The 9 Very Best Hand Creams
moisturizers Updated Feb. 21, 2025 By Tembe Denton-Hurst, a writer at the Strategist covering beauty and books. She joined the site in 2020. Previously, she wrote about beauty and culture for Nylon and Elle. Photo-Illustration: Courtesy Retailer In this article Best overall Best for very dry hands Best for dry, cracked hands Best for aging hands Best with SPF Best for dry, flaky hands Best for eczema I didn’t really get into hand cream until 2020, when I’d started washing my hands with impressive frequency. It wasn’t too long before I realized my body lotion wasn’t going to cut it, especially on the go. Nearly four years — and lots of hand creams — later, I’ve become well versed in what makes a good one. What I tend to look for is a rich cream that doesn’t leave a film behind and keeps hands nourished for hours on end. Generally, hand creams will contain glycerin, a humectant that traps and contains water, and then it’s common to see ingredients like peptides, which help to stimulate c...