🇬🇧United Kingdom

NATURIUM Niacinamide Gel Cream 5% for oily acne-prone skin

Average

  • HighOily Skin Fit
  • AverageEffectiveness
  • HighSafety

Works for oily acne-prone skin; other moisturizers fit it better.

This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with oily acne-prone skin: shine, breakouts, blemishes, and enlarged pores. 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 moisturizing for your oily skin due to glycerin and sodium hyaluronate, which hydrate and plump effectively, though niacinamide's benefits are general rather than targeted for your acne and breakouts.
  • The formulation is highly suitable for oily skin, with niacinamide aiding in seboregulation and sodium hyaluronate providing humectant action.
  • 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 AM and PM routine every day to help clear your skin. Always remember to finish with SPF in the morning.
  • Apply the moisturizer after your cleanser and toner, right before your SPF during the day.
  • Gently press a small amount into your skin and avoid rubbing to keep pores clear.
  • Apply on clean, slightly damp skin to help the product absorb better and control oil.
  • Avoid the sensitive eye area and do a simple patch test before your first use.

People Say

★4.4Overall rating based on 400+ reviews

This gel-cream is widely celebrated by users with oily, combination, and acne-prone skin for its ability to regulate sebum and minimize pores without feeling heavy. While it delivers a "glass skin" finish and layers well under makeup, those with drier skin types often find it insufficiently hydrating, particularly during colder months.

Highlights

  • Lightweight texture Mostly Mentioned
    • “absorbs quickly without residue”
    • “feels like nothing on”
    • “super fresh and light”
  • Oil control Often Mentioned
    • “keeps oils at bay”
    • “perfect for my oily t-zone”
    • “stopped my midday shine”
  • Makeup compatibility Sometimes Noted
    • “great under foundation”
    • “doesn't pill with SPF”
    • “makeup sits beautifully on top”
  • Pore reduction Sometimes Noted
    • “pores look smaller”
    • “skin texture is smoother”
    • “gives a glass-skin look”
  • Insufficient hydration Sometimes Noted
    • “skin felt tight after an hour”
    • “need a thicker cream on top”
    • “not enough for dry winter skin”
  • Price vs. quantity Rarely Noted
    • “wish the bottle was bigger”
    • “finished it too quickly”
    • “pricey for the amount you get”
  • Skin reactions Rarely Noted
    • “caused cystic acne”
    • “broke me out immediately”
    • “skin turned red and stung”

Sources: lovi.care, naturium.com, target.com, spacenk.com, skinsort.com, ulta.com, and more

Questions and answers

How well does Naturium Niacinamide Gel Cream 5% work for oily acne-prone skin?

This gel cream works okay for oily acne-prone skin, providing moderate hydration and keeping skin soft without clogging pores, though its ingredients do not target breakouts specifically. To fit this skin better, a moisturizing treatment needs powerful ingredients that actively fight blemishes and clear breakouts while keeping the skin light and fresh.

Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017

Which ingredients make this cream a good fit for oily acne-prone skin?

Glycerin and sodium hyaluronate make this cream a good fit by hydrating your oily skin without adding heavy oils, while niacinamide helps balance oil. A product for this skin type needs lightweight hydrating ingredients and agents that target blemishes without clogging pores.

Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017

What does Niacinamide do for oily acne-prone skin?

Niacinamide helps balance oil production, calms redness, and is unlikely to irritate oily, acne-prone skin while improving blemishes. Clinical tests show it reduces excess oil and helps clear up both inflammatory and non-inflammatory acne breakouts.

Journal of Cosmetic and Laser Therapy, 2006Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2024

What does Dimethicone do for oily acne-prone skin?

Dimethicone helps protect oily, acne-prone skin from irritation, but it shows varying performance in keeping skin hydrated compared to other protectants. Because it can feel heavy, this type of skin often needs lighter ingredients like natural plant oils with a higher linoleic acid to oleic acid ratio to keep pores clear and the skin barrier strong.

Ostomy/wound Management, 2005Military Medicine, 2024

Where does this cream go in a skincare routine for oily acne-prone skin?

This cream works as a moisturizer, fitting into your morning routine after toner and sunscreen, and your evening routine as the final step after your treatment. To best support oily acne-prone skin, this type of product needs ingredients like salicylic acid or targeted acne fighters to actively clear breakouts.

International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2020Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017

Can I use this cream with retinol, and in what order?

You can use this cream with retinol by applying your retinol first and following it with this moisturizer to help keep your skin comfortable. This type of product needs barrier-strengthening ingredients like ceramides and soothing agents to better support acne-prone skin during retinoid use.

Cutis, 2006Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2023

How often should I use this cream?

You can use this moisturizing treatment twice a day to keep your oily skin hydrated without causing irritation. Daily application of this type of product helps improve skin moisture and barrier function.

Health Science Reports, 2021Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017

Can this cream clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for oily acne-prone skin?

This cream is unlikely to clog pores or cause breakouts for your oily acne-prone skin, as it has a very safe formula with no harsh or irritating ingredients. However, because its breakout-fighting benefits are general rather than targeted, skin of this type needs a product packed with specialized blemish-clearing ingredients to stay truly clear.

Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017

Can I use this cream around the eyes or on my body?

You can use this moisturizing treatment around your eyes and on your body, as its safety profile is excellent and it is very unlikely to cause irritation. The skin around the eyes and on parts of the body can be quite thin, so gentle hydrating ingredients like glycerin and sodium hyaluronate help keep these areas soft without clogging pores.

Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy, 2002Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017

Is this cream fragrance-free and alcohol-free?

Yes, it has no fragrance and no drying alcohol.

What the research says

  • Topical 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, 2021
  • Topical 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, 2008
  • Topical 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, 2005
  • Wearing an N95 mask alone compared to using dimethicone cream or hydrocolloid dressing caused more adverse skin reactions among 73 military health care workers, with no significant differences in fit test failure rates between groups.

    Military Medicine, 2024
  • A dimethicone skin protectant lotion significantly decreased visual scoring and transepidermal water loss compared to vehicle control and SLS-only treated sites in 12 healthy humans exposed to sodium lauryl sulfate.

    Skin Research and Technology, 2000
  • Treatment with a moisturizer containing dimethicone and glycerine increased epidermal thickness by 0.019 mm, improved barrier function by decreasing transepidermal water loss by 13%, decreased melanin intensity, and induced keratins 6 and 16 in fifteen women with moderately photoaged forearms.

    Clinical and Experimental Dermatology, 2007
  • Topical 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, 2011
  • Topical 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, 2022
  • Treatment 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, 2019
  • 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, 2017
  • The 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, 2020
  • Ten 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, 2001

Why other moisturizers fit oily acne-prone skin better

Ingredients

Water, Dimethicone, Niacinamide, Propanediol, Coconut Fruit Juice, Acrylamide Sodium Acryloyldimethyltaurate Copolymer, Glycerin, Kappaphycus Alvarezii Extract, Alteromonas Extract Ferment, Sea Water, Sodium Hyaluronate, Caprylyl Glycol, Isohexadecane, 1,2-Hexanediol, Butylene Glycol, Polysorbate 80, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate, Tocopherol, Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Cetyl Diglyceryl Tris Trimethylsiloxy Silylethyl Dimethicone, Hexadecene, Hydroxyacetophenone

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.

How does it fit your skin?

Scan your face, then any product: Lovi shows how well it fits you and what fits even better.