A retinol treatment for visible signs of skin aging, available in three strengths: 0.3%, 0.5%, and 1%.
Guru Score
The Guru Score: every expert's verdict on a product, in one simple number.
Under the score you'll see how many experts weighed in, or "Early verdict" while only a few have. Paid takes count for half in the score.
Guru Certified means at least 6 experts, a score of 85% or more, and almost no Nays.
How we score →Yay
3 experts · Moderate agreementWhat the gurus are saying
Clinical trial data in a dermatology journal shows this retinol penetrates skin, activates retinoid markers, and visibly improves aging signs. The study was small, tested only Caucasian skin types, and was brand-funded, so worth noting those limits. It may not be less irritating than tretinoin (dryness and peeling matched tretinoin's, though redness was slightly lower), and costs around eighty dollars.
What they liked
What they flagged
Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.
Independent of what the gurus think, this is what the published research supports about the main active ingredients here.
A retinol treatment for visible signs of skin aging, available in three strengths: 0.3%, 0.5%, and 1%.
Yes. All 3 gurus who reviewed it give it their stamp of approval, for a Guru Score of 82%.
SkinMedica Age Defense Retinol 0.25 holds a Guru Score of 82%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 3 expert reviewers we have collected.
SkinMedica Age Defense Retinol 0.25 is generally suited to mature skin.
Lower-priced retinoids the gurus still rate highly, versus this luxury pick.
See how they stack up →Other products the same gurus have weighed in on, plus more from this brand and category.
Compare side by side →Stories where our editors dug into this product or its brand.
Spotted something on this page that doesn't look right? Let us know.
A weekly read of the takes worth catching up on: the raves, the splits, the ones the gurus won't shut up about. Free, no spam, unsubscribe whenever.
Subscribe to the digest