takes Nay takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored

~Nay

"My biggest disappointment was Glow Recipe's freshly juiced vitamin C drop. I opened two brand new bottles and both turned yellow within days. I know vitamin C oxidizes but this one was way too fast, I felt like I was racing the bottle. I would skip it."

Dr. Vanita Rattan

1.23M subs

~Yay

"The fifth ingredient here is tetrahexyl decanoate. Well done. The sixth ingredient in here is tranexamic acid which is a lovely tyrosinase inhibitor. And they've added in 3-O ethyl ascorbic acid. So even though it's not in an airless pump, I actually really like the formula. It's £40. So it's not cheap, but what I would say is for this formula to be more effective, it should be in an airless pump. But actually, I quite like the formula."

No BS Beauty

89k subs

~Yay

"The Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum is $45 for 1 ounce. It also has tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, azelaic glucoside, apple, and vitamin E, so this is going to be the closest dupe. It saves you about 20 bucks. The packaging's kind of fun."

All 4 takes from No BS Beauty

Comparing Vitamin C Derivatives 🍊 Best Brightening Vitamin C Serums for Sensitive Skin

"Glow Recipe's Dark Spot Treatment Serum is actually pretty nice. It's on the pricey side of things but overall I can't really find any reason to knock it. This one uses five different types of derivatives, which is what I appreciate because if in 10 years we find out one of the derivatives was great and the rest didn't do anything, odds are you have the other four that are great or the other one that's great. It's got tetraxyl ascorbic acid for brightening, 3O ethyl sorbic acid, escoro glucoside, magnesium ascorbate phosphate, and sodium ascorbate phosphate. The magnesium ascorbate phosphate is apparently great for acne-prone skin."

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"The Glow Recipe Guava C and Ferulic Dark Spot Serum and the Mad Hippie Vitamin C Serum are the closest dupes and alternatives to this. I really quite liked it to be honest. In the summer, under sunscreen, on a regular basis, I prefer ascorbic acid, but this is a nice option for if your skin's sensitive or if your skin's feeling super dry. It adds some nice moisture and soothing benefits as well as brightening. It's formulated well, and this one's really nice. I do like a good derivative serum."

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"The Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum is $45 for 1 ounce. It also has tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, azelaic glucoside, apple, and vitamin E, so this is going to be the closest dupe. It saves you about 20 bucks. The packaging's kind of fun."

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"I typically don't talk about this brand a lot but the Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum, it's 45 bucks but this one is really nice because it uses I think five different versions of vitamin C and it doesn't have any scent to it which is nice. A lot of Glow Recipe products can be hit or miss for fragrance but this one overall is a pretty good product. So in here we've got tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, we've got tranexamic acid for brightening, 3-O ethyl ascorbic acid, ascorbyl glucoside, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, and then sodium ascorbyl phosphate. So that's 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 different vitamin C versions. So you know if you're going to bet money on the derivatives being as good as ascorbic acid you might as well go with something that uses all of them. And then yeah, then maybe if some of them don't show up to be that great then you're still good."

Dr. Jenny Liu

322k subs

~Yay

"If you're looking for a lipid soluble vitamin C that helps to brighten your skin as well as protect your skin, you got to check out the Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum. This is kind of like an all-in-one product that contains five different types of vitamin C derivative, including THD ascorbate, which along with pure ascorbic acid really has the most number of evidence when it comes to efficacy and working as an antioxidant, helping to brighten your skin and supporting collagen. It also contains vitamin C derived from guava extract, tranexamic acid that helps to offer some skin brightening properties as well as Vitamin E and ferulic acid. This is a great hydrating serum, really suitable for those that have more dry skin or maybe is sensitive to azelaic acid wanting an antioxidant serum at the same time, helping to target hyperpigmentation. So if you're struggling with hyperpigmentation but wanting an antioxidant serum that is more hydrating, I highly recommend checking this one out."

