There’s nothing worse than having your itchy eczema decide to flare-up on you all the time.
Just when you think that patch of red, angry skin has cleared up, it comes with a vengeance.
Nothing you are doing seems to be doing anything to alleviate it, and your usual eczema cream seems to have stopped having any effect whatsoever.
This can be incredibly frustrating, especially if the skin often becomes cracked, sore, and bleeds.
If this is the case, then it’s time to branch out and use a different brand of eczema cream to try and tackle the problem before you can consult with your doctor about more long term treatment.
Eczema affects around 15 million Americans, so you’re certainly not alone with your fight against your pesky itchy skin.
There are so many different over-the-counter treatments for eczema (see also '10 Best Eczema Shampoos For Sensitive Scalps') that it can often be confusing when trying to find just what you want.
So how can you be sure that you’ve found the best eczema creams for flare-ups?
That’s where we come in! We’ve done all of the hard work for you so that you don’t have to.
We’ve researched and reviewed hundreds of products to find the ones that actually work and will gently ease your itching skin.
Remember that it’s always best to see your doctor if your eczema is persistent, as they can give you stronger creams to really kick eczema’s butt.
In the meantime, check out these 10 best eczema creams for flare-ups to soothe your skin before you get your next appointment.
10 Best Eczema Creams For Flare-Ups
OUR TOP PICK
The Cortizone 10 Intensive Healing Lotion for Eczema is our top recommended product.
This eczema cream comes with a range of features that will make it an excellent choice for you and your eczema.
It gives you fast acting results, includes 7 intensive moisturizers, and features an anti-itch formula.
All in all, this is an excellent product to use as needed, or as a daily moisturizer for keeping your eczema under control.
It also features hydrocortisone as one of the ingredients which is often prescribed by doctors to relieve eczema.
Pros
- Anti-itch - designed to ease itchy skin
- 1% hydrocortisone - medicine already prescribed by doctors to ease itching
- Fast relief - works quickly to alleviate your symptoms
Cons
- Intermediate solver - while it will ease your itching, it won’t get rid of your eczema like the products your doctor can prescribe you
Also available at:
EDITORS CHOICE
The Aveeno Eczema Therapy Itch Relief Balm is the ideal choice if you want to make sure you’ve got all your bases covered.
This particular eczema cream is available in a tub for keeping at home and a smaller tube for keeping in your bag.
So you’ll be able to get fast results immediately!
This cream comes highly recommended by both pharmacists and doctors for moisturizing your skin.
Often the key to getting your eczema under control is to ensure that the skin is moisturized at all times, so it will be the perfect eczema cream for you to use.
Pros
- Anti-itch - designed to relieve itching from eczema
- Moisturizes - moisturizes your skin to alleviate dry, sore, cracked skin
- 2 sizes available - choose between a tub or a tube depending on how much you need
Cons
- Thick - some customers could still feel the Aveeno Eczema Therapy Itch Relief Balm after using it
Also available at:
BEST VALUE
Another excellent choice for getting immediate relief from your itching is this Eucerin Eczema Relief Cream.
The Eucerin Eczema Relief Cream works fast to give you immediate relief, and works best when used daily to moisturize your skin.
It also works to keep your skin hydrated for up to 24 hours to prevent flare-ups. One of the best things about this eczema cream is that it is fragrance free.
So you won’t have to worry about finding any unpleasant ingredients that could irritate your skin further.
Pros
- 24 hour hydration - aims to give you constant hydration for up to 24 hours
- Fragrance free - you won’t have to worry about this cream irritating your skin
- Flare-up free - works to keep you free from flare-ups when used daily
Cons
- One size - only available in a smaller tube
Also available at:
- target.com
- walmart.com
- walgreens.com
RUNNER UP
The Gold Bond Cream for Eczema Relief is another fantastic choice to opt for!
This particular eczema cream comes in a pump bottle with an easy pump applicator.
This makes it super easy to use, and you can pump out as little or as much as you need.
This will be ideal for avoiding waste as can happen with squeeze bottles. This particular eczema cream actively works to relieve itchy skin and dryness.
This will help tackle your eczema right at the heart, and ensure your skin stays moisturized.
Pros
- Large tub - gives you plenty of cream for easing your eczema
- Pump bottle - makes it easy to only use as much cream as you need
- Hypoallergenic - you won’t have to worry about this cream irritating your skin
Cons
- Pump reliant - if the pump breaks, you will struggle to get to the rest of the cream
Also available at:
RUNNER UP
Want an eczema cream that only uses natural ingredients? Then this Manuka Relief Ultra Soothing Cream is the eczema cream for you.
This particular eczema cream features manuka honey as its main active ingredient, which helps heal your damaged skin.
The other natural ingredients are all plant based, so you won’t have to worry about finding any unpleasant chemicals that can irritate your skin in this eczema cream.
