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The 8 Very Best Vitamin-C Serums

As someone with a fairly minimal skin-care routine, it’s difficult to convince me to add a new product or step. But vitamin C is one of those actually necessary ingredients. The antioxidant promises everything from fading dark marks to fighting free radicals (which break down collagen) to diminishing fine lines and wrinkles. It’s incredibly effective at all of this, which is why so many people use and recommend it. It’s also why there are so many products to choose from. But alas, nothing’s perfect. Despite its efficacy, vitamin C is notoriously unstable and can quickly go from a hyperpigmentation-zapping wonder ingredient to a $60 bottle of smelly serum. That’s why it’s important to find the right formulation — one that makes vitamin C as stable as possible while also delivering it effectively to the skin.

To find the best of the best, I spoke to dermatologists, aestheticians, and Strategist staffers who moonlight as skin-care enthusiasts, and tested a bunch myself. Our picks — organized by skin needs — are below.

Best overall vitamin-C serum

SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic

$166

Contains L-ascorbic acid, ferulic acid, and vitamin E | 15 percent vitamin C | Translucent amber bottle

Four of our dermatologists recommend SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic, which they (and our editors) hail as the gold-standard vitamin-C serum and is suitable for all skin types. “I think it’s the best out there,” declares Howe. He says it has a light, non-greasy feel, while still delivering “the maximum amount of its active ingredients to the skin.” I’ve also used C E Ferulic off and on for the past few years and can confirm its light consistency. It sits seamlessly underneath my other skin care and even layers well under makeup. It is expensive but worth the price due to its super-stable, patented formula. Its main active ingredient is L-ascorbic acid (it comprises 15 percent of this serum) and despite the high concentration of pure vitamin C, it is both stable and easily penetrates the skin. Part of this serum’s patented formula includes a pH level higher than those of its competitors, meaning it won’t cause the redness and sensitivity that serums with a lower pH can. As Dr. Julie Russak, founder of the Russak Dermatology Group, puts it, this serum “delivers vitamin C through the top layer without disrupting the protective barrier of the skin.”

Whatever vitamin-C serum you choose, Howe suggests applying it in the morning. “That way a reservoir of active vitamin C is present in the skin during the daylight hours, when ultraviolet radiation is strongest,” he explains.

Best less-expensive vitamin-C serum

Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum

$78

Contains L-ascorbic acid, ferulic acid, and vitamin E | 15 percent vitamin C | Opaque bottle

For a more affordable option, two of our dermatologists recommended Drunk Elephant’s C-Firma Day Serum. Because it contains a similar formula to the SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic, you get all the skin-brightening benefits at “half the cost,” according to Dr. Noelani Gonzalez, a dermatology specialist at Mount Sinai Health System. But unlike SkinCeuticals, Drunk Elephant’s serum is cruelty-free. Its formula contains L-ascorbic acid as well as pumpkin-ferment extract and pomegranate enzyme, which attack dead surface skin cells and help to exfoliate, explains Dr. Deanne Mraz Robinson, a co-founder of Modern Dermatology of Connecticut and skin-care company PURE BioDerm. Plus, the serum’s packaging is both airtight and completely opaque — things Gonzalez says you should look for when choosing a serum, because packaging like this helps to keep the vitamin C from exposure to water, light, and oxygen (all of which degrade it). The only thing that makes it a less desirable option than the OG SkinCeuticals is the consistency — it can be a bit sticky, which makes it a little more difficult to layer with other products.

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Bernadette