The Best Vitamin C Creams Deliver Brightness and Bounce

Sure, an ingredient like vitamin C (like most others) is deserving of a more concentrated formula like a vitamin C serum, but creams are great, especially if you’re seeking more intense hydration alongside the other aforementioned benefits. Here are the 7 best vitamin C creams, moisturizers, and oils that’ll help keep your skin looking radiant day in and day out.

Best Overall: Then I Met You Bong² Bounce Cream

Why it’s worth it: From the pretty baby-blue packaging to the marigold hue inside, Then I Met You Bong² Bounce Cream feels like a little jar of sunshine, both visually and in what it does for your skin. Hallabong (a vitamin C-rich citrus fruit) from Korea’s Jeju Island helps brighten and even skin tone while protecting against environmental stressors. The bouncy, gel texture is packed with barrier-boosting ceramides, sea buckthorn oil, and hydrating squalane, so it sinks in like a dream and leaves your skin looking dewy, hydrated, and smooth. And while it’s made with honey—a natural humectant with antibacterial perks—it sinks in beautifully without leaving your skin oily or sticky.

Best with SPF: Perricone MD Vitamin C Ester Photo-Brightening Moisturizer SPF 30

Why it’s worth it: A great moisturizer has to multitask—absorbing quickly, delivering deep hydration, and smoothing fine lines. Perricone MD’s Vitamin C Ester Photo-Brightening Moisturizer SPF 30 does all that and more, combining a brightening dose of vitamin C ester with mineral-based SPF for daytime protection. The oil-free formula feels lightweight on the skin and won’t clog pores, making it ideal for acne-prone skin types or those avoiding excess shine. It also includes alpha lipoic acid, a powerful antioxidant that helps reduce the look of fine lines and wrinkles, especially helpful for mature skin. Best of all, it glides on effortlessly and sinks in like a dream.

Best for Uneven Texture: Sunday Riley C.E.O. Afterglow Brightening Vitamin C Gel Cream

Why it’s worth it: Although vitamin C is an eternally beloved and hyped ingredient, a lot of products don’t deliver on its magical brightening properties. On the bright side, Sunday Riley’s C.E.O. Afterglow Brightening Vitamin C Gel Cream—similar to its predecessor, C.E.O. Vitamin C Brightening Serum—is a radiance-making standout that makes skin feel practically reborn. After just a few weeks of twice-daily use, this sunshine-yellow jelly made senior news editor Nicola Dall’Asen’s skin plumper, more even-toned, and brighter—so much so that she often skips her usual highlighter because her skin glows on its own.

Best for Sensitive Skin: Belif Aqua Bomb Brightening Vitamin C Cream

Belif

Aqua Bomb Brightening Vitamin C Cream

Senior editor Jesa Marie Calaor after applying the Belif Aqua Bomb Brightening Vitamin C Cream

Why it’s worth it: Like gossip in a group chat with your best friends, skin is best when it’s extra juicy—and that’s exactly what you get from Belif’s Aqua Bomb Brightening Vitamin C Cream. This glow-boosting formula is packed with Vitamin C to brighten skin, moisture-locking hyaluronic acid, and soothing vitamin E to deliver glassy, bouncy skin. It doesn’t stop there—this cream also smooths the look of pores, giving you that coveted smooth finish. Plus, “Vitamin C’s effectiveness increases when combined with other antioxidants, such as vitamin E,” explains New York City-based board-certified dermatologist Patricia Wexler, MD, in a previous interview with Allure. This means it essentially doubles your defense against free-radical damage.

Best for Dry Skin: Biossance Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil

Biossance

Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil

Why it’s worth it: The Biossance Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil—a Readers’ Choice Award-winning and editor-beloved facial oil from Biossance—nourishes skin like a dream, thanks to a beyond-luxurious base of rose-infused squalane. Samantha Fisher, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in Palm Beach Gardens, FL, has previously confirmed that squalane can “aid in skin-care problems wherein the skin barrier is disrupted and transepidermal water loss is an issue,” which includes conditions such as eczema, acne, and even psoriasis. With continued use, the luxe oil offers firming benefits and promotes smooth skin texture.

