The 25 Best Body Washes for Every Skin Type and Price Point
Face-quality skincare products for below the neck.
It's 2023, so it's high time you stop shortchanging your shower experience. Your caddy can use a shiny new body wash, ready to douse your skin in loads of hydration and leave it feeling softer than ever. Sure, one might think that body wash isn't exactly the sexiest skincare product out there, but that's simply not true anymore! Body wash and shower gel formulas are more luxurious than ever, and it's becoming more and more important to put thought behind the ingredients you're putting on your skin below the neck, which should not come secondary to the skin on your face. (If your skin is dry and sensitive, check out our list of our favorite body butters, creams, and lotions, bar none.) This list includes budget-friendly picks and a few splurge-worthy options if you really want to treat yourself.
How important is body wash?
When it comes to the products Marie Claire recommends, we take your faith in us seriously.
Very. If you've got summer body acne that just won't seem to budge, an effective body wash can add an added layer of offense when battling stubborn pimples and those annoying AF keratosis pilaris bumps. Even better, a really good body wash goes beyond simple skin benefits; it can aid in your moment of self-care in the shower where you reflect, meditate, and think on all your best ideas (a scientifically proven fact!). So whether you're dealing with eczema, in need of a detoxifying treatment, or searching for a leaner formula, we've rounded up the best of the best body washes at every single price point to indulge in. Your shower will never bse the same.
The Insta-Famous Body Wash
It's time to get your skin and shower acquainted with the newest Nécessaire scent to sweep you off your feet: bergamot. You're looking at one of the most Insta-famous body washes of all time to up your shower's shelf game: exhibit A, B, and C. The brand (who also formulated a best-selling sex gel) making body wash cool again created a vitamin and oil-packed body cleanser with a foamy lather that smells like a spicy floral.
The Daily Detox
This drugstore star has a new-and-improved formula of skin-purifying ingredients and natural nutrients, like green clay, to deep-clean your pores if you deal with acne or skin sensitivities. It's meant to feel like a "daily detox" you'll look forward to.
The Aesthetically-Pleasing Pick
You've no doubt seen this bottle all over Instagram, but the body wash inside it is actually amazing, too. For starters, the formula is vegan and cruelty-free and the scent is rich with notes of mandarin and bergamot rind.
The Skin Soother
Eczema is estimated to affects 35 million Americans, so don't feel alone if you're dealing with it below the neck. This dermatologist-recommended body wash has a moisture-boosting formula of hyaluronic acid, essential ceramides, and omega oils to reduce inflammation and strengthen the skin's barrier.
The Vegan Pick
Liven up your shower routine this clean-smelling pick from The Handmade Soap Co. It's free of parabens and SLS, and the formula is vegan-friendly.
The One With The Best Lather
This luxe-feeling shower gel transforms into the sudsiest-ever lather and immediately fills your entire bathroom with rich notes of freesia and jasmine.
The Acne Fighter
If you tend to struggle with backne after a workout, this best-selling (and great-smelling) body wash is here to help thanks to the inclusion of salicylic acid.
The Morning Shower Pick
If you need something in your shower rotation that's going to add some pep to your step, this wash is for you. This creamy body wash is made with caffeine to give you a boost.
The Dry Skin Savior
Let's hear it for those products that you return to again and again! This best-selling body wash from Aveeno is made with calming oats to soothe your dry winter skin back to health.
The Nostalgic Pick
One sniff of this cult-classic body wash and you'll be transported back into the past. The massive bottle promises to last through 100 washes, so it's the definition of bang for your buck.
The Ultra-Creamy Option
For long-lasting moisture (Like, 72 hours long), you need this body wash from Buttah Skin. It's made with Buttah's SP Duraquench complex, which is the key to the moisture.
The Chic Two-in-One
This luxurious body wash from Athena Club is so rich that you can actually shave with it. You have three yummy scents to choose from including grapefruit, vanilla, and bergamot.