This particular eczema cream actively works to reduce your itching.
You will get instant relief once you have applied it to your skin, which will be perfect for those who are fed up with products that don’t work.
Pros
- Natural ingredients - uses natural ingredients such as manuka honey to ease your itching
- Instant relief - designed to instantly relieve your skin from itching
- Long lasting - aims to give your long lasting relief for up to 24 hours
Cons
- Pricey - one of the more expensive options on our list
Also available at:
RUNNER UP
What made the Cetaphil Restoraderm Soothing Moisturizer such a good choice for eczema prone skin is that it works to actively moisturize your skin.
It also works to improve the moisture retention of your skin, so you won’t have to worry about the skin becoming dry or cracked.
This will help to prevent the eczema from coming back so quickly.
It has been designed for sensitive skin, so doesn’t contain any fragrances which will often become irritating for your skin.
Pros
- 24 hour hydration - you won’t have to worry about your skin becoming dehydrated
- Improves moisture retention - works to restore and improve your skin’s natural moisture retention
- Sensitive skin - free from fragrances so as to be kinder on your skin
Cons
- Pump reliant - if you opt for the pump bottle you won’t be able to get to the cream if the pump breaks
Also available at:
RUNNER UP
Determined to find an all natural eczema cream that actually works? Then give this Ora’s Amazing Herbal Touchy Skin Salve a try!
This particular eczema cream features all natural ingredients, and doesn’t contain any pesky chemicals.
It is also unscented so as to avoid fragrances that can become irritating for skin.
This particular herbal salve has been carefully infused with organic herbs to give it excellent results that will help your skin rather than irritate it.
This will be an excellent choice for those who feel reluctant to use chemical based products.
Pros
- Unscented - won’t irritate your skin with damaging fragrances
- Natural ingredients - you won’t find any nasty chemicals to irritate your skin
- Tub - gives you lots of salve to use to ease your skin’s itching
Cons
- Small tub - some customers felt the tub was on the smaller side
Also available at:
RUNNER UP
If money is no object for you and your skin needs, then you should consider opting for the Puriya Mother of All Creams Intensive Moisturizer for Dry, Rough, and Sensitive Skin.
This particular eczema cream has been crafted using scientific based ingredients so as to give you a product that actually works.
The best thing about this product is that it works to continuously maintain healthy skin.
This will be essential for preventing future flare-ups. It works to soften and hydrate your skin so that it can stay happy and healthy for longer.
Pros
- Hydrates - works to hydrate and soften your dry skin
- Fast acting - will give you immediate relief from dry, itchy skin
- Scientific based ingredients - uses ingredients which have been scientifically proven to support healthy skin
Cons
- Expensive - one of the pricier options on our list
Also available at:
RUNNER UP
One of the best options on our list is the Deep Therapy Cream EC for Fast Eczema and Psoriasis Support.
This particular eczema cream product works to give you fast results, so you won’t have to worry about your itchy skin all day.
It will also moisturize your skin so that it doesn’t start to become so dry that the skin becomes cracked and painful.
It is also unscented, so you won’t have to worry about irritating your skin.
Pros
- Unscented - doesn’t have any fragrances which can often irritate skin
- Fast acting - works to give you fast acting results for immediate relief
- Moisturizes - will moisturize your skin to prevent it from becoming dry
Cons
- Pricey - one of the pricier products on our list
Also available at:
RUNNER UP
Last but not least is the wonderful Thyme Out Plus Eczema Treatment! This is another eczema product that uses all natural ingredients.
These 100% natural ingredients work to soothe your skin, so you can get the immediate relief that you are after.
This particular product has been designed to be anti-itch, so you won’t have to worry about your itching making a comeback.
It can also be used to help calm other skin conditions, too!
Pros
- Anti-itch - designed to be anti-itch to prevent flare-ups
- 100% natural - uses 100% natural ingredients to soothe your skin
- Versatile - can be used to help calm other skin irritations
Cons
- Scent - might not to be everyone’s taste
Also available at:
Best Eczema Creams For Flare-Ups Buying Guide
Searching for the best eczema creams for flare-ups can be a real challenge.
There are so many different products to choose from, and often so many of them don’t quite do the job that it says on the tin.
But if you’ve only used the same brand before, how can you know what to look for in a different product? What are the features that you should prioritize in an eczema cream?
That’s why we’ve put together this handy buyer’s guide!
We’ve made sure to include all of the key criteria that we used to select the best eczema creams that we reviewed in more detail up above.
So as long as you bear each of the below factors in mind, you can rest assured that you’ve found the right product for your needs.
And you can always check with your doctor if it would be appropriate for you to use!
Let’s take a look at everything we need to know about eczema creams down below, or skip ahead to the frequently asked questions.