Best for Dark Spots: Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare Vitamin C Lactic Dewy Deep Cream

Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare

Vitamin C Lactic Dewy Deep Cream

Why it’s worth it: Dullness, dryness, and uneven texture are common skincare concerns, and Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare Vitamin C Lactic Dewy Deep Cream is designed to tackle them all. The standout ingredient, 3-O-ethyl ascorbic acid, is the most effective, stabilized form of vitamin C that penetrates deeply to reduce hyperpigmentation, fine lines, and wrinkles, while delivering a noticeable plumping effect. Meanwhile, squalane, niacinamide, and lactic acid work together to strengthen your skin’s barrier and prevent water loss, leaving your complexion smoother, softer, and dare we say dewy. It builds on the same award-winning formula as the brand’s beloved Dr. Dennis Gross Vitamin C Lactic 15% Firm & Brighten Serum, which nabbed an Allure Best of Beauty Award, for radiant results that speak for themselves.

Best for Dullness: Kat Burki Vitamin C Intensive Face Cream

Kat Burki

Vitamin C Intensive Face Cream

Why it’s worth it: Fun fact: Kat Burki is a clinical nutritionist who brought her background in healing and cellular regeneration to skincare, so it’s no wonder her Vitamin C Intensive Face Cream is a standout among derms. “Kat Burki Vitamin C Intensive Face Cream is deeply hydrating and contains stabilized 15% vitamin C as well as colloidal silver, which supports a healthy skin barrier,” says Claire Wolinsky, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in New York City. “It’s rare to find a cream-based formulation of vitamin C skin-care as effective and nourishing as this.” The rich (yet never greasy) texture melts right in, helping to brighten, firm, and revive the skin, making it a go-to for achieving glowing skin without irritation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which vitamin C cream is the best?

Look for one that pairs vitamin C with other ingredients. Vitamin C is its standout ingredient, yes, but it works beautifully alongside niacinamide. While niacinamide works to combat hyperpigmentation, minimize the look of pores, and reduce excess oil production, vitamin C targets discoloration and free radical damage for smoother, more even skin, says Dr. Yadav.

Is vitamin C cream good for older skin?

In short, vitamin C products are great for older skin. Aside from being a potent antioxidant, vitamin C has anti-inflammatory properties that stave off discoloration, brown spots, and melasma. The ingredient is also responsible for stimulating collagen production and works well when paired with other finicky ingredients like retinol.

For those with skin of steel, a higher concentration of vitamin C as an active ingredient can be well-tolerated. Most treatments that fall into the 10 to 15% range, per Minnesota-based board-certified dermatologist Jenny Liu, MD.

Which topical vitamin C is best?

Because there are quite a few different forms of vitamin C, choosing the best kind for your skin-care routine can get a tad tricky. Ascorbic acid (also known as L-ascorbic acid) is the most potent of the bunch, but it does come with a few qualms—namely, it’s not always well-tolerated, especially by those with sensitive skin, says Dr. Yadav. It’s also notoriously unstable (a.k.a. it’s prone to oxidizing over time, which can affect its efficacy), so choosing formulas that are housed in dark bottles and generally storing them in cool, dark places is key.

If you’re prone to sensitivity but still drawn to the ingredient’s laundry list of benefits, Dr. Yadav recommends seeking out tetrahexyldecyl ascorbate, one of the gentlest forms of vitamin C, because it absorbs nicely into the skin while keeping it moisturized, she says.

Finally, ascorbyl tetraisopalmitate is “more stable than traditional ascorbic acid in cosmetic formulations,” Joshua Zeichner, MD, director of cosmetic and clinical research at Mount Sinai in New York City, previously explained.

Meet the experts

• Geeta Yadav, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Facet Dermatology in Toronto
• Patricia Wexler, MD, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Wexler Dermatology in New York City
• Samantha Fisher, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in Palm Beach Gardens, FL
• Jenny Liu, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in Minnesota
• Joshua Zeichner, MD, director of cosmetic and clinical research at Mount Sinai in New York City
• Claire Wolinsky, MD, a board-certified dermatologist of Spring Street Dermatology in New York City

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