Few skincare ingredients are as recognisable – or as widely misunderstood – as hyaluronic acid. It turns up in serums, moisturisers, and eye creams across almost every skincare aisle. But what is hyaluronic acid and what does hyaluronic acid do for skin?
At its simplest, hyaluronic acid is one of skincare's most effective hydrating ingredients, valued for the way it supports moisture, plumpness, and a smoother-looking complexion.
Below, we explain what hyaluronic acid does for skin, which skin types it suits, and how to use it across your morning and evening routine.
What is hyaluronic acid?
Hyaluronic acid is a molecule your body already makes. It occurs naturally throughout the body, including within the skin – where it belongs to a group of moisture-binding molecules known as glycosaminoglycans.
Hyaluronic acid on skin attracts and holds water. This is important because your skin's own hyaluronic acid – and its ability to retain moisture – gradually diminishes with age, as well as with exposure to external stressors such as UV and pollution.
How does hyaluronic acid work on the skin?
Hyaluronic acid works as a humectant, meaning it draws in water and helps the skin hold onto it. By increasing the skin’s surface hydration, hyaluronic acid enables your complexion to look smoother, softer, and visibly plumper.
Notably, hyaluronic acid for skin is available in a range of molecular weights, each with a different action. Higher-molecular-weight forms instantly hydrate and smooth the skin’s surface, while their lower-molecular-weight counterparts reach the upper layers to deliver deeper, longer-lasting hydration.
What are the benefits of hyaluronic acid for skin?
So, what does hyaluronic acid do for skin day to day? It all traces back to one core talent – holding water – which shows up on the skin in many visible ways.
Below, we explain the benefits of adding hyaluronic acid to your skincare routine.
1. Helps replenish skin hydration
By binding water within the surface layers, hyaluronic acid helps counter the moisture skin loses throughout the day, easing the tight, parched feeling associated with dehydration.
Our Liftactiv Hyaluronic Acid Anti-Wrinkle Day Cream for Normal to Combination Skin delivers 0.5% pure hyaluronic acid in a lightweight, fast-absorbing formula that maintains moisture levels, limits water loss, and layers cleanly beneath sunscreen and makeup to keep your skin hydrated all day long.
2. Supports the skin moisture barrier
Attracting water is only part of what hyaluronic acid is good for; it also helps skin hold onto moisture. This matters because the skin moisture barrier is your skin’s outermost layer, responsible for keeping water in and external stressors out.
When skin becomes dehydrated, that barrier weakens, and things it would usually tolerate (such as changes in weather, fragrances, or a new routine) can cause sensitivity. Keeping moisture available at the surface also helps maintain barrier comfort and tolerance, which is also why hyaluronic acid is well suited for use alongside more active ingredients.
3. Promotes plumper-looking skin
Well-hydrated skin appears fuller and more cushioned, making creases look less pronounced. Overnight is the ideal time to support this effect, as the skin’s natural renewal cycle is most active while you sleep. With no makeup, sunscreen, or pollution to contend with, a moisturiser also has hours of uninterrupted contact with the skin.
With that in mind, apply our Liftactiv Hyaluronic Specialist H.A. Anti-Wrinkle Night Moisturiser as your final evening step. Pure hyaluronic acid works alongside Vitamin Cg for antioxidant protection through the night, so you wake up to skin that is plumped with hydration.
4. Smooths the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles
Hydration plumps the skin, and plumper skin makes fine lines and wrinkles less visible. To target those lines specifically, a serum does more than a moisturiser alone – it's a concentrated treatment step, delivering a higher dose of hyaluronic acid for skin that needs an extra surge of moisture.
Our Liftactiv Hyaluronic Acid Serum for Wrinkles is formulated with a high concentration of 1.5% pure hyaluronic acid. It works across the upper layers of the skin to visibly fill and smooth creases while firming the overall look of your complexion. After just six weeks of twice-daily use, users reported 47% fewer wrinkles and 60% fewer fine lines*.