Top Pick: lipid soluble vitamin c serum

All 3 takes from Dr. Jenny Liu

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"It helps with evening out skin texture and skin tone but also can serve as a great antioxidant serum. If you're struggling with uneven skin tone, whether that's from post-acne marks or sun damage, you're looking for ways to minimize your routine, or just want to use an antioxidant serum in the morning that also has brightening benefits, I highly recommend this one. With the creamier, more hydrating texture, it's really not watery. It's definitely more of like a light lotion. I think it's better suited for everyone, but especially for those that have more dry skin or those that have sensitivity and can't tolerate the lower pH, watery version of pure ascorbic acid-based vitamin C serums."

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"I have to give it away to first guava vitamin C dark spot serum. This is one of the first I find fairly affordable lipid soluble vitamin C serum that I just fell in love with it. It is so elegant and I feel like it really does so many different things and it's not only an antioxidant serum but also has wonderful ingredients that helps to brighten skin. For those that wanting something to help with reducing oxidative stress in the morning but also at the same time struggling with uneven skin tone this is a great one. Lipoic vitamin C is also far less irritating. I love the hydrating texture of the serum. Ingredient wise it contains five different types of vitamin C so lipid soluble vitamin C, THD ascorbate along with other ones that helps to more mostly brighten but also contains guava seed oil that is rich in vitamin C, also has vitamin E, ferulic acid and then tranexamic acid that is one of my favorite ingredients for brightening and improving uneven skin tone. I love the pretty color of the serum and again it's very hydrating. So really ideal for those who are looking for a non-irritating vitamin C serum. For those who can't tolerate the traditional pure vitamin C looking for an antioxidant serum but at the same time help to brighten your skin improve uneven skin tone this is the one to try."

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"If you're looking for a lipid soluble vitamin C that helps to brighten your skin as well as protect your skin, you got to check out the Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum. This is kind of like an all-in-one product that contains five different types of vitamin C derivative, including THD ascorbate, which along with pure ascorbic acid really has the most number of evidence when it comes to efficacy and working as an antioxidant, helping to brighten your skin and supporting collagen. It also contains vitamin C derived from guava extract, tranexamic acid that helps to offer some skin brightening properties as well as Vitamin E and ferulic acid. This is a great hydrating serum, really suitable for those that have more dry skin or maybe is sensitive to azelaic acid wanting an antioxidant serum at the same time, helping to target hyperpigmentation. So if you're struggling with hyperpigmentation but wanting an antioxidant serum that is more hydrating, I highly recommend checking this one out."

AliceintheRabbitHole

59k subs

~Mixed

"This is the guava vitamin C serum. I bought it, finished it, and enjoyed it, it had the same problem as the guava eye serum where it's a little hard to get the last bit of product out. But I moved on from it because this tranexamic acid ingredient doesn't quite have a body of literature behind it that you might think it has given how popular it is. I'd rather go with something tried and true like L ascorbic acid instead."

Kelly Driscoll

90k subs

~Yay

"I love this one. Glow Recipe is hit or miss for me quite honestly, but this is one that actually really won me over. It is a fragrance-free formula which is somewhat rare for Glow Recipe, but I really like the ingredients in here. There's five different forms of vitamin C, they're using a lot of vitamin C derivatives in here, so this is like a really easy, chill formula. You don't have to keep it in the fridge, you don't have to worry about it oxidizing, you don't have to worry as much about the potential irritation of pure vitamin C. Also using some guava in here and they're using tranexamic acid, and it's great for brightening dark spots, which is exactly what this serum promises. I do feel like this serum delivers. I think that this is a really beautiful brightening serum. I think especially if you are acne prone, you're going to like this serum quite a bit. Really really good, really great at reducing redness as well. Glow Recipe always delivers on that experience. Even though there's no scent to this, I do love the color, the texture, the bottle. I think it's just really fun, I think it's really playful, and sometimes that's a really important element with skincare. It's not just about what it does, but sometimes it's about the experience."

