Written by Jessica Kasparian, who has spent four years testing makeup, hair, and skin care products.
Updated April 15, 2024
Washing and sanitizing your hands multiple times a day can lead to irritated and cracked skin, and they can become extremely dry during the harsh conditions of winter.
Incorporating hand creams into your beauty routine is the easiest way to combat the damage you put your hands through—the best hand creams can help keep your hands moisturized while also healing dry skin.
We tested some of the best hand creams on the market from the most popular names in skincare. The Kiehl’s Ultimate Strength Hand Salve (available at Amazon) won our Best Overall title for its light, pleasant fragrance and quick-absorbing formula that left behind a velvety finish that lasted for hours. The Jergens Ultra Healing Hand & Body Cream (available at Amazon) snatched our Best Value spot because of its non-greasy, moisturizing feel for an extremely low cost per use.
If our favorite hand creams aren’t what you’re looking for, our list encompasses a wide variety of creams, lotions, and balms, so we’re confident there’s one that will suit your needs.
Best Overall
Kiehl’s Ultimate Strength Hand Salve
Kiehl’s Ultimate Strength Hand Salve stood out among the hand creams we tested. Though “salve” may conjure up images of a thick ointment, this is a creamy formula that’s thick enough to deeply moisturize dry, cracked hands but lightweight enough to absorb into the skin with a gentle massage.
After a minute of letting this sit on my hands, I could still feel it on my skin, but it wasn’t greasy, slimy, powdery, or filmy—it just felt like my hands, but better. The moisturized feeling lasted well throughout the day, despite a few hand washings.
It has a slight eucalyptus scent, thanks to its inclusion of eucalyptus oil, but it doesn’t linger and it won’t overpower the aroma of the food you’re eating or the perfume you’re wearing.
I also loved the convenience of the hand cream’s squeeze tube and flip cap dispenser. I have no doubt that the 2.5- or 5-ounce tubes would last you quite a while. I tested the latter size and it’s a bit too bulky for my purse, but it’s easy enough to store at home or at work on my desk.
Pros
-
Moisturizes well
-
Absorbs quickly
-
Great packaging
Cons
-
None that we could find
Buy now at Amazon
$18.95 from Walmart
Best Value
Jergens Ultra Healing Hand & Body Cream
The Jergens Ultra Healing Hand & Body Cream feels just as great on the skin as our Best Overall once absorbed, but it has a thinner consistency that’s even easier to rub into the skin. While some hand creams feel like a film over your hands, this one, like the Kiehl’s, felt like my hands, just healthier with the added hydration. The standout result of using this moisturizer is not only how silky my hands felt after, but how it didn’t leave my finger grips or palms feeling oily.
It has a slightly sweet, clean-smelling scent—shea butter is one of the main ingredients. I love the smell, but if you’re sensitive to fragrance, it may be too strong for you, as it lingers until washed off
I did not like this cream’s octagon-shaped, twist-off cap. While a small detail, I noticed throughout testing that several hand creams have this cap shape and that the points of the octagon scratch at my already dry and irritated hands when I’m opening the bottle for some relief. (On the other, er, hand, it makes it slightly easier to tighten back on with lotion-slick fingers.)
Pros
-
Absorbs quickly
-
Silky texture
-
Moisturizes well
Cons
-
Very fragrant
-
Difficult packaging
Buy now at Amazon
$11.25 from Walmart
Luxurious Scent
Aesop Resurrection Aromatique Hand Balm
The texture of this Aesop Aromatique “balm” has the consistency of a lotion and lies somewhere in between the Kiehl’s and the Jergens in thickness. It spreads with ease across the hands and dries down to a soft but slightly tacky finish after a minute or two.
Similar to the Jergens, I noticed that it left behind less oil on the pads of my fingers and palms than others on this list, which is why it’s higher up on this list. I tested it in the fragrance “Resurrection,” which has a subdued citrusy, herbal aroma. This hand cream also comes in a “Reverence” fragrance with smoky, earthy notes.
Pros
-
Moisturizes well
-
Soft finish
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Creamy texture
Cons
-
Oily finish
Buy now at Amazon
$25.99 from Walmart
Travel-Friendly
Bath & Body Works Shea Butter Hand Cream
The Bath & Body Works’ hand cream surprised me with its buttery smooth texture—it’s easy to spread and made my hands feel softer in an instant.
