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The best Korean eye creams are among the list of untapped K-beauty skincare products that have yet to receive the wide-spread hype they deserve. Fairly priced with potent formulas, these anti-aging formulas harness the power of actives like retinol or bakuchiol to firm up the skin without causing irritation. Brendan Camp, MD, a double board-certified dermatologist in New York told Vogue previously that retinol in eye creams “can help stimulate collagen and limit the appearance and formation of fine lines and crepey skin.” Meanwhile, ingredients such as centella asiatica and panthenol in Korean eye creams can soothe the delicate under-eye area, while caffeine and steel ball applicators depuff and cool.
Vogue’s Favorite Korean Eye Creams
- Best Hydrating: S.Nature Aqua Soy Yogurt Eye Cream, $30
- Best for Sensitive Skin: CNP Propolis Essential Eye Cream, $30
- Best Retinol: Some By Mi Retinol Intense Eye Cream, $16
- Best Retinol Alternative: Skin1004 Madagascar Centella Probio-Cica Bakuchiol Eye Cream, $15
- Best for Dark Circles: Skin&Lab Bakuchiol Eye Serum, $24
- Best Vitamin C: Goodal Green Tangerine Vitamin C Eye Cream, $22
- Best Concealing: Shaishaishai Banana Conceal Eye Cream, $29
- Best Luxury: Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Rejuvenating Eye Cream, $120
In This Story
- What makes Korean eye cream special?
- What ingredients are common in Korean eye creams?
- What to Look for in a Korean Eye Cream
When seeking out one of the best eye creams Korean beauty has to offer, Peach Lily founder Alicia Yoon previously told Vogue it’s important “to choose one that suits your eye area and addresses specific concerns you’re targeting.” “The eye area is delicate and thin and can have its own set of issues—dark circles, puffiness, fine lines, dryness,” so remember to patch test, and then “dab on the product rather than tugging and pulling,” she said. Long story short, these high performing eye creams should boost your overall skincare routine.
With near weekly trips to my favorite K-Beauty supply stores, it’s no secret I’m a Korean skin-care and makeup enthusiast, and one eager to learn from K-Beauty exprerts on the latest and greatest. Ahead, a look the best Korean eye creams available stateside right now, as one beauty editor seeks to get her hands on as many best-selling formulations as possible.
Best Luxury: Sulwhasoo Concentrated Ginseng Rejuvenating Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: Who doesn’t love a touch of luxury in their beauty routine? Eye care often invites a splurge, and Sulwhasoo’s luxurious cream is a cult-favorite in the U.S. The indulgent formula utilizes ginseng actives, ginseng peptide, and a vitamin C derivative for a unique and potent blend that helps reduce the appearance of wrinkles while improving skin elasticity. Consider this a K-beauty alternative to traditional brightening eye creams that rely on vitamin C—though it’s worth noting this pick is definitely a thicker, classic eye cream texture compared to more lightweight formulas.
- Key Ingredients: Korean Ginseng Actives, Ginseng Peptide, Ginseng Flower Extract With Retinol
- Best For: Wrinkles, brightening, firming
- Size: 0.5 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Brightening and hydrating formula | On the pricier side |
| Ginseng’s anti-oxidant rich properties reduce fine lines |
Best Retinol Alternative: Skin1004 Madagascar Centella Probio-Cica Bakuchiol Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: As someone with sensitive, easily reactive skin, retinol around the eyes has always felt like a gamble—but Skin1004’s Soothing Eye Cream changed that for me. The formula features bakuchiol, a gentle, plant-based alternative to retinol which studies show visibly smooths fine lines to reduce signs of aging and brightens dark circles without irritation. It also contains calming centella asiatica sourced from Madagascar, making it especially comforting on days when my skin feels stressed or dehydrated. The silky texture glides on effortlessly with the built-in applicator, offering just enough slip for a cooling massage.
- Key Ingredients: Bakuchiol, centella asiatica
- Best For: Wrinkles, brightening, soothing
- Size: 0.67 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Cruelty-free and Vegan Formula | Some with hyper-sensitive skin may still find bakuchiol a bit irritating |
| Naturally-derived alternative to retinol suitable for most skin types | |
| Included applicator |
Best with Niacinamide: Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum
- Why We Love It: With a growing fanbase of stateside K-beauty enthusiasts, the combination of ginseng root extract and retinol in Beauty of Joseon’s revitalizing eye serum helps to reduce fine lines without irritating delicate skin. Another ginseng-forward formula, this lightweight cream also includes a dose of retinal for wrinkle reduction, and niacinamide to brighten hyper pigmentation. Not to mention, this pick boasts over 10,0000 glowing Amazon reviews with plenty of anecdotes praising how supple their skin feels with consistent use.
