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La Mer

Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream.

La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream
Moisturizers

About this product

A rich, occlusive moisturizing cream designed to hydrate and soften the skin, formulated with the brand's signature marine complex and petrolatum.

Best for

Type

MoisturizersCream

Key actives

Vitamin E

Formula notes

Contains drying alcohol

Full ingredients

Guru Score

48%

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9 experts · Strong agreement
9Gurus
1Approved
1Mixed
7Skip

What the gurus are saying

The texture is luxuriously thick and leaves skin with a soft, natural finish, but gurus are nearly unanimous that the price does not match the results or ingredient quality. Fragrance compounds like eucalyptus and lemon, plus denatured alcohol, make this risky for sensitive and mature skin, where drying is the last thing you need. Most experts say you can find similar hydration and a far better ingredient list for a fraction of the cost, though one creator swears by it as a nightly treatment and notices a visible difference when she stops. The formula also differs by region: the German-made version has a more hydrating base than the US version manufactured in Mexico, so source matters if you do choose this.
Synthesized from 9 expert reviews · most recent take November 2025
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 takes Critical takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored
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"La Mer is one of the brands that sit under the Estee Lauder umbrella, and I feel like a lot of brands that were with Estee Lauder aren't doing as well or have completely gone."
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"I personally don't like it as a moisturizer. I think it's overpriced and there's better options out there. If you're looking for an affordable moisturizer and you're currently using La Mer, I'd say switch to any other product out there because the La Mer one, it's not that great to begin with in my humble opinion. There are actually two different versions of this product. If you're shopping in the European Union, the UK, or generally Asia and the Asian market, you will probably be experiencing the German manufactured version, which actually has a far better formulation base and a more hydrating formulation base than the US version. The US version, which is usually manufactured in Mexico, has quite a few differences in terms of their ingredient profile. The German manufactured version and its formulation are streets ahead of the Mexican, the US version of the product."
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"Remember it was like Embryolisse and like La Mer used to be like the go-to moisturizers you would use under makeup back in the day. I have a theory about that. The theory is there was we weren't in tune to all the other magical formulas that can work just as well, so it was like you know it took like a couple makeup artists on set to probably talk about it in a news article or magazine, and then it just started to spread and then no one wanted to take that next step to find the next best thing so we all just kind of followed suit. This is boring. It's so thick, not everybody needs a thicker. A really oily skinned client is not going to benefit from having La Mer under their makeup period. Skin prep is going to be different for everyone. The idea that La Mer is King for skin prep, no it's not."
All 2 takes from Mixed Makeup
Skin Tints, Skincare Prep, & the 5-Minute Face with Nikki La Rose
"Remember it was like Embryolisse and like La Mer used to be like the go-to moisturizers you would use under makeup back in the day. I have a theory about that. The theory is there was we weren't in tune to all the other magical formulas that can work just as well, so it was like you know it took like a couple makeup artists on set to probably talk about it in a news article or magazine, and then it just started to spread and then no one wanted to take that next step to find the next best thing so we all just kind of followed suit. This is boring. It's so thick, not everybody needs a thicker. A really oily skinned client is not going to benefit from having La Mer under their makeup period. Skin prep is going to be different for everyone. The idea that La Mer is King for skin prep, no it's not."
Reacting to Ariana Grande's Skincare & Makeup Routine with a Pro Makeup Artist! | Susan Yara
"La Mer, overpriced moisturizer but still nice and bougie. Rich, thick texture. It's like a natural skin finish, borders on being matte."
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"The ingredients, the irritants they put into here is your eucalyptus, your lemon, your janol linol hydroxy citronellol and citrol, those are all different types of fragrance. The problem is with these sort of long words that you might not be familiar with, you might not know it's fragrance that you're putting on your skin. You might just think these are good ingredients but actually if you ever see these words in any of your ingredients list, avoid using that product. And to be honest, when you open it, the second you smell it, you'll know that they've put in the irritants into the product. On top of this, they put in denatured alcohol. Why would you do that? Denatured alcohol is drying. It has a low boiling point, that means the second you put it on your skin it evaporates, but what it's also doing is taking away water from the top layer of skin with it. And if you have mature skin, your skin is already drier, it's already duller. The worst thing you want to do now is to make it even drier. Our moisturizer should be safe meaning no denatured alcohol, no fragrance, and no essential oils. It should also have a high ceramide ratio because we have less ceramides in our skin, that's what holds water in the top layer of skin."
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"La Mer helps soften the skin and helps your skin hold on to hydration, and it certainly can make your skin look better, but you could achieve similar results with something that is so much more affordable. If you're someone who is saving up for your skin care or for your skin care procedures, this is not the place to invest. However, if you're someone who has a lot of disposable income and you like these products and you enjoy using them, go ahead, but I don't think you can expect miracle results from these types of moisturizers."
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"La Mer, they're the brand that if you want to pay the equivalent of a house mortgage for a single product that about sums them up. They're extremely overpriced with some of the worst ingredient lists I have ever seen in skincare formulas ever, and they price themselves based off of this secret ingredient that they use when the majority of their formula you can find in a $3 moisturizer at the drugstore. I will not deny that La Mer feels nice on the skin, but the proof is in the ingredient list and the ingredient list does not measure up. I have tried it many times, did I buy it no, I cashed out on those mini sample sizes for so long, and it's no better than other products. I don't believe the hype."
Approved
"This is my nighttime moisturizer and as long as I'm not traveling I use this every single day. It took me years to just accept it because it's so freaking expensive, but on a refill program I got it down to 200 euros and I only use it at night so it lasts three or four months. I love it so much. This is the one luxury product that I buy over and over just because I notice a difference when I stop using it. It's got stem cell technology and my skin suffers if I don't use it. That's something I can't live without."
Top Pick: nighttime moisturizer
Mixed
"La Mer literally has petrolatum as one of their ingredients in their amazing moisturizer. $400 for this little tiny tube of seaweed and it has petrolatum in it."
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"It's fucking expensive. It's so expensive. Do I think it's worth the money? Not in my personal opinion. I believe there is a place for luxury skincare, and if you can afford it, use it. Enjoy yourself, pamper yourself. Do I think you can get amazing skincare for £3 or under five quid? 100%. Absolutely. People love La Mer. It's fine. I personally don't."
All 2 takes from James Welsh
Reacting to Ariana Grande's...Interesting Vogue Skincare Routine 💜 James Welsh
"It's fucking expensive. It's so expensive. Do I think it's worth the money? Not in my personal opinion. I believe there is a place for luxury skincare, and if you can afford it, use it. Enjoy yourself, pamper yourself. Do I think you can get amazing skincare for £3 or under five quid? 100%. Absolutely. People love La Mer. It's fine. I personally don't."
Viral Skincare Products & Their BETTER Alternatives - Tiktok Skincare Compilation
"La Mer, plain and simple, doesn't interest me at all, I understand the want and need for luxury skincare, I personally don't use a lot of it, I'm not going to badmouth those who do. What I will say is everybody I meet who uses it quite religiously always looks pretty flawless, but it's still not for me."
Common questions

Frequently asked.

What is La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream?

A rich, occlusive moisturizing cream designed to hydrate and soften the skin, formulated with the brand's signature marine complex and petrolatum.

Is La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream worth it?

Mostly no. Only 1 of the 9 gurus who reviewed it approve, which leaves it a Guru Score of 48%.

What is La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream's Guru Score?

La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream holds a Guru Score of 48%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 9 independent expert reviewers we have collected. At least one expert has named it a Top Pick in its category.

Who is La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream best for?

La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream is generally suited to dry skin.

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