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Managing eczema isn’t easy. One little irritant can trigger a flare-up. And with ingredient lists often bordering on indecipherable, it’s not hard to pick the wrong product for your skin. The next hurdle is managing those flare-ups with something powerful enough to prevent itching but not so gloopy you can’t get comfortable.
So, whether you’re a longtime eczema sufferer looking for a particular product or someone newly diagnosed who is trying to get a grip on a new section in the drugstore, here are some of the best tried-and-tested, dermatologist-approved products for living with eczema. I’ve found daily-essentials lotions to quench the skin, as well as salves and balms for nasty flare-ups on particularly eczema-prone areas such as the hands and feet. Read on to gather an idea of the ingredients to gravitate toward, as well as which products to use (that won’t have you second-guessing if they’re the culprit behind a new pesky red patch of skin).
Update on May 1
New prices: No price changes since the last update.
Checked stock: All items are available.
Other changes: Added plenty of new products, such as the Tower28 SOS Gel Cleanser and the Prequel Glycerin Cleanser for the Face & Body.
I’ve recommended Vanicream for dry skin and rosacea-prone skin — and it’s just as great for eczema-prone skin. For particularly angry flare-ups, you might need something stronger, but for everything else Vanicream is the gold standard. That’s why half of the dermatologists I spoke to recommended it specifically. The reason is simple: It’s free of anything that could irritate your skin, including fragrance, lanolin, parabens, formaldehyde, dyes, and more. Instead, it’s packed with soothing ingredients, like petrolatum (which also makes up Vaseline). As a notoriously finicky condition, eczema can flare up easily with just one wrong ingredient — and take a while to go back to normal — so our dermatologists think it’s better to be cautious with your creams and stick to a completely hypoallergenic product. It’s also not as heavy as you might think — Strategist writer Lauren Ro told me she was “surprised by how easily it spread.” She adds that “it absorbed instantly, without leaving too much of a residue, unlike the Nivea or the Amlactin, which always felt a bit sticky.” (If you do want something more lightweight for the summertime, though, Vanicream makes a lotion that Marisa Garshick, an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Cornell, New York Presbyterian Medical Center, recommends.)
I call this my old faithful, because I’m never without a tub. We’ve written about it many, many, many times before. It contains ceramides, which Hartman calls “the building blocks of a healthy skin barrier,” it will provide your dry, itchy skin the protection it needs to stay hydrated. Hartman also particularly likes the ointment-like texture that’s “non-greasy” and thinks it “should be a part of every eczema treatment plan.” Thanks to the hyaluronic acid and glycerin, too, it’ll be exceptionally hydrating, keeping your skin soothed for longer stretches of time.
If you prefer something lightweight and even faster absorbing, I’m a fan of the La Roche-Posay eczema-safe line. Garshick is also a fan and suggests this cream with added colloidal oatmeal for the itch. “It contains a high concentration of prebiotic water, which may have a role in improving the skin microbiome that’s linked to inflammation and irritation of the skin,” she says. Niacinamide is another ingredient in it that can be helpful for calming redness and inflammation.
And another La Roche-Posay option, this time an even lighter lotion. It’s an excellent option to keep your whole body moisturized. “Treatment of eczema revolves around maintaining and rebuilding the skin barrier,” says dermatologist Karan Lal, who also likes this lotion. “The triple repair keeps skin moist for up to 48 hours and helps to rebalance part of the skin’s microbiome,” he says. “It’s not as greasy as petroleum and it’s easy to apply and reapply.” It also contains lots of hydrating ingredients like ceramides, shea butter, and glycerin, along with niacinamide, which helps with hyperpigmentation and fortifies the skin’s barrier.
It’s worth nothing that any of the moisturizers mentioned above are suitable for use on the face — I have acne-prone skin, and the CeraVe moisturizer has always been kind to me. But for a moisturizer specifically geared towards the face, Garshick suggests First Aid Beauty (a favorite moisturizer of our eczema-prone beauty writer Rio) because it contains colloidal oatmeal for calming inflammation and itchy skin, shea butter to protect the natural skin barrier, and ceramides. The moisturizer is also non-comedogenic, so shouldn’t block pores.
Again, I’m recommending a choice from CeraVe. Like the cream, the ointment contains an ample amount of ceramides to protect your skin’s barrier. And Maral Skelsey, the director of the Dermatologic Surgery Center of Washington, points out that it’s also lanolin free and unscented but has a higher percentage of petrolatum than the cream, so it’ll feel more like Vaseline being rubbed in rather than a creamy texture that blends right away.
And then there’s always the “cult favorite” Aquaphor, which Hartman calls “the most matte, most elegant of the petrolatum products on the market.” Because it contains a high percentage of petrolatum, mineral oil, glycerin, and panthenol, Aquaphor will protect the skin as well as “trap in moisture better than most,” as Hartman explains. Dermatologist Dr. Susan Binder is also an Aquaphor advocate, and advises that it’s “great when used immediately after the shower or bath to lock in moisture and help heal dry, cracked skin,” (though Bider warns that it can feel “a bit greasy.”) As it’s such a heavy-duty ointment, both experts recommend it for use during a flare-up, when skin is in crisis.
