The 15 Best Face Creams For Dry Skin 2023
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The 15 Best Face Creams For Dry Skin 2023

If the changing weather is playing havoc with your skin, help is on hand...

The search for the best face cream for dry skin ends here. Browse our round-up of the best luxury moisturisers on the market right now, and follow our steps to finding the best face cream for your skin type…

The Country & Town House Responsible Buyers’ Guide

The Best Face Creams for Dry Skin

Is your skin struggling to keep up with the changing British weather? Now is the time to invest in a hydrating face cream. But how do you find one that’s right for your skin?

The first thing you need to do is to diagnose your skin’s needs. A trip to your dermatologist is a good idea so that they can identify any specialist needs or problem areas. Face mapping will break down exactly where your skin needs extra hydration, has excess sebum production or where you’re suffering from congestion.

Face Cream For Dry Skin

While many face creams rely on oils to hydrate skin, there are a couple of other ingredients to keep an eye out for in your moisturiser. Hyaluronic acid occurs naturally in the human body, but depletes as we age. It works by drawing moisture to the outer layers of the skin, and can hold up to 1,000 its weight in water. Added glycerin in your face cream absorbs and retains water and helps to maintain the skin’s outer barrier (epidermis), preventing dryness and flaking.

Dr Om Prawarisa, founder of OM skincare says: ‘Oil, butter and glycerine are basic ingredients to look for as moisturising ingredients.

‘Biotechnology yeast is a more advanced ingredient. It has the capacity to intensely reactivate the synthesis of missing epidermal lipids, especially ceramides (ceramides are specifically deficient in the case of dry skin) and cholesterol. Larch tree extract (Galactoarabinan) works to enhance the skin’s barrier properties. Clinical testing has shown its effectiveness for reducing TEWL (water loss from skin).’

Ingredients To Avoid

‘Alcohol, salicylic acid based and targeted acne products these can dry out your skin,’ warns Dr Om Prawarisa. ‘Especially for those who have very dry skin, Salicylic acid breaks down fats compounds in the skin. This could make your skin even drier and lead to flaking.’

Three-Step Skincare Regime

Simply finding the best face cream for dry skin won’t banish your skincare issues. It’s important that you take care of your skin with a regular cleanse, tone and moisturise routine (or a routine that works for you). Cleansing regularly with a treatment cleanser such as Liz Earle’s Cleanse & Polish, or Eve Lom’s hero Cleanser helps keep your complexion hydrated, as well as banishing daily dirt and grime.

Noella Gabriel, Co-Founder and Creator or ELEMIS Therapies also recommends adding a serum or oil into your routine. ‘It is important to choose a hydrating moisturiser as hydration and moisturisation are key. But dry skin cannot be overcome by a moisturiser alone.

‘After cleansing and toning, introduce a serum or facial oil into your routine like the Elemis Cellular Recovery Skin Bliss Capsules to nourish the skin daily and use a moisture boosting mask twice weekly.

‘When it comes to your moisturiser, make sure it hydrates but also gives you good protection such as Pro-Collagen Marine Cream Ultra Rich. This has been proven to increase moisture levels in the skin and reduce the appearance of wrinkles. This will plump up the skin and take away immediate dryness. I also suggest having a night cream in your routine. This is because while your skin is resting it’s also peak time for cell renewal replenishing vitamins lost during the day.

‘It is important for someone with dry skin to avoid soap, high alkaline products and products with alcohol. All of these deplete the body of any natural oils and feed into skin irritations and dehydration.’

Face Creams To Shop Now

Armed with advice from the experts, now’s the time to indulge in some retail therapy. Shop the edit below…

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A line of yellow bottles with gold lids

Opalore

Best For: The skin microbiome

The Brilliance Cream N.5 Nourish 50ml, £320, harveynichols.com

This has to be one of the newest and most innovative creams available. We all know how important gut health is; now let’s start focusing on the skin microbiome. Skin bacterial diversity changes with age and Lactobacillus (which promotes healthy hydration) decreases massively. After studying 18,000 skin microbiome samples, the boffins have proved that this rich cream restores the L-word, offering super intense hydration and moisture to the skin —treating advanced wrinkles and regenerating ageing cells. It’s hard to better it for dry and postmenopausal skin.

Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream

Augustinus Bader

Best For: Deep hydration

The Rich Cream 100ml, £430, augustinusbader.com

Cult beauty brand Augustinus Bader has garnered a whole host of A-list fans over the past few years – from Victoria Beckham to Gigi Hadid and Meghan Markle. The eponymous founder spent 30 years researching skin healing and tissue repair, which led to creating a treatment for burn victims. He later applied his learnings to commercial skincare, masterminding products like The Rich Cream, a luxurious moisturiser renowned for its restorative and anti-aging effects.

Open silver tub of face cream with lid

Natura Bisse

Best For: Anti-aging

Diamond Extreme Cream (Rich), £335, naturabisse.com

Feedback on Natura Bisse’s skincare lines is always positive, but the new Diamond Extreme Cream goes one step further when it comes to hydrating skin and eliminating visible lines and wrinkles. The moisturiser, which blends together lipids, antioxidants and the brand’s Smart Energy Complex, delivers a big energy boost that helps to lift and firm skin while leaving it feeling soft and supple.

