Which Medicube Products Contain Retinol? Checked List by List

How high the retinoid sits on each list

The retinoid sits in the front half of the list in 1 of the 7 products and in the back half in 6. The front-half ones are where it is a deliberate active:

• PDRN Pink Collagen Volume Multi Balm Stick: retinol 9th of 33

Which kinds of Medicube product contain retinol

Retinoids turn up well beyond serums. By format, the 7 products break down as 2 masks, 1 eye treatment, 1 balm, 1 concentrated serum, 1 moisturizer, 1 serum.

Only one mentions a retinoid in the Amazon listing title: Eye Cream with Salmon DNA PDRN & Pink Peptides. Out of the 54 Medicube ingredient lists we hold for this market, these are the only ones with a retinoid.

What a retinol near the end of the list means

A retinol near the end of a Medicube list means a small amount, though not necessarily an irrelevant one. The rules on ingredient lists fix the order only above 1%; below that, a brand can list them in any order. Retinoids are used at very low concentrations, so a late position tells you retinol is a minor ingredient, not that it does nothing.

Position still helps. A retinoid in the first half of a list is a deliberate active, and the product should be introduced slowly. One in the last few places is a supporting ingredient, worth knowing about if you are avoiding retinoids altogether.

Who should check this list before buying Medicube

Three groups of people should check this list before buying Medicube:

• People who are pregnant, trying to conceive or breastfeeding. Doctors commonly advise avoiding retinoids at these times, so ask your doctor or pharmacist about any product listed here.
• People using a prescription retinoid such as tretinoin or adapalene. Extra retinoid from a cream, mask or eye product adds to the irritation.
• People with reactive skin. Retinoids often cause dryness and stinging while skin gets used to them, which is why dermatologists introduce them gradually.

How to use a Medicube product that contains retinol

Use a Medicube product that contains retinol in the evening and wear sunscreen the next morning. Start every other night when the retinoid sits in the first half of the list, and keep acid pads, peel shots and spicule serums for other nights.

A rinse-off product such as a cleanser spends seconds on the skin and matters far less than a leave-on cream, serum or mask.

Who should skip which Medicube products

Every product we read in full has a note on who it does not suit. These are the notes for the products not picked above:

• Eye Cream with Salmon DNA PDRN & Pink Peptides: You are buying it for puffy eyes because of the caffeine. At 43rd of 52 the dose implied is tiny; a cold spoon does more.
• PDRN Pink Collagen Volume Multi Balm Stick: You are buying it for the PDRN. There is no salmon DNA entry on this list.
• Kojic Acid Turmeric Night Wrapping Mask: You specifically want a kojic acid treatment. A dedicated kojic serum will place it far higher than 19th.
• Kojic Acid Turmeric Brightening Gold Jelly Gel Mask: Kojic acid brought you here. It sits 33rd of 37, close to the end.
• Exosome Shot PDRN Pink Collagen 7,500 PPM Spicule Facial: Your skin is sensitive, thin or currently breaking out. Hydrolysed sponge at ninth means physical spicules throughout.
• Vitamin C Face Masks with Niacinamide 2% Moisturizing: Fragrance on your face every single day is a known trigger for you. It sits 21st of 32, and a daily format multiplies exposure.

Common questions

Does Medicube make a retinol serum?

Not as a face serum sold on retinol in this market. The products on this page contain a retinoid on their ingredient list, most of them as a supporting ingredient.

Is Medicube safe to use while pregnant?

We cannot answer that for you, and neither can a label. What this page can do is show which products list a retinoid, the ingredient group doctors commonly ask pregnant patients to avoid. Take the list to your doctor or pharmacist.

Is bakuchiol a retinol?

No. Bakuchiol is a plant extract often sold as a gentler alternative to retinol, but it is a different molecule and this page does not count it as a retinoid.

Why doesn't the listing title mention retinol?

Product names and listing titles highlight the headline ingredients. A supporting ingredient only has to appear on the ingredient list, which is why reading the list is the only reliable check.

More Medicube guides

These guides pick up where this one stops, by product type, by skin concern and by ingredient:

• Which Medicube Serum Should You Buy? The Range Compared
• Which Medicube Moisturiser Should You Buy?
• Which Medicube Mask Should You Buy? Wrapping, Jelly, Mud and Sheet
• Best Medicube for Sensitive Skin, and What to Skip
• Best Medicube for Wrinkles and Ageing Skin
• Where the headline ingredient sits, for the whole Medicube range