What it does
Glycerin draws water into the outer skin layers and holds it there. It is exceptionally well tolerated, works across every skin type, and has decades of use behind it. When a moisturiser "just works", glycerin is usually a large part of why.
It appears high in the ingredient list of most decent moisturisers and cleansers, which is a better signal of a sensible formula than any hero ingredient on the front of the bottle.
In a routine
Layers well with
- Hyaluronic acid
- Ceramides
- Squalane
