15 Best Drugstore Hand Creams (2024) For Soft And Smooth Skin
Smoothen rough and aged hands with moisturizing and gentle products that are affordable.
Georgia Smith is a cosmetologist-turned-cosmetic chemist and has been in the industry for over 13 years as a beauty therapist. She is the founder of Skin Sister and owns a hugely successful, skin focused beauty salon in Sydney, Australia. Georgia is also a qualified Cosmetic Chemist, and she learned about the chemistry behind the skin and the complex science behind skin care ingredients to transform her clients’ skin and fix their skin concerns.
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Experience: 2 yearsOyendrila holds a master's degree in English Literature from the University Of Calcutta, West Bengal, and is a certified skin care coach. As a beauty and lifestyle writer with two years of experience, she writes about everything that the modern woman needs to know about grooming and self-care.
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Experience: 4 yearsShiboli has a master’s degree in English literature from The English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad, and is a certified skincare coach with four years of experience. As a commerce editor, she guides her team members on the best practices to create crisp and authentic content.
Read full bio of Shiboli Chakraborti
Experience: 7 yearsAnjali is an associate editor at StyleCraze. She specializes in hairstyles and hair and skin care and has written over 200 articles in these domains. She has 7 years of experience, and her philosophy about hair and skin care is simple: if you love and care for it, it will be healthy.
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Many of us invest majorly in different beauty products but often neglect to pick an effective hand cream for daily use. As a result, rough and wrinkled hands are what we notice after a few days. This is where the best drugstore creams can help you out to soothe those dry hands. They leave a moisturizing effect on the skin, and the best part is they are cost-effective. These products manage the dryness of your hands caused by soaps, detergents, and UV rays, leaving silky, smooth skin with their non-toxic formulation. In this article, we have listed the top 15 drugstore creams you can try.
In This Article
15 Best Drugstore Hand Creams (2024) For Soft And Smooth Skin
1. Best Fast-Absorbing Formula:L’Occitane Butter Hand Cream
The L’Occitane Butter Hand Cream is formulated with 20% shea butter, honey, almond extract, and coconut oil. This iconic cream has a rich and creamy texture. The high percentage of shea butter helps counter the dryness of your hand. The organic spring honey in the cream helps nourish and soften your hands, while the almond oil is rich in omega 6 and 9 fatty acids that soothe and soften dry skin. This hand cream for skin nourishment forms a protective barrier around your hand to keep them moisturized. It is loved by many reviewers online.
Key Ingredients: Shea butter, Honey, Almond oil, and Coconut oil
- Fast-absorbing
- No oily residue
- A little goes a long way
- Value for money
- Unpleasant fragrance
Why We Think It's Worth Buying
A whopping 15,228 reviews on Amazon make it obvious that users genuinely love this product.
2. Best Non-Greasy Formula:Borghese Restorative Hand Creme
The affordable hand cream from Borghese not only nourishes your hands but also restores the skin’s natural moisture barrier. It helps in softening and repairing your dry and chapped hands and makes them smooth and soft, with visible results noted by online reviewers. The drugstore hand cream is formulated with vitamin E, which is a powerful hydrating agent and prevents sun damage to an extent. It also helps strengthen the nails. This cream has a subtle fragrance that leaves your hands smelling great.
Key Ingredients: Vitamin E
- Subtle fragrance
- Non-greasy
- Paraben-free
- Phthalate-free
- Talc-free
- Allergy-tested
- Small quantity for the price
Pro TipBefore applying hand cream, wash your hands and pat them dry. Using it on damp skin ensures better absorption and seals moisture.
3. Best Skin-Friendly Formula:J.R. Watkins Natural Moisturizing Hand Cream
The J.R Watkins Natural Moisturizing Hand Cream helps revitalize your hands and makes them smooth and healthy. It is formulated with shea butter, cocoa butter, and plant-based oils, such as jojoba and avocado. These ingredients are skin-friendly, nourish and hydrate your hands, and improve their appearance. This cream has a delightful fragrance that will uplift your mood and leave your hands smelling good.
