Keys Soulcare Skin Transformation Cream for oily skin
Niacinamide
Bakuchiol
Squalane
Honey
Average
- AverageOily Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- HighSafety
Works for oily skin; other moisturizers fit it better.
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 moderate suitability for oily skin as niacinamide helps regulate sebum and glycerin provides hydration, but it lacks specialized ingredients to directly address oily shine. Bakuchiol and sodium hyaluronate offer smoothing and hydrating benefits, supporting overall skin health.
- The formulation includes soothing ingredients like honey and panthenol, which are beneficial for maintaining skin comfort without causing irritation.
- The safety profile is excellent, with no harsh or prohibited ingredients and a good balance of soothing components suitable for oily skin.
How to apply
- Could be used as part of your AM or PM routine every day to keep your face fresh.
- Apply this moisturizer after cleansing and toning, but right before your SPF in the morning.
- Gently press a small amount into your skin and let it absorb fully.
- Apply on clean, slightly dry skin to help control that oily shine.
- Avoid the eye area and do a quick patch test before your first use.
People Say
★4.4Overall rating based on 1.8k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, this moisturizer is praised for its effective blend of bakuchiol, ceramides, and hyaluronic acid, which helps hydrate, plump, and smooth fine lines. While many users with sensitive or dry skin appreciate its gentle, non-irritating formula, some individuals with acne-prone or very oily skin find the texture too rich or potentially pore-clogging.
Highlights
Deeply hydrating Mostly Mentioned
- “Leaves my skin feeling so moisturised”
- “delivering A-plus hydration”
- “hydrates, repairs the barrier”
Gentle, non-irritating Often Mentioned
- “Doesn't irritate my sensitive skin”
- “active ingredients don't sting”
- “safe for sensitive skin”
Softens skin Often Mentioned
- “Skin feels so soft”
- “plump, smoother and more supple”
- “softens lines without irritation”
Non-greasy finish Sometimes Noted
- “Absorbs instantly”
- “not sticky”
- “cushiony, rich-but-smooth cream”
Too rich/heavy Sometimes Noted
- “Night cream feels too rich”
- “slightly heavier”
- “not super friendly towards oily skin”
Unpleasant scent Sometimes Noted
- “Did not care for the strong scent”
- “smells like plastic”
- “musky for me”
Clogs pores Rarely Noted
- “Too rich for my sensitive acne prone skin”
- “risk clogging pores”
Subtle results Rarely Noted
- “Effect is more sensory than treatment”
- “didn't feel any transformation”
- “results more soothing than transformative”
Sources: lovi.care, dermapproved.com, bustle.com, cultbeauty.com, thingtesting.com, reddit.com, and more
Questions and answers
How well does Keys Soulcare Skin Transformation Cream work for oily skin?
This cream works moderately well for oily skin because niacinamide helps regulate shine and glycerin provides lightweight hydration, though it lacks specialized ingredients to directly manage excess oil. Oily skin works best with products that contain peptides and hydrating agents with a lightweight texture, and avoid heavy oils.
Which ingredients make this cream a good fit for oily skin?
Niacinamide helps regulate sebum while glycerin provides essential hydration, and honey and panthenol help keep oily skin comfortable without irritation. However, because this cream is an average fit, an ideal product for oily skin needs peptides and lightweight hydrating agents that manage shine and support the skin barrier without heavy oils or breakouts.
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 Bakuchiol do for oily skin?
Bakuchiol helps balance oily skin by regulating sebum production and reducing inflammation with a very low likelihood of irritation. This type of skin needs ingredients that provide antibacterial and anti-inflammatory benefits to help control breakouts and keep pores clear.
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2016Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2022
Where does this cream go in a skincare routine for oily skin?
This moisturizing treatment goes in the evening routine after your cleansing toner and before your moisturizer. Oily skin also needs specialized ingredients to directly address oily shine.
Can I use this cream with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this cream alongside a retinol product, applying the treatment or retinol first and following with this moisturizing cream to keep your skin comfortable. Using a barrier-enhancing moisturizer like this one may help your skin tolerate active ingredients like retinoids more easily while reducing dryness and flaking.
How often should I use this cream?
