We’ve tested more than 100 moisturisers to discover which is the best moisturiser for oily skin and acne that hopefully suits all budgets
JUMP TO SECTION
Click the links below to jump to the relevant section:
Best moisturiser for oily skin ranking
Best moisturiser for oily skin reviews
Finding the best moisturiser is hard enough when you have so-called normal skin, let alone when you have oily or acne-prone skin that’s prone to flare up at the slightest contact with the wrong ingredient.
We technically have combination skin, because we get dry patches on the edges near our ears, but the rest of our face is like an oil slick most of the time. This not only means our makeup has a tendency to slide off, but it also increases our chances of breakouts and we regularly suffer from adult acne.
For ages, we thought that skipping moisturiser and just applying SPF would be enough to prevent excess oil but it actually made it worse. This is because, despite the myths, oily skin needs hydration too.
Our skin cells thrive on hydration and if we fail to quench this thirst, the skin barrier can’t function as well, and becomes damaged. Once damaged, it’s harder for our skin to stay balanced and this can cause excess sebum to get out of control.
What’s more, if your oily skin doesn’t get enough hydration it thinks it needs to produce more oil to solve the problem, not less.
As part of our widescale hunt for the best moisturiser, which we’re documenting on TikTok, we’ve also started ranking the best moisturisers for oily skin below.
This ranking is based on ingredients, hydration, and price as well as real-world tests on people with oily and acne-prone skin.
If you’re interested to learn more about how we test moisturisers for oily skin, jump straight to that section.
We’re also tracking the scores for each of these products on a spreadsheet which you can find here, or by clicking the button below. On this spreadsheet are Skin Type columns that show, at a glance, which moisturisers are best for oily skin, as well as other skin types.
GO TO THE SPREADSHEET
The Inkey List If you’d rather not delve into our full list, below is our best moisturiser for oily skin at the time of writing. As we test more moisturisers, this may change.
***The Inkey List Omega Water Cream***
This moisturiser is lightweight and hydrating making it perfect for oily skin. It contains glycerin to attract moisture, niacinamide to reduce redness, control oil and help prevent breakouts, and ceramides to help keep the skin barrier healthy and balanced.
What’s more, it’s one of the best cheap moisturisers for oily skin, too. A great all-rounder.
You can read more about this cream below.
This list is subject to change as more tests are completed. These are the top 10 best moisturisers for oily skin as of August 2023. You can see the full list of all products ranked on our spreadsheet, and we’ve also started listing the best serums, best toners, and best primers separately here.
WANT TO KNOW MORE? Best BB cream | Best BB cream for oily skin | Best moisturiser | Best tinted moisturiser | Best toner | Best primer | Best cleanser| Best eye cream| Best anti-ageing cream | Best hand cream| Best foot cream | Best face mask | Best face exfoliator | Best face oil| Best serum| Best night cream | Best SPF | Best Vitamin C serum | Men’s skincare routine| Best stretch mark cream
Below we’ve started reviewing the best moisturisers for oily skin as part of our skincare group test and we’ll be adding to this list as the tests continue and as the scores and leaderboard change.
£9.99 | Buy now
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
The Inkey List Proving that effective skincare doesn’t have to break the bank, the Omega Water Cream is a budget-friendly gem that stood out in our hunt for the best moisturiser for oily skin because of its consistency, ingredients, price, and performance.
True to its name, the Omega Water Cream has a lightweight, runny, almost watery consistency that absorbs easily into the skin, without leaving a heavy or greasy feeling. It contains a so-called Omega Ceramide Complex, formulated with a blend of omega 3, 6, and 9.
These fatty acids work together to help strengthen the skin’s barrier, preventing water loss and boosting elasticity.
In our hydration test, this cream boosted the hydration levels of our skin by 11.7%, largely due to the fact it contains 5% glycerin.
As a humectant, glycerin acts as a magnet for moisture, attracting and locking hydration into the skin. When applied to damp skin – either straight after cleansing or once you’ve applied your serums – it maximises the effectiveness of the glycerin and this boosts how well the cream hydrates the skin.
