CeraVe Moisturizing Cream Review 2025: Still The Best Cream For Dry Skin?

Last Updated on October 21, 2025 by Giorgia Guazzarotti

Gone are the days when winter caught me off guard. Now I know what to expect. Skin drier than the Sahara. Flaky patches that itch like crazy. Red marks that leave skin uber sensitive to the touch. All the hallmarks of dry winter skin. I’m ready for it. This time of year, I retire my lighter creams and turn to the heavy guns of moisturization: CeraVe Moisturizing Cream. Here’s what sets it apart from other heavy moisturising creams and why I recommend it to all my dry-skinned clients at this time of the year.

What’s In CeraVe Moisturizing Cream?

GLYCERIN AND HYALURONIC ACID TO HYDRATE SKIN

Glycerin and hyaluronic acid are moisture magnets. They attract water from the air and the deeper layers of the skin and dump it into the surface layers. All that extra moisture has a plumping effect that makes your fine lines and wrinkles look smaller. Plus, it hydrates your skin so it’s softer to the touch. And brightens the complexion so that it looks like it’s glowing from within. FYI, my fave of the two is hyaluronic acid. It can hold up to 1000 times its weight in water. That’s a lot of extra moisture!

Related: Why You Should Add Hyaluronic Acid To Your Skincare Routine

CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE TO MOISTURISE SKIN

Don’t let the “chemical” name fool you. Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride is just coconut oil minus lauric acid (a fatty acid). Translation: it deeply moisturises skin without clogging your pores and giving you breakouts.

Fun fact: Caprylic and capric are fatty acids too. But unlike lauric acid, they have anti-fungal properties that can kill Malassezia – the yeast responsible for fungal acne and eczema. You know what this means? CeraVe Moisturizing Cream is safe for EVERYONE. If you’re struggling to find a cream that doesn’t make you breakout or give you a rash, this is it.

Related: How To Prevent And Treat Fungal Acne

CERAMIDES TO STRENGTHEN YOUR SKIN’S PROTECTIVE BARRIER

Fun fact: the word ceramides comes from “cera,” the Latin word for wax. These waxy substances make up half of your skin’s protective barrier. Think of them as little bricks. When the wall is intact, moisture stays in and germs, pollutants and co stay out. But as the bricks get damaged and fall off, moisture evaporates through the cracks. Germs and other toxins can get in, causing all kinds of havoc. Cue dryness, redness, irritations and a lot of damage. It ain’t pretty.

But how do these bricks fall off? Harsh winter weather. Unprotected sun exposure. Pollution. Drying cleansers. All the usual suspects. When you’re young, the damage’s not so bad. Your skin makes a lot of ceramides that keep the barrier strong against its enemies. But as you get older, it starts to slacken on the job. Production slows down and your skin gets drier more easily.

That’s why it’s so important to put those ceramides back into your skin. They’ll fill in any holes in the wall, making your skin stronger, softer and more hydrated. Cerave Moisturizing Cream is perfect for the job. It has 3 types of ceramides to repair your skin’s protective barrier and moisturize skin.

Related: How To Strengthen The Skin’s Protective Barrier (And Why It Matters)

Struggling to put together a skincare routine that banishes dryness and makes your skin supple and dewy? Download your FREE “Best Skincare Routine For Dry Skin” to get started (it features product recommendations + right application order):

The Rest Of The Formula & Ingredients

• Aqua / Water / Eau: Okay so this is literally just water, which is the base of pretty much every skincare product because it helps dissolve all the other ingredients and makes the texture nice and spreadable on your skin.
• Cetearyl Alcohol: Don’t freak out about the word “alcohol” because this one is actually really nice and creamy, it’s a fatty alcohol that makes the product feel smooth and helps blend everything together without irritating your skin.
• Cetyl Alcohol: Another one of those good fatty alcohols that acts as an emollient and thickener, giving the product that rich, luxurious texture that glides on your skin beautifully.
• Ceteareth-20: This is an emulsifier that keeps the water-based and oil-based ingredients from separating, so you get a smooth, consistent cream instead of a weird split mess.
• Petrolatum: You probably know this as petroleum jelly or Vaseline, and it’s an occlusive that creates a protective barrier on your skin to lock in moisture and prevent water loss, which is amazing for really dry skin.
• Potassium Phosphate: This is a pH adjuster that keeps the formula at the right acidity level so it doesn’t irritate your skin or mess with your skin barrier.
• Carbomer: This is a thickening agent that gives the product that gel-like consistency and helps it spread evenly without feeling too heavy or runny.
• Dimethicone: This is a silicone that creates a silky, smooth finish on your skin and also acts as a barrier to lock in hydration while making fine lines look less noticeable.
• Behentrimonium Methosulfate: Despite the scary chemical name, this is actually a mild conditioning agent derived from rapeseed oil that helps soften and detangle, though in skincare it mostly helps with texture and emulsification.
• Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate: This is a mild emulsifier and skin-conditioning agent that helps bind moisture to your skin while keeping the formula stable and smooth.
• Cholesterol: Yes, the same cholesterol you hear about with health, but in skincare it’s a lipid that naturally occurs in your skin and helps repair the barrier and retain moisture.
• Phenoxyethanol: This is a preservative that keeps bacteria and mold from growing in the product, which is super important because you don’t want gross stuff breeding in your moisturizer.
• Disodium EDTA: This is a chelating agent that binds to metal ions in the formula to keep it stable and prevent the ingredients from breaking down or the product from getting funky.
• Dipotassium Phosphate: Another pH buffer that works with potassium phosphate to keep the formula at the perfect pH level for your skin.
• Tocopherol: This is vitamin E, which is an antioxidant that protects your skin from free radical damage and also helps keep the product fresh by preventing oxidation.
• Phytosphingosine: This is a lipid that naturally occurs in skin and has anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, so it helps calm irritation and supports a healthy skin barrier.
• Xanthan Gum: This is a natural thickener and stabilizer that gives the product a nice consistency and helps keep all the ingredients evenly distributed.
• Ethylhexylglycerin: This works as both a preservative booster (helping the main preservative work better) and a skin-conditioning agent that makes your skin feel soft and smooth.

