We all know to keep a good eye cream in our routine—if something can help depuff those undereye bags or brighten those dark circles, we’re all for it. But what if there was a way to treat those skin concerns while also acting as a concealer? The tinted eye cream makes the clever case for best of both worlds.
Vogue’s Top Picks for Tinted Eye Creams
Thrive Causemetics Brilliant Under Eye Brightener Illuminating Corrector
This shift from conventional eye products speaks to everyone’s need—and love—for products that can do many things at once. “Consumers are looking for multi-tasking hybrid products that provide a hint of color as well as skin-care benefits,” agrees Ron Robinson, cosmetic chemist and founder of BeautyStat. Aptly named, Robinson explains that tinted eye creams are basically skin care for the eyes that also contain some sort of tint or pigment. Jane Yoo, MD, New York City–based board-certified dermatologist and Mohs surgeon says that the tint usually provides that immediate gratification of improvement to the undereye area, camouflaging those visible concerns (e.g. hyperpigmentation, dull complexion, etc.) while the active skin-care ingredients work to treat them for the long term.
“So while the eye cream can help with hydration, de-puffing, smoothing, and brightening, the tint can help to neutralize the appearance of dark circles, brighten any shadows and make the under eye area appear more rested and calm,” says Dr. Yoo. “This duality allows for increased adherence as consumers can see products that have a visible result in the mirror right after application.”
The best tinted eye creams, she goes on to say, come with known brightening, hydrating, and smoothing ingredients such as caffeine, niacinamide, peptides, ceramides, and retinol. She also recommends looking for anti-inflammatory ingredients like tranexamic acid to help with hyperpigmentation and notes that many tinted eye creams come with SPF to give the eye area needed sun protection. Plus, stay on the look out for formulas which contain iron oxides or mineral pigments, as Dr. Yoo says those will give you instant color correction and brightening.
Using one is simple. In general, Robinson says that it should be applied to clean skin right before your moisturizer. Dr. Yoo agrees and says to think of a tinted eye cream as the last skin-care step for your eyes. If it happens to have SPF, then you apply it after a moisturizer so that you don’t dilute the SPF in it, she says.