Key Ingredients: Shea butter, cocoa butter, Jojoba oil, and Avocado oil
- Long-lasting
- Non-greasy
- Cruelty-free
- Paraben-free
- Dye-free
- Phthalate-free
- Silicone-free
- Overpowering fragrance
4. Best Anti-Aging Benefits:-417 Serenity Legend Anti-Oxidant Hand Moisturizer
This drugstore hand cream moisturizes dry and cracked skin and makes your hands smooth. It contains plant extracts, beeswax, and Dead Sea minerals (high concentrations of natural active ingredients) that nourish, repair, and hydrate your hands. They help prevent the harsh aging lines and reduce the appearance of wrinkles, garnering many positive reviews online. This hand moisturizer will give you soft and supple hands and protects them against environmental stressors.
Key Ingredients: Shea butter, Beeswax, and Dead Sea minerals
- Non-greasy
- Fast absorption
- Gluten-free
- Paraben-free
- Phthalate-free
- Cruelty-free
- Vegan
- Strong fragrance
5. Best Hypoallergenic Formula:Gold Bond Healing Hand Cream
If you are looking for a hand cream that is intensely hydrating, sets in quickly, and lasts multiple handwashes, the Gold Bond Ultimate Healing Cream is the right pick for you. It is formulated with aloe vera that provides intense moisture to your hand, with visible results noted by reviewers online. The drugstore hand cream also contains vitamins A, C, and E. This trio helps improve the appearance of your hands, protects them against environmental stressors, and minimizes moisture loss. The positive ions in the formula keep the moisture particles attached to your skin, making your hands supple and always happy!
Key Ingredients: Aloe vera and Vitamins A, C, and E
- Long-lasting
- Non-greasy
- Fast-absorbing
- Hypoallergenic
- Dermatologist-tested
- Great value for money
None
Pro TipNever wash your hands with hot water, as it may strip them of natural moisture. Hence, always use lukewarm water or water at room temperature.
Why We Think It's Worth Buying
The product has more than 17,594 reviews and is a top choice all around the world.
6. Best For Sensitive Skin:Aveeno Intense Relief Hand Cream
This hand cream from Aveeno is infused with an effective blend of colloidal oatmeal and rich emollients that provides deep nourishment to your dry hands. The oatmeal helps restore your skin’s normal pH and maintains its moisture barrier. The creamy texture feels great on your chapped hands and helps restore smoothness to dry skin. This clinically-proven drugstore hand cream is also suitable for people dealing with eczema or looking for dry skin remedies.
Key Ingredients: Colloidal oatmeal
- Long-lasting
- Dermatologist-recommended
- Allergy tested
- Steroid-free
- Fragrance-free
- Safe for sensitive skin
- Value for money
None
7. Best For Skin Chafing:CeraVe Therapeutic Hand Cream
Show your overworked hands some love with the CeraVe Therapeutic Hand Cream. It is formulated with moisture-rich hyaluronic acid and niacinamide that help moisturize and soothe your dry and itchy skin and make it supple and smooth. The cream also contains three types of ceramides and dimethicone that work together to protect and restore the skin barrier. It makes chaffed skin smooth and soft to the touch and helps in soothing irritation, receiving positive reviews online.
Key Ingredients: Hyaluronic acid, Niacinamide, 1, 3, 6-II Ceramides, and Dimethicone
- Long-lasting
- Non-greasy
- Fast-absorbing
- Dermatologist-recommended
- Fragrance-free
- Suitable for all skin types
- Not for very dry hands.
8. Best Chemical-Free Formula:Salcoll Collagen Hand Cream
The Salcoll Collagen Hand Cream is formulated with marine collagen, a potent ingredient that helps in softening dry and chapped hands. It also helps diminish wrinkles and fine lines on your hands. The collagen in the hand cream helps lock in moisture and preserve your delicate skin. The product also helps in boosting skin regeneration. It helps sooth burns, scrapes, and chapped skin by stimulating the healing process.
Key Ingredients: Marine collagen
- Hypoallergenic
- Non-greasy
- Pleasant fragrance
- Chemical-free
- Cruelty-free
None
Pro TipIf you enjoy hand cream with a strong scent, try to opt for natural fragrances derived from rosemary and citrus oil instead of synthetic ones, as they may cause headaches, irritation, or broken skin.
Why We Think It's Worth Buying
With 832 positive reviews on Amazon, this product has become a bestseller.
