TotalBeauty.com average reader rating: 5.8* Why: This night cream has reviewers buzzing over their utter hatred for it. One woman says, "It is the worst thing I have ever tried on my face." Another agrees, saying "it made my skin break out, was itchy, and made me look as though I had never exfoliated in my life. HORRIBLE!" Multiple readers find it a "huge waste of time and money" and found it made them "break out like crazy." One reviewer says "it feels like you're applying hand sanitizer to your face. Leaves your skin feeling tingly, then a slight burning sensation, and dries down to a tight-feeling mess on your face. Doesn't provide any moisture, and left my skin feeling deprived." Overall: "Terrible product!"
TotalBeauty.com average reader rating: 5.2* Why: When you think of a night creme, the words, "grainy, thick putty" and "greasy" shouldn't be the first to come to mind. Unfortunately, readers agree this product "is not really a creme at all" and "is very thick, very greasy." One woman says, "This creme has the consistency of melted butter as it solidifies. It was horrible on my face." Others say its strong scent is a turn-off: "It seems to have way too much lavender oil" and it's "hard to sleep with this strong odor." One woman simply "had to take it back to the store."
TotalBeauty.com average reader rating: 4.7* Why: Isn't it ironic that the most expensive night cream on our list is also the worst? "This cream seems to fill up my pores and makes hard knots under my skin," says one woman. Another reader says it makes her "skin burn for hours because of the fragrance." Some say they don't "notice a significant difference in [their] skin" and it makes their skin "more sensitive to cosmetics." As far as texture, readers claim it "feels a bit heavy" on their face and is "not for people who don't like fragrance in creams." One disappointed reviewer simply says, "This just wasn't the miracle I was hoping for."
Before crawling under the sheets every night, you likely end your anti-aging skin care routine with a night cream in the high hopes of waking up to wrinkle-free, glowing skin.
So what happens when you wake up only to find red, blotchy patches or a wet, greasy sheen across your face?
Thankfully, thousands of readers have tested and reviewed hundreds of different night creams, and because we've faced a disappointing morning or two ourselves, we've compiled a list of the worst night creams ever. You know, so you can spend your money on the best.
Think you're too young to use a night cream or anti-aging skin care product? Not so fast. "Using a cream containing anti-aging ingredients like peptides, antioxidants, retinoids, and/or alpha hydroxy acids makes sense starting anytime from your late 20's to mid-30's, depending on how much damage your skin has already gotten from indoor or outdoor tanning, cigarette smoking, medical illnesses or stress," says anti-aging skin care expert Heidi Waldorf, M.D.
Please raise your hand if you don't suffer from stress ... yeah, that's what we thought.
If it's cost you're worried about, Waldorf assures us that there are excellent night creams at high and low price points. "Pick a product that works for your skin and your budget," she says. "You need to separate whether the higher price is due to packaging versus the quality and type of active ingredients and those in the base. For instance, ingredients like growth factors are complicated to produce and will increase the price. Other ingredients, like the antioxidant niacinamide, are more readily available," says the doctor.
Whether you choose a night cream for its moisturizing benefits or fine line reduction results, save yourself time and money by making sure it's not one of these.
