8 Best Peptide Serums for Noticeably Firmer, Smoother Skin

One skincare ingredient that continues to generate a lot of buzz is peptides. From topical products to injectable options, these skin boosters are a must if firm, smooth, glowy skin is the look you want. Whether you get your daily dose of peptides from a serum, moisturizer, or targeted treatment, these short-chain amino acids are fundamental to healthy collagen and elastin, helping repair skin damage and strengthen the barrier for greater resilience. Finding the best peptide serum isn’t as difficult as you may think if you follow our ultimate guide to the best peptide serums, replete with our editors’ picks.

Our Top Picks:

• Best for Wrinkle-Reducing: Medik8 Liquid Peptides Advanced MP
• Best for Plumping: SkinCeutical P-TIOX Anti-Wrinkle Peptide Serum
• Best for Enlarged Pores: Medik8 Niacinamide Peptides
• Best for Firming: Allies of Skin Peptides + GF Serum
• Best for Lifting: HydroPeptide Power Serum Line Lifting Transformation
• Best for Elasticity: Dr. Whitney Bowe Beauty P46 Peptide + HA Plumping Serum
• Best for Skin-Smoothing: COSRX Peptide Serum
• Best for Everyday: GOOP Youth Boosting Peptide

What are peptides?

Peptides are short chain amino acids that provide anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, and muscle-building benefits. While peptides are made of amino acids, they contain far fewer than proteins do, leading to some confusion between the two. Peptides are thought to be easier for the body to absorb and put to good use because they are small and easily broken down, allowing them to penetrate the skin and other organs and be absorbed quickly into the bloodstream. Many peptides are found in foods, but they are also available in topical, oral, and injectable forms. Some of the more popular peptides include copper peptides, collagen peptides, and creatine peptides.

Do Dermatologists Recommend Peptide Serums?

Many dermatologists consider peptide serums as a fundamental step in a well-rounded, anti-aging routine. While there are hundreds of different types of peptides, the most popular ones that get dermatologists’ stamp of approval include:

• Signaling peptides, which help to stimulate collagen and elastin production for increased skin firmness and elasticity
• Carrier peptides, which deliver specific minerals to the skin to aid in wound healing and repair
• Neurotransmitter-inhibitor peptides, which help relax facial muscles to limit expression lines and wrinkles
• Enzyme-inhibitor peptides that prevent collagen breakdown and preserve existing collagen

Best Peptide Serums

Best for Wrinkle-Reducing: Medik8 Liquid Peptides Advanced MP

This power-packed face serum works to erase the look of stubborn expression lines and wrinkles thanks to a breakthrough peptide technology. This gentle yet effective formula, formulated with peptides and proteins, is designed so that the active ingredients are small enough to reach deep within the skin for optimal results.

Key Ingredients: Expression Line MiniProtein ™, growth factors, copper peptide, Matrixyl 3000

Skin Type: All

Skin Benefits(s): Provides rapid results and a visible reduction in wrinkles in 10 minutes, helps build elasticity and firmness in the skin, delivers a wrinkle-relaxing effect, and hydrates the skin

Beauty Insider Tip: Pair the serum with in-office wrinkle-reducing injectable treatments to complement the treatment for enhanced results.

Best for Plumping: SkinCeutical P-TIOX Anti-Wrinkle Peptide Serum

If in-office neurotoxin injections aren’t for you, consider this safe-for-all-skin-types, anti-wrinkle peptide serum a standout alternative. Proven to reduce the appearance of expression lines while enhancing skin radiance, texture, and tone, this advanced formula is amplified by active ingredients to help improve the skin after just one week of use.

Key Ingredients: Peptides, PHA, niacinamide, laminaria extract

Skin Type: All

Skin Benefits(s): Reduces the look of expression lines and wrinkles, promotes glass skin, improves skin smoothness, refines the look of pores

Beauty Insider Tip: For the best results, use the serum twice daily, both morning and night.

Best for Enlarged Pores: Medik8 Niacinamide Peptides

One of the most underrated benefits of a good peptide serum is its ability to refine the pores so they appear smaller, which is a prerequisite of glass skin. This multi-active formula, which contains niacinamide, delivers smoother, clearer skin with less visible pores in just seven days of use.

Key Ingredients: Niacinamide, Crystalide™ peptide, N-acetyl glucosamine, zinc PCA, hyaluronic acid

Skin Type: All

Skin Benefits(s): Gives a glass skin effect, reduces skin imperfections and congestion, refines the pores, improves overall skin texture

Beauty Insider Tip: The non-comedogenic formula leaves behind no greasy or heavy residue on the skin

Best for Firming: Allies of Skin Peptides + GF Serum

Saggy skin no longer has to be the bane of your existence thanks to this skin-tightening serum, which works exceptionally well around the jawline and on the neck. Powered by potent active ingredients, the growth factor- and peptide-rich serum increases collagen production and supports skin regeneration, giving skin a newfound firmness.

Key Ingredients: Peptides, growth factors, MSM, copper lysinate, centella asiatica, radish root ferment

Skin Type: All

Skin Benefits(s): Firms, lifts, plumps, smooths, reduces sagging skin, wrinkles and crow’s feet

Beauty Insider Tip: The silky, non-sticky serum doesn’t pill or roll up on the skin, especially when layered under or over other skincare products.

