Whether you’re just starting to notice the first signs of aging or wrinkles, loss of tone, and textural changes have been the new normal for a while, perhaps you’ve been asking yourself, “What’s the best night cream for aging skin?” We’re glad you asked. 

Even if you’re on the hunt for the best night cream for dark spots or the best night cream for 40s skin, there’s an anti-aging night cream for everyone. With time (and regular use), fine lines become softened, aging skin spots are lightened, and skin texture and tone improve.

Of course, searching for the best overnight moisturizer can be a bit overwhelming — especially if you have specific needs such as the best anti-aging night cream for 60s-aged skincare enthusiasts and beyond. Even finding the best night cream for 20s skin types can be challenging if you don’t know what to look for. Not to worry. That’s where we come in. 

Here at Deep Science, we’ve reviewed hundreds of brands under a scientific lens to ensure you’re crafting a skincare routine that’s both safe and effective.

Ahead are 15 of the best night moisturizers for aging skin so you can sleep a little bit easier knowing you’ll wake up to a more refreshed, youthful-looking complexion. 

Best Night Creams for Aging Skin: The List 

BEST OVERALL

BEST: Carrot & Stick The Moisturizer, $60

BEST NIGHT SERUM: Carrot and Stick The Repair Serum. Use a night serum first.

FULL LIST

Formulyst Anti-Aging Night Cream, $80

Algenist GENIUS Ultimate Anti-Aging Cream, $112

SK-II LXP Ultimate Revival Cream, $385

Grown Alchemist Detox Night Cream, $125

SkinBetter Science AlphaRet Overnight Cream, $125.

Korres Wild Rose + Vitamin C Advanced Brightening Sleeping Facial, $48

Pacifica Dreamy Youth Day and Night Face Cream, $16

Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Glow, $70

Tula Skincare Beauty Sleep, $64

Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask, $45

Lumene Nordic Hydra [LÄHDE] Hydration Recharge Overnight Cream, $19.99

Hada Labo Anti-Aging Hydrator, $11

Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Balance, $44

The Science Behind the Best Night Cream for Aging Skin

During the daylight hours, your skin is in defense mode, safeguarding itself from harmful UV rays, the weather, bacterial growth, and pollution — this is where a day cream formulated with protective antioxidants (think vitamins C and E, niacinamide, resveratrol) and SPF come into play. 

However, when you’re sleeping, the skin is in a reparative state, working hard to regenerate and rebuild the damage precipitated by daily activities and habits. It’s the optimal time to restore your complexion with an anti-aging night cream. The erroneous notion that our skin needs to “breathe” at night is a myth. Studies have shown that the repair of DNA-damaged skin cells due to UV exposure peaks at night. With that said, coupling shuteye with an anti-aging night cream formulated with results-driven, evidence-based ingredients (more on that in a bit) is not just marketing hype. 

Ingredients to Look for in an Anti-Aging Night Cream

Night creams moisturize, soothe, and repair your skin while you sleep. Look for products formulated with the following ingredients: 

• Retinol: This vitamin A derivative is an anti-aging powerhouse that helps with fine lines, wrinkles, and discoloration — it can also even out and brighten your complexion. If you’re new to retinol, you need to start with a small amount two to three times a week before working your way up to the daily application. 
• Hyaluronic Acid: Every skin type can benefit from hyaluronic acid because it provides deep hydration without heaviness. As it’s a humectant, it can hold over 1,000 times its weight in water, so it’s safe to say it’s a super-hydrator of epic proportions. It also helps to plump up fine lines and wrinkles. 
• Sodium Hyaluronate: Sodium hyaluronate is the salt of hyaluronic acid. It also retains water to a remarkable degree and plumps up your skin but has a smaller molecular weight to allow for deeper penetration. 
• Alpha- and Beta-Hydroxy Acids: These agents are citric and other fruit acids suitable for dull or ashy-looking skin. They gently exfoliate and soften while helping your night cream penetrate your skin.
• Glycerin: Glycerin is another humectant that effectively locks in moisture to keep skin supple and smooth.
• Lactic Acid: helps to keep the skin moisturized and feeling less dry. When you use lactic acid regularly, it can also improve signs of aging. It stimulates collagen renewal and can firm your skin.
• Vitamin E: A powerful antioxidant that moisturizes and brightens the complexion.

The Reality of using an Anti-Aging Night Cream

While anti-aging night creams work their magic while you’re sleeping, if you’re not getting ample sleep, you’re doing yourself — and your skin — a disservice. Research suggests just one night of poor sleep can cause more fine lines and wrinkles, swollen eyes, darker under-eye circles, paler skin, dryness, and hanging lids, so make an effort to make ample — and quality — sleep a part of your routine. It’s not called beauty sleep for nothing! 

We also recommend using a serum. Serums have a higher concentration of actives and penetrate deeper. Try Carrot & Stick Defense Serum.