You can use this moisturizing treatment daily to help keep oily skin hydrated and comfortable. To better manage oily skin, a product of this type needs specialized ingredients that directly control excess shine.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020Health Science Reports, 2021
Can this cream clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for oily skin?
This cream is unlikely to clog pores or cause breakouts for oily skin, as it has a very safe formula with no harsh ingredients. However, because it can feel a bit rich or heavy, an oily skin type needs a lighter formula with ingredients that target excess shine and oil control.
Can I use this cream around the eyes or on my body?
You can use this cream on your body and around your eyes, as the skin on your body is generally thicker and can handle rich moisturizers, while the thin skin around the eyes requires lightweight hydration. This cream provides a very safe profile with gentle ingredients that are unlikely to cause irritation in these areas.
Is this cream fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
It has no drying alcohol and contains fragrance (parfum). Cetearyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol, which soften the skin.
What the research says
Topical bakuchiol 0.5% applied twice daily compared with retinol 0.5% applied daily significantly decreased wrinkle surface area and hyperpigmentation with no statistical difference between the compounds in 44 patients over 12 weeks, while retinol users reported more facial skin scaling and stinging.
The British Journal of Dermatology, 2019Topical hyaluronic acid filler serum combined with Botulinum toxin type A lengthened the duration of the toxin's effect in reducing wrinkles compared to Botulinum toxin type A alone.
Dermatologic Therapy, 2022A dermocosmetic containing bakuchiol, Ginkgo biloba extract, and mannitol improves inflammatory lesions, Investigator Global Assessment, and seborrhea intensity when added to adapalene 0.1% gel in patients with acne vulgaris.
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2015Topical 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, 2005Topical application of a serum containing supramolecular Bakuchiol and Terminalia chebula extract significantly improved barrier function, reduced redness and sensitivity, and improved wrinkles and elasticity in 34 Chinese subjects with sensitive skin after 28 days.
Health Science Reports, 2025Bakuchiol functions as an anti-aging compound through retinol-like regulation of gene expression, producing significant improvements in lines, wrinkles, pigmentation, elasticity, firmness, and photo-damage after 12 weeks of twice-a-day facial application without usual retinol therapy-associated undesirable effects.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2014A nature-based bakuchiol-containing cleanser and moisturizer improved visual and tactile smoothness, clarity, radiance, overall appearance, global anti-aging, and skin moisture content by 16% in 60 female subjects with sensitive mild to moderate photodamaged skin over 4 weeks.
Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2020Squalane at 0.005-0.015% counteracts UVA-induced oxidative stress, inflammation, and collagen metabolism inhibition while stimulating fibroblast migration in human dermal fibroblasts.
Molecules, 2025Plant-derived squalane protected human dermal fibroblasts against UVA-induced damage by counteracting ROS formation, suppressing apoptosis-related proteins p53, caspase-3, caspase-9, and PARP, and restoring the pro-survival p-Akt/mTOR pathway.
Antioxidants, 2025Honey-based dressings reduced mean healing duration, length of hospital stay, and VAS pain scores compared with povidone iodine-based dressings in 1236 participants.
Journal of Wound Care, 2021Topical honey application improved the mean duration of attacks and pain, occurrence of crusting, and healing time compared to acyclovir cream in 16 adult patients with recurrent labial and genital herpes lesions.
Medical Science Monitor, 2004
Ingredients
Water, Isohexadecane, Stearyl Heptanoate, Butylene Glycol, Glycerin, Isopropyl Isostearate, Niacinamide, Cetearyl Olivate, Aluminum Octenylsuccinate Starch, Dimethicone, Polymethylsilsesquioxane, Silica, Squalane, Stearic Acid, Trehalose, Bakuchiol, Ceramide Np, Ceramide Ap, Ceramide Eop, Honey, Sodium Hyaluronate, Malachite Extract, Phytosphingosine, Panthenol Vb5, Cholesterol, Glyceryl Stearate, Peg-100 Stearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Sorbitan Olivate, Polyacrylate-13, Caprylyl Glycol, Polyisobutene, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Polysorbate 20, Ethylhexylglycerin, Xanthan Gum, Carbomer, 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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