6 Best Hand Creams, Evaluated and Reviewed

There are so many hand creams on the market, but their formulations vary widely. Some absorb within seconds; others are viscous and are better applied before bedtime so they can work their magic overnight. A number of them are fragranced, which can either be a blessing or a curse. 

To help you save money and time, CR tested 12 hand creams from popular brands like Kiehl’s, Bag Balm, O’Keeffe’s, Gold Bond, and more. Four testers with different skin types and familiarity with hand creams used each cream for a few days, making sure to judge it before and after washing their hands (a truly effective cream should keep hands soft and smooth for hours). 

Despite the testers’ differences, the same hand creams kept popping up on our list of best creams, while others left us unimpressed and longing to wash them off our hands.

We also include information and safety ratings from a CR partner, SkinSafe, which uses Mayo Clinic data to assess overall safety, potential for irritation, and allergenicity. SkinSafe “scores” products based on how many of the 11 most common allergens each contains. The higher the score, the fewer allergens the product contains (the highest possible score is 100). 

One note about fragrance: SkinSafe’s standard for fragrance ingredients differs from the brands’. Ingredients such as certain oils are considered fragrance ingredients by SkinSafe, even if manufacturers claim their products are fragrance-free.