The most significant cause of aging skin is intrinsic aging, a genetically determined process that we cannot manipulate. Contributing factors include oxidative stress, glycation, your DNA, and fluctuating hormones.

On the other hand, extrinsic aging is caused by circumstances we can change, such as smoking, poor sleep habits, the environment (think pollution), an unhealthy diet, drinking too much alcohol, and sun exposure — again, the number one cause of aging skin. Additional influences include:

Gravity

The combination of the loss of elasticity and gravity leads to sagging skin, including drooping of the eyelids, looseness, fullness under the cheeks and jawline (aka jowls), lengthening of the ear lobes and sagging skin on the neck.

Fluctuating Weight Changes

Between fluctuating hormones, a slowing metabolism, and being less active, rapid weight changes can cause the skin to sag, making aging skin signs more prominent. If you need to lose weight for health reasons, work with a doctor so that the process is gradual and attainable for the long term.

Daily Facial Movements

Daily facial movements can cause wrinkling on the forehead, smile lines, wrinkles under the eyes, mid-cheek lines, number “11” lines between the brows, crow’s feet, or vertical smoker’s lines around the mouth from making a repetitive puckering movement. These lines morph into more visible wrinkles after the skin loses elasticity. Considering it’s impossible to live an expressionless existence, these lines are considered a natural part of aging.

Sleeping Habits

How you sleep (and for how long) can play a role, too. Sleep creases are commonly seen on the side of the forehead, around the eyes, and the middle of the cheeks. Changing your sleep positions and investing in a silk pillowcase may improve these sleep creases or prevent them from becoming worse. As mentioned above, get those 7-8 hours (or more) of sleep per night, too. Studies suggest that lack of sleep is associated with aging skin changes such as fine lines, wrinkles, and droopy corners of the mouth.

Smoking

People who smoke tend to have more wrinkles than nonsmokers of the same age, complexion, and history of sun exposure. Experts believe this is because the nicotine in cigarettes causes the blood vessels to constrict in the outer layers of the skin, which in turn impairs blood flow. Decreased blood flow means your skin isn’t getting as much oxygen or vital nutrients like vitamin A.

The Best Night Creams for Aging Skin

BEST OVERALL

BEST: Carrot & Stick The Moisturizer, $60
Save money (and counter space) with The Moisturizer from Carrot & Stick. This cream can be used day and night and does a little bit of everything. It moisturizes and nourishes the skin while also firming and brightening it.

The plant-based formula includes plant proteins, vitamins, peptides, and amino-collagen. A caffeine boost helps perk up the skin, while five distinct coconut elements help with cell renewal and overall conditioning.

Use the best night serum prior to applying a cream: Carrot and Stick The Repair Serum, $80
The Repair Serum by Carrot & Stick helps lift, tighten and firm the look of skin thanks to seven plant-based neuropeptides, while synthesized growth factors help keep skin looking radiant. Perfect for overnight use.

FULL LIST

Formulyst Anti-Aging Night Cream, $80
A long-term anti-aging formulation explicitly developed for mature and devitalized skin, this night cream hydrates, soothes, and visibly transforms your skin while you sleep. Formulated with a nutrient-rich blend of complexes that are high in plant oils, essential fatty acids, and omega oils, this ultra-nourishing night cream with reparative properties gently exfoliates and regenerates the upper layer of your skin.

Algenist GENIUS Ultimate Anti-Aging Cream, $112

As a brand committed to anti-aging, it makes sense that one of the best-selling Algenist products is an anti-aging cream. The Algenist GENIUS anti-aging cream is designed to dramatically reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines while working to boost the skin’s elasticity and vibrancy. 

Based on the Algenist brand anti-aging technology, the Algenist GENIUS anti-aging cream utilizes alguronic acid and microalgae oil to help tighten, tone, and revitalize the skin for a brighter complexion and a more youthful appearance. For the best results, apply consistently twice a day.

SK-II LXP Ultimate Revival Cream $385

While it’s a splurge (a little does go a long way), this luxe night cream for aging skin is formulated with SK-II’s highest concentration of their proprietary PITERA complex for maximum hydration. The skin becomes more firm and radiant immediately and over time.

Grown Alchemist Detox Night Cream, $125

This anti-aging facial cream detoxes and regenerates the skin, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, resulting in radiant and youthful-looking skin. Some of the key ingredients you’ll find in this formula include peptides, echinacea, and hyaluronic acid.

SkinBetter Science AlphaRet Overnight Cream, $125

As the name suggests, this intense, results-driven night cream harnesses the power of an alpha hydroxy acid and a retinoid to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles while improving elasticity and tone. Thanks to SkinBetter’s proprietary retinol technology (and a blend of skin-soothing ingredients), you’ll reap all the benefits minus any irritation. The addition of glycolic acid visibly improves the skin’s texture while stoking the other components to increase efficiency.

