The Best Baby Lotions for Ultimate Moisture and Softness

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When you're filling out a baby shower gift or finding the right fit for a sprinkle, baby lotion is a great way to go. And even if you're buying baby lotion for your own baby, you probably have questions and concerns. Which one is right for a new baby? Which lotions are safe? What do dermatologists say about baby lotion? Don't worry, I have you covered. I contacted a pediatric dermatologist and got all the info you need to determine which lotion is the best choice.

What to Consider

“A good place to start in looking for a baby lotion is to seek out ones that make the following three claims: fragrance-free, hypoallergenic, dermatologist tested and/or recommended,” Sheilagh Maguiness, M.D., president-elect, Society for Pediatric Dermatology tells Best Products. Surprisingly, there aren’t as many options for these parameters as you’d think. She also says that she prefers “food-grade preservatives rather than potentially irritating preservatives” to be included in baby lotions, and that she recommends “staying away from parabens and phenoxyethanol in baby lotions and other products not meant for use on newborn skin.” That takes the options down even further.

Phenoxyethanol is a cosmetic stabilizer and preservative linked with skin irritation and eczema, and infant oral exposure to the ingredient can be potentially life-threatening, according to the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics. As for parabens, there is concern that prolonged interaction with some of the popular preservatives can lead to endocrine disruption — essentially messing with hormones — and because safety cannot be established, many of them are banned in the European Union and elsewhere abroad.

The wild part? According to Maguiness, baby lotion? Doesn't even need to be designed specifically for babies. Products such as Vanicream are just fine for babies because they hit all the right notes. Maguiness says that a lot of the difference in the creams? It's all marketing.

How We Chose

After consulting the dermatologist, I reached out to other parents and found out what lotions were everyone's favorite, I spoke with them about the feel of the products, and how well they worked. I broke them down into lotions that fit the dermatologist's recommendations, and those that did not. Once I had that, I read tons of reviews across a variety of retail platforms, searched for their use by parents on social media and YouTube, and tried the products on my own skin and that of my daughter, whose skin is even more sensitive than my own. From about 60 lotions I originally surveyed, I chose the nine very best of the bunch. Check them out below.

Gentle Baby Skin Care with Ceramides, Niacinamide & Vitamin E

CeraVe was far and away the most-popular lotion among parents. It has the powerful combination of being exceptionally gentle while delivering maximum moisture to baby's parched skin.

It employs ceramides, which are lipids that help maintain the integrity of the skin; hyaluronic acid, a molecule essential in retaining moisture in the skin; niacinamides, a form of vitamin B3 that helps fats and sugars maintain healthy cells; and vitamin E, which has many uses, including acting as an anti-inflammatory agent in the skin.

Parents love how reliable it is. One parent told me, “It’s always there, it’s always available, and it always works.”

Nurturing Baby Cream for Face & Body

If you’re looking for something a bit more creamy, a bit more viscous, Kiehl’s might be the right choice for you. Unlike the CeraVe, Kiehl’s relies on the thickness and moisturizing properties of oils and butters to give baby supple, soft skin. Specifically, Kiehl’s uses shea butter, apricot kernel oil, and olive fruit oil. All of these are fats that not only have nourishing properties, they also form a barrier on the skin to keep the moisture in.

Parents told me that they love this because not only do they trust the brand, they also appreciate that it’s designed to be gentle enough even for baby’s face.

2-in-1 Baby Lotion

You may not recognize the brand name, but I assure you that you know the brand. Vivvi & Bloom is the daughter company of Johnson & Johnson. It’s their natural baby line, free of all the worrisome ingredients, EWG-certified, and vegan.

The moisturizing ingredients Vivvi & Bloom use is a combination of lipids (fats) and a prebiotic that helps to support natural lipid production. Parents love this lotion because it glides on easily, doesn’t cost a ton, it doesn’t feel slick or sticky when it dries down.

Baby Soothing Lotion

More than a few of the editors here at Best Products use or did use Mustela on our babies or kids. (Some of us may even still use it on their older kids because their skin is super cheap.)

This is the gentlest formulation of Mustela's popular baby lotion. It's fragrance-free, paraben- and phenoxyethanol-free, and the moisture it delivers is heavy-duty without being greasy. That's because they use the power of lipids from avocado oil and the antioxidant properties of the schisandra berry to soothe without too much extra thickness.

Baby Moisturizing Lotion

Brought to my attention by a group of Gen Z moms, Ever Eden is a brand that prides itself on ingredient transparency, precisely labeling and explaining every ingredient listed. Like Kiehl’s, Ever Eden is a lipid-based lotion, but theirs uses coconut oil, avocado oil, and grapeseed oil to promote healthy skin.

Moms love that they know exactly what every ingredient is, why it is used, and most-importantly, how well it works. One mom told me, “It’s the only lotion we keep in the house now. Everyone uses it. It’s so rich and nice.”

Hydrating Baby Lotion

Pipette really exploded onto the scene a few years ago, blowing open a market that was previously shut tight to new brands. The quality of their lotions and baby products is impeccable, and it's all at a really good price point.

Pipette brings in an ingredient I haven't discussed yet to make their formula, and that is squalane. Squalane is similar to the body's own natural moisturization material squalene, and it coats the skin, protecting it and smoothing it. They also use pomegranate sterols which serve as a natural way to protect the skin.

It sells out on Amazon all of the time. One dad told me that he loves that it doesn’t smell like anything. “It literally has no smell,” he says, and that’s a pretty big deal.

Moisturizing Skin Cream with Pump Dispenser

Do you know what a lot of babies get? Acne. Not kidding. Little blemishes all over their face and shoulders, and sometimes their booty. It's because of the hormonal surge from the gestational parent, but baby lotions that clog pores don't help.

Vanicream doesn't clog pores. It's essentially water and petroleum jelly, but it has enough room to breathe. It doesn't absorb into the skin as much as it coats it. Parents love just how good it is for sensitive skin, and the fact that it comes in a giant one-pound tub with a pump. It can live easily on the changing station.

Body Cream

Like Vanicream, this is not baby lotion. Nope, it's just really good lotion for sensitive skin that's free of all the oogie boogies. It's a vegan, EWG-verified lotion that employs lipids and colloidal oatmeal to help keep skin happy. The oatmeal is nutrient dense and the fats and vitamins softens the skin.

A caregiver told me that nothing has worked for her kid like Attitude, saying “it’s the only thing that keeps her skin from drying out every 4 hours.”

Organic Coconut Oil

Nope, this isn’t even lotion at all, but it was the second-most popular baby lotion from all the parents I asked — including me. My daughter had the world’s most sensitive skin as a baby and toddler, and this was the only “lotion” that worked for her, and she’s apparently not alone. Tons of parents are in the same boat as we were. It’s just organic, virgin, cold-pressed, unrefined coconut oil. Yes, it smells a bit like a Mounds bar, but is that a bad thing?

The only negative thing I’ll say about it is that for about 20 minutes after application, that baby is slippery. It’s fine when you put clothes on right after it dries down a bit (doesn’t take long), but when you grease up your toddler? Ever try to catch a naked 2-year-old as they sprint out the back door of your sister-in-law’s house? I have, and it’s hilarious.

It’s also great for making sopapillas, just saying.

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