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CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion ingredients: is it worth it?
Solid, no-nonsense barrier moisturizer that does its job well without pretending to be a treatment serum.

Solid, no-nonsense barrier moisturizer that does its job well without pretending to be a treatment serum.
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The efficacy score is driven by a strong moisturizing base early in the list (glycerin, caprylic/capric triglyceride, niacinamide) plus genuinely useful barrier lipids (ceramides, cholesterol, phytosphingosine) and sodium hyaluronate; there is no meaningful pH-dependent actives problem here, and the formula is built for hydration and barrier support rather than dramatic corrective change.
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DemythSkin rates CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion 4.6/5 for efficacy and 4.7/5 for safety.
ACTIVE INGREDIENTS BY TIER
Gold Standards
High clinical proof | Skin-transformativeReliable
Proven resultsPotent
Developing evidenceOverhyped | Marketing
Hype | Limited dataDocumented Irritants
Evidence-backed flagFORMULATION BASE (12)⌄
FULL INGREDIENT LIST⌄
Aqua / Water / Eau, Glycerin, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Niacinamide, Cetearyl Alcohol, Potassium Phosphate, Ceramide NP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Carbomer, Dimethicone, Ceteareth-20, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Cholesterol, Phenoxyethanol, Disodium EDTA, Dipotassium Phosphate, Caprylyl Glycol, Phytosphingosine, Xanthan Gum, Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate, Ethylhexylglycerin
WHAT EACH INGREDIENT DOES (24)⌄
- Aqua / Water / Eau
- solvent
- Glycerin
- humectant
- Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride
- emollient
- Niacinamide
- barrier-supporting active
- Cetearyl Alcohol
- fatty alcohol emollient
- Potassium Phosphate
- buffering agent
- Ceramide NP
- barrier lipid
- Ceramide AP
- barrier lipid
- Ceramide EOP
- barrier lipid
- Carbomer
- thickener
- Dimethicone
- skin protectant
- Ceteareth-20
- emulsifier
- Behentrimonium Methosulfate
- emulsifying conditioner
- Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate
- emulsifier
- Sodium Hyaluronate
- humectant
- Cholesterol
- barrier lipid
- Phenoxyethanol
- preservative
- Disodium EDTA
- chelator
- Dipotassium Phosphate
- buffering agent
- Caprylyl Glycol
- humectant booster
- Phytosphingosine
- barrier-supporting lipid
- Xanthan Gum
- thickener
- Polyglyceryl-3 Diisostearate
- emulsifier
- Ethylhexylglycerin
- preservative booster
EXTERNAL CITATIONS
Niacinamide: Brand notes it may help calm skin and reduce transepidermal water loss; this aligns with its barrier-supporting role in moisturizers.
Ceramide NP / AP / EOP: Brand and retailer listings identify three essential ceramides, supporting the barrier-repair function.
Sodium Hyaluronate: Brand and INCI Decoder list sodium hyaluronate as a humectant supporting hydration.
DISCLAIMER: THIS ANALYSIS IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. NOT MEDICAL ADVICE. AI-GENERATED DATA BASED ON PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INGREDIENT LISTS. VERIFY WITH A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL.
A cheaper moisturizer with a close formula
62% formula match, by ingredient list. Labels don't state amounts, so strengths may differ.

CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion: common questions
Is CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion worth it?
CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion scores 4.6 out of 5.0 for efficacy (Gold Standard) and 4.7 out of 5.0 for safety (Very Gentle) on DemythSkin's independent ingredient analysis. Solid, no-nonsense barrier moisturizer that does its job well without pretending to be a treatment serum.
What are the key active ingredients in CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion?
CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion contains no gold-standard actives. Its formula is built on supporting and base ingredients rather than clinically transformative actives.
Does CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion contain fragrance or known irritants?
DemythSkin's analysis found no flagged irritants in CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion. It scores 4.7 out of 5.0 for safety.
How is CeraVe PM Facial Moisturizing Lotion scored?
DemythSkin grades every product on two independent scores: efficacy (whether the ingredients have clinical evidence of working) and safety (irritation and sensitisation risk). Ingredients are graded S through D against a database of over 3,000 compounds. Brand and price are not part of the score, and no brand pays for one.
Free scores for every product in the database, or see them on Sephora, Ulta and Amazon with the Chrome extension.