Best Moisturizers for Oily Skin- Is there a such thing?

In the past, I would curse moisturizers for my oily skin because they only made my already annoyingly oily skin greasy to the point where my makeup would slide off my face.

Annoying right?

I wanted to share the best Moisturizers for oily skin I have come across so far; let me tell you, it has been a journey.

As I mentioned, I have oily skin that is temperamental, boujee, and quite moody.

For a few years, I have been searching for moisturizers that will hydrate my oily skin and help cut down on the oil that my face loves to produce. 

I need that goldie locks hydration, not too much and not too little but right in the middle, and I have 5 top moisturizers that work wonders for oily skin! 

Products Mentioned In This Post:

• Tatcha Water Cream
• Summer Fridays Cloud Dew
• BeautyBio- ZennBubble
• Bliss Water Jelly Hydrator
• Drunk Elephant- Protini

Top Secrets For Hydrating Oily Skin 

Before we jump into my best moisturizers for oily skin, I have 3 secrets I want to share.

1. Use a gel or water-based product

This is KEY regarding finding a moisturizer that will keep your oil under control and provide hydration using a gel or water-based product.

The gel or water-based products are lighter and more manageable for oily skin to take in.

When you look at a gel or water-based cream, you will notice the texture is more on the jelly side.

With a cream based moisturizer, you will see these are super heavy and thick.

Thick creams will lead to breakouts because they’re too heavy for the skin. 

Not to tell you you can’t use a cream-based moisturizer, these are best used at night to help give your skin the ultimate moisturizing experience. 

2. Add An Essence To Your Routine 

Essences work wonders for all skin types, but I’ve noticed that using essence water has helped cut down on oil production tremendously for my oily skin.

What Is Essence Water? 

Essence water adds hydration on a deeper level and allows the other products you layer on top to sink into your skin deeper.

Essence also targets common skincare concerns such as wrinkles, scars, dull and uneven skin tone. 

You’ll notice that Essences are liquidy and can mimic water or toner. 

What is the Difference between Toner and Essence? 

Toner is used to removing access dirt from the skin after washing your face.

I’ve noticed that Toners were drying for my skin, so I skipped out on Toners and substituted with Essence, and the changes have been crazy. 

My favorite Essences that I have on my shelf are from Tatcha and Dior. 

The Tatcha Essence helps to plump and soften the skin while providing deep hydration and maximizing your skincare routine. 

Dior’s Capture Youth Enzyme Solution is an age delay resurfacing water.

Capture youth helps to eliminate dead skin cells and treats surface imperfections. 

3. Think Less Is More 

With oily skin, you want to make sure you’re creating balance and not overdoing it.

When you add an Essence to your routine, you’re adding a thin layer of hydration to your skin, therefore, cutting down the moisturizer amount needed to hydrate your skin. 

Top Moisturizers For Oily Skin 

 Tatcha Water Cream 

The Tatcha Water Cream has been a long-time favorite for some time and is rated highly by many users.

You’ll love the Water Cream if you want a light, delicate moisturizer and care about the little details.

The Water Cream comes with a mini scooper to eliminate having to put your fingers into the jar. 

The Water Cream is refreshing and has a slight scent to it, but it’s not overpowering. 

What Makes Up The Water Cream?

• Japanese wild rose: tightens pores and smooths skin texture.
• Japanese leopard lily: helps control excess oil and purify skin by supporting natural skin turnover. 
• Hadasei-3 Complex: an anti-aging trinity of green tea, rice, and algae that helps to restore healthy-looking radiance

Summer Friday The Cloud Dew Oil-Free Gel Cream 

The Cloud Dew Oil-Free Gel Cream is newer to the beauty world but honestly delivers impressive results.

There isn’t a scent that I can smell to this gel cream, and it has a super light, water-like texture.

When applied to the skin, it melts into your skin and doesnt leave a greasy feeling on the skin. 

You’ll love the Cloud Dew Gel Cream if you prefer to have a scent-free product and don’t like a film-like texture on your skin.

One great thing about this moisturizer is how quickly it sinks into the skin and doesn’t feel oily on the skin. 

