Melanin Beauty Awards 2025: Best Skincare Staples – Serums
As Black women, we should be very conscious about the products we put on our skin. It’s no secret that skin care has seen a huge influx in trend within the past decade, with people prioritizing self-care more than ever following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Understanding skin care can be difficult. With celebs dropping brands left and right, and key buzzwords such as hyaluronic acid and abbreviations AHAs and BHAs, it’s easy to feel lost in the world that is trying to create a skincare routine that is right for you.
While everyone’s skin is different, the one thing I will always recommend you work into your skincare routine is a serum. Serums, while often packaged in small jars, are lightweight yet potent products packed with skin-loving ingredients, such as vitamins, peptides, and hyaluronic acid, that penetrate deep into the skin and are great for hydration.
Serums can be used to target various concerns. Collagen and peptide serums can be used to replenish elasticity and repair wrinkles, while niacinamide targets dark spots, and vitamin E is ideal for retaining moisture. The most common serums are hyaluronic acid, which is used to retain moisture, and vitamin C, which is used to brighten skin.
Finding the right serum can take some trial and error. Understanding your skin type and texture is the first step, and understanding how to use a serum is the next. Serums can be applied alone or layered with other products, but be cautious when mixing certain ingredients.
For our Melanin Beauty Awards, we selected serums based on multiple factors that influenced their performance on the skin. Key factors included moisture, such as the Fenty Beauty Dew N Plump Hydrating Nectar Glowing Serum, ingredients, like the niacinamide-rich Olay Super Eyes Daily Serum, and how well they played with makeup and other products, like the versatile Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Skin Glow Serum.
Ahead, we take a deep dive into our top picks for serums that will address all your concerns, from dark circles to dry skin, and will have your skin glowing as bright as the morning sun.
Fenty Skin Dew N Plump Hydrating Nectar Glowing Serum
That Rihanna reign just won’t let up. With a soothing gel formula and soft scent, The Fenty Skin Dew N Plump Hydrating Nectar Glowing Serum is leaves your skin feeling moisturized and supple. With grip power, it works under your makeup or as a barrier for your fresh face.
Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Skin Glow Serum
This magical serum has a cooling gel sensation on your skin, leaving it feeling regenerated with a radiant glow. Available in three shades, your skin will feel like it underwent a spa treatment at home.
Olay Super Eyes Daily Serum
They call this a “Super Eye Serum” for a reason. With a 5-in-1 formula, this daily skincare staple improves firmness while combating puffiness, tired eyes, fine lines and dark circles.
Glow Recipe Prickly Pear Peptide Mucin Serum
This vegan “snail” mucin dupe glides on smooth with a velvety finish and just the right amount of stretch. Packed with 81% prickly pear and peptides, it strengthens your skin barrier and provides lasting, all-day hydration—no fragrance, no irritation, just proven results—even on sensitive skin.
Shani Darden Retinol Reform Serum
Created by celebrity esthetician Shani Darden, this cult-favorite serum delivers all the benefits of retinol without the irritation. Its powerhouse formula smooths texture, fades dark spots, and boosts radiance overnight — leaving your skin looking brighter, firmer, and fresh-faced by morning. Whether you’re tackling fine lines or just want that effortless glow, this is the kind of retinol that gets results without the drama.
SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic
There’s a reason this serum stays on every beauty editor’s top shelf — it’s that girl for bright, bouncy, youthful skin. Packed with vitamin C, vitamin E, and ferulic acid, this potent antioxidant trio works overtime to protect against environmental stress, fade dark spots, and give your complexion that “just had a facial” glow. The price tag is high, but it’s worth every penny — but honey your skin will thank you every single day.
Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair Eye Lift + Sculpt Eye Cream
Estée Lauder’s Advanced Night Repair Eye Lift + Sculpt is that grown-woman eye cream that actually shows up. It firms, smooths, and brightens tired eyes with every use; reducing puffiness and fine lines so you look refreshed, even when you didn’t get eight hours.
Keys SoulCare Glow Serum
This lightweight primer instantly hydrates and leaves skin looking fresh and radiant; whether you wear it solo or under makeup. Infused with niacinamide to even tone, smooth texture, and minimize the look of pores, it delivers that lit-from-within glow that actually cares for your skin.
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