Best for Lifting: HydroPeptide Power Serum Line Lifting Transformation

This multitasking serum works wonders to improve the skin, especially by giving it a natural, healthy-looking plumpness. Packed with peptides and collagen-boosting antioxidants, the lightweight serum helps to minimize the look of fine lines and wrinkles for smoother, more youthful-looking skin.

Key Ingredients: Peptides, hyaluronic acid, Ellagi-C, Phytosan K

Skin Type: Mature

Skin Benefits(s): Visibly softens lines, firms and plumps the skin, increases hydration, defends against future visible damage

Beauty Insider Tip: Mix the serum with a skin-firming serum for increased firmness

Best for Elasticity: Dr. Whitney Bowe Beauty P46 Peptide + HA Plumping Serum

This 2-in-1 collagen-boosting peptide-rich serum helps lift saggy skin while simultaneously offering an immediate dose of hydration. Perfect for skin that needs lifting and plumping, the dermatologist-developed formula was inspired by the most effective in-office collagen-stimulating treatments to help restore resilience and bounce to the skin.

Key Ingredients: Peptides, hyaluronic acid, beta glucan, polyglutamic acid

Skin Type: Mature

Skin Benefits(s): Floods skin with hydration, increases skin elasticity, reduces skin sagging, improves skin firmness, smooths skin texture and visibly reduces wrinkles, boosts luminosity and helps reduce visible redness, amplifies in-office treatments

Beauty Insider Tip: Apply 3-4 pumps of the serum onto the face, neck, and chest each morning and night after cleansing. Suitable to use after in-office treatments, even on the most sensitive, post-procedure skin.

Best for Skin-Smoothing: COSRX Peptide Serum

Part toner, part serum, this ultra-lightweight formula packs six powerful peptides into a single serum to improve the skin’s overall appearance. No matter if you use it to soften fine lines, address a loss of firmness, smooth out uneven texture, refine the look of pores, and strengthen the skin with each use, skin appears more youthful, more resilient, and better equipped to deal with common signs of aging and damaging factors with each use.

Key Ingredients: Peptides, niacinamide, n-acetyl glucosamine, adenosine, hyaluronic acid, NMF, allantoin

Skin Type: All

Skin Benefits(s): Brightens, hydrates, improves skin clarity, radiance, and texture

Beauty Insider Tip:he serum is ideal for anyone looking to prevent early signs of aging while smoothing, hydrating, and enhancing overall skin radiance

Best for Everyday: GOOP Youth Boosting Peptide

If healthy, youthful skin sits at the top of your skin care wish list, then this powerful, all-in-one peptide serum needs to be in the rotation. Perfect for targeting a loss of firmness and elasticity, wrinkles, texture changes, hyperpigmentation, and more, the peptide-rich formula addresses skin laxity, a loss of firmness, barrier support, and dryness to visibly improve the skin’s overall appearance and health.

Key Ingredients: Peptides, microalgae, phytoactive paracress, safflower oleosomes, dragon’s blood extract

Skin Type: All

Skin Benefits(s): Improves skin firmness, elasticity, volume loss, the appearance of static and dynamic wrinkles, vascularization, pigmentation, smoothness, luminosity, and moisturization

Beauty Insider Tip: The serum is powerful on its own, and the perfect complement to the brand’s Youth-Boost NAD+ Peptide Rich Cream.

FAQs

Do peptide serums actually work?

Peptide serums work and have a good track record for improving the skin’s appearance and overall health. Peptides are especially beneficial for mitigating the common signs of aging while hydrating the skin and restoring a healthy glow. Since they serve as building blocks for proteins, peptide serums help stimulate the production of new collagen and elastin to firm the skin. However, most peptide serums work best when used in conjunction with other skincare ingredients and even as post-maintenance for in-office treatments.

What are the benefits of peptide serums?

Unlike other types of skincare actives, peptides offer a wide range of benefits for the skin. While they’re widely recognized for their ability to promote collagen and elastin production, they are also a powerful antioxidant and a key player in preserving healthy skin. Some of the best-known benefits of peptides include:

• Increased collagen production
• A stronger skin barrier to aid in hydration
• Reduced redness
• Improved moisturization for better hydrated, plumper-looking skin
• Increased skin cell turnover and renewal
• Antioxidant benefits
• More even-looking skin tone
• Enhanced elasticity
• Aids in the penetration and absorption of other skincare products

How to choose the right peptide serum?

To find the right peptide serum for you, first establish your exact skin type and what you hope a peptide serum can fix. Once your skin type is determined, you can decide if a lightweight peptide or a heavier one is most suitable. From there, look for one with added benefits such as reducing redness, hydration, or even minimizing pore size. Then, match the serum's claims to the ingredients on the label to choose the right one for your skin type and needs.

The Bottom Line

If your skincare routine doesn’t contain a peptide, now’s the time to start. Some of the best peptide serums are the secret to achieving firmer, smoother-looking skin while adding hydration, reducing redness, and giving the skin a beautiful glow. Make sure to use formulas that contain multiple peptides, as well as growth factors, hydrators like hyaluronic acid, and barrier-supporting ingredients, for optimal results you can see and feel.