Daily Moisturizing Lotion vs Moisturizing Cream: which is safer?
CeraVe Daily Moisturizing Lotion is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.
Our pick
CeraVe
Daily Moisturizing Lotion
PFAS grade
Excellent 75/100
Overall grade
Good 71/100
Verdict
Buy
Hazard flags
⚑ 1
Material
water, glycerin, cetyl alcohol, niacinamide, ceramides (emulsion lotion)
Confidence
78%
PossibleComedogenicity and skin barrier disruption
CeraVe
Moisturizing Cream
PFAS grade
Excellent 75/100
Overall grade
Good 67/100
Verdict
Buy
Hazard flags
⚑ 2
Material
Water, glycerin, ceramides, humectants (cream emulsion)
Confidence
78%
Possible1,4-dioxane (synthetic contaminant in emulsifiers)
PossiblePreservative safety and formaldehyde releasers
Where these two actually differ
- We flag Comedogenicity and skin barrier disruption on the CeraVe and not on the CeraVe.
- We flag 1,4-dioxane (synthetic contaminant in emulsifiers) and Preservative safety and formaldehyde releasers on the CeraVe and not on the CeraVe.
- The CeraVe is water, glycerin, cetyl alcohol, niacinamide, ceramides (emulsion lotion) where the CeraVe is Water, glycerin, ceramides, humectants (cream emulsion), which is most of the difference in these two grades.
- These two are level, close enough that price and fit should decide it rather than our grade.
Both products run through the same public rubric: materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →
More moisturizer: see the full ranking