Dr. Daniel Sugai

721k subs

~Yay

"Glow Recipe's guava vitamin C dark spot serum has a really nice texture to it, very silky smooth. You can put this on after cleansing and then follow up with your hyaluronic acid serum. You can do it in that order, it's a very popular way to use both hyaluronic acid and vitamin C. You can totally do that, they won't interact in a negative way, so you could cleanse, put your vitamin C serum, then your hyaluronic acid. If you were to flip it and put your hyaluronic acid on damp skin and then your vitamin C serum, it's fine, nothing bad's going to happen, it's going to be just fine. And if you want to double up on two lightweight serums, go for it."

The Budget Dermatologist

723k subs

~Yay

"Glow Recipe is such a fun little brand, and this also has several types of vitamin C in it. The most concentrated one is the THD ascorbate, so it's an option if you're looking for a vitamin C serum that's not quite as expensive as the Peter Thomas Roth but with that form of vitamin C in it, which is actually hard to find."

All 2 takes from The Budget Dermatologist

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"Glow Recipe is such a fun little brand, and this also has several types of vitamin C in it. The most concentrated one is the THD ascorbate, so it's an option if you're looking for a vitamin C serum that's not quite as expensive as the Peter Thomas Roth but with that form of vitamin C in it, which is actually hard to find."

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"This contains five forms of inactive types of vitamin C including THD, it also has 30 ethyl ascorbate, escoro glucoside, magnesium escoro phosphate, and sodium escoro phosphate all in this formulation. This also contains vitamin E and ferulic acid, and it contains tranexamic acid which helps treat melasma or dark spots. It does have a little bit of a fruity scent to it because it has some berry and fruit extracts in it. Overall a really nice product. I do recommend this. It is not my favorite because I love the more transparent ingredients listed better, but this is still a fun one and I like this because it has the THD in it."

James Welsh

1.58M subs

~Yay

"This time last year, I never used this. I barely used this product. I didn't really care about Vitamin C serums. I wasn't really interested. And I did mention, I said something like, I don't really hear people talk about this serum and I still don't, which after using this pretty constantly for the last three months, I don't know why, because this is such a nice serum. I don't really use Vitamin C serums for its evening of skin tone. I never truly find Vitamin C effective for that. The Tranexamic Acid in here, however, will do a really, really good job at that. As I mentioned in my anti-aging video, I am after the antioxidant power of a Vitamin C serum to team up with my sunscreen during the day and really fight that free radical damage that can break down collagen and elastin. And I hate Vitamin C serums. Well, not newer ones, but I have that old fashioned Vitamin C stereotype stuck in my head of hot dog water, stingy metallic Vitamin C serums. And this is anything but. This just feels like a really nice moisturizing, hydrating serum with the Vitamin C benefits. Usually I would recommend other things if you're looking to even out your skin tone, but if you are looking to even out your skin tone and get the antioxidant power of Vitamin C, this with the Tranexamic Acid in, I think you'll absolutely love. This is one I really love too."

All 4 takes from James Welsh

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"But there are amazing Vitamin C serums around nowadays. Glow Recipe, Naturium, Summer Fridays."

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"This time last year, I never used this. I barely used this product. I didn't really care about Vitamin C serums. I wasn't really interested. And I did mention, I said something like, I don't really hear people talk about this serum and I still don't, which after using this pretty constantly for the last three months, I don't know why, because this is such a nice serum. I don't really use Vitamin C serums for its evening of skin tone. I never truly find Vitamin C effective for that. The Tranexamic Acid in here, however, will do a really, really good job at that. As I mentioned in my anti-aging video, I am after the antioxidant power of a Vitamin C serum to team up with my sunscreen during the day and really fight that free radical damage that can break down collagen and elastin. And I hate Vitamin C serums. Well, not newer ones, but I have that old fashioned Vitamin C stereotype stuck in my head of hot dog water, stingy metallic Vitamin C serums. And this is anything but. This just feels like a really nice moisturizing, hydrating serum with the Vitamin C benefits. Usually I would recommend other things if you're looking to even out your skin tone, but if you are looking to even out your skin tone and get the antioxidant power of Vitamin C, this with the Tranexamic Acid in, I think you'll absolutely love. This is one I really love too."

