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People often suffer from dry and cracked hands, especially during the winter when the moisture level drops. It starts with peeling cuticles and moves toward cracked skin, which is an open invitation for viruses and bacteria to start an infection. Extremely dry skin can also become itchy and may turn into eczema. The proper solution to avoid this painful experience is to hydrate your hands with a proper moisturizer.
Applying hand moisturizer after washing your hands or at night before going to sleep is a simple way to lock in the moisture and protect your hands from dry environmental effects. Facial moisturizer and body lotion should not be used on the hands because the skin on your hands is different from the rest of your body. Hand moisturizers tend to be thinner, they absorb more quickly, and they hydrate more intensely than other types of lotions and creams. The hands are also exposed to water more often than other parts of the body, so they tend to dry out much more quickly.
We’ve reviewed the most effective hand moisturizers of 2024 that are packed with natural, effective ingredients. Our top picks include lotions recommended by dermatologists and hand creams that gently moisturize the skin. With regular use, these hand creams will make your hands feel soft and healthy. Let’s take a look!
Comparing the Finest Hand Moisturizers of 2024
O'Keeffe's Hand Moisturizer — Best Overall
Trusted by craftsmen worldwide, the O'Keeffe's Hand Moisturizer repairs dry cracks and moisturizes your hands to make them feel smooth. It forms a protective layer on the skin’s surface to prevent moisture loss. For best results, apply this hand cream after washing, bathing, or at bedtime as hand moisturizers are most effective at these times.
This hand moisturizer ranks as the best overall product on our list because this hand cream's protection and healing properties withstand the rigors of manual labor.
Pros
- Prevents the loss of moisture
- Heals cracked and dry skin
- Improves moisture levels within a few days
- Relieves itching and pain
Cons
- Contains an allergen Iodopropynyl butylcarbamate
Burt's Bees Hand Moisturizer — Most Healing
Packed with the goodness of baobab oil, this hand moisturizer is a blessing for extremely dry hands. Dry skin on hands becomes very difficult to heal if it hardens and cracks. The Burt’s Bees formula for hand cream is created using natural oils that moisturize the hardened skin to heal the damage within a few days. It also exfoliates the skin gently using extracts of fruit acids that clean your hands and even out your complexion.
Pumpkin seed oil and watermelon seed oil are added to this cream to make your hands feel soft and smooth. This unscented hand lotion gives a light feel when applied regularly and makes your skin radiant and soft.
Pros
- 99% of ingredients are natural
- Exfoliates and hydrates skin
- Free of parabens and phthalates
- Light, unscented formula
Cons
- May feel greasy on the hands
Gold Bond Hand Moisturizer — 24-Hour Hydration
What could be better than your hand moisturizer hydrating your skin even after washing? Well, that's exactly what this Gold Bond Hand Moisturizer does. This hand cream contains seven active ingredients, including aloe vera extract, that locks in the hydration for 24 hours. These ingredients soothe the skin and moisturize it deeply. You’ll experience smooth and soft hands by applying this hand cream intermittently without worrying about your hands feeling greasy. This hand cream absorbs quickly into the skin and repairs damage caused by dry weather. It contains vitamins A, B, E, and C to nourish the skin throughout the day.
Pros
- Gives your hands a healthy glow
- Moisturizes the skin deeply
- Non-greasy formula
- Includes helpful vitamins
Cons
- May feel sticky when applied
CeraVe Hand Moisturizing — Best for Daily Use
The CeraVe Hand Moisturizer contains three types of essential ceramides. Ceramides make up 50% of lipids in our skin and form barriers to prevent moisture loss. Their deficiency in the outer layers of the skin can lead to a dry and flaky surface. Ceramides infused in this lotion absorb quickly into the skin and fill the gaps between the skin cells to create a firm skin barrier. This cream also contains hyaluronic acid, which gives a soft texture to the skin without leaving a greasy feeling. This hand cream effectively relieves the skin from dryness and keeps it hydrated for the whole day.
Pros
- Formula is non-greasy and long-lasting
- Ideal for normal or dry skin
- Can be used all year round
- Makes skin feel soft and smooth
Cons
- Takes time to absorb into the skin
La Roche-Posay Hand Moisturizer — Most Soothing
The La Roche-Posay Hand Moisturizer contains niacinamide, glycerine, and shea butter which are strong moisturizers to keep your skin hydrated for up to 48 hours. This hand cream repairs the skin barrier and prevents the loss of moisture. You don’t need to apply this hand moisturizer after every wash because it resists coming off, even when you wash your hands with a gentle hand wash. This hand cream effectively reduces the static current in dry weather because of its long-lasting effect and it treats dry skin with 30% glycerine and shea butter.
Pros
- Heals painful cracked skin
- Cream is fast absorbing
- Provides 48 hours of hydration
- Niacinamide soothes the skin surface
Cons
- Thick consistency may feel greasy
Buying Guide: Hand Moisturizer
Whatever the nature of work is, our hands are always at work. They hold different tools and materials and are exposed to cold and warm environments. According to experts, an average person washes their hands six to 10 times a day. Every time you wash your hands, the skin loses moisture.