- Key Ingredients: Ginseng, retinol, niacinamide, adenosine
- Best For: Wrinkles, brightening, firming
- Size: 1.01 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| A potent formula that helps to brighten dark circles | Some Sensitive skin types may find retinal and nicanimaide irriating |
| Affordable price point |
Best for Sensitive Skin: CNP Propolis Essential Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: CNP’s eye cream is a propolis‑infused, gel‑cream designed to plump, firm, and hydrate tired under‑eyes without any sticky residue. Studies on propolis, derived from honey bees, show the powerhouse ingredient can slow down sun damage, brighten, and even reduce fine lines—making it a stellar choice for those with hyper-sensitive skin. Packed with ceramides, shea, and macadamia oils, this pick hydrates, while niacinamide brightens hyperpigmentation. The lightweight and gentle formula is great for daily use, plus fast‑absorbing enough to layer under a full face of makeup.
- Key Ingredients: Propolis extract, niacinamide, panthenol, squalane, ceramide NP
- Best For: Hydration, firming, brightening, wrinkles
- Size: 1.69 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Cruelty-free formula | Propolis is not technically Vegan, for those who prefer picks with no animal by-products |
| A great pick for daily use, adding a dose of hydration and brightening |
Best De-Puffing: Bewants Phyto Collagen Eye Serum Stick
- Why We Love It: If there’s one thing I’m not, it’s a morning person. After this eye serum is stored briefly in the fridge, it delivers an instant cooling, pre-coffee wakeup call to me and my under-eye bags. With a single press of the pump, the hydrating serum-like texture rolls on, depuffing on contact—think of this as an upgrade from placing cold spoons under your eye. Packed with 10 peptide complexes, hyaluronic acid, panthenol, plus firming bakuchiol and soybean protein, it really gives my under-eyes a smooth, plumped look without any stickiness or tugging. It’s become my go‑to for mornings when I need a quick depuff and a soothing, effective hit of hydration. Not to mention, it’s a great pick for sensitive mature skin types too—take it from my mother who cooed “oooh!” when borrowing it from me.
- Key Ingredients: Soybean Protein, hyaluronic acid, bakuchiol, panthenol
- Best For: Cooling, firming, hydration, dark circles
- Size: 0.5 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Dispenses through a cooling metal applicator, tilted at a 14 degree, for a perfectly angled application. | Some dislike the mild fragrance of this formula |
| Hydrating and firming ingredients | |
| Great for de-puffing |
Best for Mature Skin: Some By Mi Retinol Intense Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: While retinol eye creams can be intense— leading to flaking and irritation—this strong but gentle one by Some by Mi is an exception. The 0.1% concentration helps with fine wrinkles and skin elasticity while niacinamide brightens the under-eye area, making it an excellent choice for mature skin. To maintain a strong skin barrier, centella asiatica extract, hyaluronic acid, and panthenol work to soothe and repair.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, niacinamide, centella asiatica, tranexamic acid
- Best For: Wrinkles, dark circles, firming
- Size: 1.01 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Effective low‑dose retinol formulation | Sensitive skin types may find this formula irritating |
| Brightening ingredients like niacinamide and tranexamic acid |
Best for Dark Circles: Skin&Lab Bakuchiol Eye Serum
- Why We Love It: Skin&Lab’s soothing steel roller releases a caffeine-packed serum that increases blood circulation around the eyes. Aside from a potent serum, my favorite aspect of this pick is its roller ball applicator. Roll, refresh, repeat—the cooling metal roller glides on effortlessly with a formula infused with a potent blend of bakuchiol, alpha-arbutin, peptides, caffeine, and panthenol to visibly lift, hydrate, and brighten the under-eye area.
- Key Ingredients: Bakuchiol, caffeine, alpha arbutin, vitamin P
- Best For: Firming, brightening, dark circles
- Size: 0.5 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Cooling precision roller ball application | Texture can feel a bit tacky |
| Firming and hydrating ingredients | Some find the roller ball a bit tricky, dispensing too much product |
| Vegan and cruelty-free formula |
Best with Peptide: Belif Moisturizing Eye Bomb
- Why We Love It: If you’re a fan of gel cream moisturizers or gel tints, it’s the perfect moment to elevate your beauty routine with a eye gel cream. Designed for intensive hydration, this eye cream works to plump fine lines, delivering an impressive hydration to even the dryest of skin types. Not to mention, this formula gets it’s silky texture from a blend of squalane, ceramides, and centella asiatica–leaf extract (with a refreshing cooling feeling upon application).
- Key Ingredients: Squalane, tiger grass, comfrey leaf, ceramide NP, glycerin
- Best For: Cooling hydration
- Size: 0.84 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Hydrating and gentle formula | On the pricier side of K-beauty products |
| Lightweight gel texture |
Best Hydrating: S.Nature Aqua Soy Yogurt Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: For those with complexions prone to dry skin, or dabbling in drying actives, a hyper hydrating eye cream can be the answer. This award-winning eye cream is beloved by Koreans for its hydrating properties. The soybeans, grown in Korea, are fermented with added probiotics to create a strong skin barrier. Other ingredients like squalane and panthenol boost nourishment to soothe the sensitive underey area. Best of all, it boasts the thickness of a classic eye cream in more hygienic packaging (squeeze to dispense, rather than digging around in a pot).