The Calming Pick
Having trouble falling asleep? This soothing wash from Dr. Teal's might help. Not only will the calming scent of lavender make you feel tired (in a good way!), the wash is formulated with pure Epsom Salt to help relax your muscles after a long day,
The Vitamin-C Wash
This fruity-smelling body wash is packed with vitamin-C-rish amla, a superberry known for its healing properties. In short, this wash cleanses without leaving your skin feeling dry.
The Splurge-Worthy Pick
Another day, another lust-worthy scent that I'm dying to try, and it's no secret that Le Labo's range of scents are some of the best on the market. This body wash-version of the brand's best-selling scent is a tad more affordable at $57.
The Sensitive Skin Friend
If almost every body wash you've ever tried leaves your skin feeling itchy, it's time for a change. This option from MyKirei by KAO is formulated using plant-based cleansers and contains soothing rice water and yuzu extract.
The Probiotic-Enriched Pick
This low-PH body wash from VENN is full of skin-loving ingredients like pro- and pre-biotics that nourish it from the inside out,
The Body-Oil-Body-Wash Hybrid
If you belong to the body oil club like me (move over, lotion), you'll enjoy the soft slip of this silky lather that hugs your skin with hydrating, nourishing oils. It turns frothy once activated by water and is ideal for those with dry or sensitive skin in need of extra moisture.
The Collagen-Filled Formula
If you're looking for a little more than a simple cleanse, try this body wash that offers a firming treatment thanks to its vitamin B3 and collagen-filled formula. Collagen, which is one of the common ingredients found in skincare, is credited for improving elasticity for firmer, younger-looking skin. Praise be—you can enjoy the benefits of collagen in body wash form.
The Firming Formula
Creamy, dreamy, and absolutely glorious-smelling. Cupuaçu butter keeps skin supple and and helps promote elasticity, and a hit of the pistachio-caramel fragrance the Brazilian brand is known for almost functions as a pre-perfume.
The Major Steal
Light, refreshing, and budget-friendly—we're in. And it comes in twelve (!) scents so you can mix and match.
The Balancing Body Cleanser
Celebrity hairstylist Jen Atkin took her talents to the world of skincare with this balancing body cleanser enriched with jojoba seed oil and rose hip oil to hydrate your skin from within and balance the skin's microbiome. Another thing Ouai always gets right: scent. This fruity floral will take over your shower in the best way possible.
The Bump Buster
If you're one of those people who prepare for a wash of body acne the second you start sweating in the sun, this one's for you. Fruit enzymes and an acid blend help unclog your pores and smooth out those pesky blemishes and bump.
The Purest of Them All
This goes out to those that are highly conscious and careful about the ingredients on their bodies (which should honestly be all of us). This 100-percent organic, vegan formula has a potent amount of pure castile soap that boasts several uses: laundry, dish-washing, all-purpose cleaner and the list goes on. This 18-in-1 hemp peppermint adds a refreshing, minty kick to the skin to awaken your pores, and is a favorite of many including the founder of U Beauty Tina Craig, who Team MC recently interviewed, if you'd like a trusted testimony on this product—she's been using it for 20 years!
The Prestige Pick
Here's another super sleek, good-looking option that'll win you shower shelfie points and do the skin below your neck some good. This bottle carries a blend of Turkish rose petals, raspberry blossom, papyrus, and white amber to soften the skin and leave behind a lingering aroma that'll remind you of a rose garden.
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Julia Marzovilla is the Fashion E-Commerce Editor at Marie Claire, where she reviews the latest launches from fashion and beauty brands, finds the best on-sale items around the internet, and interviews experts to find the best products in any category to share with her readers. She also creates shopping guides that span every vertical on the site as an expert in everything from the best laptop bags to the best laser hair removal devices.
In her near decade of experience, Julia has both written for several top outlets in the E-Commerce space and worked at major fashion labels. Prior to joining the Marie Claire team, she contributed similar shopping stories to sites such as Bustle, InStyle, The Zoe Report, Who What Wear, and worked as the Trending Fashion and News Writer STYLECASTER. You can find her across the internet at @JuliaMarzovilla. In real life, you can find her creating shopping guides for her friends, cooking or baking in her too-small kitchen, or buying tickets for the next time Harry Styles is in town.
Julia has a Bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in Journalism from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. She lives in New York City, her hometown.
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