◎ 27 of The Best K-Beauty Products Worth The Hype ◎ Building the ultimate K-beauty routine is not for the weak. Search up the best Korean skincare, makeup, and haircare launches and you’ll see thousands of brands all vying to secure a top spot. From clinic-inspired serums to juicy lip tints, an overwhelming amount of options exist for any category you can think of, no matter how niche. So what’s actually worth the hype? “For the past decade, Korean beauty has upped the bar globally when it comes to price, quality, innovation, and texture,” says Charlotte Cho, esthetician and co-founder of Soko Glam and Then I Met You. Cho’s name should be familiar to anyone who’s entered the K-beauty scene, but for the uninitiated, she’s been curating the best of K-beauty on Soko Glam for more than 11 years—long before you saw those viral toner pads take over your TikTok FYP. Recently, Cho has been more discerning than ever. “I’ve been looking more at the details of where the ingredients are sourced, or if it’s bringing an interesting ingredient combo to the table,” she says. To sort through the overwhelming amount of launches that come out of the K-beauty market, she also pays close attention to clinical studies and “new formats or textures that are unlike anything I’ve tested before.” This year, she’s got an eye on skin treatments influenced by in-office cosmetic treatments like microneedling and PDRN injections. “Toner pads are also having a moment,” she says. “It's a resurgence of why we originally fell in love sheet masks, but now in bite-sized form.” With a few recommendations from Cho in hand, I spent five weeks in Seoul this spring working my way through as many products as I could get my hands on. From TikTok-viral toners to iconic cleansing oils, here’s what actually lived up to the hype. Some of these launches have cult status in Korea, consistently ranking high on Hwahae (an ingredient analysis and review aggregator app that publishes some of the most trusted rankings in Korea) or always securing a spot in my friends’ bathroom cabinets. Others are more well-known globally or belong to up-and-coming brands just starting to make a splash. Regardless, they impress(Forbes, 2024. 01. 13). |
