I Thought Eye Cream Was A Scam — Then I Tried This $16 One
A few years ago, a dermatologist gave me a piece of advice I didn’t quite know what to make of at the time, but that gradually changed the way I approached my skincare routine. Years of studying people’s faces and tracing what she saw back to their skincare products, not to mention a wealth of ingredient knowledge, had convinced her that eye cream wasn’t all that different from your moisturizer.
It makes sense. Skincare only works on the surface, while many of the concerns we associate with the eye area, like hollowness, puffiness, eye “bags,” and dark circles, are difficult (if not impossible) to treat using topical products alone. With that in mind, eye cream wasn’t something I ever used. Why would I shell out for some fancy eye cream? I thought.
Then I turned 33.
Almost overnight, my eyelids became parched and crepey, and before long, I’d welcomed a handful of new lines, particularly around the outer corners. My moisturizer simply wasn’t cutting it. While eye cream isn’t a miracle product, it can help with dryness, dehydration, and uneven skin texture. Even better when it contains plumping, skin-supporting ingredients such as hyaluronic acid, retinol, and one I consider to be among the very best: ceramides. As it happens, ceramides (more on these later) are the star ingredients in The Inkey List’s newest launch, the Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream — and it’s only $16.
The Inkey List Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream, $16
What is The Inkey List’s Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream and what are the benefits?
If you’re already a fan of The Inkey List, you might recognize the name of this new eye cream because the brand has a moisturizer with a similar moniker: Bio-Active Ceramide Repairing + Plumping Moisturizer. It’s hands down the best affordable moisturizer I’ve used. I waxed lyrical about its smoothing, plumping, glow-giving properties when it launched in 2024, and it turns out most of my beauty editor peers felt exactly the same way. One said it feels so luxurious that it’s comparable to far more expensive formulas she’s tried. I’ve lost count of how many tubs I’ve gone through over the years — it’s that good.
As you might expect, the small but mighty eye cream version boasts many of the same ingredients. First up, bio-active ceramides, which act like glue between skin cells, helping to keep the skin barrier — the outermost layer of skin that keeps good stuff in (think moisture) and “bad” stuff out (like bacteria) — soft, supple, and healthy. The “bio-active” part means the ingredients are biologically active, so they can interact with living tissue — in this case, the delicate skin around the eyes. In other words, they get to work as soon as they’re applied.
There’s also glycerin, which helps hydrate and moisturize the fragile under-eye area, which is particularly prone to dehydration, plus shea butter, which smooths the skin. One key benefit that’s missing from the OG moisturizer but takes center stage in the eye cream is an ingredient called Tetrapeptide-111, a peptide that helps support smoother, firmer-looking skin. Together, these ingredients moisturize and plump the under-eye area — a welcome pursuit since this delicate skin is particularly prone to showing signs of collagen loss as we age.
What makes The Inkey List’s Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream special?
This eye cream is something of a paradox. It feels rich and cocooning on the skin, yet absorbs in next to no time and never leaves behind a greasy film. Despite containing shea butter, it’s one of the few eye creams I’ve tried that doesn’t seem to contribute to breakouts or milia around my eyes. Instead, its abundance of moisturizing ingredients leaves behind a subtle gleam, as though I’ve just spent 10 minutes reaping the rewards of a luxurious under-eye patch.
Since using it morning and night to maximize the results, I no longer wake up with dry, flaky eyelids, and I could swear it’s helping to protect my fragile under-eye skin from my high-strength retinol serum, because I no longer experience any sensitivity. Beyond that, the deeper lines I’d noticed recently appear a little more ironed out, which I’m putting down to the hydrating ingredients and skin-supporting peptides. I notice the difference most when applying concealer, as it no longer settles quite as heavily into my skin texture.
What to know about The Inkey List’s Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream
• Bio-active ceramides act like glue between skin cells, helping to keep the skin barrier healthy, strong, and soft.
• Features a tetrapeptide complex — a blend of four skin-supporting peptides — to minimize the appearance of lines and help firm delicate under-eye skin.
• Can be used morning and night, and layers well under sunscreen and makeup.
How do you use The Inkey List’s Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream?
In the morning, after cleansing, I apply a light layer of moisturizer, followed by half a pea-sized amount of the eye cream, paying close attention to my under-eyes and tapping any excess onto my eyelids. Once it’s absorbed, I follow with a high-factor, broad-spectrum sunscreen. In the evening, I double cleanse and repeat the same routine, minus the sunscreen. On retinol nights, however, I apply the eye cream first to act as a buffer between my skin and the high concentration of potentially irritating ingredients.
Final thoughts
This feels just as luxe — if not more so — than some high-end versions I’ve tried, and, just like the OG moisturizer, the results are undeniable. I think it might just be the product that finally convinces me to use eye cream consistently — and at $16, it’s an easy yes.
Where can you get The Inkey List’s Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream?
The Bio-Ceramide Lifting + Firming Eye Cream retails for $16 and is available at Sephora.com.
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