The cream left my palms and fingertips oilier than I’d prefer, but that was typical of many others lower on this list. After a minute or two, there was a comfortably powdery feel, and my hands were still moisturized several hours later.
While I also adored the fresh, floral smell of the “Rose” that I tested, the scent lingered the whole time I wore it. If all of the other fragrances offered in this hand cream are as pungent as this one, those with sensitive noses should beware.
This cream comes in a 1-ounce tube with that same octagon twist-off cap that I didn’t love on the Jergens, so while it lacks quantity, it’s very easy to tote around in your pocket or purse.
Pros
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Buttery smooth texture
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Comfortable finish
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Portable
Cons
-
Difficult packaging
-
Very fragrant
Best for Sensitive Skin
Nécessaire The Hand Cream
If you need a truly fragrance-free hand cream, look no further than this one from Nécessaire. It doesn’t smell like much of anything at all, nor does it smell like unmasked chemicals. This could be your answer for your sensitive skin or nose.
I adore the creams higher up on this list, but this one earned a spot on my nightstand after testing. It has a consistency that’s a tad thicker than our top picks, which I like for overnight wear, but it’s still easy to disperse over my hands and quick to absorb into my skin.
It left a healthy-looking sheen on my nails and skin without staining my clothing (none of the hand creams stained, but the shine of this one made me cautious at first). The moisturizing effect of this cream lasted a couple of hours, but my hands were mostly back to their normal dry state after several hours and a few hand washes.
Pros
-
Moisturizes well
-
Silky texture
-
Absorbs quickly
Cons
-
None that we could find
Buy now at Sephora
Buy now at Amazon
Other Hand Creams We Tested
Ahava Mineral Hand Cream
The first thing I noticed about the Ahava Dead Sea Minerals Hand Cream is its heavy perfume-like scent. It’s a salty, baby powder-esque odor that doesn’t inherently smell bad, but after wearing it on your hands for a few hours, it becomes an unrelenting stench.
Ahava offers more Mineral Hand Creams in other, defined scents (“sea-kissed,” “cactus and pink pepper,” and “spring blossom”), which may appeal to you (or me) more, but I haven’t tried them.
Moving past the smell, I loved the velvety feel of this moisturizer hand cream on my skin. It reminds me of the Nécessaire in its texture, but the Ahava leaves less oil on my hands and instead offers a dry-touch finish that helps the hands to feel less damp.
Pros
-
Velvety smooth finish
-
Moisturizes well
-
Portable
Cons
-
Too fragrant
Buy now at Amazon
$23.95 from Walmart
Eucerin Daily Hydration Hand Cream
While the Eucerin Daily Hydration Hand Cream is the only one we tested that contains SPF to protect your hands from the sun’s UV rays, it performed just like other creams I tested, with a spreadable, creamy consistency that instantly moisturized my skin.
The lotion, which has a very mild but classic sunscreen odor to it, is a good option if you’re looking for an affordable hand cream with sun protection. However, it wasn’t perfect.
For every cream on this list, I rubbed it enough to cover my hands and then continued massaging—it wasn’t part of my test, just a habit of mine. For most of the hand creams, this action didn’t matter, but the Eucerin lotion started to flake under the friction. The “pilling” wasn’t as bad as others further down the list, but it disappointed me.
Pros
-
Contains SPF
-
Creamy texture
-
Portable
Cons
-
Flaky
Buy now at Amazon
$10.49 from Target
$15.28 from Walmart
Gold Bond Ultimate Healing Hand Cream
The Gold Bond Ultimate Healing Hand Cream isn’t anything to write home about, but it gets the job done. I loved its fresh, clean scent and the gel-like texture that left behind a matte finish to my skin. Its non-greasy claim held up during my testing, though it felt a tad too dry after a few minutes on my skin. If you have oily skin or sweaty hands, this Gold Bond cream is worth considering.
Pros
-
Matte finish
-
Portable
Cons
-
Not very moisturizing
Buy now at Amazon
$3.99 from Target
$6.00 from Walmart
Chanel La Crème Main
While expensive, the Chanel La Créme Main has a silky smooth, lightweight texture that’s easy to massage into the skin and quick to absorb.
It left my hands feeling soft, but because of its thinner consistency, it wasn’t quite emollient enough to smooth over my dry patches. It has a light, sweet scent that you won’t notice after a while, and it doesn’t leave any oily residue on palms or fingertips.