Key Ingredients in the Cloud Dew Gel Cream

• Hyaluronic Acid Complex: Three types of hyaluronic acid molecules help penetrate the skin’s surface on multiple levels for plumping hydration. 
• Glycerin: helps attract water and strengthens the skin’s moisture barrier for more hydrated skin. 
• Amino acids: help provide antioxidant protection and support the skin’s strength and resilience.
• Pineapple enzymes A natural exfoliant that gently smoothes, softens, and reveals brighter skin.

BeautyBio The ZenBubble Gel Cream 

I have a crush on anything BeautyBio I can’t say enough good things about BeautyBio, to be honest.

It’s not hard to fall in love with the ZenBubble Gel Cream because it just works.

After I demaplane (shave my face) and need a product that will hydrate and soothe my skin, I will reach for the ZenBubble hands down.

The ZenBubble is another nonscented moisturizer with a light texture.

Another thing to love about the ZenBubble is the convenience of the airless pump for ease of use.

A cool thing to note about the ZenBubble is the delivery system.

The Double Bubble Stress Sheild Technology is what makes this gel-cream so unique.

The Outer Bubble shields the skin and soaks up excess sebum.

While the Inner Bubble delivers active, calming ingredients into the skin to repair and rebalance your skin moisture.

Key Ingredients in the BeautyBio ZenBubble

• Phyto Marine Actives: what our skin needs when we’re constantly switching between cold office temps to bright, humid sunlight.
• Chlorella Vulgaris + B12: help support micro-circulation and skin regeneration, significantly impacting the appearance of redness, dark circles,
• Gotu Kola is known for its anti-anxiety, skin-calming benefits. 
• Ancient Chamomile: helps to speed up cellular regeneration and helps to soothe skin concerns like psoriasis, eczema, and rosacea when used topically.

Bliss Water Jelly Hydrator

I keep the Bliss Water Jelly Hydrator on hand more during the summer months because of the scent.

If you’re not big on scented facial products, this is not the one for you because this is the most scented out of all the moisturizers I have mentioned in this post.

However, the Water Jelly Hydrator is the one that is closest to the water consistency out of the other three mentioned.

After applying to the skin, it feels good to fan your face until the moisturizer has been fully absorbed; it feels like you have nothing on your face.

Another great thing to mention about the Bliss Water Jelly is, it’s the most purse-friendly option, and you can pick it up at your local Walgreens or CVS. 

Key Ingredients in the Bliss Water Jelly Hydrator

• Watermelon Fruit Extract:  known to replenish lost vitamins and minerals. It also helps to improve the moisture barrier to help prevent dehydration and water loss.
• Brazilian Sea Water & Sea Salt helps to balance skin and keep hydrated. 
• Willow Bark Extract: Helps to remove excess oil and minimize the appearance of pores without over-drying.
• Sodium Hyaluronate: A lightweight moisturizer that holds 1000 times its weight in water.
• Cucumber Fruit Water & Extract: Helps to moisturize, replenish and soothe skin. 

Drunk Elephant Protini Polypeptide Cream 

Who doesnt love Drunk Elephant at some point in their life?

The Protini has been on my beauty shelves for years now.

Protini is another nonscented gel-like cream that quickly absorbs the skin leaving your skin with a nongreasy feeling.

You’ll love Protini if you need immediate results, and it is a perfect go-to after exposure to the sun to help restore balance in the moisture of your skin. 

Key Ingredients In The Protini

• Signal Peptide Complex (growth factors): Nine signal peptides that bind moisture to the skin. 
• Pygmy Waterlily Stem Cell Extract: extremely moisturizing, soothing, and calming in supporting healthy skin.
• Soybean Folic Acid Ferment Extract: plays a central role in maintaining youthful, elastic skin. perfect to use after exposure to the sun
• Acetyl Glutamine: An amino acid that helps soothe and strengthen skin

Ending Thoughts

And those are my Top 5 best moisturizers for oily skin. If I had to choose the top 2, I would go with Sumer Fridays and Tatcha.

These are my favorites based on the results, the way they wear throughout the day, and my skin has yet to break out while using.

I can use both of these moisturizers for any occasion and confident that my skin is being pampered.

Some have mentioned that the Tatcha is a little too greasy afterward; if you agree with that, Summer Fridays is a must-try for you!

If you want to learn more about Masks that will help to hydrate Oily Skin, be sure to check out this post- Things to know before purchasing the FOREO UFO