Experts advise using an anti-aging serum early in your 20s or 30s to protect yourself from fine lines, wrinkles and other signs of aging. At GH Beauty Editors we sourced our favorites by researching key ingredients, consulting dermatologists and reading customer reviews.
This formula combines firming retinol and brightening lactic acid for noticeable improvement of fine lines and wrinkles, even skin tone, smooth texture, as well as gentle lightweight application without parabens, mineral oil, phthalates or fragrance.
1. Kiehl’s Micro-Dose Retinol Serum
Kiehl’s Retinol Skin-Renewing Daily Micro-Dose Serum contains small but potency doses of pure retinol that deliver all the acne, fine line and wrinkle-fighting benefits of this ingredient with minimum discomfort. It helps fight acne breakouts while firming skin tone evenness and smoothing texture with just daily microdoses of pure retinol retinol treatment.
This anti-aging serum features a precise microdose of 0.1% pure retinol that works to accelerate skin surface turnover, visibly firming and evening out skin tone and texture. Paired with ceramides and peptides, its gentle yet visible youth-renewing results provide visible youth renewal results.
Kiehl’s Retinol formula stands apart from many other over-the-counter products by using pure Retinol, an organic form of vitamin A which converts directly to retinoic acid in skin, rather than other retinol esters such as Retinyl Palmitate or Retinal, which require multiple conversion steps and may lose potency along the way.
2. La Roche-Posay Retinol Booster
This pure retinol serum features two forms of vitamin A–pure retinol for concentrated support and time-released retinyl palmitate to reduce wrinkles, even out skin tone and texture, and combat acne breakouts. Dermatological testing ensures it’s suitable for all skin types.
This product boasts a lightweight, oil-free formula that feels hydrating while melting into your skin seamlessly without leaving behind residue or feeling oily. It’s especially helpful in minimizing dark spots and wrinkles while smoothing acne scars and reducing hyperpigmentation around eyes.
Beginners looking for their first try with retinol should start out slowly with this low percentage formula before progressing up to stronger concentrations like those found in Sunday Riley’s A+ High-Dose Retinol Serum or The Ordinary Granactive Retinol 2% in Squalane. When using any product containing retinol, sunscreen must always be worn daily as this could make the skin sensitive to sunlight and should always be applied before going outside.
3. Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Framboos Glycolic Resurfacing Night Serum
Resurfacing night serum that utilizes both AHA and BHA acids to exfoliate dead skin cells. With its blend of glycolic, tartaric, lactic, citric acids paired with raspberry extract and horse chestnut to refine and smooth your complexion while curbing excess oil for greater clarity and luminosity. Furthermore, this supplement enhances performance by clearing away obstructions to maximum absorption from other products.
Drunk Elephant takes an honest approach to beauty and skincare products, selecting only ingredients that are safe, effective and pure (no synthetic fragrances used!). Their focus includes maintaining optimal pH levels as well as small molecular actives that penetrate easily into skin tissue.
This serum’s high concentrations of AHA and BHA may produce an initial tingling sensation; this should eventually dissipate. We suggest starting off slowly by adding it every other night until your skin adjusts to it.
4. Skinfix Retinol Serum for Sensitive Skin
No7 Night Serum with Encapsulated Retinol hits the “sweet spot” for optimal effectiveness while minimising irritation, further enhanced by No7’s award-winning Peptide Blend and Bisabolol (an essential oil derived from Chamomile), to further soothe, reduce redness, and calm irritation.
This formula contains AHAs and BHAs like lactic acid, glycolic acid, citric acid, malic acid, white willow bark bark and meadowsweet that work to slough away dead skin cells that contribute to congestion and breakouts. Bakuchiol provides natural alternatives to retinol that promise similar results; helping refine skin tone texture as well as treat fine lines.
Contrary to most retinol products, this one is free from the so-called’suspicious 6′ ingredients (SLS, synthetic fragrance, dyes, chemical sunscreens and drying alcohols). Instead, it features 1% retinol combined with lightweight hydrators like glycerin, hyaluronic acid, lipids and passionfruit extract for maximum comfort without dryness or irritation.
5. Medik8 Super C Ferulic Serum
Note: Medik8 C-Tetra, now known as Medik8 C-Tetra, is an advanced serum designed to target 4 signs of aging: wrinkles, dark spots, uneven skin tone and dullness with its powerful visible brightening, nourishing and anti-ageing blend.
At the core of it all lies 30% Ethylated L-Ascorbic Acid, a potency Vitamin C derivative with superior stability compared to pure, unstabilised Vitamin C that degrades quickly in air and light, plus skin-nourishing Vitamin E Ferulic Acid and Turmeric Root Extract to prevent pigmentation marks by blocking their enzyme of creation.
This formula glides effortlessly over skin, infusing it with high-performance actives that deliver immense antioxidant activity and neutralise pollution and sun damage to produce an astonishingly radiant, youthful-looking complexion. Scentd with Geranium Extract known for its toning and balancing benefits on skin.