*Clinical evaluation of 53 women after six weeks of use.
5. Supports smoother, softer skin texture
Regularly using hyaluronic acid on skin can improve its overall texture – meaning a surface that looks clearer and more even and feels soft to the touch rather than rough or tight.
That extends to your eye area, where the skin is thinner and more sensitive than anywhere else on your face – and where a facial moisturiser can feel too heavy. Our Liftactiv Hyaluronic Acid Eye Cream for Anti Wrinkles is formulated specifically for the eye contour, with a lighter texture that smooths, softens the look of fine lines, and reduces the appearance of dullness that settles around tired eyes.
Which skin types can use hyaluronic acid?
Hyaluronic acid is suitable for all skin types, thanks to its gentle, hydrating properties. However, what hyaluronic acid does for your skin can vary depending on its specific needs.
Read on as we unpack the benefits of hyaluronic acid for each skin type.
Hyaluronic acid for dry or dehydrated skin
Dehydrated and dry skin types need help maintaining moisture. Hyaluronic draws water to the skin’s surface to help ease tightness and soften rough or flaky patches. Applying a moisturiser afterwards helps seal in that hydration and support the skin moisture barrier.
Hyaluronic acid for oily or combination skin
Oil and hydration aren't the same thing – skin can be oily, while still lacking water.
Hyaluronic acid delivers water-based comfort with no oil and no heaviness, so combination and oily skin get what they're missing without a greasy finish.
Hyaluronic acid for sensitive skin
Gentle and comforting, hyaluronic acid on skin works solely by drawing water into the surface layers – there's no exfoliating or resurfacing action, which is why sensitive skin types generally tolerate it so well. Sensitive skin often has a weakened moisture barrier, which lets water escape more easily and makes external stressors easier to feel. Use formulas that are free of fragrance, silicones, and alcohol for the best results.
Hyaluronic acid for mature skin
Because the skin's natural hyaluronic acid supply declines with age, it holds less water than it used to – and dehydrated skin is where fine lines and wrinkles show up most. Using hyaluronic acid in an anti-ageing skincare routine draws moisture back into the surface layers, softening that crepey look and leaving skin looking smoother and more cushioned.
Hyaluronic acid serum vs cream: what is the difference?
It's easy to assume a serum and a cream do the same job. They don't – they work together.
A serum is a lightweight, concentrated treatment step, designed to deliver a high dose of the active ingredient. A cream is richer, working to soften the skin and retain moisture. Rather than choosing between them, use both: apply a serum first and a moisturiser second.
But can you use hyaluronic acid every day?
Yes – because hyaluronic acid is so gentle, you can use it every day, morning and evening.
What ingredients can you use with hyaluronic acid?
Beyond its hydrating benefits, hyaluronic acid is also a versatile addition to almost any routine. It pairs well with most actives and can help skin feel more comfortable by supporting hydration alongside ingredients such as niacinamide, vitamin C, and retinol.
Hyaluronic acid and niacinamide
Niacinamide helps reduce the appearance of hyperpigmentation and dark spots by limiting pigment transfer to the skin's surface. It also supports the skin's moisture barrier – so the moisture hyaluronic acid draws in is better held onto. One works on tone, the other on hydration, and together they help create a plump, brighter-looking complexion.
Hyaluronic acid and vitamin C
Vitamin C is an antioxidant, helping defend skin against the environmental stressors that dull it over time. Hyaluronic acid complements this action by supplying moisture, helping offset the dryness a potent vitamin C serum can sometimes cause.
Hyaluronic acid and retinol
Retinol is prized for encouraging skin cell renewal and supporting the production of collagen – the protein that gives skin its firmness and structure, and which naturally declines with age. Because retinol can leave skin dry or flaky as it adjusts, layering hyaluronic acid alongside helps keep skin hydrated and comfortable – especially valuable for sensitive skin types.
Now that you know what hyaluronic acid does for the skin, discover how hydrolysed collagen works – and its benefits for skin – next.