If you’re really suffering from an itch, it may be because your skin is simply not getting enough moisture. “The dryer skin gets, the more likely the eczema flares,” Skelsey says. So, while your first line of defense for eczema-prone skin should be a thick, gentle cream or lotion, your skin might also appreciate something slightly more intensive. Skelsey likes this itch-relief balm from Aveeno because it’s “fragrance-free, hypoallergenic, and has colloidal oatmeal, which helps heal skin” and stops the incessant itching that eczema sometimes causes. (Aveeno is a brand that I recommend time and time again for sensitive skin; it is Eczema Association approved and reliable.) As a bonus, she mentions that the added soy protein helps fade dark spots that eczema can leave behind.
Ingredients: Shea butter, glycerin, niacinamide, prebiotic water | Price: 11 ounces (approx. $2 per ounce)
Foaming, fragrant face washes can be triggering for eczema, so Lal recommends a face wash that’ll both cleanse and hydrate simultaneously. He likes this one from La Roche Posay, which is specifically formulated for extra-dry, sensitive skin. It’s so gentle, it can even be used on babies as young as two weeks old. “I recommend this for newborns,” says Lal.
Tower28 has become one of my go-to sensitive-skin-brand products. Lots of its products — including this cleanser — are approved by the National Eczema Association, the National Psorarios Foundation, and the National Rosacea Society. That means they are free of any known irritants. This cleanser, which has a gel consistency, contains oat extract and 100 percent pure aloe vera as well as glycerin and panthenol. It’s tough enough to break down makeup and SPF without leaving skin irritated. On particularly red or itchy days, I skip my double cleanse in favor of one wash with this. I find it removes everything but eye makeup pretty effectively.
Another pick that’s National Eczema Association, National Psorarios Foundation, and National Rosacea Society approved. The brand behind it, Prequel, is a relatively new dermatologist-founded brand. Our resident bodywash writer (and dry-skin sufferer), Brenley Goertzen, put it to the test and says “it has a slippery, smooth texture with a slight lather, but it’s non-stripping, so my skin never feels tight, even after drying off post-shower.” She also has found that after a few weeks of use, it’s helped to alleviate particularly rough patches of skin on her elbows and legs. “It’s called the Gleanser (glycerin cleanser) because it contains 50 percent glycerin plus inulin, a prebiotic that helps draw water into the skin, making it a super-hydrating ingredient that’s helpful for dehydrated skin,” she says. Plus, it can be used as a face cleanser — so a great twofer if you’re sticking to a budget.
For patients with eczema, Frey recommends a hydrating lotion from Aveeno. Their lotion has a high SPF rating of 60 (well above the 30 minimum that she recommends to patients), and includes hydrating prebiotic oat to soothe irritated skin. It’s also suitable to use on the face, and shouldn’t break you out, either: Frey also recommends it to her patients who are acne-prone.
Strategist contributor Chelsey Pippin has a particular aversion to those greasy options. She found them smelly and says they “end with me leaving icky fingerprints on my keyboard, the fridge handle, the doorknob, my clothes, you name it.” Instead, she slathers this Naked Bee salve over the affected area. It’s made with — you guessed it — beeswax, as well as sunflower oil and shea butter. And its teeny metal tin makes it easy to carry around when you need to reapply.
If you’re not quite flaring up, this Neutrogena hand cream is good for maintenance. And New York–based dermatologist Dhaval Bhanusali offered this tidbit about hand creams: “Neutrogena Norwegian Hand cream is pretty much universally loved by all dermatologists” because it has skin soothers. The formula is slightly different from other hand creams in that it’s rich in glycerin, an ingredient he says is ideal for eczema-prone skin since it’s gentle, calming, and a humectant that draws water from the air to moisturize.
Did you know that Vanicream — the brand that makes our favorite overall eczema treatment — also makes shampoo and conditioner? I didn’t, until Strategist writer Erin Schwartz, who suffers from sensitive skin and contact dermatitis, switched to the duo. “The first time I used the shampoo, I was incredulous that I didn’t feel any stinging or itchiness, which I had thought was a normal aftereffect of cleaning your hair,” says Schwartz, who has learned to avoid dyes, fragrance, masking fragrance, lanolin, protein, parabens, and formaldehyde releasers and even some natural products to avoid an itchy scalp. But will it actually make your hair look good? Yes, says Schwartz: “Since buying the shampoo, my hair routine has gotten easier and cheaper and reliably produces boy-band-floppy hair days.” (The conditioner apparently can leave your hair slightly fluffy, though.)
• Dhaval Bhanusali, dermatologist
• Dr. Fayne Frey, dermatologist and founder of FryFace
• Marisa Garshick, an assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Cornell
• Emma Guttman, director of Mount Sinai’s Center for Excellence in Eczema
• Dr. Corey L. Hartman, founder of Skin Wellness Dermatology
• Dr. Karan Lal, dermatologist
• Chelsey Pippin, author and Strategist contributor
• Maral Skelsey, the director of the Dermatologic Surgery Center of Washington
• Dr. Lily Talakoub, founder of Mclean Dermatology and beauty app Derm to Door
• Dr. Kathy Taghipour, consultant dermatologist at DermConsult Clinics London
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