La Roche-Posay Pure Niacinamide 10 Serum for oily skin
Niacinamide
Thermal Water
Sodium Hyaluronate
Phenylethyl Resorcinol
GlycerinHigh
- HighOily Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- HighSafety
One of the best serums for oily skin.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with oily skin: shine, enlarged pores, blackheads, and blemishes. For scores and recommendations based on your full skin profile, including your 12D face scan results and any goals or preferences you have, please use the Lovi app.
Page built Nov 8, 2026How the Fit score works
Lovi Assistant explains
- Offers high suitability for your oily skin due to niacinamide for seboregulation and glycerin for humectant action, while phenylethyl resorcinol provides moderate brightening and evening of skin tone.
- The serum offers general hydration from glycerin and sodium hyaluronate, which supports oily shine without being targeted for your primary concern.
- The safety profile is excellent, with no risks of irritation for your oily skin due to the absence of prohibited or harsh ingredients.
How to apply
- Use this serum in your PM routine. Start by applying it 3 times a week and build up to daily use if your skin tolerates it well.
- Apply the serum after cleansing and toning, but right before your moisturizer for the best results.
- Gently press 2-3 drops of the serum into your skin. Let it absorb ⏱ for a minute before applying the next product.
- Apply the serum on clean and dry skin since your skin is not sensitive and you want to target oily shine. This helps control excess oil throughout the night.
- Avoid the delicate eye area and do a patch test before using the serum for the very first time.
People Say
★4.5Overall rating based on 1.1k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, this serum is highly praised for its ability to fade dark spots and improve skin texture, leaving skin feeling hydrated and plump. Many users with sensitive skin find it gentle. A significant number of reviewers dislike the strong floral fragrance and find the dropper bottle design inconvenient. Some users have experienced breakouts or pilling, and many note that the product is now discontinued or difficult to find.
Highlights
Hydrating and plumping Mostly Mentioned
- “face seemed to look plumper”
- “very hydrating”
- “leaves a nice glow”
- “skin feels soft”
Fades dark spots Often Mentioned
- “dark spots look reduced”
- “freckles faded noticeably”
- “helped with hyperpigmentation”
- “redness decreased”
Improves skin texture Often Mentioned
- “skin feels silky smooth”
- “texture looks refined”
- “smoother canvas for makeup”
- “pores appear smaller”
Strong floral scent Often Mentioned
- “fragrance is very heavy”
- “headache inducing smell”
- “scent lingers too long”
- “too perfumed”
Absorbs quickly Sometimes Noted
- “absorbs fast”
- “lightweight texture”
- “non-sticky finish”
- “soaks right in”
Gentle on sensitive skin Sometimes Noted
- “no irritation”
- “suitable for sensitive skin”
- “gentle formula”
- “didn't cause redness”
Discontinued product Sometimes Noted
- “sad it's discontinued”
- “hard to find stock”
- “replaced by Mela B3”
Messy dropper bottle Sometimes Noted
- “dropper is messy”
- “product gets everywhere”
- “prefer a pump”
- “bottle design is poor”
Caused breakouts Rarely Noted
- “caused cystic acne”
- “broke me out”
- “skin turned red”
- “stinging sensation”
Pilling issues Rarely Noted
- “pills under makeup”
- “leaves white residue”
- “balls up with moisturizer”
Sources: lovi.care, influenster.com, hometesterclub.com, boots.com, adorebeauty.com.au, lovelyskin.com, and more
Questions and answers
What makes La Roche-Posay Pure Niacinamide 10 Serum a great fit for oily skin?
La Roche-Posay Pure Niacinamide 10 Serum is a great fit because it uses niacinamide to balance oil and glycerin to provide light moisture without heavy grease. It also includes phenylethyl resorcinol to help brighten and even out your skin tone safely without irritation.
Which ingredients make this serum a good fit for oily skin?
This serum is a great fit for oily skin because it contains niacinamide to help control oil, along with glycerin to keep skin hydrated. Phenylethyl resorcinol also helps brighten and even out your skin tone safely without irritation.
What does Niacinamide do for oily skin?
Niacinamide helps balance oily skin by significantly reducing excess oil production and shine. It is well tolerated and may improve skin texture without clogging pores.
Journal of Cosmetic and Laser Therapy, 2006Antioxidants, 2021
What does Thermal Water do for oily skin?
Thermal Water helps calm oily skin, keeps it comfortable, and reduces irritation. It provides light hydration without adding heaviness.
The Medical Journal of Malaysia, 2024International Journal of Biometeorology, 2025
Where does this serum go in a skincare routine for oily skin?
This treatment serum goes in the evening routine after cleansing and toning, and before moisturizing. Putting treatments in the evening keeps things simple and adds safety around sun exposure.
Can I use it with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this serum with retinol by applying it after your retinol treatment, or on alternating nights if your skin feels sensitive. It is very unlikely to cause irritation for your oily skin due to its very safe ingredients.
How often should I use this serum?
You can use this treatment in the evening as part of your routine. It has a very safe profile, so it is unlikely to irritate oily skin.
