COSRX Hyaluronic Acid Hydra Power Essence for acne-prone skin
Average
- AverageCombination Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- ExcellentSafety
Works for acne-prone skin; other moisturizers fit it better.
- Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017
- American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2002
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 hydration for your combination skin, as Sodium Hyaluronate and Glycerin provide humectant action to hydrate and plump the skin without exacerbating acne.
- Panthenol further supports skin hydration and barrier function, which is beneficial for overall skin health.
- The product is safe for your acne-prone skin, with no harsh ingredients and the inclusion of soothing Panthenol.
How to apply
- Use your moisturizer twice a day in your AM and PM routines. Apply it daily to help keep breakouts under control.
- Apply after your cleanser and toner, and make sure to use your SPF right after in the morning.
- Gently spread a small amount of moisturizer over your face using soft motions. Let it absorb into the skin for a minute before getting dressed or applying makeup.
- Apply on slightly damp skin to help lock in extra moisture. This keeps your combination skin balanced without feeling heavy.
- Avoid the eye area and do a patch test before your first use. Stop using if you feel any irritation.
People Say
★4.6Overall rating based on 5.2k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, this essence is widely praised by users with dehydrated and oily skin for providing deep hydration without clogging pores, often resulting in a plump and dewy complexion. While highly effective for soothing sensitive skin and smoothing fine lines, some users with extremely dry skin find it requires layering with a heavier moisturizer to be fully effective.
Highlights
Deep lightweight hydration Mostly Mentioned
- “locks in moisture”
- “skin-quenching”
- “long-lasting hydration”
Fast absorption Often Mentioned
- “absorbs quickly”
- “non-greasy”
- “no residue”
Plumps and smooths Often Mentioned
- “chok chok glow”
- “softens texture”
- “bouncy skin”
Gentle formulation Sometimes Noted
- “fragrance-free”
- “non-irritating”
- “safe for sensitive skin”
Value for money Sometimes Noted
- “lasts forever”
- “little goes a long way”
- “affordable price”
Not enough moisture Sometimes Noted
- “needs more layers”
- “too light for winter”
- “not moisturizing enough”
Caused breakouts Rarely Noted
- “closed comedones”
- “small bumps”
- “whiteheads”
Packaging issues Rarely Noted
- “pump gets stuck”
- “cap cracks”
- “hard to dispense end”
Sticky finish Rarely Noted
- “tacky residue”
- “sticky texture”
- “takes time to dry”
Sources: lovi.care, iherb.com, ulta.com, yesstyle.com, reddit.com, skinsort.com, and more
Questions and answers
How well does COSRX Hyaluronic Acid Power Essence work for acne-prone skin?
This essence works moderately well for acne-prone skin, as Sodium Hyaluronate and Glycerin hydrate and plump the skin without making acne worse, while Panthenol helps support the skin barrier. A moisturizing treatment for this skin needs ingredients that provide excellent benefits for blemishes and irritation-free hydration and repair.
American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2002Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017
Which ingredients make this essence a good fit for acne-prone skin?
Sodium Hyaluronate and Glycerin help keep your skin hydrated and plump without worsening breakouts, while Panthenol soothes and supports your skin barrier. A moisturizing treatment for acne-prone skin needs ingredients that provide effective blemish benefits, soothing extracts, and nourishing peptides without any risk of irritation.
What does Hyaluronic Acid do for acne-prone skin?
Hyaluronic acid helps acne-prone skin by soothing irritation, calming redness, and keeping the skin balanced without clogging pores. When combined with targeted ingredients like zinc oxide, it may also help reduce breakouts.
What does Panthenol do for acne-prone skin?
Panthenol helps acne-prone skin by soothing redness and supporting the skin barrier while keeping skin hydrated. It is unlikely to cause irritation and works well to calm angry spots without clogging pores.
American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2002Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2024
Where does this essence go in a skincare routine for acne-prone skin?
This moisturizing treatment goes in the evening routine after cleansing and toning, and before moisturizing. Putting treatments in the evening helps keep the routine simple and adds extra safety around sun exposure.
Can I use this essence with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this essence with retinol by applying the essence first to hydrate your skin and then following with retinol. This helps keep your skin comfortable, as products of this type for acne-prone skin need soothing ingredients like panthenol and lightweight hydrators like glycerin to minimize dryness.
How often should I use this essence?
