Best eye cream to reduce puffiness and dark circles

All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Show

25 best eye creams for dark circles, fine lines and puffiness – from the *hundreds* we've tried and tested

Best eye cream to reduce puffiness and dark circles

It's a common myth that you need to hit a certain age before adding one of the best eye creams to your skincare routine. But the reality is, you should start using an eye cream as early as possible – even if you're not in it for youth-boosting effects and just want to keep the delicate skin under your eyes depuffed and well-hydrated. 

Eye creams are a great skincare products for moisturising your under-eyes, which in turn reduces the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines, alleviates puffiness and brightens dark circles (the latter is especially useful for after those late nights out…). 

Some believe that you can replace the best eye creams by just using some of your regular facial moisturiser. But many skincare experts argue that the delicate skin around our eyes (which is 10-40 percent thinner than the rest of our face) warrants a product developed specifically for this area. And we couldn't agree more.

If you're looking for the perfect eye gel that suits your needs and preferences, you've come to the right place – here, we've put together a neat list of the eye cream classics and must-haves you need, including a few of our own personal favourites.

Best eye cream at a glance

  1. Best eye cream overall (our top pick): Clinique All About Eyes Eye Cream Rich 15ml, WAS £27 NOW £24.30, LookFantastic
  2. Best eye cream for wrinkles: Dr Dennis Gross Advanced Retinol + Ferulic Triple Correction Eye Serum, £70, Cult Beauty
  3. Best affordable eye cream: CeraVe Eye Repair Cream 14ml, £12.50, LookFantastic
  4. Best eye cream for sensitive skin: La Roche Posay Hyalu B5 Hyaluronic Acid Eye Cream, £27, Look Fantastic
  5. Best eye cream for dark circles: Lumene Nordic Ageless [AJATON] Radiant Youth Eye Cream, £36.90, LookFantastic

Clinique All About Eyes Eye Cream Rich

Dr Dennis Gross Advanced Retinol + Ferulic Triple Correction Eye Serum

CeraVe Eye Repair Cream

Feeling inspired to upgrade your skincare routine? Check out our guides for the best moisturiser for dry skin, best moisturiser for combination skin and the best moisturiser for oily skin. We can also help you pick the best face masks, anti-ageing creams, night creams, gradual tanner, sun cream, cleansing bars, hyaluronic acid serum and vitamin C serums. 

Best eye cream to reduce puffiness and dark circles

Scroll for GLAMOUR's full edit of the best eye creams.

Best vitamin C eye cream

Dermalogica Biolumin-C Eye Serum

Why we love it: Dermalogica’s eye cream definitely sticks to the brand's core principals – it’s well-researched, it’s based on ingredients we know work and it contains a vitamin C complex that will brighten, firm and leave eyes feeling much fresher. Trust us when we say that the delicate skin under your eyes will thank you. 

Save big when shopping for the best eye creams with these FeelUnique discount codes.

Best hydrating eye cream

Institut Esthederm Hyaluronic Eye Serum

Why we love it:  This clever product with its cooling metal applicator targets the tear troughs (that awful line that defines our eye bags) to invigorate this notoriously tired area of skin with hydrating hyaluronic acid. Dry, tired eyes don’t stand a chance!

Get up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best firming eye cream

Shiseido Exclusive Ultimune Eye Power Infusing Eye Concentrate

Why we love it: This eye cream version is able to restore and strengthen the delicate skin around the eyes to improve firmness, reduce puffiness and improve the appearance of lines and dark circles.

Enjoy up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best eye cream overall (our top pick)

Clinique All About Eyes Eye Cream Rich

Why we love it: Suitable for use morning and night, this eye cream is infused with botanical ingredients – from Mulberry Root Extract, Caffeine and Green Tea Leaf Extract – to reduce puffiness, dark circles and fine lines, while boosting natural collagen production for revitalised, brighter eyes. 

Enjoy up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best eye cream for dark circles

Lumene Nordic Ageless [AJATON] Radiant Youth Eye Cream

Why we love it: Clinically tested to reduce the appearance of fine lines and under-eye circles, this eye cream is infused with protecting lingonberry stem cell extract that's rich in antioxidants for a brighter-looking eye area.

Enjoy up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best affordable eye cream

CeraVe Eye Repair Cream

Why we love it: Specially designed to target dark circles and puffiness around the eyes, this eye cream melts upon application, reducing dark circles and restoring the skin's protective barrier with the help of a combination of ceramides and hyaluronic acid. It's also fragrance-free and suitable for all skin types. 

Get up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best eye cream for wrinkles

Dr Dennis Gross Advanced Retinol + Ferulic Triple Correction Eye Serum

Why we love it: The gold standard in firming, this 3-in-1 eye cream is packed with wrinkle-smoothing retinol, a substance derived from vitamin A that works wonders on fine lines by firming your skin. After all, the doc would know, he treats the great and good of Hollywood and his products are as close as we'll get to his clinic from home. 

Save big when you shop for the best eye creams with these Cult Beauty discount codes.

Best eye cream for sensitive skin

La Roche-Posay Hyalu B5 Hyaluronic Acid Eye Cream

Why we love it: This one from La Roche-Posay contains vitamin B5 and hyaluronic acid to plump, hydrate and ward off wrinkles. It's great for sensitive skin and melts into your skin to kickstart a restorative process and support natural cell renewal in a very soothing and gentle way.

Save up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best collagen eye cream

Kate Somerville KateCeuticals Lifting Eye Cream

Why we love it: Looking for an eye cream that can reduce unwanted water loss and lift the skin under your eyes? This cream is certainly on the pricier side, but its collagen-producing formula includes a triple peptide complex, hyaluronic acid and vitamin C, all of which work hard to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and crow's feet. 

Enjoy up to 40% off when you shop for the best eye creams with these SpaceNK discount codes.

Best eye cream with hyaluronic acid

Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Concentrate

Why we love it: Multi-molecular weight hyaluronic acids helps cushion the delicate skin around eyes with a supercharged infusion of moisture. Skin is strengthened and softened, all while you snooze. What could be dreamier?

Get up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best eye cream with ceramides

Drunk Elephant C-Tango Multivitamin Eye Cream

Why we love it: Ceramides, vitamin C and cucumber extract? Thanks to its ability to brighten and refresh your skin, this gentle yet powerful restorative eye cream is truly something to behold. Did we mention that it's fragrance-free too?

Best eye cream for fine lines

Kiehl's Creamy Eye Treatment with Avocado

Why we love it: This product will leave your eye area feeling refreshed and moisturised. It's also suitable for all skin types, especially for sensitive skin. Its formula also contains beta-carotene and shea butter for an added creamy feel without the risk of migrating into the eyes.

Save up to 50% off when you shop for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best retinol eye cream

Beauty Pie Super Retinol Anti-Wrinkle Eye Cream

Why we love it: Formulated with a line-smoothing slow-release retinol, it's infused with hyaluronic acid and brightening properties for a truly brightened and rejuvenated appearance. After all, it's definitely not called "Super Retinol" for the sake of it.

Take advantage of a free trial and get up to 20% off the best eyes creams with these Beauty Pie discount codes. 

Best natural eye cream 

REN Brightening Dark Circle Eye Cream

Why we love it: This natural eye cream is clinically proven to reduce under-eye circles after seven days. Elderberry flower extract neutralises free radicals which can trigger dark circles and puffiness around the eye, while glycogen helps retain moisture and recharge skin for smoother, plumper-looking skin.

Save big when shopping for the best eye creams with these FeelUnique discount codes.

Best under eye cream with peptides

Sarah Chapman Skinesis Eye Recovery

Why we love it: Who doesn't want an eye cream that's the answered to more energised-looking eyes? This eye cream contains cocktail of skin-plumping antioxidants, peptides, hyaluronic spheres and optical diffusers, all of which work together to boost your collagen production to firm up wrinkles.

Take advantage of our great discounts when shopping for the best eye creams with these FeelUnique discount codes.

Best eye cream for wearing under makeup

Bobbi Brown Vitamin Enriched Eye Base

Why we love it: Perfect for applying before makeup, this hydrating eye cream plumps and smooths the delicate eye area, nourishing it with sodium hyaluronate. The result? No creasing or dryness, which helps prime your skin to maximise concealer application, allowing your whole look to last longer. 

Enjoy up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best eye cream for dry skin

Gallinée Probiotic Eye Contour Cream

Why we love it: Blended with both prebiotics and probiotics, this eye cream is ultra gentle for dry and sensitive skin types. It works by rebalancing the microbiome of the skin around the eye, soothing dehydration and inflammation and rebuilding the delicate skin barrier to protect you against bad bacteria. Did we mention it also contains shea butter? 

Get up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best eye cream for plumping

RÉVIVE Moisturising Renewal Eye Cream

Why we love it: Luxurious in texture and a total dream to apply daily as a night eye cream, this potent product uses a sophisticated blend of proteins, amino acids and oligopeptides to brighten the appearance of the under eye area. The formula also contains hyaluronic acid to bind moisture deep into the skin and plump delicate skin over time. This product is suitable for all skin types and is safe for use by contact lens wearers.

Enjoy up to 40% off when you shop for the best eye creams with these SpaceNK discount codes.

Best contouring eye cream

Sunday Riley Auto Correct Brightening and Depuffing Eye Contour Cream

Why we love it: Eye cream? Contouring? Why not both? This product is infused with caffeine and Brazilian ginseng root, as well as concentrated horse chestnut and acmella oleracea extracts to smooth the appearance of crow’s feet and fine lines. Great for adding a brighter and more radiant look.

You can save big when shopping for the best eyes cream with these John Lewis discount codes. 

Best Korean eye cream

Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Eye Cream

Why we love it: This K-beauty eye cream is formulated with blue hyaluronic acid that's uniquely fermented with seaweed from the depths of seawater, which allows hydration to sink deeper into your skin. So say goodbye to puffy eyes and say hello to a much more luminous look. Did we mentions it's suitable for all skin types? 

Enjoy up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these Selfridges discount codes. 

Best brightening eye cream

Perricone MD Vitamin C Ester CCC + Ferulic Brightening Under-Eye Cream

Why we love it: A well-rested and evenly-toned appearance is easier than you'd think. Fuelled by three potent forms of vitamin C as well as ferulic acid and peptides, this brightening eye cream is designed specifically to plump your undereye bags and visibly reduce brown, blue and red-toned discolouration. 

Get up to 50% off when shopping for the best eye creams with these LookFantastic discount codes. 

Best night eye cream

Dr. Sam's Flawless Nightly Eye Serum

Why we love it: If you love your beauty sleep, then this is the one for you. Designed to be applied at night, this eye cream smooths eye wrinkles, brightens dark circles and restores skin barrier function to eliminate tired eyes in one easy step, thanks to ingredients such as granactive retinoid, niacinamide and ascorbyl glucoside. It's also fragrance-free, cruelty-free and vegan too.

Best eye cream for 20s/30s

Tatcha The Silk Peony Melting Eye Cream

Why we love it: This rejuvenating, potent eye cream sinks easily into the skin and provides a double veil of hydration. It has a delicate formula that's enriched with a trio of Japanese superfoods and antioxidants to help reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles and prep the eye area for makeup.

Enjoy up to 40% off when you shop for the best eye creams with these SpaceNK discount codes.

Best anti-aging eye cream for 40s/50s

Dior Capture Totale Firming & Wrinkle-Corrective Eye Creme

Why we love it: This anti-aging eye cream is enriched with phytosterols, which help soothe, revitalise and improve the look of the eye area.  With this product, your eye contour will feel re-energised, reducing the appearance of fine lines, signs of stress and fatigue. Ideal for a more firm eye area with a healthy glow. 

Save when you shop for the best eye creams with these Boots discount codes.

Best eye cream for bags

Fenty Beauty Bright Fix Eye Brightener

Why we love it: This eye cream easily hydrates, brightens, and conceals your undereye bags to help you master a natural, no-makeup look. Available in 16 different shades, this product is incredibly handy to use as it's crease-, humidity- and sweat-resistant long-wear formula. It's also parabens-free and vegan.

Save when you shop for the best eye creams with these Boots discount codes.

Best eye cream to reduce puffiness and dark circles

Is eye cream necessary?

Still need convincing? We asked Dr Dendy Engelman, top skincare specialist and Elizabeth Arden's consulting New York dermatologist whether eye creams can really make a difference.

"I always say yes. Before you start thinking about injectables or anything like that, take a look at what you're doing with your skincare," says Dr Dendy. "You’re never too young for eye cream because we know it’s going to be the first area to really show crepiness, fine lines and wrinkles, so you do want to hydrate there." However, it's an area that can respond quickest to skincare, so you'll start to see results more quickly, which is encouraging.

Why do you need a separate eye cream?

"The thin skin around the eyes is the first to show signs of ageing, but if you induce collagen and elastin formation in thin skin, it very much translates clinically," says Dr Dendy. However, thin skin can mean regular moisturisers can be too irritating. "We have to make sure that the cream is formulated for the eye area so that it's not too irritating," she adds. 

It's not just the density of our skin, that's different. "There are fewer sebaceous glands around the eye area than in oilier areas like the T-zone," says Dr Dendy. "Less oil means increased risk of wrinkling so I think you absolutely need the separate step of an eye cream to nourish," she says. 

How to apply eye cream

As well as under the eyes, Dr Dendy recommends going up on the brow bone and down to the crease. As for where to avoid? "If you put eye cream on your lash line, it’s going to transfer through into your eye while you sleep, which is irritating and then you’ll rub and scratch it," says Dr Dendy.

What ingredients should we look for in our eye cream?

If you do decide to incorporate an eye cream into your skincare routine, there's a wide variety of ingredients that can be called upon to tackle eye-related concerns like appearance of dark circles, crow’s feet, lack of elasticity, dry skin and puffiness. A few that you can look out for includes vitamin C, which is a champion for brightening skin and diminishing pigmentation and dark circles. Hyaluronic acid is great for hydrating and nourishing tired eyes, while ceramides plump skin and give it a healthier appearance by helping retain moisture. Caffeine is also great for reducing puffiness. 

Retinol is also a key ingredient. “A retinol eye cream is necessary to help stabilise melanocytes [the cells that create pigment in skin] in order to prevent hyperpigmentation. It also thickens the dermis [which can mean veins appear less prominent], improves texture, smooths lines and wrinkles and hides purple skin tones," explains clinical facialist Kate Kerr.

For more shoppable beauty content from Glamour UK Commerce Writer Denise Primbet, follow her on Twitter @deniseprimbet and Instagram @deniseprimbet.

    What eye cream is best for dark circles and puffiness?

    SkinCeuticals A.G.E. ... .
    Sunday Riley Auto Correct Eye Cream. ... .
    Isdin Isdinceutics K-Ox Eyes. ... .
    Drunk Elephant C-Tango Multivitamin Eye Cream. ... .
    La Roche-Posay Pigmentclar Eye Cream for Dark Circles. ... .
    Kate Somerville +Retinol Firming Eye Cream. ... .
    Tata Harper Illuminating Eye Crème. ... .
    Skinbetter InterFuse Treatment Cream Eye..

    How do you get rid of puffy eyes and dark circles fast?

    Treatment.
    Apply a cold compress. A cold compress may reduce swelling and shrink dilated blood vessels to lessen the appearance of puffiness and dark circles. ... .
    Get extra sleep. ... .
    Elevate your head. ... .
    Stay hydrated. ... .
    Soak with tea bags. ... .
    Try eye creams. ... .
    Conceal with makeup..

    Which cream is good for eye puffiness?

    Puffiness Products Collection Pilgrim Retinol Night Cream with Vitamin C & Hyaluronic A... MCaffeine Vitamin C Green Tea Face Wash with Hyaluronic A... Pilgrim Squalane Roll-On Under Eye Eream Serum with Phyto... Pilgrim Red Vine Night Gel Creme with Retinol Mulberry & ...

    Can eye cream reduce puffiness?

    If your puffiness is chronic, a topical eye cream may not be able to do much. But if it's temporary, then the right eye cream can help. The First Aid Beauty Eye Duty Triple Remedy AM Gel Cream gets our top vote, packed with caffeine that helps constrict blood vessels.