The importance of thoroughly washing one’s hands increased during the COVID-19 pandemic because our hands carry the germs from everything we touch. These germs can be transferred to our respiratory tract easily through our hands. Washing hands thoroughly, especially under the nails and around fingers, is required to remove any germs. This can leave the cuticle, fingertips, and skin between fingers especially dehydrated.
Some professions require washing hands more than others, especially professions in cooking, child care, or medical industries. There is a high level of astringency in liquid soaps and bars that make hands dry because of frequent washing. Applying a hand moisturizer intermittently can rehydrate the skin and protect it from extreme dryness.
But with so many hand lotions and creams available on the market, it can be confusing to try to decide which one to choose. Choosing the right hand cream requires careful attention to the ingredients as some hand moisturizer formulas can be greasy because of the various oils that are added. Some hand creams have a thick consistency to relieve dry, cracked skin. These creams require the thick moisturizer to penetrate slowly into the skin to rehydrate it. Choosing the right hand moisturizer depends on how well it works and your own commitment to using it regularly. Below, we go over everything you need to know.
What Are the Benefits of Using Hand Moisturizer?
We know hand moisturizers and creams work to rehydrate the skin. If your skin feels tight after washing, or there is an itchy feeling with a flaky appearance, then it's time to hydrate your skin. Here are a few reasons why you should develop a habit of keeping your hands hydrated:
- Hand moisturizers create a skin barrier to protect your hands from the external environment.
- These creams improve skin appearance and integrity by deeply moisturizing with active ingredients.
- They improve skin hydration and reduce water loss from the trans-epidermal layer of the skin.
- Hand moisturizers produce less friction and reduce the static current in dry weather.
- They help prevent extreme skin conditions such as eczema.
Most Effective Hand Moisturizer Ingredients
The benefits that hand moisturizers can provide vary depending on the active ingredients they contain.
Hyaluronic acid
Moisturizers with hyaluronic acid are good for healing cracked hands because of extreme dryness. These creams retain a skin’s natural moisture for a long period of time.
Mineral oils
Hand moisturizers with mineral oils are good for generating therapeutic effects. They help improve the texture and nourish the skin.
Water base
Hand moisturizers with a water base are good for giving a cooling effect to the cracked and dry layer of the hands. Some hand moisturizers have added menthol to provide a cooling sensation.
Anti-inflammatory components
Active ingredients like glycyrrhetinic acid, telmesteine, palmitoyl-ethanolamine, and ceramides are good for repairing lipids because of their anti-inflammatory properties. They give a soothing effect to cracked skin and can treat skin conditions like dermatitis.
Aloe vera
Aloe vera is anti-inflammatory in nature and heals hard, broken skin. It’s naturally rich in salicylic acid, which restores skin moisture.
What Features To Look For in Hand Moisturizers
According to dermatologists, treating your hands with a good moisturizer can complete the skincare routine for your hands. A gentle UV protection in the moisturizer is also nice to have if you work outdoors. When searching for a good hand moisturizer, we believe the following features are a must-have:
Treats dryness
Look for ingredients like hyaluronic acid, shea butter glycerine, or petrolatum for treating dryness. These components are also good for healing cracked surfaces. Regular use will lock in the skin’s moisture.
Fixes wrinkles
The skin on the hands shows wrinkles due to dryness. Anti-aging components like alpha-hydroxy acids in hand moisturizers can reduce the appearance of wrinkles and also remove dead cells from the skin surface. This ingredient removes flakes by exfoliating the skin. Because of this increased cell turnover, the hand's skin becomes soft, dewy, and radiant.
Evens out complexion
The skin tone of hands is often uneven compared to your face skin because we pay little attention to the moisturization of our hands. Like your face, you must protect the skin on your hands from sun exposure. Applying hand moisturizer with sun protection can treat the dark spots on your hands and improve your complexion.
Provides long-lasting moisturization
Hand moisturizers seem to work well when you apply them. But after some time, the flakes and wrinkles appear again. Applying oil-based moisturizers or hand creams to make your hands greasy is also not a good idea as you have to do most of your work with your hands. You need a moisturizer that makes you feel good but does not lose its moisturizing effect after a single wash.
Treats inflammation
The chemicals in liquid cleansers or soaps can leave your skin feeling dry and itchy. Failure to moisturize your skin can lead to skin problems like eczema and inflammation. If your hand skin is getting flaky, dry, and itchy, you’re in dire need of a moisturizer. Regularly using hand moisturizers can make your skin soft and smooth and prevent it from skin diseases due to dryness.
Improves appearance
We use our hands for so many tasks. We even use our hands while we talk to someone. Hands are an important part of displaying our physical expression of speech and their presentation matters in social gatherings. Regular use of hand moisturizers benefits your hand skin as well as your fingernails. These creams contain anti-inflammatory agents that prevent the growth of bacteria or fungus in the nails, making your hands appear neat and beautiful.
