15 Best Cruelty-Free Face Moisturizers For All Skin Types
For those who are looking specifically for the best cruelty-free face moisturizers, you might want to familiarize yourself with these skincare brands.
There’s a growing number of skincare enthusiasts who are now advocating the use of cruelty-free facial products, and we’re completely on board. Beauty should not come at the expense of animal suffering and in 2022, there’s quite frankly little reason for brands to say otherwise.
However, even among cruelty-free brands, certain products will be good or bad for your complexion depending on your skin type.
To make things easier for you, we rounded up a list of the best cruelty-free face moisturizers on the market for all skin types, including normal, oily & acne-prone, dry, sensitive, and mature. We’ve also given our top recommendations for the best creams and lotions with SPF, for rosacea, or if you’re looking for Korean creams in particular.
Best Cruelty-Free Face Moisturizers For Normal Skin
1. e.l.f. Holy Hydration! Face Cream
It’s not just hype, there’s a reason why this face cream was voted “Best Face Moisturizer” by Healthline.com. This moisturizer contains key ingredients like hyaluronic acid, squalene, niacinamide, peptides, and vitamin B5 that all promote the well-being of your skin.
Specifically, hyaluronic acid, vitamin B5 and squalene help to moisturize and hydrate the skin, while niacinamide helps balance the production of excess sebum and lighten hyperpigmentation. Peptides, on the other hand, help fight signs of aging by promoting collagen production and improving skin texture.
If you’re looking for an effective and budget-friendly option, you should start with this moisturizer!
2. Honest Beauty Hydrogel Cream with Hyaluronic Acid
Get this from Ulta | Honest Beauty
This cruelty-free moisturizer stays true to its name. It’s paraben-free and contains no synthetic fragrance or dyes. It’s an all-in-one moisturizer that is infused with hyaluronic acid which helps soften and hydrate the skin.
If you’re looking for a daily moisturizer that’s safe, clean, and cruelty-free, the Honest Hydrogel moisturizer might be your next best friend. While we have picked it as one of the best moisturizers for normal skin, you can also use it if you have sensitive, oily, and combination skin types.
…For Oily Or Acne-Prone Skin
3. Tatcha The Water Cream Oil-Free Pore Minimizing Moisturizer
Get this from Sephora
This Tatcha moisturizer is one of the best oil-free moisturizers on the market which is why it’s also a cult favorite. If you have acne-prone and sensitive skin, you should stick to a lightweight moisturizer that hydrates your skin without leaving it clogged, like this one.
The moisturizer has a watery consistency and is enriched with Japanese Wild Rose, Japanese Leopard Lily, green tea extract, rice, and algae as its main key components.
Once applied, expect your skin to feel supple and hydrated without feeling greasy. Thanks to its 23-karat gold touch, it will also leave your skin with a subtle glow!
4. Glow Recipe Watermelon Oil-Free Moisturizer
Get this from Sephora
The Watermelon Glow Moisturizer is not only pink and pretty but also delivers great results. Plus, it’s made with vegan ingredients that your face will thank you for!
This is a lightweight gel moisturizer that calms, brightens, and hydrates the skin, infused with watermelon extract, hyaluronic acid, and antioxidants that aids in getting rid of dark spots and age spots.
Thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties, this item is also recommended for people who have sensitive and problematic skin.
5. Paula’s Choice Ultra-Light Lotion With spf 30
Get this from Sephora | Paula’s Choice
If you’re looking for skincare that delivers, you may have come across Paula’s Choice products before. This no-sense brand is focused on delivering ingredients that work, all for a relatively affordable price.
The Ultra-Light Daily Hydrating Fluid with SPF 30+ is no different and delivers optimal hydration without clogging your pores. Plus, it visibly calms redness, absorbs oil and leaves the skin matte, diminishes existing acne, and even makes your pores appear smaller.
For people who love multifunctional products, this is a great one as it also protects your face from UV-rays and early signs of aging.
…For Dry Skin
6. Naturium Plant Ceramide Rich Moisture Cream
Get this from Target | Naturium
For those suffering from dry skin or those with mature skin, this moisturizer might just be the answer to your problems. The Naturium Ceramide moisturizer contains plant-derived ceramides, glycerin, shea butter and other skin-loving ingredients. Plus, it’s also gluten-free and vegan.
As you may know, ceramides are an essential part of the skin’s lipid barrier, and if you suffer from sensitive, dry or damaged skin, they are one of the best ingredients to look for in moisturizers for instant relief.
Plus, the moisturizer contains other hydrating and moisturizing ingredients like glycerin that helps skin retain moisture (similar to hyaluronic acid), and shea butter, which is widely known to be an excellent moisturizer for dry skin. Thanks to this impressive lineup, we think this rather affordable cream is one of the best cruelty-free face moisturizers for dry skin.
