CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion - AM SPF 30

What. A. Pain. I bought this in the hopes of using under my makeup. I am pale pale pale so a little white cast doesn't bother me if it sinks in after a bit. Applied this to my face, neck, ears and décolletage as I wanted to go for a walk outside. Waited ten minutes after rubbing in thoroughly. Went to apply my makeup. It was a disaster. Clumpy white streaks everywhere. Even where there was no white cast, the sunscreen pilled up with the slightest touch. Had to wash it all off and start over with a different product. Not sure who this product would work out for. Terrible.

I bought this because it was a best product on Beautypedia. For a daily sunscreen perhaps this product would be okay, but I find it greasy, hard to blend in, and makeup does NOT layer over it. When I try to apply foundation over this it looks WET it's so greasy. I'll stick to my Olay Protective Renewal Lotion simply because I can layer it over my makeup with no issues.

I like the PM version of this product so I bought the AM version because I needed spf. This stuff is gross. It is weirdly thick (especially if it is cold) and really difficult to rub into the skin. It tends to pil up which makes it look as if my skin is super dry and flaking off (it is just this moisturizer). So of course it looks terrible underneath makeup.

I bought CeraVe AM Facial Moisturizing Lotion because I'm a fan of CeraVe products and this one has a great ingredient profile: SPF 30, niacinimide and ceramides. Sadly, it was rather terrible as a facial moisturizer. If I had any irritation, even something small like around my nostrils, this lotion would burn. If I used it too many days in a row, even without having prior irritation, I would develop irritation from the chemical sunscreens. The product is heavy and chalky, and gives a feeling of being both greasy and dry at the same time. It was pretty much a no-go on my neck as well, leaving the skin there very parched due to the zinc content.

Having said all that, I found CeraVe AM to be fabulous as a day-time hand cream. Its texture has the perfect amount of richness, and for some reason, this formula does not dry out my hands the same way it did my neck. The drydown is somewhat matte and not greasy. If I didn't have a stash of failed sunscreens to use up on my hands, I would purchase this again as my main daytime hand cream.

I was using this in the summer because I was breaking out like crazy and needed some decent spf. Pros:
- this cost $15 !!!! and they carry it everywhere.
- has spf 30, not 15
- the packaging works well, and you actually get a lot of product for the price (most moisturizers are around 50ml)
Cons:
- It takes a while to rub in
- May leave a white cast if you're not diligent
- Can ball up
- Dried my skin out.

If you have dry skin like me, I would suggest adding a bit of glycerin, or a very strong moisturizer to this.
it makes a great sunscreen, but not a good moisturizer

So I have oily skin. But as soon as I wash it, it gets very dry. And this happens with the skin all over my body not just my face. So I liked this product because it was thick and really helped to replenish that moisture back to my face. However, it really did cause my skin to break out. My skin is very sensitive and breaks out easily. So when I noticed the breakouts I stopped using this product. I stopped and reused about three times just because I wanted to see if the breakouts were a pattern or coincidence, turns out they were a pattern and - in my opinion - brought on by the product. It's not too expensive, it's also a pump application which would be good if the pump was a little bigger and worked for one hand use (which it isn't, and doesn't).

This AM moisturizer really kept my skin hydrated and protected against the winter weather. The lotion has a very luxurious texture and when it absorbed into my skin, it had a silky finish. The only problem is layering makeup over this. I only wear concealer and powder for my base. The concealer would blend, but when I set my face with powder, it becomes a cracked and caked mess (especially around the nose). But I found skipping powder stopped that from happening.

Since this lotion contains hyaluronic acid (HA), it is responsible for holding in moisture because of its chemical structure (lots of negative charges - for the science geeks out there!). That's why when layered powder over it, there is a lot of moisture loss - and hence a cakey mess.

I recommend this lotion for its skincare benefits, such as ceramides, HA, niacinamides, and SPF. But maybe for those no makeup days would be more ideal to use this product.

I adored this for some time, but, after a while, realized my skin, although not quite becoming more acneic, was most definitely getting more severely congested (especially in the nasal folds, for one). So, it wasn't truly the "holy grail" I imagined it to was for a time, but it also wasn't a complete frickin' disaster either.

