Water Works: How the World’s Oldest Skin Care Ingredient Is Making a Comeback

Of all the It ingredients we’ve reported on over the years, none has seemed so curiously pedestrian as this: Water. Yet, despite its lack of flash, good old-fashioned H20 is as essential for great skin as it is for life on Earth. Without enough of it, “skin not only looks dry and haggard, it can’t adequately perform everyday functions, like exfoliation, making collagen, and self-repair,” explains New York City dermatologist Amy Wechsler. But while water has excellent moisturizing properties when applied topically in cream or serum, says the cosmetic chemist Ni’Kita Wilson, its effects are usually fleeting—it hydrates cells on the surface, then quickly evaporates.

Now, the top beauty companies are racing to find new ways to make it perform more effectively—launching a new wave of innovative face serums, elixirs, and masks that’s taking its hydrating potential to the next level. Some are encapsulating water inside tiny spheres that can slip through the skin’s tough keratin-rich barrier, or infusing it with smart nutrients and minerals; others are devising ways to capture water with supercharged humectants that deliver intense, all-day moisture yet feel lightweight and fresh to the touch.
Here, eight supercharged formulas guaranteed to make a splash in your arsenal this season.

1 / 8

Perricone MD Blue Plasma Cleansing Treatment

The oil-grabbing surfactants in this no-rinse facial cleansing water clear out pores without overstripping—while simultaneously delivering clarity-boosting minerals under the skin.

2 / 8

Chanel Hydra Beauty Micro Sérum

The French beauty house’s breakthrough fluid suspends hydrating camellia oil within water droplets, keeping it pure and potent until the moment it hits the skin. Antioxidant blue ginger protects the moisture barrier.

3 / 8

Dr. Jart+ Water Fuse Water Sure Gel

This cool gel drenches skin upon contact; a trio of proven moisture magnets—hyaluronic acid, trehalose, and fructan—seals it in for hours.

4 / 8

Teoxane RHA Serum

The patented ingredient of hyaluronic acid in this serum is released slowly throughout the day—meaning it constantly replenishes skin’s water supply while driving in key ingredients, like N-acetyl glucosamine, an antioxidant shown to stimulate the body’s own production of hyaluronic acid.

5 / 8

Givenchy Hydrasparkling High Moisturizing Luminescence Sap Serum

A fine-tuned combination of sugars and amino acids joins forces with an ancient Indian tree resin to smooth, strengthen, and recharge cells for a soft and glow-y effect.

Givenchy Hydrasparkling High Moisturizing Luminescence Sap Serum

6 / 8

Laneige Water Bank Eye Gel

With a cult-y vibe and Korean roots, this depuffing gel not only soothes tired eyes, it bolsters the skin barrier with hydrating botanicals and regulates its moisture balance.

7 / 8

StriVectin Anti-Wrinkle Hydra Gel Treatment

Plump fine lines (anywhere on the face) in fifteen minutes and two steps: The slippery patches—gelled water laced with hyaluronic acid—push fluids into the skin; the smoothing balm acts as a sealant, prolonging the effects and fighting more pronounced wrinkles with a powerful niacin derivative.

8 / 8

Make Up For Ever Step 1 Skin Equalizer Hydrating Primer

This water-based gel primer goes way beyond basic blurring. It floods the complexion with humectants and strengthens with a vitamin D-like compound, shoring up the skin’s natural water reserves. Rounding out the perfect package: It never pills, and helps makeup wear like iron.