But the benefits don’t stop there. The Omega Water Cream contains niacinamide which is a multitasking ingredient renowned for its ability to help control oil production, reduce redness, and prevent breakouts. By tackling excessive sebum, this cream also helps maintain a balanced complexion, keeping oily skin concerns at bay.
All for less than £10!
You can read more about The Inkey List and see some of its other best products here.
FURTHER READING: Spotlight on The Inkey List: Affordable skincare and hair care that actually does as it promises
£79 | Buy now
Charlotte Tilbury Charlotte Tilbury’s Magic Water Cream is a fragrance-free version of the renowned original Magic Cream.
Dubbed a hydration hero by the brand, this water-based, gel-like cream contains beta-glucan to aid in skin barrier repair; niacinamide and an “Oil Balancing Extract” to help with oiliness; a Biopeptide Complex to enhance skin tone and texture as well as Vitamin E, squalane and glycerin.
Charlotte Tilbury promises up to 48 hours of hydration, and from our tests, these claims seem to hold water.
We saw a hugely impressive 17-point increase in skin hydration after just five minutes of application – a record high in our hunt for the best moisturiser.
Although there was a slight decrease in hydration after one hour, the overall increase remained impressive at 14.6 points, which is a 56% boost from the baseline level.
The cream’s lightweight texture is particularly good for people who have oily and sensitive skin because it hydrates and creates a dewy finish without making the skin feel greasy or thick.
Despite its high ranking, the cream’s premium price prevented it from knocking The Inkey List off the top spot in our best moisturiser for oily skin list.
Read our full Charlotte Tilbury Magic Water Cream review
Buy now
£12 | Buy now (UK) | Buy now (US)
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
mamabella | mamabella Another super lightweight moisturiser for oily skin, the e.l.f Superhydrate Gel Moisturiser leaves the skin refreshed and hydrated.
In our hydration test, this gel increased the hydration levels of our skin by one of the highest percentage point increases of any of the products we’ve tested, boosting it by 30% after five minutes.
After an hour, this hydration did drop slightly by 2.5 points but this still represented a hydration increase of nine points, or 25% overall. Still above average compared to the dozens of other moisturisers we’ve tested.
A little goes a really long way so you don’t need to apply a lot to reap the benefits, however, if you want to give your skin a special treat you can also apply a thicker layer of this gel and use it as a mask. Especially overnight.
It’s one of the best moisturisers for oily skin because it doesn’t contain ingredients that could potentially cause breakouts, redness or excess oil, and it contains antioxidants that actually boost its protection.
This includes Vitamin E, as well as Centella Asiatica, a plant-based squalane alongside snow mushroom, to add hydration and niacinamide to brighten, tone, and clarify.
It just lost out to our first-place winner, The Inkey List Omega Water Cream, because it’s slightly more expensive at £12. This is still affordable though and because a little goes a long way, it’s really great value.
£14.99 | Buy now
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
mamabella | mamabella After being requested multiple times by followers during our TikTok tests, Etude House’s Soon Jung 2X Barrier Cream jumped straight into the top 10 of our best moisturiser list, and into a podium place in this best moisturiser for oily skin list.
Firstly, it increased the hydration levels of our skin by 8.8 percentage points, or 24%, after five minutes. This hydration carried on increasing after an hour giving a total rise of 9.8 points or 26%.
It’s not quite as lightweight as the Omega Water Cream, or e.l.f’s Superhydrate Gel but it’s still closer to a lotion than a cream or thicker moisturiser. It absorbs just as well though, and doesn’t make the skin feel greasy, heavy, or congested.
Another reason why it sits in third place is because the brand isn’t a fully vegan brand. Whereas e.l.f is.
It also sells products in countries that require products to be tested on animals meaning that while it doesn’t test products directly, it can’t be classed as fully cruelty-free, like you can with The Inkey List.