7. Dermatologica Intensive Moisture Balance
Get this from Ulta
If you’re suffering from dry or mature skin, then this Dermatologica moisturizer might be the best bet for you. This product is infused with five skin-replenishing ingredients that target dryness and increase cell turnover to slow down the signs of aging.
It has lactic acid for gentle exfoliation, as well as hyaluronic acid, aloe vera, probiotic chlorella algae complex, and BioReplenish complex which intensively moisturize your skin and even out your skin texture.
In case you don’t like applying moisturizer all over your face, you can just dab the cream on areas where you have dry patches.
8. Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide Cream
Get this from Ulta
Drunk Elephant is a much-loved skincare brand that is known to deliver on its promises. Luckily, the whole brand is cruelty-free (although not all products are vegan, unfortunately)!
One of the brand’s bestsellers is the Protini Cream, which contains multiple key ingredients that can help revive your skin to a more youthful and supple state. It has signal peptides that are good for plumping and firming, soybean folic acid ferment extract (a B vitamin) that restores your skin’s elasticity, growth factors, supporting amino acids and pygmy water lily stem cell extract to improve the skin’s tone and texture.
While this product is great for any skin type, it’s especially beneficial for dry skin as it promises to replenish moisture and deeply hydrate the skin with its list of impressive ingredients.
…For Sensitive Skin
9. Klairs Rich Moist Soothing Cream
Get this from Yesstyle
Klairs is one of the best and most popular Korean skincare brands on the market, and one of their bestsellers is their Rich Moist Soothing Cream. It’s a great choice for people who suffer from sensitive skin, acne, and rosacea. This beauty cream contains shea butter, ceramide 3, and lipids that help restore the skin’s natural barrier and work both in the short-term as well as the long-term.
Since the Korean beauty industry has proven to be one of the best when it comes to skincare, you can’t go wrong with this one if you have sensitive skin!
..For Rosacea
10. TULA Super Soothe Calming Moisturizing Lotion
Get this from Ulta
All of TULA’s skincare products are formulated with soothing probiotics, which is why the aptly named Super Soothe Calming Moisturizing Lotion is one of the best cruelty-free face moisturizers for rosacea.
While not specifically formulated for the disease, the non-irritating, ultra-hydrating formula is infused with cucumber, aloe and colloidal oatmeal, all known to be wonderful ingredients to combat any irritation or inflammation.
…Best For Anti-Aging & Mature Skin
11. Burt’s Bees Renewing Firming Moisturizing Cream
Get this from Ulta
This fragrance-free facial moisturizer does more than hydrate the skin – it also helps reduce the appearance of lines, wrinkles, and dark spots! It contains Bakuchoil, which is a natural alternative for retinol that is gentle enough to use on sensitive skin.
Of course, we still recommend using retinol as the #1 anti-aging ingredient in your skincare. (But for best results, opt for a retinol or retinoid serum instead of a cream!)
This product is made with 99% natural components, is non-comedogenic, and can be used day and night after cleansing your face.
12. Derma E Advanced Peptides & Collagen Moisturizer
If you’re looking for anti-aging creams, you’ll definitely love this clean and cruelty-free moisturizer with its advanced Matrixyl Synthe’6. This peptide complex will keep your face naturally moisturized by smoothening fine lines and wrinkles and increasing the skin’s own hyaluronic acid and collagen content.
The moisturizer also contains green tea extract, vitamin A, and vitamin C that protect your skin from free radicals and increase its defense against environmental pollutants.
13. Olehenriksen Strength Trainer Peptide Boost Moisturizer
Get this from Sephora
This product is a good choice for those looking for something that relieves dehydrated skin and reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, without being too harsh on the skin.
The gentle moisturizer contains amino acids, peptides, and ceramides that help strengthen the skin’s barrier to help you achieve a youthful and healthy glow.
… Best Moisturizer With SPF
14. Urban Skin Rx Complexion Protection Mineral Moisturizer SPF30
Get this from Ulta
If you love products that are multi-purposeful then you’ll love this moisturizer from Urban Skin Rx that also doubles up as a sunscreen. It contains skin-loving ingredients like hyaluronic acid, squalene, and vitamin E that help hydrate dry and dull-looking skin.
This non-clogging product also offers advanced broad-spectrum sun protection to make sure that your skin is protected from UV rays and photodamage.
…Best Korean Moisturizer
15. Peach & Lily Matcha Pudding Antioxidant Cream
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There are a lot of outstanding moisturizers out there from Korea, but we’re biased about this one since it works for all types of skin, including acne-prone and sensitive skin. The Peach & Lily Matcha Pudding Cream is packed with active ingredients like matcha, adenosine, niacinamide, panthenol and juniper berries that help diminish fine lines, wrinkles, and dark spots.
With this impressive lineup, it’s no wonder that this moisturizer is one of the brand’s best-selling products to date. This pudding textured moisturizer can be used as a day cream and night cream.
We hope you were able to find the best cruelty-free face moisturizers for your skin type in this post. For similar posts about skincare and all things beauty, check out the posts below!
