Night Creams vs. Night Masks: What’s The Difference—and Which You Should Use

Updated Jan 06, 2016 @ 5:30 pm

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Night creams and masks are the secret weapons in any lazy skincare routine. Improving our skin’s hydration, radiance, and minimizing signs of aging as we get our beauty sleep is definitely something we can stand behind. Slathering a product on our face and letting it work its magic after we hit the lights is a simple enough concept, but knowing whether you should use a night cream or a mask is where things can get foggy.

Night creams contain more nourishing and hydrating ingredients than your daily moisturizer and generally contain more nourishing and hydrating ingredients. Night masks are like night creams on steroids, and are a more powerful way to achieve a healthier complexion overnight. By leaving them on as you sleep, they create a seal to retain water and help ingredients penetrate the skin more efficiently, but still feel lightweight. Most importantly: They won’t make a mess on your pillowcase.

The following night creams and masks won’t make up for lack of sleep, but they’ll make your shut eye more productive by improving your complexion.

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Caudalie Resveratrol Lift Night Infusion Cream

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$76

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This resveratrol-rich cream visibly firms and sculpts skin overnight, while hyaluronic acid plumps and minimizes wrinkles so you wake up with a youthful glow.

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Context Restorative Night Cream

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$45

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This cream’s all-star natural ingredients work to restore your complexion to its youthful state. Aloe calms skin, and vitamins A and E encourage collagen production to help diminish fine lines.

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Olay Regenerist Night Recovery Cream

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$20

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This drugstore standout cream gives a whole new meaning to beauty sleep. Its formula gradually releases through the night so your skin is hydrated and plumper come morning.

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Clarins Paris Bright Plus HP Brightening Repairing Night Cream

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$69

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Combat dull skin with your eyes closed: Clarins’s cream is packed with white flowers to brighten your complexion and protect it against dark spots caused by hyperpigmentation.

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Laneige Firming Sleeping Mask

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$30

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Leave Laneige’s mask on overnight so its memory form gel can form a protective film on your face to help restore your skin’s firmness and elasticity, smoothness, and strength.

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Fresh Black Tea Firming Overnight Mask

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$92

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A combination of kombucha, lychee, and blackberry makes for a powerful anti-age remedy, while hyaluronic acid attracts and locks in moisture.

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Kiehl's Ultra Facial Overnight Masque

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$35

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The glacial proteins and desert plant leaves in Kiehl’s facial overnight masque work the midnight shift to hydrate and hold moisture so you wake up with softer, refreshed skin.

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Korres Wild Rose + Vitamin C Advanced Brightening Sleeping Facial

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$48

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Wild-rose oil and rosewater-packed mask plumps up and evens out skin tone without leaving behind residue.

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Night Creams vs. Night Masks: What’s The Difference—and Which You Should Use

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Caudalie Resveratrol Lift Night Infusion Cream

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