- Key Ingredients: Soy yogurt, squalane, panthenol, allantoin, vitamin E
- Best For: Hydration, firming
- Size: 0.88
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Hydrating, non-irritating formula | Not suited for those looking to treat mature skin |
| Safe for sensitive skin |
Best Concealing: Shaishaishai Banana Conceal Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: Perfect for a quick summer routine, this eye cream is my go-to for reducing dark circles when I m not in the mood for a full concealer and foundation look. This eye-cream packs skin-care benfits with just a hint of color correction—and the formula plays nicely with others, layering under color cosmetics if you want to go for a full beat. is lightweight enough to layer under makeup. It’s worth noting those, the shade range is well, non-existent—the banana toned products will only work well on fair to light-medium skin tones.
- Key Ingredients: Musa Sapientum (Banana), panthenol
- Best For: Brightening, dark circles
- Size: 0.5 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Subtle color correction to reduce the appearance of dark circles | Limited shade range isn t suitable for all skin tones |
| Hydrating formula |
Best with Collagen: Torriden Cellmazing Firming Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: If you re like me, higher dose retinol formulas always sparks a bit of irritation—Torridin’s collagen packed formula provides not one, but five differen types of collagen to reduce fine lines by plumping complexions. Plus, the formula is hypoallergenic, making it a great wrinkle reducing pick for those with hyper sensitive skin. Plus, the included eye massager adds to an overall luxurious application experience.
- Key Ingredients: Collagen, retinol, panthenol, amino acids
- Best For: Hydration, firming
- Size: 1.01 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Hypoallergenic formula suitable for sensitive skin | Some found the formula a bit too gentle to notice any major difference |
| Hydrating, lightweight formula |
Best with Probiotics: Bioheal BOH Probioderm 3D Lifting Eye Wrinkle Cream
- Why We Love It: As a devotee of probiotics for gut health (any fellow warriors battling tummy troubles?), I was absolutely delighted to discover a probiotic eye cream. This gem boasts a luxurious yet lightweight texture, infused with a unique blend of proprietary probiotics that beautifully plump the skin, giving the illusion of fewer fine lines without any irritation. To top it off, peptides work their magic to boost overall hydration, leaving your skin feeling refreshed and revitalized.
- Key Ingredients: Probiotics, peptides, hydration
- Best For: Firming, wrinkles
- Size: 0.84 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Probiotic-packed anti-inflammatory and hydrating ingredients | A bit on the pricier side |
| Suitable for sensitive skin types |
Best Antioxidant-Rich: Haruharu Wonder Black Rice Bakuchiol Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: This eye cream blends a plethora of botanically-derived ingredients, including superfoods like fermented black rice extract and bamboo, into a single nourishing antioxidant powerhouse. Alongside the popular Korean-retinol alternative bakuchiol, this vegan eye cream strengthens the skin barrier without exacerbating sensitivities. Plus, the serum-like texture absorbs right away.
- Key Ingredients: Bakuchiol, fermented bamboo extract, fermented black rice, niacinamide,
- Best For: Evening skin tone, and reducing fine lines
- Size: 0.67 oz
| Love It | Leave It |
|---|---|
| Retinol-alternative is a smart choice for sensitive skin | Some find the pump style dispenser gets stuck |
| Serum-like texture for fast absorption. | |
| Cruelty-free formula |
Everything You Need to Know
What makes Korean eye cream special?
Korean eye creams seldom come in a pot. Instead, for hygienic purposes, they often come in tubes to reduce the amount of bacteria and keep the product more stable. Many even have soothing steel applicators that double as massage tools to decompress puffy eyes and deliver a cool touch first thing in the morning (or as the last step at night).
What ingredients are common in Korean eye creams?
Dr. Christine Hall, who specializes in K-Beauty and Korean aesthetic treatments, says ingredients such as ginseng, retinal, ceramides, peptides, and centella asiatica are popular in Korean eye creams for their soothing, firming, and brightening properties.
What to Look for in a Korean Eye Cream
Look for ingredients that match your needs. If you are someone with dark under eyes, caffeine and vitamin C will help with the discoloration. If you are looking for more firmness and to reduce the appearance of fine lines, bakuchiol and retinol can help. If you’re new to retinol, board-certified dermatologist Dr. Lauren Penzi, MD, who specializes in medical and cosmetic dermatology told Vogue previously that “lower percentages are perfect for those patients in their 20s and 30s who are using the product for more preventative measures.”
Meet the Experts
- Christine Hall is an aesthetic doctor and K-beauty expert.
