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The best niacinamide serums for the face and body

Vitamin B3 deserves the praise it gets, people

By Briar Clark

BEAUTYcrew Junior Beauty Writer / January 25 2021

Niacinamide, or vitamin B3 to those in the know, is one of those over-performing skin care hero ingredients that can take your complexion to glowy, even-toned perfection with regular use.

In case you didn’t know niacinamide is a real multi-tasker, largely in part because it’s a water-soluble vitamin, meaning it’s easy for the body to absorb so you can see all of the ingredient’s noteworthy benefits. The list of which is extensive. We’re talking minimised pores, even skin tone, softened fine lines and wrinkles, and the minimised appearance of dull, tired-looking skin.

Plus, on top of all that, niacinamide provides antioxidant protection against environmental damage caused by exposure to pollutants, strengthening skin from the inside out and reinforcing the skin’s natural barrier.

In fact, we love the potent antioxidant so much we rounded up our favourite face and body serums that feature the champion ingredient...

SkinCeuticals Metacell Renewal B3 Emulsion

The big guns of niacinamide, this potent emulsion from SkinCeuticals features vitamin B3 as the star ingredient, as well as a cocktail of active ingredients that address early symptoms of photoaging, including dullness, discolouration, wrinkles, and loss of elasticity. She’s a winner baby.

THE INKEY LIST Niacinamide Face Serum

The cool new kid on the block, as with every other offering from The Inkey List, you can expect a potent formulation from this niacinamide serum. It helps to control excess oil and blemishes on the skin, as well as reduce the appearance of redness, and also features 1% hyaluronic acid to further soothe and hydrate potentially inflamed, acne-prone skin.

THE ORDINARY Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%

The budget-friendly offering of the bunch, The Ordinary niacinamide formulation reduces the appearance of skin blemishes and congestion, while the addition of zinc helps to balance excess sebum production in the skin. Meaning you can stress less about potential unwanted visitors making an appearance on your face.

Drunk Elephant B-Hydra™ Intensive Hydration Serum

Undoubtedly a cult fave, Drunk Elephant really nailed it with this hydrating serum. This crowd favourite features a cocktail of skin-loving ingredients like pro-vitamin B5 and pineapple ceramides; to impart radiance and refine skin texture and tone, and sodium hyaluronate; for plumping fine lines and wrinkles, and improving overall skin hydration.

VASELINE Radiant Glow Skin Serum

The body saviour, Vaseline’s affordable glow serum brings all of the benefits of niacinamide to limbs in (desperate) need of attention. Vitamin B3 is the star of the show of course but cranberry extracts lend themselves to the formulation, delivering moisturised and glowing skin with regular use. Plus, at $8.99 a bottle don’t be afraid to get liberal with application. Every little bit helps.

Olay Luminous Niacinamide Super Serum

Olay's new kid on the block is as potent as they come, formulated with 99 per cent pure niacinamide. If dark spots are your nemesis, consider this your hero as it works to banish them and brighten the skin, while xylitol increases skin hydration and boosts skin translucency.

Main image credit: @fozzisbozz

Another active we can’t stop raving about is retinol. These new retinol products are the best thing to come out of 2020.

Briar Clark

Briar was a Beauty Crew intern before she joined the crew full time in 2019 as a Beauty Assistant, and as a Junior Beauty Writer as of 2020. She is a self-professed skin care obsessive, always on the hunt for the perfect mascara, and can't go past a Fenty lipgloss.