Korres Wild Rose + Vitamin C Advanced Brightening Sleeping Facial, $48

The Korres Wild Rose Sleeping Facial is perhaps the brand’s most popular product. It is an overnight facial in a jar that addresses uneven skin tone while improving the look of skin texture for a brighter, more luminous complexion in as little as one night. It just may be the best overnight moisturizer.

Pacifica Dreamy Youth Day and Night Face Cream, $16

This budget-friendly yet potent anti-aging facial moisturizer is formulated with powerful peptides, Pacifica’s proprietary Fleuracell Complex, antioxidants, and advanced extracts that join forces to moisturize and profoundly improve skin’s youthful glow.

Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Glow, $70

Love to multi-task? Have a hard time committing to a nighttime beauty routine? This cream pulls double duty as a moisturizer and a gentle exfoliator. It leaves skin hydrated while alpha hydroxy and lactic acids work to gently dissolve dead skin cells while you’re sleeping.

Tula Skincare Beauty Sleep, $64

Before we get into why this night cream truly lives up to its name, let’s talk a little bit about Tula’s mathematics: probiotics + superfoods = glow. All of the brand’s products are formulated with these ingredients to ensure that your skin’s microbiome remains balanced. Beauty Sleep is Tula’s most potent cream. 

This anti-aging night cream is also formulated with alpha hydroxy acids and vitamin C to soften the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, improve texture and tone, and brighten the skin’s appearance. While nothing truly replaces a solid 7-8 hours of sleep, this night cream comes pretty darn close.

Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask, $45

This bouncy, breathable sleeping mask smoothes and perfects overnight. All skin types can use it to address acne, dullness, dark spots, and signs of aging. Star ingredients include hyaluronic acid, watermelon extract, and alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs), which work to reveal a fresh complexion. It could be considered as the best night cream for 40s skin.

LumeneNordic Hydra [LÄHDE] Hydration Recharge Overnight Cream, $19.99

Finns have been hooked on this Nordic brand since it launched back in 1970, but beauty fanatics in the States had to wait until 2006 to see what all the buzz was all about. The brand’s formulas embrace Finnish women’s beauty rituals — who manage to have flawless skin despite frigid temps and whipping winds come wintertime. 

With that said, you’re going to want to get your hands on this night cream that supports continuous hydration due to Lumene’s Hydra-Technology. Other vital ingredients include pure Arctic spring water to balance the skin’s pH, organic Nordic birch sap to nourish and hydrate, and shea butter to heal and tone.

Hada Labo Anti-Aging Hydrator, $11

This serum-like formula provides deep hydration while increasing your skin’s firmness and elasticity. It’s perfect for those who live in warmer, humid climates or as a part of a summer skincare routine. It absorbs on contact, so skin immediately feels smooth, tighter, and renewed. You can use the Anti-Aging Hydrator after applying the Super Hyaluronic Acid Moisturizing Lotion or on its own.

Dermalogica Intensive Moisture Balance, $44

One of Dermalogica’s best-selling products, this incredibly nourishing night cream for aging skin restores lipid balance for optimal barrier performance. A prebiotic chlorella algae complex helps rebalance the skin’s natural microbiome, while two forms of hyaluronic acid help enhance the skin’s moisture content and fade the appearance of fine lines.

Best Night Cream for Aging Skin: The Bottom Line

What’s the Best Night Cream for Aging Skin? Overall, our suggestion is Carrot & Stick The Moisturizer.

We recommend using the best night serum first Carrot and Stick Repair Serum. Serums have a higher concentration of actives and penetrate deeper. 

When treating aging skin, don’t be fooled by any common myths. You can’t wholly “reverse” the signs of age, stress is not the leading cause of wrinkles, and there’s no such thing as a miracle cream. However, when you’re sleeping, the skin is in a reparative state, working hard to regenerate and rebuild the damage precipitated by daily activities and habits. It’s the optimal time to restore your complexion with the best night cream for aging skin. 

When you’re sleeping, the skin is in a reparative state, working hard to regenerate and rebuild the damage precipitated by daily activities and habits. It’s the optimal time to restore your complexion with an anti-aging night cream. Fine lines and wrinkles become softened with regular use, aging skin spots are lightened, and skin texture and tone are improved. Look for a formula that contains vital ingredients like retinol, hyaluronic acid, lactic acid, glycerin, sodium hyaluronate, and alpha and beta hydroxy acids. 

Remember, no anti-aging night cream in the world can replace the effects that come with a good night’s sleep!

What’s the best night cream, in your opinion? Let us know in the comments below!

Sources:
”How Chronic Stress is Harming Your DNA,” American Psychological Association, October 2014.
”Wrinkles: Symptoms and Causes,” Mayo Clinic.
Study Reveals the Face of Sleep Deprivation,” JAmerican Academy of Sleep Medicine.
“Circadian Rhythm and the Skin: A Review of the Literature,” U.S. National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, September 2019.