What is the best night cream for over 50

The 15 Best Night Creams of 2022, According to Dermatologists

Here, we present a curation of dermatologists' most recommended overnight companions.

Allure/Clara Hendler

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When you love all things skin care as much as we do, you can't help but look forward to eradicating every trace of our makeup and dirt at the end of a long day with an indulgent double-cleanse, followed by our p.m. routine — night cream being the proverbial cherry on top.

Just as people debate the necessity of an eye cream (use one, please!), not everyone's convinced that you should invest in a nighttime moisturizer in addition to the one you already slather on in the morning. But to all the naysayers, we'll just let the pros do the convincing: "We lose water in the skin at night, so nighttime is all about locking in moisture," Mona Gohara, M.D., associate clinical professor of dermatology at the Yale School of Medicine, tells Allure. 

South Florida-based board-certified dermatologist De Anne Harris Collier , M.D., agrees, adding that research has shown that repair of DNA-damaged skin cells peaks, skin cells turn over more quickly, and there are increased rates of skin blood flow and skin permeability at night. "All the more reason to apply a great night cream to take advantage of the skin's innate repair system," she says.

Dr. Gohara says that people often layer retinoids before they go to sleep, so adding a night cream on top is the perfect way to really lock it all in while contributing additional beneficial ingredients. And because retinoids can cause sun sensitivity, nighttime is the best time to use them and other photosensitizing ingredients, Dr. Collier adds, like alpha hydroxy acids. And remember, come morning, "you must apply a broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher daily, especially when using retinol as part of your skin regimen," Dr. Collier says.

Here, we present our favorite overnight companions to ensure you wake up with glowy and hydrated skin that's ready to take on the day. 

All products featured on Allure are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

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  Dr.Jart+ Cicapair Tiger Grass Sleepair Intensive Mask

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  Fresh Floral Recovery Calming Mask

  Feeling a little sensitive? Then cool and calm your skin with the help of Fresh's 2022 Best of Beauty-winning Floral Recovery Mask. This thick, buttercream-textured mask treats your skin with moisturizing squalane and brightening vitamin C to address dryness, discoloration, and irritation all at once.

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  SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2

  According to Dr. Gohara, SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore 2:4:2 is the move to make if you're looking for a good night cream. "It infuses skin-identical fatty acids into the barrier in the exact proportion that naturally exists in our barrier," she says. Dr. Gohara uses this one personally, applying it nightly on top of her retinoid to wake up with glowy results every day.  

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  No7 Pure Retinol Night Repair Cream

  No7 Pure Retinol Night Repair Cream combines the firming power of peptides with the undeniable impact of retinol. "Retinol and other retinoids have a wide variety of beneficial effects, including increased collagen production and enhanced cellular turnover, ultimately plumping the skin and improving skin texture," Dr. Collier says. If smoother skin is on your wish list, this cream should be on your shopping list.

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  Caudalie Vinoperfect Brightening Glycolic Night Cream

  "Brightening" may be in the name of Caudalie's Vinoperfect Brightening Glycolic Night Cream, but its ingredients do much more than that. "Nighttime moisturizers may include ingredients like alpha hydroxy acids, which retexturize and moisturize the skin," Dr. Collier says. That's exactly what the glycolic acid in this formula does, getting exfoliating assistance from papaya enzymes and hydrating help from squalane. The result is glowing, smoother, plumper skin.

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  Garnier Green Labs Retinol-Berry Super Smoothing Night Serum Cream

  Retinol doesn't have to be expensive, and considering Garnier Green Labs Retinol-Berry Super Smoothing Night Serum Cream serves the purpose of a night cream, serum, and eye cream, it saves that much more money. The non-drying formula is a great way to introduce retinol into your nighttime routine for the first time, thanks in part to niacinamide keeping skin calm and supporting the retinol's tone-evening abilities.

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  Fenty Skin Instant Reset Overnight Recovery Gel-Cream

  One of our favorite refillable beauty products, Fenty Skin Instant Reset Overnight Recovery Gel-Cream is ideal for anyone — of any skin type — whose top priority is moisture. The noncomedogenic, luxurious yet lightweight formula features hyaluronic acid, aloe, and Kalahari melon oil to attract, supply, and lock in hydration. You'll wake up glowy, but not shiny, as its niacinamide keeps greasiness at bay.

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  Laneige Water Sleeping Mask

  Consider Laneige's Water Sleeping Mask a tall glass of H2O for your skin. This jelly-textured overnight treatment contains ionized mineral water to hydrate. Apply a dime-sized amount before you sleep and you'll look glowy in the morning. It dries down matte, so no worries about getting your pillows gooey when you go to bed.   

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  First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Hydra-Firm Night Cream

  First Aid Beauty's Ultra Repair Hydra-Firm Night Cream is a thick and creamy formula that melts into the skin like butter. It's made with colloidal oatmeal to calm redness, sodium hyaluronate to attract moisture, and niacinamide to even out the skin's tone and texture.  

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  Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide Cream

  Drunk Elephant's Protini Polypeptide Cream is all about boosting collagen to give skin some bounce. To do this, it relies on the brand's proprietary signal peptide complex, which consists of amino acids to firm and plump. There's also pygmy waterlily stem cell extract to moisturize and soybean folic acid ferment extract to maintain elasticity.  

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  CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion

  Three key ingredients for night cream are hyaluronic acid, niacinamide, and peptides. You'll find all three in CeraVe's dermatologist-loved Facial Moisturizing Lotion. Hyaluronic acid is a moisture magnet and is great for deep overnight hydration, and niacinamide is excellent for sensitive, blotchy skin, and rosacea. Peptides are, in general, excellent to feed the skin overnight while in the repair stage.  

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  Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Night Moisturizer

  The Best of Beauty award-winning Neutrogena Rapid Wrinkle Repair Night Moisturizer (and its serum counterpart) aren't just some of the best nighttime skin-care picks you can pick up at a drugstore — they're some of the best night products period, no matter the price point. "Not all retinol products are created equal," Joshua Zeichner, M.D., director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, says. "The technology used in this product stabilizes the retinol, minimizes irritation to the skin, and enhances efficacy.”

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  Differin Restorative Night Moisturizer

  Dermatologists are huge fans of Differin's adapalene gel because it makes an effective retinoid available over the counter, but the brand's Restorative Night Moisturizer is nothing to sneeze at either. Its soothing allantoin was included with retinoid users in mind, but it benefits anyone whose skin could use a little calming down. And with its hyaluronic acid and ceramides, it promises you'll wake up to more hydrated, fortified skin.

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  Aveeno Positively Radiant Overnight Hydrating Facial Moisturizer

  Another budget-friendly Best of Beauty Award winner is none other than Aveeno's Positively Radiant Overnight Hydrating Facial Moisturizer, which works to lock in moisture for an all-day glow while you, well, don't. Consider us sold.

• Olay Regenerist Night Recovery Cream

  Don't let the drugstore price fool you — Olay's Regenerist Night Recovery Cream holds its own against the pricey stuff. The super-hydrating formula is packed with hydration and exfoliates to aid surface cell turnover, and its intense moisture hydrates throughout the night to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.   

Marci Robin is a contributing editor at Allure. She previously served as senior beauty editor at GoodHousekeeping.com, executive editor of xoVain, and senior online editor at NewBeauty; her writing has also appeared in publications such as InStyle, MarthaStewart.com, and Refinery29. She graduated from Florida State University with a degree... Read more