The Best Water Based Moisturizers For Sensitive Skin

If you want your skin to stay healthy and young looking, a water based moisturizer is your best bet. When compared to standard creams or lotions, these formulas are simpler to apply since they’re more absorbent and often have a less greasy consistency. They’re also useful for combating the effects of wind and cold on your skin, two of the most common causes of dryness.

In terms of skincare, moisturizer is an absolute must. You can use it to keep your skin from drying out and peeling, to hide the signs of aging like fine lines and wrinkles, to treat skin conditions like acne and eczema, and simply because it feels wonderful. A moisturizing cream is virtually a lifesaver if you have dry skin or have been dealing with patchiness or dryness concerns as a result of the weather or just getting older.

Lightweight, non-greasy, and simple to apply, water-based moisturizers are the way to go. They work well for dry, oily, and sensitive skin. Moisturizers with a water base composition have several advantages over their oil-based competitors, but they are also abundant in today’s cosmetic industry. To help you sift through dozens of products, we rounded up the best water based moisturizers.

Light and non-comedogenic, Tatcha’s The Water Cream Oil-Free Pore Minimizing Moisturizer is ideal for everyday usage. It has a pore-minimizing, breakout-preventing, and skin-clearing water cream base. In addition to providing nourishment and hydration, your skin will have a soft, dewy radiance after using this product.

This formula is great for those with sensitive or acne-prone skin since it contains only natural ingredients and is devoid of parabens and sulfates.

According to one buyer, “I truly feel that this is one of the best creams out there for my skin type. It doesn’t have an SPF, but you can layer it well with one, and it goes well under foundation; as it won’t cause it to pill, which I love!”

Namesake Skincare’s The Daily Moisturizer is an ultra-light cream that firms, moisturizes, and plumps the skin rapidly. It’s loaded with polyhydroxy acids, which slowly slough off dead skin cells for a fresher, smoother appearance. The skin’s ability to heal and repair itself is greatly aided by the presence of important fatty acids and antioxidants, both of which are abundant in rosehip oil. The stem cells found in the butterfly bush plant aid in making the skin seem more even in tone and work to improve the skin’s protective barrier.

This moisturizer may be used morning and night on a freshly washed and dried face. The cream should be massaged into the skin until it is completely absorbed, and then sunscreen may be used if desired.

“I can’t recommend the daily moisturizer enough. The weight of it is just right which will make it my first all-season moisturizer,” stated one user. “It feels great on my skin and a little goes a long way. I plan to purchase some as gifts.”

Plum Plump Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizer from Glow Recipe is a whipped gel-cream that works to hydrate, plump, and balance the skin. It’s infused with three antioxidant-rich plums to instantly revitalize your complexion. The recipe also includes five hyaluronic acid weights, each of which penetrates deeper into the skin to plump it.

This lightweight moisturizer is gentle enough to use morning and night, which makes it ideal for all ages—even sensitive skin!

“My skin has become much more supple and plump since I started using this. I used to have dry spots in a few areas on my face that would get flaky, especially in the colder months, but this keeps my face well moisturized and not greasy or shiny at all,” shared one reviewer.

A water-based moisturizer, LANEIGE’s Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream Moisturizer has a noticeable firming effect and helps fortify the skin’s moisture barrier. The fermented blue hyaluronic acid in the product, together with the deep-sea algae extract and microfiltration technology, creates a combination that provides the skin with the utmost in next-generation hydration while also calming any irritation.

Backed by Sydney Sweeney, the renowned Euphoria actor shared, “Every day I use the Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Serum and Cream Moisturizer. I really like that I can go all day without my skin feeling dry or tight.”

This moisturizer is formulated with hyaluronic acid, a powerful ingredient that helps keep your skin looking plump and hydrated. For supple, hydrated skin that looks and feels radiant, it also contains a nourishing extract of damask rose.

The result? A formula that not only relieves dry skin immediately but also helps to fortify the skin’s natural barrier. It’s ideal for anybody who prefers applying a moisturizer on a daily basis, from skincare vets who want a way to keep their delicate complexions nourished to those who just enjoy everyday usage of a moisturizer.

“Love this moisturizer. It keeps my skin well moisturized for a whole night and aí never feel that tightness from drying. The scent is fresh and light the consistency of the cream is thick but glides not in a meaty form,” says one buyer.

In order to achieve suppler, smoother skin all day long, Kiehl’s created its Ultra Facial Moisturizing Cream with Squalane. For suppler, smoother skin all day long, use this ultra-hydrating face cream that also works to fortify the skin’s moisture barrier.

Glycerin is a key ingredient that works to both lock in moisture and smoothes out your skin. Squalane, a fatty acid generated from human sebum, helps fortify and guard against environmental harm such as free radicals from the sun or pollution.

This water-based moisturizer has a gel-creamy texture, rapidly refreshes and cools the skin, and has high concentrations of hydrating ingredients. The True Cream Aqua Bomb features an infusion of exotic ingredients like antioxidant-rich lady’s mantle which helps neutralize skin-damaging free radicals.

While it doesn’t leave your skin feeling sticky or clogged up, the cream provides intense hydration. Its moisturizing composition, which helps skin to breathe freely after being applied properly, also gives instant cooling relief from hot and humid weather.

Waso’s Shikulime Mega Hydrating Moisturizer is a potent hydrating moisturizer that gradually enhances the plumpness and glow of the skin. The dryness that causes roughness and eventually fine lines, wrinkles, and sagging skin is reduced as the product profoundly hydrates for up to 48 hours. Shikwasa lime extract is used in the formulation to support healthy skin and fortify the skin’s defenses against skin conditions including eczema and dermatitis.

The cream is suitable for everyday use as it absorbs quickly and leaves no oily residue.

“This moisturizer is perfect to use when you feel like your skin needs extra hydration,” explained one reviewer. “I love that it has a lightweight scent so it’s not overwhelming at all when you’re applying it. It’s really good for sensitive skin and leaves my face feeling extra plump whenever I use it.”

The peptides, ceramides, and snow mushrooms in EADEM’s Cloud Cushion Plush Moisturizer work quickly to calm the skin’s protective barrier and provide intense hydration. It restores the skin’s barrier function and also makes the skin seem plumper and brighter. The three plant ceramides deeply hydrate the skin, repairing its barrier function and decreasing the visibility of pores. This product’s all-natural formula, including the niacinamide that gives it its brightening effects, also calms your skin.

As one user pointed out, “Light and airy, this is a perfect pair with Eadem’s equally amazing and effective Milk Marvel Dark Spot Serum. I love all of Eadem’s products and highly recommend them!”

Those in need of a water based face cream that will nourish their skin without leaving it feeling oily or weighed down may consider this one. Visibly brightens, firms, and plump skin thanks to active lipids, peptides, small-particle hyaluronic acid, and rich shea butter. The first effects were promising; after a week of treatment, skin lipids had risen by about 1% every day.

To reduce the appearance of redness and sensitive skin problems, this product also contains a firming nutripeptide combination that promotes skin barrier health.

“I’m not one to write reviews but I had to for this product! I originally bought this and the gel moisturizer thinking that this would be a night-only moisturizer and the gel would be daytime. I can honestly say that I can use this day or night,” shared one buyer.

We hope you found this list of water-based moisturizers helpful. Once you find the right one for your skin, it will help to protect it and keep it radiant. Remember to always consult a dermatologist if you have any concerns about your skin!