9. Best For Intense Hydration:Adamia Therapeutic Repair Hand Cream
This hand cream from Adamia contains promega-7, a blend of macadamia nut oil and clinically proven moisturizers that provides relief to your distressed hands. It helps repair and treat dry and cracked hands and thinning skin. The macadamia nut oil in the formula provides intense hydration by getting absorbed quickly. It is rich in omega-7 that helps soothe dry and cracked skin and has received positive reviews online.
Key Ingredients: Promega-7
- Fast-absorbing
- Non-greasy
- Dermatologist-tested
- Non-allergenic
- Fragrance-free
- Paraben-free
- Gluten-free
- Non-GMO
- Petroleum-free
- Cruelty-free
None
10. Best For Exfoliation:Flexitol Hand Balm
The Flexitol Hand Balm has a clinically-proven, fast-acting, and non-greasy formula with proven efficacy that works great for dry hands. It contains vitamin E that helps in replenishing your skin. It also contains urea that replenishes moisturize to your skin and dimethicone that forms a protective barrier to prevent moisture loss. The hand cream also contains lactic acid that exfoliates the dead skin cells. It claims to prevent and treat dry skin caused by skin conditions like eczema, diabetes, or other environmental stressors, with visible results after 2 weeks of use.
Key Ingredients: Vitamin E, Urea, Dimethicone, and Lactic acid
- Fast-absorbing
- Non-greasy
- No residue
- Gluten-free
- Contains mineral oil
11. Best For Skin Elasticity:HerbXtract Cosmetics Rose Series Hand Cream
Say hello to youthful and nourished hands with the HerbXtract Hand Cream that helps moisturize, heal, and soften the hands. Formulated with natural rose oil that moisturizes and nourishes your skin, it is one of the best hand creams available out there and is loved by online reviewers. It also contains collagen and vitamin E that helps with restoring elasticity. All three ingredients are powerful moisturizing and anti-aging agents. The collagen in the hand cream helps in slowing down aging while improving skin elasticity and diminishing the appearance of fine lines while softening skin. The vitamin E in the formula also helps strengthen your nails and cuticles while keeping them moisturized. The vitamin E in the formula also helps strengthen your nails and cuticles while keeping them moisturized.
Key Ingredients: Natural rose oil, Collagen, and Vitamin E
- Organic ingredients
- Non-greasy
- Fast-absorbing
- Anti-aging
- Gluten-free
- Strong fragrance
12. Best Moisture Balance:O’Keeffe’s Working Hands
The O’Keeffe’s Working Hands Hand Cream is a boon for dry and cracked hands. Its concentrated formula with glycerin works its magic almost instantly, helping heal and repair extremely dry and chapped skin. It creates a protective layer on your skin’s surface to lock in moisture and keep your hands soft and smooth, with positive results noted by online reviewers.
Key Ingredients: Glycerin
- Long-lasting
- Non-greasy
- Quickly absorbed
- Fragrance-free
- Safe for all skin types
None
13. Best UV Protection:Tree To Tub Shea Butter Hand Cream
This hand cream from Tree To Tub has all the moisturizing and skin-friendly ingredients that you can think of! It is formulated with vitamin B5, vitamin E, lavender oil, jojoba oil, and rose water in a moisturizing base of shea and cocoa butters. This potent concoction helps treat dry hands caused by UV damage, hard work, genetics, and aging. This dermatologist-recommended hand cream for repairing damaged skin contains nourishing oils such as shea butter and jojoba oil to help revitalize your skin, while cocoa butter and rose water increase skin elasticity and provide protection from UV rays and pollution. Lavender oil helps soothe the skin, and vitamin E is great for moisturizing and strengthening the nails.
Key Ingredients: Shea butter, cocoa butter, Vitamin B5, Vitamin E, Lavender oil, Jojoba oil, and Rose water
- Non-greasy
- No oily residue
- Fast-absorbing
- Mild fragrance
- Safe for sensitive skin
- Paraben-free
- Sulfate-free
- Silicone-free
- Gluten-free
- Cruelty-free
None
14. Best For Hyperpigmentation:Retinol Anti-Aging Hand Cream
This drugstore hand cream provides deep conditioning to not only your hands but also the nails and cuticles. It is also an anti-aging cream that helps restore your hands to their youthful appearance and prevents any signs of aging, like wrinkles and fine lines. This hand cream for deep hydration is formulated with green tea and vitamins A, C, and E that help moisturize your hands and improve skin texture.
