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Korea’s second wave of beauty is officially here, and it’s brought the best Korean retinol with it. Best known for its excellent sunscreens, extensive skin-care routines, and emphasis on luminous glass skin, Korea has only recently begun to embrace the vitamin-A derivative, which enjoys unwavering popularity stateside for its ability to brighten and tighten skin.
Vogue’s Favorite Korean Retinols:
- Best Overall: Iope Retinol Super Bounce Serum, $50
- Best for Mature Skin: Ohui Reverse Activator Retinol Wrinkle Serum, $95
- Best for Sensitive Skin: Some By Mi Retinol Intense Reactivating Serum, $21
- Best for Dry Skin: CosRx The Retinol 0.5 Oil, $19
- Best for Beginners: Dr.Different Vitalift-A Night Treatment Cream, $42
- Best for Experienced Users: Iope Retinol Expert 0.3%, $120
- Best for Eyes: Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum, $27
In This Story:
- Is retinol popular in Korea?
- What makes Korean retinol special?
- How to Choose a Korean Retinol
- Meet the Experts
Retinol works by spurring skin cell turnover and stimulating collagen production, thereby delivering firmer skin—but it comes with the downside of potential irritation and dryness. It’s seemingly at odds with Korean skin care, which “has always been about hydration, barrier support, and prevention,” says licensed esthetician Charlotte Cho, who’s also the founder of Korean-beauty retailer Soko Glam.
But, as it turns out, there’s a happy medium. Rather than use aggressive, high-strength retinol, Korean beauty brands are beginning to develop formulations that harness lower concentrations of retinol alongside soothing ingredients to deliver results without compromising overall skin health. With that in mind, these are the best to have emerged so far.
Is retinol popular in Korea?
Retinol is starting to become popular in Korea, but “it hasn t reached its peak yet,” says Dr. Kim. That’s because Korean skin care has been primarily focused on hydration and barrier support. Now, though, Korean consumers are paying more and more attention to anti-aging skincare products, he says.
However, that doesn’t mean that the Korean retinol formulations will be high-powered and potent. Because of the longstanding emphasis on hydration and prevention, “retinol formulations tend to be low-irritation and paired with soothing ingredients,” she says. In that way, they may offer more appeal to those stateside.
What makes Korean retinol special?
Korean retinols tend to be much gentler, starting with a low concentration (think 0.01% to 0.1% retinol.) Plus, says Dr. Kim, Asian skin tends to be more delicate; research has found East Asians to have a weaker skin barrier and thinner stratum corneum, which is the upper layer of skin. As a result, “it s much more effective to use a gentler retinol more consistently than using a harsh retinol just once or twice per week,” he says.
Not only do they have lower concentrations of retinol, but in order to minimize irritation and support the skin barrier, retinol formulas “are usually paired with hydrating and soothing ingredients like ceramides, peptides, and Centella asiatica to prevent dryness or peeling,” says Cho. This makes them particularly good for first-time users or people with sensitive skin, she adds.
How to Choose a Korean Retinol
First, consider the concentration. While Korean retinols do tend to lean towards lower concentrations, they can still vary. If you’re a beginner, consider starting with a 0.1% concentration or below. Current retinol users can consider 0.3% to 0.5%. You can also “look for encapsulated retinol or time-release technology, which delivers retinol more gradually to the skin, reducing irritation,” says Cho.
Next, consider the other ingredients. Both Dr. Kim and Cho point to hydrators like glycerin and hyaluronic acid, as well as soothing agents like ceramides and panthenol, “balance out retinol’s drying effects,” says Cho.
And finally, think about the texture. Dr. Kim, for his part, prefers serums that feel like a lightweight moisture, as “it’s more hydrating and gentler on the skin.” Cho also likes weightless formulas, like gel creams or milky emulsions, since these make them easy to layer without overwhelming skin.
Best Overall: Iope Retinol Super Bounce Serum
- Why We Love It: Both Cho and New York-based board-certified dermatologist Dr. David Kim point to Iope as a pioneer in Korean retinols—and call out the Retinol Super Bounce Serum in particular. “It’s formula with their Quadruple Retinoid Complex—retinol, encapsulated retinol, granactive retinoid, bio-seletinoid—has low percentages so it’s very gentle on the skin,” says Dr. Kim. (Bio-Seletinoid is the brand’s patented retinoid that’s activated when you apply the formula.) Cho, for her part, notes that while it s gentle, it’s “highly effective, smoothing fine lines while keeping skin plump and hydrated.”
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, encapsulated retinol, granactive retinoid, Bio-Seletinoid
- Size: 30 ml
Best for Mature Skin: Ohui Reverse Activator Retinol Wrinkle Serum
- Why We Love It: A best-selling brand in Korea, Ohui’s Reverse Activator Serum specifically targets wrinkles and other signs of aging with 0.3% retinol as well as a 7.2% TruReverse Retinol+, a proprietary complex that pairs retinol with soybean oil to deliver firmer, tighter skin with minimal irritation. Also within the lightweight serum is oryzanol, which is derived from rice bran and helps quell redness and irritation.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, soybean oil, peptides, oryzanol
- Size: 1.7 fl. oz.
