Our pick for the year's best face oil is from The Outset.
I used to be afraid of face oils. Having oily and acne-prone skin for most of my life kept me from giving them a go for decades. But over the years, and after numerous conversations with dermatologists and skin experts, my fears have at last dissipated. These days, face oil is something I downright rely on — especially due to the chaos of perimenopause, which has made my skin drier than it's ever been. I’ll take an extra boost of hydration wherever I can get it, thank you very much!
Face oils are often used to seal in moisture at the end of a skin-care routine, but they have many benefits. You could also say each one has its own special superpowers. Rosehip and grapeseed, for instance, deliver antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits, while tea tree and blue tansy address acne and irritation — making a skin oil containing those ingredients ideal for ... oily skin. (Who would have thought?) And that’s just the tip of the iceberg — face oils are a multi-purpose beauty product, bringing hydration wherever you need it, from ragged cuticles to fried hair strands. They can even be used during gua sha. No wonder celebs like Drew Barrymore are fans!
Before diving into the world of face oils, the number-one thing to know is that no two are created equal. Some oils, like squalane, rosehip or jojoba, are non-comedogenic, making them less likely to clog pores. However, both researchers and dermatologists see the comedogenicity scale as controversial and flawed. Most agree, however, that comedogenic oils include essential oils like lavender and mint, along with coconut, carrot seed and soybean oils.
As with any new beauty product, how your skin will react to an oil depends on myriad factors, like the concentration of the ingredients, the specific composition of the entire formula and, of course, the unique makeup of your own skin. It might sound like a lot, but once you figure out which face oil is best for you, you’ll wonder how you lived without it! Keep reading to learn ones get our highest recommendation.
Update, August 26, 2025: We checked all product prices and availability. Our No. 1 pick for the best face oil remains unchanged.
Key ingredients: Abyssinian oil, squalane, acai, jojoba and avocado oil | Skin type: All, especially sensitive | Size: 1 oz.
While testing these, I kept people like the "old me" — i.e., those hesitant to use face oils — in the forefront of my mind. Even though my skin responded well to many of the oils I tried, I thought about what type of ingredient was more likely to cause a reaction. That would be any essential oil. Spoiler: Essentials are in a LOT of these products, but not in our #1 pick, The Outset's Ultralight Moisture Boosting Face Oil.
The Outset formulates its products for sensitive skin, which means it doesn’t add fragrance. While I usually don’t have a problem with fragrance, choosing an unscented face oil as the winner made sense for this particular list. (Again, I am thinking of everyone else here!)
In terms of ingredients, well, this product doesn’t skimp. It contains 16 botanical oils, including abyssinian oil, which is packed with omega-9 and omega-6 fatty acids; avocado oil, which helps protect the skin from free-radical damage; the moisture-boosting squalane; and jojoba, a great anti-aging ingredient (due to its richness in vitamins E and B).
I was dealing with some mysterious dryness on my forehead that would not disappear. It felt like someone sucked all of the hydration out of my skin cells up there, no matter what moisturizer I used. After sealing in my face cream with this oil one night, I woke up with my skin soft, plump and feeling moisturized for the first time in days. (For the record, this is the second time a product from The Outset came to the rescue when my skin felt funky.)
Key ingredients: squalane oil | Skin type: All, especially oily and combination | Size: 13 ml / .44 oz.
If you’re new to face oils and want to experiment before going full force, here's some advice: Choose one with minimal ingredients. For just $8, you can get your squalane on with this one. Squalane is filled with powerful antioxidants and can help with fine lines and wrinkles, increase hydration and strengthen the skin barrier. This Good Molecules option is lightweight, easy to use and quickly effective. My skin instantly felt super soft.
Warning: It comes in a really small bottle, so once you try it, you might end up becoming like one of the Amazon reviewers who wishes it were bigger!
Key ingredients: Hawaiian turmeric, noni, kukui, kamani oils | Skin type: All | Size: 1 oz
Compared to some more well-known brands, Honua is a bit under the radar, but they are really worth getting to know. The Hawaiian skin care company uses native oils, such as noni, kukui nut, kamani and turmeric. I was intrigued by this set of ingredients, which aren’t as common in other face oils like squalane or jojoba. Noni is highly antioxidant, Hawaiian turmeric helps with all kinds of inflammatory conditions, from acne to aging to eczema.
Meanwhile, antioxidant-rich kukui nut oil and kamani oil help with hydration and supporting collagen production. My skin had a legit glow after using this for a couple of days.
I’ve been writing about beauty for over a decade and have tested and reviewed hundreds of products, including dozens of face oils. As someone who was hesitant about face oils up until a couple of years ago, I wanted to be thorough while testing and analyzing each one, particularly around if they made my skin break out. Over a few months, I tried around a dozen, searching for those that helped seal hydration best and didn't cause skin irritation.
In addition to hydration and how my skin reacted, I rated each based on efficacy, quality of ingredients, feel (whether it was heavy or not), absorption rate and cost.
Vintner’s Daughter Active Botanical Serum: This is a longtime favorite of beauty editors and skin care aficionados. I was impressed at the long list of nourishing botanical oils, but it also contains a good amount of essential oils, which might not work for sensitive skin folks. It’s also very expensive, and I wanted to keep a moderate budget in mind.
Bio-Oil Skincare Oil: Similarly, this is one of those polarizing products that people either swear by or are scared of (in the original version of the product, mineral oil is its first ingredient.) While I didn’t experience a reaction, I did find the product heavy and was just not feeling the whole mineral oil aspect! (Though, since many people say it helped lighten their scars and stretch marks, I may try to use it on my gallbladder surgery scars.)
Since there are so many different types of oils, it can be confusing to find the right one for your particular skin. For most skin types, choose any the following oils (alone or in combination). Each of is rich in fatty acids and safe for most complexions.
Squalane oil: A highly-moisturizing, lightweight, vegan oil typically derived from olives, sugarcane, rice bran or wheatgerm.
Rosehip oil: Made from the seeds of wild rose bushes, a medium weight oil that's meant to soothe skin and boost collagen production.
Marula oil: Extracted from African marula fruit, this oil has anti-inflammatory and skin protecting qualities.
Vitamin E: Heavier oil with antioxidant properties that can soothe and hydrate dry skin and even help with healing scars.
Jojoba oil: This vitamin- and mineral-rich medium-weight oil acts as a moisturizer and antibacterial and it's noncomedogenic too.
Those with sensitive skin should be careful with essential oils (such as tea tree and lavender) as they can be irritating.
If you have oily or acne-prone skin, you might want to stay away from heavier oils or ones that are higher on the comedogenicity scale, such as coconut, wheat germ and carrot seed oil, and instead choose oils like tea tree and blue tansy oil, which are antibacterial and soothing. (Fun fact: Mineral oil is technically non-comedogenic but is occlusive, meaning it can trap dirt and bacteria beneath the surface, thus causing acne and disrupting the skin barrier.)
Some face oils can be used after cleansing, much like a serum or moisturizer. (If you do this, it’s best to apply the oil to damp skin.) However, face oils are generally used as the final step in a skin care routine to seal in the other hydrating ingredients. A little goes a long way, so use one to two drops and gently press the oil into your skin.
Typically, face oils are used at night, but they can also be a part of your morning skin care routine. It depends on your skin type and needs. People with dry skin might want to use a face oil in the morning as it can help prep the skin for makeup. As with other new products, it’s best to go slow when incorporating a new face oil.
We received complimentary samples of some products and purchased others ourselves, but we reviewed all products using the same objective criteria.
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