Hydrating Body Washes Are the Answer to Soothed, Radiant Skin
Drinking my water, minding my business, and perfecting my body care routine.
A few years ago, my really good friend (another talented writer, Stixx Matthews) told me he showers three times a day. He didn’t do it to compete in the Clean Crevices Olympics like so many others on social media, but instead described it as an easy way to regulate his nervous system on particularly stressful days. Obviously, a hydrating body wash is essential if you're going to shower that much, but ever since that moment, I haven't looked at showering the same way. Now that I think about it, this is also when my relationship with body care products began to change.
Now, I shower for pleasure instead of function, multiple times per day if I want to. I light the candles, play sensual music, and use incredibly scented, sensorial products. For me, showering has become a true beauty ritual, and given the nature of my job, I’ve been able to try some of the best formulas on the market. Over the past few (very cold) weeks in New York City, I’ve been prioritizing moisture retention across my beauty routine, so I’ve been reaching for my most hydrating body washes on the market right now. Not only do I expect my body soaps to smell and feel good, but they also need to deliver benefits that last long after I’ve stepped out of my bathroom.
Hydrated skin from head to toe is the goal!
Of course, I’ve been testing some top-of-the-line, A+ hydrating body washes and have a healthy list to recommend to you. If you’re still on a mission to find your perfect hydrating body routine for the winter, start right here.
The Best Hydrating Body Washes
This is one of the best body washes on this list, drugstore or otherwise. Not only does it smell like fresh linens, but the lather (and the resulting bubbles) is out of this world. Add in ingredients like squalane and hyaluronic acid for less than $15, and you have what I like to call a unicorn beauty product.
It wouldn’t be a Marie Claire beauty story if I didn’t mention at least one Cyklar product. The entire team is obsessed with this line and for good reason—it’s really, really good. Glycerin, a multi-oil complex, fatty acid water, and more, combine to create a body wash that feels almost like you’re applying a slippery salve in the shower. This formula doesn’t produce a ton of suds or bubbles, but given the number of bottles I’ve gone through, I’d say it shouldn’t dissuade you from at least trying it for yourself.
My mom has been an Olay stan for years, and on a recent trip home, I used some of this body wash she had in the shower. Not only did I practically levitate from how good it smelled, but I noticed a real difference in my skin after toweling off. I didn’t feel like I had to rush to immediately put on oil to preserve my skin's hydration. Even with that, when I did put on my lotion and oil, it didn’t feel like my skin was super weighed down either.
I won’t go on for too long, but this Nécessaire body wash is as important to me as my future first child. It is hands-down one of the best-smelling body washes on this list (especially if you share my olfactive personality). Add in ingredients like enzymes and pure olibanum oil, and again, that absolutely stunning scent, and you have a winning formula on your hands.
Salt and Stone’s Saffron and Cedar smells incredibly similar to Maison Francis Kurkdijian’s Baccarat Rouge 540, and the scent alone can carry this formula—but it doesn’t have to. Hyaluronic acid and peptides are the stars of the show here, and something about this soap makes the saffron, cedarwood, and jasmine notes linger on the skin for hours. So if you do your girl math correctly, it’s also basically a perfume (meaning you get two products in one). You’re welcome.
The Glow Getter line from Naturium is another gem from the drugstore that leaves your skin radiant and hydrated. Plus, when you pair it with the body butter from the same line? Magic.
There is no list of hydrating body washes without the L'Occitane Almond Shower Oil. As the name suggests, it smells nutty and sweet, and the consistency is like a true oil. The lather it gives is soft, milky, and elegant, perfect for hydrating your skin without it feeling sticky.
Nerrā is a brand rooted in ancient bathing rituals, so of course, it got the memo on giving us a hydrating body wash. Aptly named “The Body Wash,” this formula boasts algae probiotics, hyaluronic acid, and even pink clay to mimic the effects of the clay used in hammams, and the result is a sensorial delight that I ran through in just a few weeks.
Technically, this product is marketed as a bath oil. But when I need to slow down and really pamper myself, but may not have enough time for a bath, this is what I reach for. It lathers wonderfully when added to my washcloth, and the scent is more aromatic, thanks to an infusion of sage oil.
This La Roche-Posay Lipikar Wash will always have a fan in me. While it can be used on both the body and the face, I use it strictly on the former, and I love how it makes my skin feel every time. In the formula is the brand’s famous thermal water as well as other soothing ingredients like shea butter and glycerin for hydration and moisture that lasts.
I didn’t realize that I was gatekeeping this formula so hard that practically no one I know talks about it, but allow me to fix that right now. This is one of the most hydrating body washes of all time. Ceramides, shea butter, Moringa leaf oil—this formula is packed to the brim with nourishing, skin-loving ingredients, and on top of all of this, it has a vanilla honey scent. I’m drooling a little as I write this.
A unisex option that you may want to hide from your partner or family members comes from Youth To The People. It’s a gel consistency that spreads easily on the skin, but the niacinamide, Fatty Acid Surfactants, and green tea extracts ensure the lightweight formula stays hard at work, leaving me feeling refreshed and not crepey after my (admittedly) very hot showers.
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