Skincare picks, chosen by reading the label.

Every product here is chosen by reading its ingredient list, and every card shows you what we read. We started with the 868 retinoid face products in Avina’s catalog. No brand pays to be on a list, and we tell you plainly what we did not test.

The Best Retinol Serums and Creams

Start with a disclosed low strength and a fragrance-free formula. Our pick for most people is Paula's Choice 0.3% Retinol; on a budget, CeraVe's Resurfacing Retinol Serum.

• The Best Retinol for Sensitive Skin

  Go low and go fragrance-free. Avène's RetrinAL 0.05 cream is our pick for most sensitive skin; The Ordinary's Granactive Retinoid 2% Emulsion is the budget start.

  

• The Best Retinol Eye Creams

  RoC's Retinol Correxion Line Smoothing Eye Cream is the one we would buy first. The Inkey List's is the budget pick, and Avène's retinal cream suits reactive eyes.

  

• The Best Korean Retinol Serums and Creams

  K-Secret's Seoul 1988 retinal serum is our pick: gentle, fragrance-free and the most recommended Korean retinal in the Reddit threads we read, though the "2%" is the liposome, not the retinal. Isntree's is the barrier-first choice.

  

What we check on every label

• The activeWhich retinoid, vitamin or acid it really contains, and where it sits on the list.
• The doseOnly a strength the product's own name states. If it does not, we say so.
• FragranceAdded fragrance, scent-bearing oils and the named fragrance allergens.
• Drying alcoholAlcohol denat. near the top of the list, where it is a real amount.
• What helps itCeramides, glycerin, niacinamide and the other ingredients that make an active easier to live with.

How we pick, and how we make money. For the science behind the ingredients, with no product picks at all, read Avina Learn.