White box with moisturising crean sachets

Noble Panacea

Best For: Fortifying skin

Active Replenishing Moisturizer, £330, noblepanacea.com

Keen to make you skin feel stronger and healthier? Noble Panacea’s rich moisturising cream acts as a second skin to create a protective shield over the facial area, fortifying against free radicals and fatigue to prevent signs of aging caused by oxidation stress. The result? Firmer, hydrated and more luminous skin.

Bounce Back Moisturiser

Trinny London

Best For: Firming skin

Bounce Back Moisturiser, £49, trinnylondon.com

This refillable moisturiser from Trinny London has taken washbags by storm since its launch in 2022, with users praising its ability to give skin a ‘bounce back’ moment. Powered by peptides, hyaluronic acid and phytosphingosine, the cream helps to plump up and firm skin while smoothing out wrinkles.

Eve Lom Moisture Cream

Eve Lom

Best For: Winter dryness

Moisture Cream, £85, evelom.co.uk

Clinically proven to leave skin feeling hydrated for up to 72 hours, this cream from Eve Lom is ideal for use during biting winter weather. Made for use on all skin types, the cream works to strengthen the skin barrier so that your facial area can stay protected from external pollutants and harsh weather – leaving you feeling refreshed, and your skin looking smooth and dewy.

Biossance Squaline and Omega Repair

Biossance

Best For: Vegan skincare

Squaline and Omega Repair, £45, cultbeauty.co.uk

Free from parabens, PEGs and fragrances, this vegan facial cream uses a ‘cocktail of hydrating ingredients’ to plump the appearance of fine lines, improve the skin’s natural barrier and replenish dull-looking complexions. Key ingredients include hyaluronic acid to help retain moisture, as well as super-hydrating shea butter.

Aurelia Cell Revitalise Day Moisturiser

Aurelia

Best For: Boosting collagen

Cell Revitalise Day Moisturiser, £62, aurelialondon.com

Fancy a complexion reboot? Promising to plump fine lines by boosting your collagen output, this moisturiser from Aurelia is a bit of a wonder when it comes to culturing a youthful glow. Skin is left feeling dewy and hydrated, as well as firmer and more equipped to battle the elements.

Omega+ Complex Moisturiser

Paula’s Choice

Best For: Dull-looking skin

Omega+ Complex Moisturiser (Travel Size), £14, paulaschoice.co.uk

This handy-sized moisturiser should take pride of place in your overnight bag, as it delivers a boost luminosity on-the-go while restoring the moisture balance around your facial area. Boasting a blend of omega-rich chia and flax seeds (great for replenishing moisture), soothing passion fruit and guava antioxidants and ceramides, this cream will keep hydration locked in and repair the damages that come with dry skin.

Dr Sebagh Supreme Night Secret

Dr Sebagh

Best For: An overnight fix

Supreme Night Secret, £195, drsebagh.com

Prefer to let your skincare work its magic while you sleep? Well, you’re in luck. British skincare label De Sebagh has formulated the ultimate moisturiser to help you wake up to radiant skin. Working with your skin’s natural body clock, this moisturiser promises healthy, glowing skin from the first use.

Best face creams for dry skin

Clinique

Best For: Long-lasting hydration

Moisture Surge, from £13, clinique.co.uk

This lightweight, oil-free gel-cream moisturiser from Clinique is great for all skin types, delivering a hydration boost that gets to work in seconds and lasts hours. Featuring ingredients like moisture-binding hyaluronic acid and responsibly sourced aloe water, as well as a blend of vitamins C and E, this cream helps your skin create its own internal water source so that it continually rehydrate itself before locking in moisture for a consistent glow.​

Best face creams for dry skin

Elemis

Best For: Intense hydration

Pro-Collagen Marine Cream Ultra-Rich, £89, elemis.com

B Corp brand Elemis brings to the table a deeply moisturising cream that not only nourishes and soothes dry skin, but also helps to reduce the appearance of fine lines using a combination marine algae and cocoa butter. Skin will be left feeling well and truly moisturised for up to 24 hours after application.

Emma Hardie Midas touch face cream

Emma Hardie

Best For: Smoothing

Midas Touch Revitalising Cream, £44, emmahardie.com

As the legend goes, everything Midas touched turned to gold – and it’s fitting that this wonder cream from Emma Hardie takes up the title. The cream features a blend of natural oils to help moisturise and soothe skin, as well as plenty of vitamin E to build up a string skin barrier against external toxins. Expect plumper skin in just over a week…

Best face creams for dry skin

La Prairie

Best For: A luxury treat

Skin Caviar Luxe Cream, £450, laprairie.com 

After an ultimate pamper session? Swiss caviar is the core ingredient of this ultra-hydrating cream from La Prarie, and is praised for its ability to help lift, firm and tone skin to leave it looking supple and rejuvenated.

Best face creams for dry skin

La Mer

Best For: Soothing irritated skin

Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream, £150, harrods.com

Whispered about among beauty circles as the ultimate soothing moisturiser, La Mer’s moisturising cream is ideal for those struggling with red, irritated skin caused by dryness. This cream will last throughout the day, delivering your needed hydration boost while firming up skin.

Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cream

Kiehl’s

Best For: All skin types

Ultra Facial Cream, £29, kiehls.co.uk

Kiehl’s is perhaps the ultimate provider of hydrating skincare products, so it shouldn’t be a surprise it’s popped up here on our list. The brand’s facial cream (it’s best-selling product) promises non-greasy, lightweight hydration for up to 24 hours, and is ideal for all skin typed – including those with sensitive skin.

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon