As a Korean American beauty writer, making these lists is my Sisyphian curse. The task is something I am constantly thinking about and lives as a never-ending living document in my head, shifting and changing with new finds, but remaining constant with some beloved classics. As long as I can remember, my mother’s best friend would ship comically large boxes to us—if we could not go to Korea, Korea would have to come to us. Packed between brown paper were not only red pepper powder, dry seaweed, and strawberry-shaped dish sponges, but also Mediheal sheet masks, Dr. G Propolis cream, and so many lip tints.
Just because we were in Maryland didn’t mean we had to live without—she made sure of it. When I finally met my mom’s best friend in Korea this November, I held her hand while she cried, not having enough language between us to communicate our gratitude and love. Why I am being so tangential is to say this is a list built of love, care, and recommendations (many of which you will see below from trusted beauty lovers in the industry). Sometimes Sisyphus is happy rolling his boulder. I sure am.
The Best Korean Beauty Products:
- Best Korean Moisturizer: AESTURA Atobarrier365 Cream
- Best Korean Retinal: Celimax Retinal Boosterhttps
- Best Korean Sheet Mask: Sungboon Editor Deep Collagen Power Boosting Overnight Sheet Mask
- Best Korean Sunscreen: MEDIHEAL Madecassoside Moisture Sun Serum Blemish Repair
- Best Korean Sunscreen Available In The U.S.: SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Hyalu-Cica Water-Fit Sun Serum
- Best Korean Lip Serum: Laneige Glaze Craze Lip Serum
- Best Korean Ampoule: ONDA Rejuvenative PDRN-NE Ampoules
- Best Korean Lip Balm: rom&nd Glasting Melting Balm
- Best Korean Essence: Numbuzin No. 9 NAD Bio Lifting-sil Essence
- Best Korean Mascara: CLIO Kill Lash Mascara Long Curling
- Best Korean Gel Cream: Histolab Centella Red Cream
- Best Korean Exosome Ampoule: Dr. Nineteen Pore Ampoule
- Best Korean Cleansing Oil: Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Moisture Cleansing Oil
- Best Korean Brow Pencil: PERIPERA Speedy Skinny Brow
- Best Korean Peptide Serum: PURCELL 82% High-Dose Peptide Formula
- Best Korean Vitamin C Serum: COSRX Pure Vitamin C 23
- Best Korean Tinted Sunscreen: Beauty of Joseon Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen
Below, find the best Korean beauty products on the market, according to K-beauty experts.
1. Best Korean Moisturizer: AESTURA Atobarrier365 Cream
Amazon
On my last trip to Korea four years (ish) ago, I picked up a bottle of Aestura’s Atobarrier Cream at the insistence of my cousin at an Olive Young. Since then, I have not lived without it. Seriously, I have a bottle in my medicine cabinet, backups in my closet, and an extra at my sister’s. Why? Atobarrier is effective at providing serious hydration using encapsulated ceramides, an ingredient that is the mortar between the bricks that are your skin cells. Formulated without fragrance, it's gentle enough for a wide range of skin types and aids in barrier protection.
2. Best Korean Retinal: Celimax Retinal Booster
Amazon
Founder of Song of Skin, a United States-based K-beauty retailer, Kelley Liu says she loves this product from Celimax because it lets you target specific wrinkle-prone areas instead of applying retinol all over the face. "A pea-sized amount is all you need," she says. "It’s precise, effective, and gentle, helping to visibly smooth fine lines while keeping skin balanced and glowy.”
3. Best Korean Sheet Mask: Sungboon Editor Deep Collagen Power Boosting Overnight Sheet Mask
Ulta
Megan McIntyre has been writing about Korean beauty since it first made its way over to the U.S., when she was the beauty director at Refinery29. “After covering K-Beauty for going on a decade now, I feel like I've tried my weight in collagen sheet masks,” she says. “While I've seen a noticeable difference in my skin from the majority of them, the hands-down winner for benefits and experience has to be this luxe-feeling one from Sungboon Editor. It's not only the thickest of the bunch, but it gives my skin the most hydration and the best glow the next morning.”
4. Best Korean Sunscreen: MEDIHEAL Madecassoside Moisture Sun Serum Blemish Repair
Ballagrio
If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me what my favorite sunscreen is, I would be a very wealthy woman. In summary, this sun serum is my favorite. The lightweight, runny texture doesn’t pill, sting the eyes, or leave a white cast. Whenever I wear it, I get compliments about how luminous my skin is. Plus, the madecassoide calms the skin. However, due to the FDA, it cannot be sold in the United States (the last time we got a new sunscreen filter was in 1999), which means you'll have to add it to your beauty shopping list for your next trip to Korea. But, there is a good alternative...
5. Best Korean Sunscreen Available In The U.S.: SKIN1004 Madagascar Centella Hyalu-Cica Water-Fit Sun Serum
Yesstyle
The texture of this beloved sunscreen is between a cream and a gel, and is never heavy or sticky. Hydrating ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and centella asiatica function to calm the skin barrier. If you have dry skin, use this on top of your moisturizer. If you have oily skin, this alone can work as a moisturizer as well as your SPF protection.
6. Best Korean Lip Serum: Laneige Glaze Craze Lip Serum
Sephora
"Laneige Glaze Craze has officially ruined all other tinted lip serums for me,” says Coveteur’s editor in chief Faith Xue. “As a former beauty director, I’ve tried practically every tinted lip product under the sun, and this one surpasses them all. It actually hydrates my lips and adds a subtle tint of color in just a few swipes. But the star is the donut-shaped applicator, which is soft and bouncy and cushions my lips perfectly like a hug. Going back to a plastic applicator is like trying to wear polyester after experiencing cashmere."