Pros
-
Silky texture
-
Lightweight
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Pleasant scent
Cons
-
Expensive
Buy now at Nordstrom
Buy now at Amazon
$55.00 from Walmart
Aveda Hand Relief
Texture-wise, the Aveda Hand Relief Moisturizing Creme is reminiscent of the Kiehl’s, with a thicker consistency than Jergens and others on this list. It spread onto my hands well and gave the velvety results I was after, but my hands felt a little too damp and slippery even after a few minutes of massaging it in.
I think many people could enjoy this, especially if they have very dry hands, but with a higher-than-most price, it falls further down the list for its performance that doesn’t measure up to our Best Overall. It does have a sweet, herbaceous aroma that you can only smell when your hands are close to your face. It’s also available in a “cherry almond” scent.
Pros
-
Moisturizes well
-
Creamy texture
Cons
-
Finish is too damp
Buy now at Amazon
$25.79 from Walmart
L'Occitane Shea Butter Hand Cream
The L’Occitane Hand Cream made my skin feel soft, but not silky. It’s a thicker lotion and it dries to a matte-like finish. The cream I tested has a light, pleasant smell that faded once the cream was thoroughly rubbed into the skin.
My gripe with this hand cream is its octagon-shaped, twist-off cap, similar to but smaller than the Bath & Body Works or Jergens caps, and even harder to grip if you already have lotion on your hands. In fact, I had to pull down my sleeve to grip the cap without irritating the cracked skin around my index finger and thumb.
Pros
-
Moisturizes well
-
Matte finish
-
Leaves skin soft
Cons
-
Difficult packaging
$13.00 from Amazon
$10.80 from Walmart
Glossier Hand Cream
Glossier went for it with this darling, millennial pink, palm-sized container. The cream itself left my hands feeling well-moisturized at first, but the finish felt chalky and unpleasant.
The packaging, while cute, is not the most functional. The rectangular base is squeezable and the product dispenses through a hole that’s covered by a rounded flip-up cap, but I’m not sure how you’d get all of the cream out once there’s not much left in the squeezable portion.
Still, I ended up addicted to the smell of this by the end of the day I tested it. It’s clean and has a slight spicy-sweet note that hooked me the same way the brand’s Glossier You perfume did—though these are not the same fragrance. I’d use the hand cream up (as best I could from the container) but I wouldn’t repurchase it.
Pros
-
Chalky finish
-
Portable
-
Pleasant scent
Cons
-
Difficult packaging
-
Not moisturizing enough
Buy now at Glossier
Buy now at Amazon
O'Keeffe's Working Hands Hand Cream
The O’Keefe Working Hands Hand Cream is thick, tacky, and pilled up on my hands as I tried to massage it in. After a while of wearing this, and wiping the little white bits off my palms, my hands felt smooth to the touch, but it wasn’t worth the annoyance.
One of two hand creams I tested that came in a tub rather than a squeezable tube or container, I decided I’d prefer this in tube form, as I grabbed too much when scooping it up with my fingers. However, I tried it in a tube about a year ago and was not a fan of that either.
Pros
-
Portable
-
Smooth finish
Cons
-
Too thick
-
Hard to massage into skin
Buy now at Amazon
$11.40 from Walmart
Aveeno Skin Relief Hand Cream
The only thing you need to know about the Aveeno Skin Relief Hand Cream, which touts colloidal oatmeal as its skin-soothing ingredient, is that it flaked up terribly on my hands when I used the same amount of formula for this as any of the other lotions.
Pros
-
Creamy texture
-
Portable
Cons
-
Flaky
Buy now at Amazon
$10.55 from Walmart
Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream
The Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream feels more like an ointment or balm than a cream. It comes out clear (like petroleum jelly or Aquaphor), but it turns white as you massage it into your hands. It took about a full minute for it to feel adequately rubbed in, and the end result was a heavy feel that was like a soft film over my hands.
This may work fine for overnight treatment or to apply only on the backs of your hands or dry spots like the elbows, but I’d stay away from putting it all over your fingers and palms if you plan to use them right after.
Pros
-
Portable
Cons
-
Very thick texture
-
Feels like a film over the hands
Buy now at Amazon
$5.59 from Target
$5.24 from Walmart
Nivea Creme
Nivea Creme, which has a mild perfume scent, is thick like a balm and tough to massage into the skin all the way. After rubbing for a minute or two, you’ll start to feel the cream absorb into your skin, but it stays white, indicating that there’s still excess formula.
