Why is Korean skincare so much better? Consider this your expert guide
If the Olympics for skincare were to ever take place, South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea) would undoubtedly clinch the most gold medals. Revered for its transformative serums, innovative (if not peculiar) ingredients such as snail mucin, and an unwavering commitment to hydration, in 2025 a skincare routine that doesn’t feature at least one K-beauty product has become downright passé.
Moreover, the allure of South Korea isn’t confined to the realm of beauty alone. In recent years, the country has experienced a meteoric rise across various cultural domains, a phenomenon dubbed ‘Hallyu’, or the ‘Korean Wave’. This global surge encompasses not only K-beauty but also K-food, K-drama, K-pop, fashion, and entertainment – each capturing hearts and minds around the world. And there’s good reason for this: South Korea excels at blending creativity, innovation, and quality across its cultural exports.
While K-beauty began to truly dominate in 2016, it initially faced skepticism from some Western consumers. The infamous 10-step skincare routine (which, for the record, no actual Korean adheres to) and an early focus on products lacking potent actives led to a mixed reception. Yet now, K-beauty finds itself experiencing a resurgence, fuelled by the viral power of social media and an increasingly discerning consumer base focused on ingredients-driven skincare. So, with this renewed wave of enthusiasm, is it worth revisiting K-beauty?
We turned to Dr Christine Hall, an aesthetics specialist and Teoxane ambassador, whose South Korean heritage and frequent visits to Seoul make her uniquely positioned to shed light on all things K-beauty. Here’s what she had to say.
Why is K-beauty considered the best?
South Korea has a long and rich history when it comes to skincare. Dr Hall explains, ‘Korean skincare goes back thousands of years to the time of the three kingdoms era (BC 37-668) where the ideology of beauty standards was coined ‘young-yook-il-chi-sa-sang‘, meaning “Within a beautiful body, rests a beautiful soul.” During this time, people started to make homemade face powders made from ground rice and millet, blush was made from safflower, ground mung beans were made into cleansers and creams were produced using the juice of various plants.’
She continues: ‘As far back as then skincare was for everyone regardless of status, gender and wealth. So appearance and beauty is engrained from a young age and it is as intuitive as combing your hair. Even today, the presentation of your best appearance is considered as a way to honour and show respect to others.’
With such a great emphasis placed on appearance, South Koreans spend more money on skincare than the rest of the world – and they are so well educated and informed about skincare that products formulated in Korea are tightly regulated, affordable and have to work. Fast forward to today and South Korea is estimated to be 10-12 years ahead of Europe and the US in terms of skincare and aesthetic treatments, so the promise of radiant skin achieved through innovative formulations and packaging is hard to resist.
‘Some of the newest innovations and trends in skincare all come out of South Korea and include the highly coveted glass skin look that everyone strives to achieve,’ reveals Dr Hall. ‘Slugging, the seven skin method (the application of seven layers of toner to flood the skin with moisture) and skipcare all started in South Korea – skipcare being the use of multipurpose products that do more than one thing. Whether it be because we are short of time or simply don’t wish to spend so much of it on our skincare routines hybrid skincare products are extremely popular in South Korea.’
Korean skincare vs Western skincare
The biggest different between K-Beauty and western skincare is that Korean products tend to focus on maintaining a healthy skin barrier and hydration to give glowing luminous skin.
‘The skin barrier can be thought of like a brick wall: the bricks resembling our cells, and the cement in-between resembling the tissues that hold the cells together to form a barrier that locks in hydration and keeps out infection and pollutants,’ explains Dr Hall. ‘K-beauty revolves around nurturing this barrier – optimising the hydration within and blocking out pollutants and environmental stressors.’
Once renowned for being the origin of the 10-step skincare routine, the whole premise was centred around maximising hydration of the skin or ‘skin flooding’ with product after product aimed at restoring the skin barrier and locking in hydration.
As for ingredients? ‘They are centred around nourishing and soothing the skin,’ says Dr Hall, ‘with a strong focus on natural and fermented ingredients, as opposed to Western skincare practices which focus heavily on actives such as vitamin C, acids and retinols – which no doubt give great results but will often result in irritation and inflammation if overused. More recently, South Korea has formulated these ingredients but in a gentler formulation, so for patients starting out with these actives they are a great place to start.’
Korean skincare is also highly renowned for its fermented skincare products, CC creams and oil-based cleansers which are all very affordable. ‘I would struggle to find Western equivalents to match up to their quality,’ says Dr Hall.
She also notes that SPF is taken seriously in South Korea. There’s a long-standing cultural preference for lighter skin, Dr Hall explains, which some trace back to historical associations between tanned skin and outdoor labour. While this belief has evolved, sun protection remains a strong focus in Korean skincare routines. ‘As a result,’ adds Dr Hall, ‘South Korean brands have mastered SPF with silky formulations that glide onto to the skin to give a luminous complexion.’
What skincare is actually popular in South Korea?