Best for Sensitive Skin: Some By Mi Retinol Intense Reactivating Serum
- Why We Love It: Formulated with sensitive or otherwise compromised skin in mind, this serum offers a trio of retinoid (and retinoid-like) ingredients to gently resurface and even skin. 0.1% retinol, retinal, and bakuchiol—the plant-based retinol alternative that works on the same receptors in skin—deliver an uptick in collagen production. But on the tolerability front, panthenol, beta-glucan, and ceramides keep skin comfortable. While this keeps the hypoallergenic formula relatively mild, keep in mind that it does contain fragrance, which may be irritating to some.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, retinal, bakuchiol, beta-glucan, panthenol
- Size: 1 fl. oz.
Best for Dry Skin: CosRx The Retinol 0.5 Oil
- Why We Love It: CosRx The Retinol 0.5 Oil is one of our favorite retinol serums of any origin, thanks to its powerful 0.5% pure retinol. As intensive as that may be—requiring a gradual acclimation and a rarity among Korean retinols—the velvety oil uses squalane and vitamin E to replenish and protect the skin barrier. Together, they leave skin radiant, firm, and not at all flaky.
- Key Ingredients: Pure retinol, squalane, vitamin E
- Size: 0.7 fl. oz.
Best for Beginners: Dr.Different Vitalift-A Night Treatment Cream
- Why We Love It: A prime example of the low concentrations Cho mentions, the Dr. Different Vitalift-A stands apart in two ways: First, it offers retinal, a slightly different variation of vitamin A that s thought to be more potent and yet more gentle than retinol. It introduces it at just 0.05%, which is noteworthy since 0.1% is typically considered the lowest percentage. The gel-like serum further buffers it with hyaluronic acid, ceramides, and squalane for an extra dose of moisture.
- Key Ingredients: Retinal, hyaluronic acid, ceramides, squalane
- Size: 0.7 fl. oz.
Best for Experienced Users: Iope Retinol Expert 0.3%
- Why We Love It: Iope Retinol Expert 0.1%—which has 10 iterations behind it—proved so popular that the brand released a more potent version with 0.3% retinol. Like the original, it blends the ingredient with skin-soothing and hydrating agents, which is the reason Dr. Kim likes it. Because they’re “formulated with glycerin and panthenol, they re hydrating and not irritating to the skin,” he says. That said, due to the higher concentration, this may be best for those who’ve used retinol in the past.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, panthenol, hyaluronic acid, glycerin
- Size: 0.7 fl. oz.
Best for Eyes: Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum
- Why We Love It: Beauty of Joseon is the brand behind some of our favorite Korean skin-care products, and its eye cream is similarly noteworthy. At the heart of the potent formula is retinal—that more powerful and yet gentler derivative we mentioned—to help smooth fine lines and dispatch hyperpigmentation. The fast-absorbing formula also contains ginseng and niacinamide to smooth, depuff, and brighten the eye area, too.
- Key Ingredients: Ginseng, retinal, niacinamide
- Size: 1 fl. oz.
Best Packaging: TonyMoly Plump-kin Retinol Eye Cream
- Why We Love It: The initial appeal of Korean skin care—in addition to the cutting-edge ingredients and innovative textures—was the playful packaging. And that s front and center with this silky eye cream, which pairs (as the tub might indicate) pumpkin extract, which is naturally rich in antioxidants and a natural source of vitamin A, with retinol. To further soothe and calm the eye area, ginger and Centella Asiatica (known as cica) help quell inflammation.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, pumpkin extract, Centella asiatica, turmeric extract, ginseng
- Size: 1.12 oz.
Best for Uneven Skin Tone: Hanskin Vitamin A Glow Retinol Serum
- Why We Love It: Dull skin seems to be no match for Hanskin Vitamin A Glow Retinol Serum (though don t let the name deceive you, as it s a bit thicker than your average serum). The creamy formula provides 0.1% retinol alongside rice-derived peptides and a plant-based epidermal growth factor—which, for the uninitiated, is thought to instruct cells to act more efficiently. While those encourage collagen production, a blend of ectoin, jojoba seed oil, and allantoin keep skin calm and content.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, epidermal growth factor, allantoin, ectoin
- Size: 1.01 fl. oz.
Best Fragrance-Free: Mediheal Retinol Collagen Lifting Pad
- Why We Love It: Not formulated for the faint of heart, these soft, fragrance-free pads comprise retinol to firm and resurface skin alongside collagen. Rather than your average collagen, which is typically too large to absorb into skin, the form here is at a very low-molecular size—giving it the ability to penetrate skin. Swipe it on for a quick treatment, or smooth a few pads onto skin to create a makeshift sheet mask.
- Key Ingredients: Retinol, hydrolyzed collagen, allantoin, ceramides
- Size: 100 pads
Meet the Experts
- Charlotte Cho is a licensed esthetician and the founder of Korean beauty retailer Sokoglam
- David Kim, M.D., is a board-certified dermatologist at Idriss Dermatology in New York, NY and founder of sunscreen brand Lightsaver.