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"I don't usually like vitamin C serums at all to be honest with you, but this one just feels like a nice hydrating moisturizing serum, and the smell I can never get over. It reminds me of something, I think it's almost like foam shrimp, you know, like shrimp and bananas kind of smell. I love it so much."

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"I'm gonna go in with the Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Serum from Glow Recipe. Unsurprisingly, I like this product from Glow Recipe a lot. I don't use a lot of vitamin C serums because I find them to be a little bit stingy sometimes, a little bit metallicky, strangely warm on the skin, and potentially very irritating for my skin as well. But this one's completely different. It just feels like a nice moisturizing serum, and it smells so good."

Dr Dray

2.69M subs

~Nay

"This brand is just like overhyped, Glow Recipe, let's put fruit juice in everything. This is a $45 hydrating serum with a bunch of humectants, fragrance, fruity extracts, and a peptide I'm not sure what it does. It's $45 for a guava vitamin C serum, and it has a variety of stabilized vitamin C derivatives, I'm not seeing actual ascorbic acid, probably because that's difficult to formulate and prone to degradation, so they use these derivatives which are not very well studied."

Dr. Shereene Idriss

1.72M subs

~Yay

"This one has a slightly pink tone to it, it smells like candy and you want to eat it. This particular product is actually a combination of five different vitamin C's including the tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, the 3-O ethylated form of vitamin C as well as sodium ascorbyl phosphate, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, and ascorbyl glucoside. They basically put all of the inactive forms of vitamin C in one product with niacinamide and vitamin E as well as ferulic acid in order to maintain its stability and hopefully offer some more antioxidant properties. This is an interesting product if you want a little bit of everything in one."

All 2 takes from Dr. Shereene Idriss

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"This one has a slightly pink tone to it, it smells like candy and you want to eat it. This particular product is actually a combination of five different vitamin C's including the tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, the 3-O ethylated form of vitamin C as well as sodium ascorbyl phosphate, magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, and ascorbyl glucoside. They basically put all of the inactive forms of vitamin C in one product with niacinamide and vitamin E as well as ferulic acid in order to maintain its stability and hopefully offer some more antioxidant properties. This is an interesting product if you want a little bit of everything in one."

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"Glow Recipe has their guava vitamin C dark spot serum at 45. I think it's a little misleading that you're going to just put vitamin C on the spot thinking that dark spot is going to go away. You could probably use it all over your face. It's a combination of tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate as well as 3-0 ethyl ascorbic acid and a few other derivatives."

Cassandra Bankson

2.45M subs

~Mixed

"The one that is the guava vitamin C, that one has no fragrance added, it's like a natural fragrance. That one can be a little intense though."

What the evidence says.

Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.

Vitamin C

Topical vitamin C is an antioxidant with reasonable evidence for dullness and uneven tone. It breaks down in light and air, so how a product is formulated and packaged matters as much as the percentage on the front.

Source: DermNet

Tranexamic acid

Tranexamic acid has a growing body of clinical evidence for melasma and the stubborn patches of pigment that other ingredients struggle with.

Source: DermNet

Humectants and emollients

Ingredients like these draw water into the surface layers and slow how fast it leaves. The evidence is for comfort, softness and hydration rather than for changing the structure of the skin.

Source: DermNet

Frequently asked.

What is Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum?

A hydrating vitamin C serum with five stabilized vitamin C derivatives, tranexamic acid, and guava seed oil designed to brighten dark spots and even skin tone.

Is Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum worth it?

The gurus are split. 8 of the 12 gurus give it their stamp of approval while 2 would skip it, which lands it in the middle at a Guru Score of 69%.

What is Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum's Guru Score?

Glow Recipe Guava Vitamin C Dark Spot Brightening Treatment Serum holds a Guru Score of 69%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 12 expert reviewers we have collected. At least one expert has named it a Top Pick in its category.