Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Vitamin C Serum for acne-prone skin

Ascorbic Acid
Phas
Sodium Hyaluronate
Glycerin
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Extract
High
- HighCombination Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- ExcellentSafety
A great choice for acne-prone skin; a few serums fit it even better.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with acne-prone skin: breakouts, blackheads, and post-acne marks. 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 moderate brightening and smoothing for your combination skin due to 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid and Gluconolactone, which provide antioxidant activity and gentle exfoliation. While beneficial for overall skin health, the formula lacks targeted ingredients like salicylic acid or niacinamide to effectively address your acne, blemishes, and breakouts.
- The product is safe for your combination skin, with Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate and Tocopherol offering soothing benefits and minimizing irritation risk.
- This serum provides general skincare benefits such as hydration and antioxidant protection.
How to apply
- Use your serum as part of your PM routine and start 3x/week before working up to daily use.
- Apply this treatment after cleansing and toner, and before your moisturizer.
- Gently press 2-3 drops of the serum into your skin and let it absorb for a minute.
- Apply the product on clean, dry skin to help manage your breakouts safely.
- Avoid the eye area and do a patch test before your first use.
People Say
★4.4Overall rating based on 2.7k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, users with dull or aging skin frequently praise this serum for its ability to instantly brighten the complexion and provide a glass skin glow, often noting improvements in texture and hydration. A moderate number of users report severe allergic reactions, including redness and swelling, suggesting it may be potent or irritating for sensitive skin types.
Highlights
Instant brightening Mostly Mentioned
- “gives a beautiful radiant glow”
- “skin looks glass-like”
- “instantly brightens dull areas”
- “complexion felt clearer and bouncier”
Lightweight texture Often Mentioned
- “absorbs fast without being sticky”
- “layers well under SPF”
- “makeup glides right over it”
- “feels lightweight going on”
Pleasant scent Often Mentioned
- “smells like fresh orange juice”
- “scent is lightly sweet”
- “refreshing citrus smell”
- “mood-boosting scent”
Hydrating and plumping Sometimes Noted
- “plumps the skin”
- “feels like a drink of water for my face”
- “helped with dryness”
- “skin feels dewier”
Allergic reactions Sometimes Noted
- “eyes and face were swollen”
- “red burning rash around nose”
- “tiny blistering pimples”
- “caused chemical burn”
Sticky residue Sometimes Noted
- “leaves face sticky for hours”
- “can't stand the stickiness”
- “feels tacky on the skin”
- “hair sticks to my face”
Misleading name Rarely Noted
- “expected banana scent”
- “smells nothing like bananas”
- “misleading name”
- “just smells like vitamin C”
Orange tint Rarely Noted
- “looks like orange juice”
- “stained my hands orange”
- “left an orange cast”
- “oxidized quickly”
Sources: lovi.care, influenster.com, ulta.com, sephora.com, olehenriksen.com, boots.com, and more
Questions and answers
What makes Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Serum a great fit for acne-prone skin?
Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Vitamin C Serum is a great fit for your acne-prone skin because it offers antioxidant protection and gentle exfoliation that helps keep your skin smooth and bright. Soothing ingredients like dipotassium glycyrrhizate and tocopherol also help minimize the risk of irritation while delivering everyday hydration.
Polymers, 2023Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017
Which ingredients make this serum a good fit for acne-prone skin?
This serum is a good fit because Ascorbic Acid, PHAs, Sodium Hyaluronate, and Glycerin brighten, smooth, and hydrate the skin, while soothing ingredients like Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate help keep irritation low.
Polymers, 2023Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017
What does Vitamin C do for acne-prone skin?
Vitamin C helps brighten skin, smooth out uneven tones, and fade dark spots left behind by breakouts. It is also packed with antioxidants that may help protect acne-prone skin from everyday environmental stress.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2023Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2024
What do PHAs do for acne-prone skin?
Polyhydroxy acids help improve acne-prone skin by gently smoothing texture and providing anti-aging benefits while remaining well tolerated and gentle on sensitive skin. They are unlikely to cause irritation and work well to keep skin smooth and clear.
Cutis, 2004Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2010
Where does this serum go in a skincare routine for acne-prone skin?
This serum goes in the evening routine, placed after cleansing and before moisturizing. Putting treatments in the evening helps provide extra safety around sun exposure, and this product is unlikely to irritate your skin thanks to soothing ingredients.
Can I use this serum with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this serum with retinol by applying this vitamin C in the morning and your retinol at night to help avoid irritation. Using them at different times of day allows your skin to get the brightening and antioxidant benefits of vitamin C while letting retinol work on breakouts without overwhelming your skin.
How often should I use this serum?
You can use this serum in the evening as part of your routine. It provides hydration and antioxidant protection while being unlikely to cause irritation.
Can this serum clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for acne-prone skin?
This serum is unlikely to cause purging since it uses gentle acids rather than strong cell-turnover ingredients, but it may feel heavy or cause breakouts for acne-prone skin because it lacks targeted blemish-fighting ingredients like salicylic acid or niacinamide.
Is this serum fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
It has no drying alcohol and contains fragrance (limonene, linalool, and citral).
What the research says
A topical serum containing vitamin C, vitamin E, and raspberry leaf cell culture extract improved skin color, elasticity, radiance, smoothness, scaliness, and wrinkles compared to the untreated contralateral side in fifty female volunteers.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020A multi-component dissolving microneedle patch loaded with glabridin, 3-O-ethyl-L-ascorbic acid, and tranexamic acid effectively reduced chloasma and age spots while demonstrating safety in clinical evaluation, alongside significant antioxidant, anti-tyrosinase, and melanin-reduction effects in vitro and in vivo.
Polymers, 2023A 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 application of 5% vitamin C cream significantly improved global clinical scores, increased skin microrelief density, and induced elastic tissue repair in photoaged skin compared to excipient control in healthy female volunteers.
Experimental Dermatology, 2003Ascorbic acid 2-glucoside gel significantly reduced gingival melanin pigmentation after 4 weeks compared to placebo in 73 subjects with symmetric pigmentation.
Journal of Periodontology, 2009Topical application of VC-IP cream twice daily for 8 weeks reduces periorbital wrinkles in female subjects compared to a placebo cream.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2022Topical 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, 3-O-Ethyl Ascorbic Acid, Neopentyl Glycol Diheptanoate, Gluconolactone, Cetearyl Olivate, Sorbitan Olivate, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Oil, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Peel Oil, Triethyl Citrate, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis Fruit Extract, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil Sunflower Seed Oil, Potassium Hydroxide, Betaine, Panthenol, Phenoxyethanol, Hydroxyacetophenone, Aminomethyl Propanol, Acrylates C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Gluconic Acid, Tocopherol, Glycerin, Succinoglycan, Phytic Acid, Mica, Sodium Metabisulfite, Sodium Hyaluronate, Caramel, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Sodium Polyacrylate, Pentaerythrityl Tetra-Di-T-Butyl Hydroxyhydrocinnamate, Sodium Phytate, Lemon Fruit Extract, Rosa Canina Fruit Extract, Hippophae Rhamnoides Extract, Lycium Barbarum Fruit Extract, Leuconostoc Radish Root Ferment Filtrate, Limonene, Linalool, Citral, Titanium Dioxide Ci 77891, Yellow 5 Ci 19140, Red 4 Ci 14700
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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