As a Korean beauty brand, it’s not available on the UK high street but it is sold on a couple of sites that ship to the UK.
This includes YesStyle. Shipping takes about a week, which is quite a long time, but we think it’s worth it.
We also have an exclusive mamabella discount code: MAMABELLA that will give you 10% off your order.
£11.99 | Buy now
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
mamabella | mamabella In the midst of the 2020 lockdown, Byoma quickly garnered a devoted fanbase, thanks to its affordable and accessible skincare range.
The secret to its success lies in its focus on repairing and strengthening the skin barrier. When the skin barrier is healthy, skin looks clear, bright, and balanced and this makes the entire range good for oily skin.
Our favourite though, and the product that scored the highest out of all of the Byoma products we’ve tested, is the Moisturising Gel-Cream.
Within just five minutes, the Moisturising Gel-Cream boosted skin hydration by 4.7 points, equivalent to a 14% increase.
It then continued increasing hydration over the following hour, resulting in an overall increase of 9.3 points or 25%.
To put it into perspective, the average hydration increase of all the skincare we’ve tested is 8.4%.
It gained further points in our best moisturiser for oily skin ranking because it’s vegan, and cruelty-free and all of its packaging contains recycled materials.
You can also buy refills for its products, rather than buying new bottles each time. We think that Byoma’s range is already affordable but refills make it even cheaper.
£17.50 | Buy now (UK) | Buy now (US)
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
Purito After a long reign at the top of our best moisturiser list, Simple’s Daily Hydrating Light Moisturiser was finally dethroned by the Purito Deep Sea Water Cream.
This was due largely to the fact the Purito cream delivered a huge increase of 13.2 points or 35% in our hydration test.
There was a slight drop of 1.3 points after an hour, but this pushed the overall hydration increase to 11.9 points or 32.7%.
The consistency of this Deep Sea Water Cream is closest to that of The Inkey List’s Omega Water Cream in that it’s a slightly runny cream that feels light on the skin and absorbs easily.
You only need a tiny amount of this cream to cover your entire face and neck too, so while it’s more expensive than others in this list, the Purito cream works out to be really good value.
It scored a maximum of 10 points for its ingredients, which means that none of them have been found to cause problems with the skin.
Although Purito’s total score of 50.5 points fell short of being the most hydrating product we have tested, that award goes to the Fenty Beauty Fat Water toner serum in our best serum list.
Yet it is the highest hydrating moisturiser we’ve tested, and we’d even go as far as to say it’s the best moisturiser we’ve ever used.
Some of its ingredients have a mid-level risk of causing breakouts. It’s not something to be worried about, and in our experience on our acne-prone skin it’s not once caused us any problems, but this explains why it came in fifth in this best moisturiser for oily skin list.
Read our full Purito Deep Sea Water Cream review here
£6.80 | Buy now
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
The Ordinary Another great moisturiser for oily skin is the The Ordinary’s Natural Moisturising Factors + HA cream because it contains a host of ingredients found naturally in the skin.
This means that it helps bring hydration to oily and acne-prone skin in a natural way and without causing any problems, irritation, or further breakouts.
In our hydration test, this cream boosed the hydration levels of our skin by 5.6 points (18%) after five minutes.
This is average in comparison to other moisturisers on our best moisturiser for oily skin list, but its affordable price and the fact it’s vegan and cruelty-free helped increase its total score.
When it’s first applied, the cream feels quite thick and we were worried it would feel heavy on our oily patches but as soon as you massage it in, it turns to a thin, lotion-style moisturiser that is absorbed easily and quickly.
It leaves the skin feeling soft and matte without feeling dry and it protects the outer layer of the skin to help repair the skin barrier.
This is largely due to the fact it contains multiple amino acids, fatty acids, triglycerides, urea, ceramides, phospholipids, glycerin, saccharides, sodium PCA and other compounds found naturally in the skin.
It’s also what makes this cream great for acne-prone skin that tends to become red and easily irritated.