No Fragrance
The most important thing to remember when choosing a cream for your eczema is that it doesn’t come with a fragrance.
Some artificial fragrances and sometimes even natural fragrances can be a trigger for some people’s eczema.
So even if it smells nice, it will actually be making your skin worse. It will be best to opt for a tub that comes unfragranced.
You can rest assured that the eczema cream is doing its job without being too much of an irritant.
If you tend to use a certain fragranced beauty product and your eczema flares up, this could be one of your triggers.
Tube Or Tub
Next, you will need to decide which would be most convenient for you: a tube of eczema cream, or a tub of eczema cream.
This will partially come under our next point as well, but it will also come down to convenience.
If your eczema flares up during the day, it will be worth keeping a small tube of eczema cream in your bag to soothe it.
However, if your eczema isn’t too bad while you’re out and about and it’s mostly when you’re at home that you like to soothe it, then it will be worth going for a larger tub.
Or even both if you want to cover all of your bases!
Amount Of Cream
The amount of cream that your chosen product contains will be another factor to consider.
If you tend to suffer from flare-ups a lot, then you will need to opt for a larger tub or tube to ensure that you’ve got enough cream to soothe your skin.
However, if you’re branching out with a new product, you will want to test a small bit of it first to check that it’s suitable for your skin.
In this case, it will be worth opting for a smaller tube, or even a sample item if this is possible.
You can then purchase a larger version if you’re happy with the product you receive.
Cream, Not Ointment
It will be incredibly important to ensure that you opt for a cream, not an ointment.
An ointment isn’t like a cream; it’s very greasy, and will actually sit on your skin until it’s wiped off.
It won’t become absorbed into your skin, even if the active ingredients are able to pass through.
A cream will be easier to apply, get absorbed into your skin quicker, and won’t leave you with greasy hands afterwards.
Trust us - it’s so much nicer and easier to work with than a greasy ointment that gets everywhere!
Moisturizing
Arguably the most important thing to get from an eczema cream is a product that is moisturizing.
This will give your skin the moisture it needs, and will work to reversing that dry, cracked skin.
After all, eczema is patches of dry skin, so if you can get that moisture in there, it will help to make things better.
It will be worth ensuring that you have opted for an eczema cream that contains moisturizing ingredients.
This will ensure that your skin is getting the moisture it needs without being dried out by any of the ingredients in the process.
Anti-Itch
This probably goes without saying, but you will also need to look for an eczema product that has anti-itch properties.
Whether this is from the inclusion of an over-the-counter active ingredient such as hydrocortisone, or something of this ilk, it will help to ease the itchiness of your skin.
And of course by easing the itchiness of your skin, you will be less likely to scratch it and cause accidental flare-ups.
If you find that your chosen product isn’t doing much to help with the itching, it will be worth consulting with your doctor to see if they can suggest a suitable alternative.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Cream Is Best For Eczema?
The best eczema creams for flare-ups are:
- Cortizone 10 Intensive Healing Lotion for Eczema
- Aveeno Eczema Therapy Itch Relief Balm
- Eucerin Eczema Relief Cream
- Gold Bond Cream for Eczema Relief
- Manuka Relief Ultra Soothing Cream
- Cetaphil Restoraderm Soothing Moisturizer
- Ora’s Amazing Herbal Touchy Skin Salve
- Puriya Mother of All Creams Intensive Moisturizer for Dry, Rough, and Sensitive Skin
- Deep Therapy Cream EC for Fast Eczema and Psoriasis Support
- Thyme Out Plus Eczema Treatment
What Gets Rid Of Eczema Fast?
There are several things you can do to try and ease the symptoms of your eczema. The most important one is to ensure that you moisturize your skin at least twice a day.
This will give your skin the added boost of moisture it needs to stay happy and healthy, and recover from the eczema plaguing you.
Using an anti-itch cream can also help to alleviate itching so that you don’t make the eczema worse with absent minded scratching.
If you find that your eczema persists, it will be best to see your doctor to see what additional creams or medications they can prescribe you.
It will be worth trying to find out what the underlying cause for your eczema is, with the most likely factors being something in your diet or some external factors that you could be coming into contact with, such as the soap you are using.
If in doubt, consult your doctor and they can best advise you on this.
What Triggers Eczema?
There are several triggers for eczema, and not all of them will be the same for everyone.
There are some foods that can trigger eczema in some people, with dairy being a popular one.
Alternatively it could be something else in your home such as pets that are causing your skin to flare-up, or the detergent or soap you are using.
Other triggers could be things like stress, which cause you to scratch your skin out of habit.
There could even be allergens, damp weather, or other environmental factors that could be causing your flare-ups to become more prevalent.
It will be important to consult with your doctor so that they can best advise you on this, and help you to work out what your triggers are.
If it’s something like soap and detergent, that’s something you can easily change to ease your symptoms.
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