I liked that it was mild and fragrance-free, had SPF and the light cream texture (yet provided my combo-dry skin a suitable amount of moisture solo or under tinted moisturizer). So, this might work for others but definitely be aware that, with persistent use, you might find your pores becoming clogged, and it may be the culprit!

I only ever write product reviews for one of two reasons: I either love the product and can't wait to tell other people about it, or, I am genuinely ticked off at the company that made it. In this instance, it's the latter. I used to LOVE this product. My skin was going through a really rough patch, and I would feel scatterbrained whenever I entered the drugstore and tried to find something suitable for my oily/acne prone skin. My dermatologist introduced me to this line, and I was thrilled. Finally! A moisturizer with sunscreen that was hydrating, lightweight, protecting, but NEVER BROKE ME OUT. Cut to a few years later(around 2013)and the pharmaceutical company Coria(whose product is pictured in the blue box on this product review's main page)sold out to another company. I unwittingly went out and bought a box of the product after I'd run out. The packaging was different, but I wasn't phased, Surely Cerave, the brand I'd trusted for so long, would never put out containers of a popular sunscreen and change the formula without notifying devoted customers first. Wrong! This sunscreen is completely different. Whereas it used to be for normal to oily skin, it was now advertising itself to normal and dry skin types. WTF? It's hard enough to find products for finicky, oily skin at the drugstore. Why would you re-release an entire range and leave oily-skinned guys and gals hanging? It just doesn't make sense to me. The product is no longer lightweight or lotion-y; it's a cream texture now, and I can feel it on my face. When they re-released it the first time, the sunscreen ingredients weren't stable. That meant that you were getting one UV-protecting sunscreen, but it would leave your skin susceptible to damage on another level. Fortunately, they've fixed the problem since then. Now, it offers broad-range protection. But that's where the benefits of this product end. Unfortunately, they revamped my other favorite products too- the PM moisturizer and the basic lotion that comes in the pump. Those two healed my skin like nobody's business. I've reached out to the company more than once, and they've either dodged the question entirely or offered me a halfhearted explanation that the formula didn't change. Perhaps it's my skin? Oh, I see. It's MY skin that's the problem, and not your dishonest conduct. Other people have apparently noticed the change as well. I don't know if it was a sincere attempt to make an even better product, or if it was just out of sheer boredom and the itch to redesign packaging and reach out to a different clientele. All I know is that these products changed, and I'm not happy about it. What is there to say?If they ever change my favorite cleanser of all time, and perhaps, the only cleanser that's ever really worked for me(the Cerave foaming facial cleanser)I don't know what I'll do. If anyone from the company every takes a genuine interest in their customers and wants to know what the people want, I'll tell you. BRING BACK THE OLD FORMULAS OF YOUR BESTSELLING PRODUCTS, AND DON'T DO A THING TO THE PRODUCTS THAT PEOPLE ALREADY LOVE, STOCK UP, AND KEEP IN THEIR BATHROOM. That is all. Forgive my rant.
*For reference, here's the old packaging. Big thanks to nouveaucheap for posting this a few years ago. I've yet to find the old packaging in detail anywhere.
http://nouveaucheap.blogspot.com/2012/08/review-cerave-am-facial-moisturizing.html
**The new packaging can be found on Paula Begoun's website.

I am a big fan on Cerave products, and I would rate the majority of them as excellent. This am moisturizer is okay, but not excellent.
I prefer mineral sunscreens in daytime moisturizers, and this one has a respectable amount. However, the texture feels slightly sticky. I wait between applying moisturizer and putting on makeup, but the moisturizer leaves a slightly tacky finish that affects the application of my foundation, which makes powder grab on leaving an overly made up finish.
There is a distinct sunscreen smell and it takes more blending than Clinique's or EltaMD's mineral sunscreens.
It is an okay product that does what it claims, but there are better products that blend better and leave a smoother finish.
If the cosmetic chemists can refine this to eliminate the smell, stickiness and blending away the white cast, I would reconsider.