£15.99 | Buy now (UK)
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
Face & Base Face & Base is a UK-based brand on a mission to bring sell vegan, cruelty-free and clean skincare without the “BS.”
Its flagship product is its Gel Priming Moisturiser and in our hydration test, it increased hydration by 7.9 points (21.3%) after five minutes.
An hour after application, the hydration dropped by 1.2 points, to a total of 6.7 points, but even with this reduction, hydration levels were still 18.6% up.
Our oily skin loves this moisturiser; it absorbs easily and you only need a tiny amount to give your face a youthful glow that doesn’t feel greasy.
It’s also great under makeup.
As part of our wider hunt for the best moisturiser, the Gel Priming moisturiser scored maximum points for being vegan and cruelty-free, as well as being affordable at £16 RRP, or £9.59 for 30ml.
According to the INCI Decoder database, the Face & Base Gel Priming Moisturiser contains no “icky” ingredients and the majority of ingredients are labelled “goodies” or “superstars”.
As a result, its ingredients have an Irritation rating of zero and a low comedogenic rating of 2.
This is because of the use of the antioxidant olive oil (Olea Europaea).
In our tests, we’ve not experienced any clogged pores or breakouts, on top of what we’d get normally with our adult acne and these ratings depend on the amount of an ingredient used so should be used purely as a guide.
Buy now from F&B
£11.99 | Buy now
View the full TikTok video by clicking here
mamabella | mamabella iUNIK is yet another Korean skincare brand that’s bringing the goods. The whole brand ethos centres on creating minimalist and effective products that contain only natural and high-quality ingredients.
As a result, all of its formulas are free from parabens, sulfates, and artificial fragrances, making them a great choice for people with sensitive skin.
One of iUNIK’s most popular products is its Beta-Glucan Moisture Cream. It’s formulated with 3,000mg of beta-glucan which is a natural polysaccharide found in the cell walls of plants. It helps to soothe and hydrate the skin in a way that shouldn’t irritate or cause breakouts.
It also contains Centella asiatica extract, which is known for its anti-inflammatory properties and can help to calm irritated skin.
In our hydration test, this iUNIK cream increased the hydration levels of our skin by 6.9 points (21.3%) after just five minutes and continued to increase hydration after an hour.
At this point, the levels had risen by a further 0.2 points giving a total rise of 7.1 (21.8%).
Texture-wise, this cream feels closer to a gel that absorbs quickly without leaving a greasy residue.
A lightweight feeling that our oily skin particularly liked.
The only ingredient in this cream that has been flagged as being potentially problematic is Commiphora Myrrha Resin Extract. This extract is a natural antiseptic, astringent, and disinfectant making it great for acne-prone skin, yet in high levels, it can irritate.
In the iUNIK cream, there are trace amounts so it should be fine but we just wanted to flag it up.
What’s more, it’s not too expensive either. Sephora in the UK sells it for £16 but if you buy it from Stylevana, not only can you get it for less than a tenner, but we also have a exclusive discount code to drop the price further.
Just enter the code INF10MAMABEL at the checkout to get 10% off the already cheaper price!
For each best moisturiser for oily skin test, we use a moisture meter called the Mili Pure to record the hydrating levels of our skin before applying the moisturiser, five minutes later, and an hour after application.
All products are applied to damp skin, and we apply them to our hands to avoid the oil and hydration levels on our face from skewing the results. It’s not perfect, but at least it’s consistent.
We ranked products for the best moisturiser for oily skin list by the following criteria:
Note: Please take the Irritation and Comedogenic ratings with a pinch of salt. The rating can change depending on the amount of that particular ingredient being used. For example, if an ingredient has an irritation rating of 5 but only features in trace amounts in the product in question, the chances of it causing irritation are lower than the rating would suggest. This should be used as a guide only. You can find out more about this here.
Victoria is founder and editor-in-chief of mamabella, freelance journalist and Mum. She has a passion for empowering people to feel beautiful whatever their age, size, skin type and budget
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Comments