The only way I’d suggest using this is if you put it on your hands under a pair of cotton gloves to wear overnight as a treatment. You could probably only keep this at your bedside anyway, as the 1-ounce container is not portable. (A 6.8-ounce tub is also available.)
Pros
-
None that we could find
Cons
-
Very thick texture
-
Difficult to massage into skin
-
Not portable
Buy now at Amazon
$9.99 from Target
$9.96 from Walmart
How We Tested Hand Creams
The Hand Cream Tester
Jessica, the former beauty editor at Reviewed, was excited to test top-rated hand creams to find the absolute best. She washes her hands about 10 times a day, give or take, so they get quite dry, especially in the colder months in Boston.
The Hand Cream Tests
Using a calibrated rubric of targeted questions created by a Reviewed scientist, our tester evaluated some of the top creams on the market to see which was the best hand lotion, focusing on the following areas:
Feel: Does the hand cream feel too oily or too dry? Does it feel heavy on the skin after absorbing? Do you need a lot of cream for your hands to feel moisturized?
Longevity: How moisturized do my hands feel after letting the hand cream settle in for a minute? After an hour? After six hours?
Packaging: Is it easy to get the hand cream out of its container? Do you end up getting cream all over the container during use?
Smell: Does the cream have a smell? Is it pleasant or unpleasant? How powerful is the scent?
What Should You Know About Hand Creams
There are tons of hand lotions and creams out there, so finding the right one for you might feel difficult. Here are a few things to consider when looking for the best hand cream.
Hand Cream Skin Concerns
Like any other skincare product you’ll buy, you want to consider the current state of your skin and your desired end result when purchasing a hand cream.
If your hands lean oily or sweaty, you may want something with a gel-like consistency that absorbs into the skin right away and leaves behind a powdery feel. If your hands lean dry, you may want something that contains essential oils to give your hands a slick feel that won’t dry down but instead leaves long-lasting moisture.
Scent in Hand Creams
Avoiding fragrance is a safe bet if you’re worried about a product scent being too overpowering (so as to conflict with your perfume) or lingering too long on your skin.
For some people, though, part of the appeal of wearing a hand cream may be the smell—after all, there’s a reason why a place like Bath & Body Works offers hand lotions in the same scents as its candles and body sprays.
Using Hand Creams
You should also think about the times of day you tend to use the hand cream. If you only plan to apply a hefty dollop of it at night and then leave it behind on your nightstand, you won’t need to worry about bulkier packaging. You also might not care as much about how greasy it feels and for how long after applying.
However, if you want to apply as needed throughout the day, you may want a compact, easy-to-open tube that fits into your bag or pocket and a formula that absorbs relatively quickly (an attribute that we gave higher weight in our testing).
More on body lotions and moisturizers
- The Best Body Lotions We've Tested
- The Best Face Moisturizers We've Tested
- Gloves in a Bottle hand lotion review
- The 15 most popular moisturizers
- 7 Best Facial Tissues and Kleenex
- This is my favorite face moisturizer—here's why
- The Best Hand Creams We've Tested for Aging Hands
- The Best Self-Tanners We've Tested
- What colloidal oatmeal can do for your skin
- 11 Beauty products celebrities swear by
- The Best Foot Spas
- The Best Bath Bombs
- The Best Face Cleansing Brushes
- The Best Beauty Subscription Boxes
- What is hyaluronic acid? How to use the hydrating skin care
Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time. The product experts at Reviewed have all your shopping needs covered. Follow Reviewed on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, or Flipboard for the latest deals, product reviews, and more.
Meet the tester
Jessica writes and edits beauty content as a member of Reviewed's commerce team and manages a beauty TikTok called Beautorial. She's spent four years testing makeup, skincare, hair care, and body care products, and she acts as Reviewed's beauty expert.
Jessica represented Reviewed's beauty section at CES in-person and virtually for four years, and she was nominated for and graduated from the Gannett Emerging Leaders 2021-2022 program.
Jessica holds a Bachelor's degree in journalism from Emerson College, and she's written for Scary Mommy, 7News, Boston.com, Citizine, and Boston Common Magazine.
See all of Jessica Kasparian's reviews
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