You can safely use this essence daily as part of your evening routine, keeping your skin calm and hydrated. Because your skin type needs a product that also delivers targeted acne-fighting ingredients alongside hydration, you might want to pair it with treatments that address breakouts more directly.
Health Science Reports, 2021Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017
Can this essence clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for acne-prone skin?
This essence is unlikely to cause breakouts for your acne-prone skin because it contains soothing panthenol and lacks harsh ingredients. However, it offers only moderate moisture, so acne-prone skin often needs a lightweight hydrator packed with targeted blemish-clearing ingredients and oil-balancing agents to stay truly clear and comfortable.
American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2002The Journal of Dermatological Treatment, 2017
Can I use this essence around the eyes or on my body?
You can use this essence around the eyes and on your body because it is safe for acne-prone skin and helps hydrate without clogging pores. Because the skin around the eyes is very thin, a moisturizing treatment used there needs gentle soothing ingredients like panthenol and lightweight hydrators like sodium hyaluronate and glycerin.
Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy, 2002American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2002
Is this essence fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
Yes, it has no fragrance and no drying alcohol.
What the research says
A 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 dexpanthenol acts as a moisturizer, improves stratum corneum hydration, accelerates wound healing and epidermal regeneration, reduces erythema, and improves symptoms of skin irritation compared to vehicle or no pretreatment.
American Journal of Clinical Dermatology, 2002A new topical panthenol-containing emollient significantly improved transepidermal water loss reduction, stratum corneum hydration, and intercellular lipid lamellae length compared with control in healthy subjects without negatively impacting bacterial viability.
The Journal of Dermatological Treatment, 2017A panthenol-enriched mask significantly decreased erythema and hyperpigmentation, increased sebum and stratum corneum moisture, and reduced transepidermal water loss compared to a saline dressing in 60 subjects undergoing facial laser treatment.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 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, 2019Moisturizer containing 5% panthenol, madecassoside, and copper-zinc-manganese decreased adverse reactions and downtime after ablative fractional carbon dioxide laser resurfacing with comparable efficacy to 0.02% triamcinolone acetonide cream in 20 subjects.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2019Topical dexpanthenol formulated in lipophilic vehicles improved stratum corneum hydration and reduced transepidermal water loss compared to vehicle control in humans.
Arzneimittel-Forschung, 2000Hyaluronic acid, hyaluronic acid plus dexpanthenol, and isotonic saline nasal sprays all significantly improved dry nose symptoms over four weeks in 240 patients, with hyaluronic acid plus dexpanthenol providing superior nasal moisturisation compared to the other two.
Auris, Nasus, Larynx, 2020The 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, 2012Topical application of a sea buckthorn fruit extract formulation significantly reduced skin sebum secretion in 10 healthy human volunteers compared to the control base over an 8-week period.
Journal of Pharmacy & Bioallied Sciences, 2010Topical emulsions containing Hippophae rhamnoides and Cassia fistula plant extracts significantly reduced skin sebum contents compared to placebo in patients with grade I and grade II acne vulgaris.
Postepy Dermatologii I Alergologii, 2014Topical application of a 5% Hippophae rhamnoides oil-in-water emulsion significantly improved skin hydration (p=0.0003) and transepidermal water loss (p=0.0087) compared to a placebo base formulation in 13 healthy male subjects over 84 days.
Pakistan Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2014
Ingredients
Hippophae Rhamnoides Water, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Sodium Hyaluronate, Panthenol, Ethyl Hexanediol
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.
-

Co-founder, Medical Director
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer
-

Co-founder, CEO and CTO
PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex
-

Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc
Medical Board
Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine
-

Medical Board
Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
-

Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member
-

Medical Board, Medical Advisor
Dermatology MD
-

Elina Nazarenko, MD
Medical Board
Dermatology and diagnostic consultant
-

Victoria Derkova, MS
Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist
How does it fit your skin?
Scan your face, then any product: Lovi shows how well it fits you and what fits even better.