Can it clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for oily skin?
This product is unlikely to clog pores or cause irritation for your oily skin due to the absence of harsh or prohibited ingredients. Reviewers occasionally report breakouts, but the safety profile remains excellent.
Is this serum fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
It contains fragrance (parfum) and drying alcohol (alcohol denat).
What the research says
Nano-microneedle-assisted phenylethyl resorcinol significantly reduced the melanin index in infraorbital dark circles compared to baseline and topical-only treatment in 20 female participants without serious adverse effects.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2021A single application of a moisturizing fluid containing hyaluronic acid 1%, glycerin 5%, and Centella asiatica stem cells extract significantly increased skin hydration by 29% and reduced transepidermal water loss at 24 hours compared to baseline and an untreated control site in twenty healthy women.
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017Topical treatment of nicotinamide, alone or in combination with other active ingredients, reduces the progression of skin aging and hyperpigmentation in clinical trials while being well tolerated.
Antioxidants, 2021Topical post-laser application of human adipocyte-derived mesenchymal stem cell media combined with niacinamide significantly improved wrinkle index, melanin index, patient satisfaction, and investigator esthetic improvement scores compared to vehicle cream in patients with aging skin.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2021Topical nicotinamide prevented solar-simulated UV-induced immunosuppression in healthy volunteers, and men experienced immunosuppression at solar-simulated UV doses three times lower than those required for women.
The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2008Topical 5% niacinamide applied twice daily for 12 weeks reduced fine lines and wrinkles, hyperpigmented spots, red blotchiness, and skin sallowness, and improved skin elasticity compared to vehicle control in 50 female white subjects with facial photoaging.
Dermatologic Surgery, 2005Balneotherapy with thermal water altered specific skin microbiota at genus and species levels in healthy female volunteers compared to tap water, which produced no significant microbiome changes.
Life, 2023Malaysian thermal spring water as an adjunct to standard acne therapy improved skin hydration, reduced dryness and stinging, enhanced overall tolerability, and improved the acne disability index in patients with mild to moderate acne.
The Medical Journal of Malaysia, 2024A 2% Sphingomonas xenophaga ferment extract cream applied twice daily for 4 weeks significantly decreased facial vascular disorder scores compared to vehicle in 86 Caucasian female subjects, alongside dose-dependent inhibition of pre-kallikrein activity in vitro.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2025Topical application of 0.1% hyaluronic acid formulations of different molecular weights led to significant improvements in skin hydration and elasticity, with low-molecular-weight formulations also significantly reducing wrinkle depth in seventy-six female subjects compared to a vehicle control.
Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2011Topical application of hyaluronic acid in conjunction with free gingival graft significantly reduced donor site postoperative pain until day 7 compared to normal saline, with no significant differences in graft dimensions or patient satisfaction.
Clinical Oral Investigations, 2022Treatment with a hyaluronic acid-containing mouth rinse or topical gel led to significant lesion reduction, pain relief, and normalization of lesion color in adult patients with minor recurrent aphthous stomatitis, with the gel formulation showing an earlier healing onset at 3 days.
BMC Oral Health, 2019The emollient V0034CR significantly reduced TEWL compared to vehicle and vehicle plus glycerol, and significantly increased corneometry scores compared to vehicle and vehicle plus petrolatum in healthy volunteers with dry skin, demonstrating combined barrier function improvement from petrolatum and hydration improvement from glycerol.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020Ten days of treatment with a cream containing 20% glycerin significantly increased skin hydration measured by corneometer values in 17 healthy volunteers compared to a placebo cream, but showed no influence on transepidermal water loss or skin sensitivity to an irritating surfactant.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2001Niacinamide/glycerin body moisturizers provided better rapid and prolonged improvement of cosmetic xerosis through functional improvement of stratum corneum barrier function compared to no treatment and conventional moisturizers in female subjects.
Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2012
Ingredients
Water, Niacinamide, Glycerin, Alcohol Denat, Hydroxyethylpiperazine Ethane Sulfonic Acid, Dimethicone, Isopropyl Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Octyldodecanol, Peg-20 Methyl Glucose Sesquistearate, Tin Oxide, Sorbitan Oleate, Dimethiconol, Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate, Isohexadecane, Sodium Hyaluronate, Phenylethyl Resorcinol, Poloxamer 338, Ammonium Polyacryloyldimethyl Taurate, Disodium Edta, Isopropyl Myristate, Citric Acid, Xanthan Gum, Polysorbate 80, Acrylamide Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer, Tocopherol, Phenoxyethanol, Mica, Ci 77891, Titanium Dioxide, Parfum
Behind this fit score
Lovi calculates every fit score from the full ingredient list with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.
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Co-founder, Medical Director
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer
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Co-founder, CEO and CTO
PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex
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Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc
Medical Board
Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine
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Medical Board
Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
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Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member
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Medical Board, Medical Advisor
Dermatology MD
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Elina Nazarenko, MD
Medical Board
Dermatology and diagnostic consultant
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Victoria Derkova, MS
Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist
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