If You Have Sensitive Skin, Don't Worry—I Found 15 Eye Creams That Will Work

Speaking from experience, there's nothing worse than trying a new eye cream that you're excited about only to find out a few days later that it made your eye area look raw and inflamed. As someone with sensitive skin around my eyes, I've unfortunately had this happen to me one too many times—particularly if I try an eye cream with one too many actives, added fragrances, or other sneaky irritating ingredients. 

After a particularly bad spell with a retinol-laced eye cream in the fall that left me with an irritated patch I couldn't get rid of, I nearly swore off eye creams altogether. Of course, I didn't want to do that—eye creams have tons of benefits if you choose the right formula. To continue being able to use eye creams, I decided to get derm input on the best picks for sensitive skin (including plenty of drugstore eye creams!). 

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(Image credit: @marina_torres)

How do I choose eye cream for sensitive skin?

There are a few major red flags to be on the lookout for in any ingredient list. If you're sensitive, avoid eye creams that contain retinoids, hydroxy acids, fragrances, and alcohols. "Alcohol will dry out the eyelid skin and fragrance has a high likelihood to cause allergic reactions in the very sensitive and delicate eyelid skin," says Nava Greenfield, MD, of Schweiger Dermatology Group in New York City.

Instead, opt for hydrating and moisturizing ingredients, according to Hadley King, MD, FAAD, a dermatologist based in New York City. These work to support the delicate skin around your eye area. "Hydrating ingredients like oils, hyaluronic acid, and ceramides are excellent for eyelid skin, as well as ingredients that promote and boost skin health such as peptides, antioxidants, and extracts," says Greenfield. Keep reading for some of the best eye creams out there for sensitive skin. 

Best overall eye cream for sensitive skin:

More eye creams we love for sensitive skin:

This article was originally published at an earlier date and has since been updated. 

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Associate Beauty Editor

Katie Berohn is the associate beauty editor at Who What Wear. Previously, she worked as the beauty assistant for Good Housekeeping, Woman's Day, and Prevention magazines, all part of the Hearst Lifestyle Group. She graduated from the University of Colorado, Boulder, with a major in journalism and minor in technology, arts, and media, and earned her master's degree at NYU's graduate program for magazine journalism. In addition, Katie has held editorial internships at Denver Life magazine, Yoga Journal, and Cosmopolitan; a digital editorial internship at New York magazine's The Cut; a social good fellowship at Mashable; and a freelance role at HelloGiggles. When she's not obsessing over the latest skincare launch or continuing her journey to smell every perfume on the planet, Katie can be found taking a hot yoga class, trying everything on the menu at New York's newest restaurant, or hanging out at a trendy wine bar with her friends.