6 Game-Changing Face Oils to Try in 2022, According to Your Skin Type

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The right face oil can totally transform your skincare game. When selected correctly they boost hydration, seal in actives from other skincare products and protect your skin barrier. As you’ll see in this article, they’re often a great way to introduce actives on their own. When selected incorrectly, however, face oils can do some damage.

With so many different miracle oils trending on a regular basis, it can be a tricky category to navigate. It’s important to understand how occlusive an oil is, and what its active properties are, to make sure you’re getting the most mileage out of your investment.

The Face Oil for Ageing or Hyperpigmented Skin:

Drunk Elephant, A-Gloei™ Maretinol Oil

If you’re concerned with fine lines or hyperpigmentation, an oil with retinol is a great option. Retinols and Vitamin A variants accelerate skin cell turnover, making retinol products a great option for the treatment of texture, hyperpigmentation and fine lines. By combining them with oils, you stand to benefit from retinol active properties, while avoiding the dryness associated with the activity. Drunk Elephant’s A-Gloei™ Maretinol Oil ($108) is a perfect example of this concept in action.

A-Gloei contains 0.5% retinol, a gentle but effective dose that is balanced by ceramides, antioxidants and omega-rich virgin marula oil. The combination of omegas and ceramides means that A-Gloei strengthens your skin, allowing it to work optimally as dryness and irritation will be decreased. We recommend applying A-Gloei as the last step in your skincare regime — oils can penetrate water-based products, so applying your active oil last you can introduce retinol to your skincare regime slowly (although if you’re already a hardened retinol lover you can slather it right on).

The Face Oil For Combination and Oily Skin:

The Jojoba Company, Australian Jojoba

Jojoba oil is a totally slept on skincare ingredient. Derived from the Jojoba nut, Jojoba is technically a wax ester rather than oil. This wax ester is very similar structurally to the sebum produced by human skin.

Studies have found Jojoba Oil is extremely effective for the treatment of acne because the wax is able to penetrate clogged pores and hair follicles and dissolve sebum. Similarly, the wax in jojoba oil can break down the wax that coats common bacteria found on the skin, making it an antimicrobial and anti-fungal (if you’re finding yourself covered in small pimples after days of mask-wearing, chances are it’s a fungal acne infection).

The oil is also rich in Vitamins A, D and E, and omegas 6 and 9, meaning you get skin strengthening benefits and antioxidant protection along with the oil’s non-comedogenic properties. Jojoba oil is also very inexpensive and widely available. Oil from a reputable brand, like The Jojoba Company’s Australian Jojoba Oil, ($19) will set you back less than $20. Even better, they currently have a 20% off welcome offer across the whole range, so it’s a great time to stock up.

The Face Oil For Acne Prone Skin:

Sunday Riley, U.F.O Ultra-Clarifying Facial Oil

As we’ve discussed, acne is a skin condition rather than a skin type and can occur in dry, oily or combination complexions. If you’re experiencing persistent acne with deep lesions, it is best to seek advice from a dermatologist. With that said, if you have an active breakout, beta-hydroxy-acids — better known as salicylic acids — are a great option.

Salicylic acid is the only oil-soluble chemical exfoliant. This means it can penetrate the pore, cleansing and exfoliating the inner lining rather than the surface. The only tricky thing about salicylic acid is that it can be a little drying, and dry skin is more likely to become irritated and inflamed, which can lead to more breakouts.

Enter Sunday Riley’s U.F.O Ultra-Clarifying Facial Oil, ($120). This emerald green bottle of magic does more than looking gorgeous on your nightstand. It combines 1.5% salicylic acid with brightening black cumin seed and liquorice oil (perfect for pesky post-inflammatory hyper-pigmentation) and anti-microbial tea tree oil to nip breakouts in the bud before they start.

The Face Oil For Dry Skin:

Vela Days, Oil Infusion Serum

Cannabis and hemp-based oils have a thicker, more emollient texture than oils like Jojoba, making them perfect for dry skin.

Unlike CBD oil, which is under regulatory review in Australia, hemp seed oils have very few actual cannabinoids in them, meaning they do not absorb into your skin or affect your brain. Instead, they are very rich in omega fatty acids, and fatty acids are a natural humectant (humectants = draw water to the skin).

Vela Days are backed by pharmaceutical medicinal cannabis company Greenfield MC, who have helped them create hemp extracts and stem cells that mimic the powerful anti-inflammatory properties of CBD Oil.

Vela Days, Oil Infusion Serum ($102) combines the benefits of hemp with blue tansy oil, liquorice oil and 4-butyl resorcinol — an ingredient that is being touted as an alternative to hydroquinone. Both ingredients work by inhibiting tyrosinase, an enzyme that controls the production of melanin in the skin. Inhibiting this action = less pigmentation and a brighter, more even skin tone. Coenzyme Q10 also inhibits tyrosinase, making this a double whammy pigment inhibitor.

The Face Oil For Sensitive Skin:

Whether you’re oily or dry, super sensitive skin types benefit from minimising the number of unknown ingredients in their rotation.

Squalane is skin-identical, meaning your skin is unlikely to react to it. The Biossance, 100% Squalene Oil, ($49) is a simple and effective oil that’s lightweight enough to be used all over the body and under makeup. We also love the easy pump packaging. If it’s good enough for Jonathan Van Ness, it’s good enough for us.

Best Face Oil for Under SPF and Makeup:

Bonus facial oil round!

A lot of the oils I’ve recommended are fantastic night products. Whether they contain active ingredients or are super emollient, they might not be suitable for the day. Enter Habitual Beauty, Rejuvenating Facial Oil ($120). Habitual Beauty’s Rejuvenating Facial Oil is a lightweight ‘dry’ oil that sits perfectly under makeup and absorbs quickly into the skin — which is really important for when you’re layering sunscreen over the top, as oils can destabilise SPF.

I apply serum and moisturiser, then this oil. I then wait five minutes for it to sink in (or half an hour while I blowdry my THICKET of hair) and apply sunscreen and makeup. With Kakadu Plum Seed Oil, this formula is naturally rich in vitamin c, along with jojoba, squalane and blue tansy.

Habitual Beauty’s signature INCA Oil, derived from Sacha Inchi, works to reduce trans epidermal water loss throughout the day, protecting your skin from brutal office air conditioning. I also use it to refresh my makeup before heading out after a day in the office. Just press a few drops into your palms then roll over makeup. This will melt a dried-out base back into the skin and allow you to top up blush, bronzer and foundation without caking.