Key Ingredients: Green tea and Vitamins A, C, and E
- Long-lasting
- Fast-absorbing
- Targets hyperpigmentation
- Unpleasant fragrance
- Slightly greasy
15. Best In Budget:Crépe Erase Anti-Aging Hand Repair Treatment
This hand cream helps heal dry, crepey, and cracked hands and makes them smoother and velvety soft. Its key ingredient is TruFirm complex, which is a blend of essential phytonutrients from extracts of apple, dill, and sage. The formula also contains hydrators like shea butter, glycerides, and coconut oil that improve and seal the moisture content of your hands, thereby restoring suppleness to your skin. The hand cream for long-lasting moisture is infused with squalane that helps protect the skin and treat the signs of aging to help you achieve soft, supple, and youthful-looking hands. Perform a patch test before using this hand cream on a regular basis to steer clear of unwanted allergic reactions.
Key Ingredients: TruFirm Complex and Squalane
- Non-greasy
- Smells good
- Fast-absorbing
- Not very effective
If you are looking to pick one from the above list, go through the buying guide below to understand the factors you need to look for.
Tips To Choose The Right Hand Cream
- Texture: If your hands are involved in hard work for a considerable period or require constant washing, or you have very dry skin, a heavy balm-enriched cream will be ideal for you. Otherwise, a light-textured cream is sufficient.
- Ingredients: Check for natural moisturizing ingredients that are tested to lock in hydration. Glycerin is a natural humectant that pulls water from the epidermis to the deeper skin layers for locking in moisture. Shea butter is another ingredient that makes the skin smooth, soft, and supple. Ingredients like hyaluronic acid, aloe vera, vitamins B, C, and E, lanolin, and essential fatty oils hydrate and nourish your hands. Look for a cream that has at least three of these ingredients.
- No Chemicals: The hand cream should be free of chemical ingredients, artificial fragrances, added colors, and any thickening agents to avoid allergic reactions.
Infographic: Key Ingredients Used In Drugstore Hand Creams
Our hands are exposed to a lot of different environmental factors that can cause them to become dry and rough. Hence, it is important to take care of your hands and keep them soft and hydrated. Drugstore hand creams are formulated with a variety of key ingredients that work to nourish, hydrate, and protect your skin. Check out the infographic below to learn more about the common ingredients and how they are useful in keeping your hands rejuvenated.
Illustration: StyleCraze Design Team
The Bottom Line
Our hands reveal our true age, and therefore, it is imperative that we take care of them with a hand care routine. The L’Occitane’s Butter Hand Cream is a great choice offering hydration. and nourishment that softens hands, while the Gold Bond’s Healing Hand Cream provides intensive recovery and is long-lasting. For people dealing with skin conditions like eczema, this Aveeno’s Intense Relief Hand Cream is the best option as it soothes and moisturizes skin with its oat-based formula. If you are looking for hand cream recommendations and hand cream reviews, the list above comprehensively covers the best of drugstore hand creams. Pick one and show your hands that you care!
Why Trust StyleCraze?
The author, Oyendrila Kanjilal, is a certified skin care coach. She conducted hours of in-depth research on product specifications and user feedback to compile this list of the best drugstore hand creams for her readers. She also considered the texture and ingredients of the products for shortlisting the best ones for soft and smooth skin. These products pamper your hands, manage dryness, moisturize, and soothe your dry hands.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should you use hand cream?
There’s no limit to how many times you can use hand cream. Use it whenever you feel your hands are dry or after a handwash.
Is fragrance in hand cream bad?
Yes. Chemicals that induce fragrance are damaging and can cause skin irritations.
Which is better, hand cream or hand lotion?
Hand creams are better as they contain moisturizing ingredients rather than water, unlike hand lotion.
Is there a difference between cream and hand cream?
Yes, body creams are less thicker and watery, whereas hand creams are more buttery and thick in composition.
Are hand creams safe during pregnancy?
Yes, hand creams that do not contain harsh chemicals are safe for anyone.
How long do hand creams last?
On your skin, hand creams last for 1-2 hours. It also depends on the activity your hands are indulged in.
How often should I apply hand cream?
You can apply hand cream as soon as you feel your hands are getting rough or dry.
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