Texture

CeraVe Moisturizing Cream is SUPER thick, like seriously dense and rich – when you first scoop it out it almost feels like you’re handling something between a cream and a balm. When you apply it, it doesn’t just melt into your skin instantly like those lightweight gel moisturizers do, it actually sits on top for a bit and you need to massage it in properly.

It takes a good minute or two to fully absorb, which I know can feel a bit heavy at first, but honestly once it does sink in completely it dries down to this surprisingly matte finish that doesn’t leave you looking shiny or greasy at all. It’s kind of amazing because you get all that intense hydration without feeling like you’ve slathered Vaseline all over your face, you know?

Fragrance

It’s completely fragrance-free, which is honestly such a relief because there’s literally no scent at all – not even that weird chemical smell some “unscented” products have. This makes it perfect if you have sensitive skin or just hate when your moisturizer competes with your perfume, plus it means there are no unnecessary irritants that could mess with your skin barrier for absolutely no reason.

How To Use It

I absolutely love applying this to my body right after I get out of the shower when my skin is still slightly damp, because it locks in all that moisture and prevents that horrible tight feeling you get when your skin dries out. But here’s the thing – you can totally use it on your face too, which is pretty versatile for a body cream! I

f you do use it on your face, just make sure to apply it as the very last step of your night-time routine after all your serums and treatments have absorbed, because it’s so occlusive that if you put it on too early it’ll block everything else from penetrating properly. I usually skip it in the morning on my face because it’s quite rich and takes a while to sink in, but for nighttime or for your body it’s absolutely perfect.

Packaging

I actually tried the smaller tube version first, which has 177ml of product, and honestly it’s brilliant for traveling because it’s compact and squeezable so you don’t have to worry about sticking your fingers in a jar when you’re on the go. It’s especially clutch if you’re heading somewhere cold and snowy where the heating systems destroy your skin and you need all the moisture you can possibly find – I always pack this when I go skiing or visit anywhere with brutal winter weather.

But my absolute favorite is the larger jar version, which comes with a whopping 454g of product, and let me tell you this thing is going to last you FOREVER like I’m talking months and months even if you’re using it generously every single day. The formula is exactly the same between the tube and the jar so you’re not missing out on anything, but the jar just gives you so much more value for money and you don’t have to worry about running out anytime soon, plus there’s something satisfying about scooping out a big dollop of thick cream from a jar, you know?

Performance & Personal Opinion

Because it’s so thick, I prefer not to use CeraVe Moisturizing Cream on my face. But it’s a total godsend for my uber dry body skin. The skin there is super dry even in the heat of summer so I let you imagine the state it is in winter. I try to cover it up as much as possible but all those hot showers to melt away the cold from my bones are SO not helping, I tell you.

CeraVe Moisturizing Cream is what helps. As soon as I apply it, my skin feels incredibly soft and moisturised. It stays that way for the whole day. Usually, most creams moisturize my skin for 4 or 5 hours, then I get that “tight” feeling that tells me I’ve run out of moisture and need to apply again. Not with this.

It’s secret? MVE® Delivery Technology: a fancy way of saying that ceramides are slowly released into your skin over a period of several hours instead than all at once. In other words, as soon as the first ceramides to reach your skin are beginning to lose their effectiveness, this moisturizer gives you a new dose that keeps it healthy and soft for a little longer.

What I Like About CeraVe Moisturizing Cream

• The hydration lasts all day without that tight feeling coming back after a few hours like most moisturizers do.
• The MVE® Technology slowly releases ceramides throughout the day instead of dumping everything at once and leaving you dry later.
• It’s fragrance-free so no irritation or weird chemical smells.
• The price is insane for what you get – a huge jar with ceramides and hyaluronic acid that lasts forever.
• You can use it on both face and body, which is super convenient.
• It dries down matte even though it starts off super thick.

What I DON’T Like About CeraVe Moisturizing Cream

• It’s really thick and takes forever to sink into your skin, so you have to massage it in for a bit.
• Too heavy for daytime face use if you wear makeup or just don’t like that rich feeling.
• The jar packaging means you have to stick your fingers in it, which isn’t the most hygienic.
• If you have oily or combination skin this will probably be too much for your face.

Who Should Use This?

This is perfect if you have really dry or dehydrated skin that’s constantly thirsty no matter how much lotion you slap on. It’s a lifesaver for winter when your skin feels like the Sahara desert, or if you have eczema and a damaged skin barrier that needs serious repair. If you’re someone who takes scorching hot showers that strip your skin (no judgment, same), this will fix the damage. Also great if you want something that actually works without spending a fortune on fancy brands. But honestly if you have oily or acne-prone skin, maybe just stick to using it on your body and skip your face because it’ll probably be way too heavy.

Does CeraVe Moisturizing Cream Live Up To Its Claims?

Price & Availability

Jar, $17.00; Tube, $3.99/£8.50 at Dermstore, Ulta and Walmart

Do You Need It?

If you’ve got dry, sensitive skin, this is an excellent option to consider.