‘K-Beauty focuses on calming and soothing products. Ingredients like centella asiatica, beta glucan, adenosine, snail mucin, ginseng extract and ceramides are all very popular in South Korean formulations.’
There’s good news for those who like to use actives in their skincare routine, too. ‘More recently, vitamin C and retinol are gaining in popularity and when found in K-Beauty products will be particularly gentle and great for anyone new to these products,’ says Dr Hall.
What are the best Korean skincare brands?
‘There are now so many K-Beauty brands that are easily accessible,’ says Dr Hall. ‘Some of my go to brands include: CosRX, Glow Recipe, Laneige, Then I met you, Aestura, Dr Jart and Erborian for their CC cream.’
What are the 10 steps in South Korean skincare?
‘The 10-step skincare routine is the term you might think of most often when you mention K-Beauty, but ask a South Korean what their ’10-step skincare routine’ is and they won’t know what you’re talking about,’ schools Dr Hall. ‘It is a term that was coined by a US beauty magazine called Into the Gloss and it has remained a popular term, and a marketing gimmick. to this day – but solely outside of Korea. The idea is that you needed to buy 10 items to get Korean glass skin, where in reality, 10 items is a lot – and I would say too much.’
She explains that the steps that are commonly used in South Korea are as follows:
1. Double cleanse
‘Double cleansing really provides the foundation for the glass skin routine,’ explains Dr Hall. In general, substances will either be oil or/and water soluble. Sebum, the majority of make-up and SPF are lipophilic, meaning that they dissolve in oil – while sweat, pollutants and other impurities will be water soluble.
‘So, the only way to get a really deep clean and completely remove all of the build up from the day is to double cleanser by using an oil followed by a water-based cleanser,’ she adds.
The build-up of sweat, makeup, pollutants, dead skin cells and sebum damages your skin and needs to be properly removed. ‘Not only to prevent this damage but to allow optimal absorption of your skin care actives. When the impurities and debris build up, skin can become inflamed, resulting in redness, soreness and breakouts,’ cautions Dr Hall.
Then I Met You Living Cleansing Balm
Beauty of Joseon Green Plum Refreshing Cleanser 100ml
HaruHaru wonder Black Rice Moisture 5 5 Soft Cleansing Gel
Now 10% Off
Anua Heartleaf Pore Control Cleansing Oil 200ml
2. Toner/essences
‘Your toner or essence provides the first step in hydration, and hydration is key to glass skin,’ says Dr Hall. ‘Patting in a hydrating toner or essence into the skin ensures ultimate hydration and the maintenance of a healthy skin barrier.’ As for the best K-Beauty toners to try, I personally swear by Joeson Beauty and Joseon Glow Replenishing Rice Milk Toner. COSRX Advanced Snail 96 Mucin Power Essence is also hugely popular for its ability to repair skin.
Joseon Beauty of Joseon Glow Replenishing Rice Milk
3. Serums
Slightly thicker than an essence, your serum is where even more hydration comes in. K-Beauty will focus on gentle but effective actives to nourish the skin barrier further.
Try Laneige Bouncy & Firm Serum.
4. Moisturisers
Your moisturiser is the final step in skin hydration. ‘It is the thickest formulation (skincare in general should be applied from your thinnest formulation up to your thickest) and will help to seal in all that you have applied to your skin so far,’ reveals Dr Hall.
Try LANEIGE Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Acid Cream Moisturiser.
5. Sunscreen
SPF is the most important part in every skincare routine. We know that 90% of all visible aging is directly attributable to the Sun’s UV rays, so the best anti-ageing tip I could give to anyone is to wear SPF every day.
‘There is a whole host of SPFs from South Korea, which add further to the glass skin effect – these are called ‘tone up’ SPFs. Formulated alongside other skincare actives, these are the SPFs that elevate and brighten your skin tone, smooth out imperfections and create a glowing complexion, which looks great alone but also provides the perfect base for makeup,’ says Dr Hall.
COSRX Aloe 54 2 Aqua Tone-Up Sunscreen SPF 50 50ml
LANEIGE Hydro UV Defense Ex
Aquatica Stick Sunscreen 100 SPF50+ PA++++ (19g)
Dr Jart Every Sun Day Ultra Sheer Priming Sunscreen Stick SPF 30 20g
6. Highlighter
While this is a makeup step, Dr Hall adds that highlighters are a big deal in Korea. ‘If by this point you are not glowing enough, carefully placed highlighter above the apples of the cheeks, down the bridge of the nose and just above the centre of the upper lip – this will give a further impression of translucency and glass.’
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Perdita Nouril is the Beauty Editor for Women’s Health UK. She has worked in the beauty industry for 15 years since graduating from the University of Nottingham. Adept at exploring the colossal world of beauty, she loves to scratch beneath the surface to debunk the myths, decode the science and challenge traditional notions of beauty. You can always find her preaching sermons on the power of a red lip, extolling the virtues of a decent serum and championing the very best female beauty founders.
You can find Perdita on Instagram on @perditanouril
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