7. Best Korean Ampoule: ONDA Rejuvenative PDRN-NE Ampoules
ONDA Beauty
“Like everyone on the internet, I am obsessed with PDRN, the salmon sperm DNA compound that promotes skin rejuvenation,” says The Cut beauty editor Asia Milia Ware. “The quality of it lacks in a lot of products, but these ampoules preserve the quality of PDRN so that it's able to really penetrate the skin. It's a four-week commitment. I'm on week two, and I see a difference in my skin. It's pricier than most K-beauty on the market, but I trust the quality and the results are there, so it's a splurge that's worth it.”
8. Best Korean Lip Balm: rom&nd Glasting Melting Balm
Nordstrom
I'm an ardent fan of all of rom&nd’s lip products, but this one takes the cake. The melting balm is a wonderful combination of a lipstick and lip gloss with the lasting power of a lip tint. The pigmentation packs a punch but is not overwhelming and can be built up. What I like about this lip product is how well it adheres and remains through countless iced Americanos, meetings, and more.
9. Best Korean Essence: Numbuzin No. 9 NAD Bio Lifting-sil Essence
Olive Young
“Numbuzin is one of those brands that is massive in Korea but hasn't yet taken off in quite the same way in the U.S." says McIntyre. "I think it's only a matter of time, because every product of theirs that I have tried has been an absolute banger and none more so than this serum for aging skin. At 42, I'm dealing with sagging, wrinkles, dullness, and texture problems (whoo-hoo hormones), and I've seen a marked improvement in all of those areas since adding this to my regimen.”
10. Best Korean Mascara: CLIO Kill Lash Mascara Long Curling
Olive Young
I have been enjoying wearing this mascara more often since my lovely friend Emma, an esthetician at Ställe and an old cross-country high school friend, asked if she could perm my lashes. My lashes are the only thing straight about me, so wearing mascara can be an arduous task. It requires curling my lashes from root to tip using a lighter to heat the curler, then applying layers of an extremely waterproof mascara that holds that fragile curl and doesn't transfer onto my monolids. I have used Kill Lash; the mascara worked wonders.
11. Best Korean Gel Cream: Histolab Centella Red Cream
Histolab
“I was introduced to this cream during a recent interview with model Paloma Elsesser,” says Milia Ware. "The second the hydrogel cream touched my hands, I was intrigued. The texture wasn't your normal gel cream; it was dense and rich. It only took one use to have me sold. It left my skin with a glass-like finish, but outside of that, my skin felt soothed and moisturized, a nourishment that even my richest cream couldn't give. This winter, it'll be what's locking in all my products. It was an instant favorite and now a staple in my routine."
12. Best Korean Exosome Ampoule: Dr. Nineteen Pore Ampoule
Amazon
“I love the science behind this ampoule,” says Song of Skin’s Kelley Liu. “It’s formulated with lab-grown PDRN combined with exosomes to help tighten pores and refine skin texture. It was literally developed by 19 doctors in Korea, and you can feel that clinical precision in the formula.”
13. Best Korean Cleansing Oil: Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Moisture Cleansing Oil
Haruharu Wonder
“Korea is undoubtedly the home of the cleansing oil, and Haruharu’s version tops my list,” says Xue. “Made with just nine ingredients and 100% natural oils, it’s proof that sometimes, simpler is better. But none of that would matter if it wasn’t effective, which it is—one pump is all it takes to completely melt off all my makeup, with zero residue or greasy feeling left behind. Instead, my skin just looks (and feels) soft and clean.”
14. Best Korean Brow Pencil: PERIPERA Speedy Skinny Brow
Olive Young
Eyebrow pencils in the United States often run too warm (and pricy) for my liking. However, the colorway of these pencils from Peripera truly reflect neutral hair tones; plus, it just expanded its shade range. The 1.5mm tip creates thin hair-like strokes and is formulated with the right amount of firmness. If you have black hair, the shade gray brown is a game-changer.
15. Best Korean Peptide Serum: PURCELL 82% High-Dose Peptide Formula
Amazon
This high-dose peptide serum has a watery consistency which makes it apply so easily to the skin, which is why McIntyre swears by it. "A lot of peptide formulas I've tried in the past can leave a tacky residue behind, whereas this sinks in and feels like nothing at all," she says. "It might make you think it's not actually doing anything, until you start to notice that your fine lines look a little less pronounced and your overall complexion is a bit bouncier and plumper. I apply it right after I wash my face, so it's the first thing that touches my skin (even before my toner), and I swear I see a visibly smoother and more snatched profile in the mirror. It's subtle, but it's there.”
16. Best Korean Vitamin C Serum: COSRX Pure Vitamin C 23
Amazon
This viral product is one of the best vitamin C serums on the market—it helps even skin tone, reduce hyperpigmentation, and leaves a beautiful glow. The dark bottle reduces oxidation of vitamin C, a notoriously unstable ingredient. However, this product is not meant for everyone because of its large concentration of vitamin C. So if you have sensitive skin, do a patch test on your wrist. While there is no artificial fragrance, it does smell, as many Reddit users have said, like “hotdog water.”
Best Korean Tinted SPF: Beauty of Joseon Daily Tinted Fluid Sunscreen
Amazon
“This is a a product that’s become a daily staple,” says Xue. “I had some apprehensions going into it, knowing how many of the SPF filters used in Korea aren’t legal here—so how groundbreaking could this tinted SPF really be? In short: incredibly. The watery texture melts into my skin instantly, magically smoothing all of my skin texture and leaving a slightly dewy finish behind. The SPF 40 and price point—$10!—is just an added bonus for a truly high-quality skincare-makeup hybrid.”
