Intelligent Retinol 3TR.

"Their intelligent retinol is a supercharged one percent vitamin A night serum for $50. It contains fragrance from patchouli oil. It's basically just a retinol squalane serum with a short amount of ingredients, and it's overpriced. You could use The Ordinary's squalane retinol oil, or a lot of other brands' squalane and retinol serums, so you really don't need to spend $50 on it, especially with the fragrance in it. That was a clear pass for me."

"First up is the Medicaid Intelligent Retinol 3TR. As a brand, Medicaid just crushes it when it comes to incorporating retinoids or other actives into a skincare routine. I chose this specific retinol product from them for a few different reasons. One, it's 0.3% retinol. They definitely have higher strength of retinol that you can use, and I actually really love that because if you like this product and you use it and you tolerate it well, you can work your way up in retinol strength, but I would begin here. Two, I love that this is a serum. A lot of people don't want their retinoid incorporated in a thick, creamy moisturizer; they want it in a serum form so they can layer it with their other skincare products, and this really allows you to do that. Three, this product uses their time-release technology, so not all of the retinol is just released on your skin at once; it is slowly released over time, and that reduces the risk of having irritation. I find that the serum is lightweight but still feels really nourishing, and for oily skin types or even combo skin types who are not looking for a rich, heavy product that has retinol in it, I think this is an awesome option."