The short answer: For skin over 40, the ingredients with the strongest track record are retinoids, peptides, growth factors, and steady hydration, all on top of daily sunscreen. Treat your neck and eyes as part of your face, not an afterthought. For deeper lines, a combination of topicals and in-office treatments tends to work best.
Mature skin does not need less care. It needs smarter care. Skin gets thinner, drier, and slower to renew with age, and the products that worked at 30 can start to crease, sting, or simply stop showing results. This guide gathers what I have shared with editors this year about what actually firms, smooths, and hydrates, from the face down to the neck and around the eyes.
What is the best anti-aging ingredient?
Retinoids are still the gold standard. They boost collagen and increase cell turnover, which is why I told Vogue Arabia they belong at the center of most anti-aging routines.
The right formula depends on your skin. Dry skin usually does better with richer, peptide and ceramide based creams. Acne-prone skin often does better with lighter retinol or bakuchiol formulas. Choose for your skin type and goals, not for the marketing on the box.
Dr. Collins' tip: A combination approach works best. Daily retinoids and peptides at home, and in-office treatments like laser resurfacing, microneedling, or neuromodulators when lines are more pronounced.
Do collagen creams actually work?
Collagen creams do not deliver collagen into your skin. The good ones help your skin make and protect its own. For British Vogue, I split my recommendations by age. For more advanced aging, I like formulas that address glycation, a process that speeds up collagen breakdown. For younger skin, I prefer a well-balanced mix of peptides and growth factors that supports renewal without clogging pores.
I also weighed in on collagen creams for Vogue, and on moisturizers that go beyond hydration for mature skin in Allure.
What are growth factors, and are they worth it?
Growth factors are signaling proteins that tell skin cells to repair and rebuild. Used topically, they can support collagen and elastin for firmer, more even-toned skin over time. They used to be something you could only get at a dermatologist's office. Now they are all over the skincare aisle.
In HuffPost's guide to growth factors, I named the serum I consider the gold standard of the category, a pick that later appeared among the HuffPost Shopping Awards winners.
Do you need to spend a lot on anti-aging skin care?
No. Price and performance are not the same thing. Some of the most reliable formulas I recommend cost less than a dinner out. I shared affordable picks with Real Simple and with Parade's guide to Costco skin care for women over 50.
What tinted moisturizer works for mature skin?
Look for a formula that pairs SPF with real hydration. A lightweight, serum-like texture with ingredients such as glycerin, hyaluronic acid, and niacinamide can blur fine lines rather than settle into them. I shared picks like this with InStyle and Allure, including a mineral tinted formula with zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, and antioxidant vitamins C and E.
Why does the neck age faster than the face?
The skin on your neck is thinner, it moves constantly, and most routines stop at the jawline. As I told Women's Health, I see many cosmetic patients whose faces look amazing but whose necks tell a different story.
At home, carry your serum, moisturizer, and sunscreen down to your neck and chest every day. A neck cream that helps the skin repair itself is useful for tech neck and after procedures, a point I made for Allure. For lines caused by muscle movement, topicals have limits. In the office, neurotoxin injections can soften the platysma muscles to help lift the lower face and smooth the neck. Results vary by person, so this is a conversation to have with a board-certified dermatologist.
I also contributed to Vogue's roundup of neck creams for fine lines and crepey texture.
Dr. Collins' tip: Wherever your face routine goes, your neck and chest go too. Our foy Night Treatment Oil is made to be applied to the face, neck, and chest every night.
How do you choose an eye cream for sensitive or mature skin?
The skin around your eyes is thinner and more reactive than anywhere else on your face, so ingredient choice matters. For sensitive eyes, I told Allure I look for textures that are rich without being greasy, or gel-creams that absorb quickly. If you use sunscreen near the eyes, a mineral formula with zinc oxide is less likely to sting than a chemical one.
For mature skin, I recommended a lightweight but deeply nourishing squalane formula in Prevention, for hydration and to help plump the look of fine lines.
Our foy Eye & Lip Moisturizer is a rich, soothing treatment for the skin around the eyes and on the lips, applied twice daily after cleansing.
As featured in
- Vogue Arabia: I Tested the Wrinkle Creams Dermatologists Swear By
- British Vogue: The Best Collagen Creams To Plump And Firm The Skin
- Vogue: The Best Collagen Creams Work Overtime to Plump and Firm Skin
- Allure: Best Moisturizers for Mature Skin That Go Above and Beyond Hydration
- HuffPost: The Best Anti-Aging Skin Care With Growth Factors
- HuffPost: Every Winning Product Featured In HuffPost's Shopping Awards
- Real Simple: Try These Under-$25 Anti-Aging Picks Before You Spend $100
- Parade: The 7 Best Costco Skincare Products for Women Over 50
- InStyle: The 10 Best Tinted Moisturizers for Mature Skin
- Allure: 10 Best Tinted Moisturizers for Mature Skin That Don't Crease or Settle
- Women's Health: How to Tighten and Firm an Aging Neck, Without Surgery
- Allure: 7 Best Neck Creams to Improve Lines, Laxity, and Texture
- Vogue: 9 Neck Creams That Actually Smooth Fine Lines and Improve Crepey Texture
- Allure: 8 Best Eye Creams for Sensitive Skin That Won't Sting
- Prevention: 15 Best Eye Creams for Mature Skin
Frequently asked questions
When should I start using a retinoid?
Many people start in their late 20s or 30s, but it is never too late. Start slowly, a few nights a week, and build up as your skin adjusts.
Can a cream replace in-office treatments?
Not for every concern. Topicals are excellent for texture, tone, and fine lines. Deeper lines from muscle movement or significant laxity usually respond better to a combination of topicals and in-office care.
Should my neck get its own products?
Not necessarily. Extending your face routine to your neck and chest every day matters more than buying a separate product. A dedicated neck cream can help if you want targeted support.
Dr. Kristina Collins, MD, FAAD, is a Harvard-trained, double board-certified dermatologist and dermatologic surgeon, and the founder of foy. This article is for education and is not a substitute for advice from your own doctor.