It’s time for another edition of Face Off, my series where I put similar beauty products head-to-head in order to help you decide which one is worth your money!

Today we’re talking about moisturizer, specifically the Sunday Riley C.E.O. C+ E Antioxidant Protect Repair Moisturizer, the Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Moisturizer and the Laneige Water Bank Moisture Cream.

I’m about to make a really bold statement because I’ve had one and a half cups of coffee and a lot is happening this week with me moving to a new apartment and I’m feeling that bold energy.

Moisturizer is probably my favorite beauty product.

Seriously.

I know I’m not supposed to play favorite and maybe in three months I’ll look back on this post and second guess myself, but not today.

Today I am committed to moisturizer and I don’t plan on giving it up anytime soon.

Here’s why moisturizer is my favorite: it’s that last thing I put on my face before going to bed and makes me feel like I did something really special for myself, even if I was just applying some cream to my face.

Plus, moisturizer works really well on pretty much every skin type.

You’ll of course still want to do some digging to find a moisturizer that will tackle your skincare concerns but according to their Sephora profiles all three of these are great for dry skin, sensitive skin, and oily skin, which makes me feel all of the inclusive feels!

Let’s take a deeper dive and learn a little bit more about each product.

PACKAGING:

C.E.O. C+ E Antioxidant Protect Repair Moisturizer comes in an orange jar with a white twist-off lid

Fresh’s Rose Deep Hydration Moisturizer comes in a pink jar with a twist-off lid

The Laneige Water Bank Moisture Cream comes in a blue jar with a twist-off lid (wow, I sense a pattern here!)

TEXTURE:

The Sunday Riley C.E.O C+ E Antioxidant Protect Repair Moisturizer is pretty thick and slightly tacky and it provides a really nice coverage.

The Fresh Deep Hydration Moisturizer is somehow both super thick yet totally weightless on my fingertips every time I put it on. I’m always impressed with this one.

The Laneige Water Bank Moisture Cream truly does feel like you’re almost splashing yourself with refreshing water and then it stays there all night. It’s a really delightful texture.

SCENT:

C.E.O. C+ E Antioxidant Protect Repair Moisturizer smells super citrus-y

Fresh’s Rose Deep Hydration Moisturizer smells like roses on roses on roses

The Laneige Water Bank Moisture Cream doesn’t really smell like anything other than...fresh is maybe the best word to use?

PRICE + PRODUCT VOLUME:

Sunday Riley's moisturizer costs $65 for 1.7 fl oz (this one was gifted to me by SpaceNK)

Fresh’s moisturizer is $42 for 1.6 fl oz. (I bought this with my own money)

Laneige’s moisturizer is $35 for 1.6 fl oz (this was gifted to me by Laneige)

THE VERDICT:

So here’s the thing: even though I really do enjoy the Sunday Riley moisturizer, I couldn’t justify buying it for myself probably since it’s practically twice as much as the Laneige cream for literally the same amount of product (minute 0.1 fl oz, but who’s counting here? Just kidding, I AM.)

I would justify buying the Fresh moisturizer again though because I am wholeheartedly obsessed with it.

The scent, the texture, the overall effect I feel like it has on both my mood right before I fall asleep and my skin is amazing, with Laneige coming in as a close second favorite.

If you’re just dipping your toes into the worlds of nighttime moisturizers, I’d highly recommend starting with the Laneige one since it’s the most affordable and probably user-friendly too in terms of the product itself.

If you want a moisturizer with vitamin C, I can see why Sunday Riley’s would be appealing but I’m also sure that one exists at a lower budget threshold that you’d enjoy just as much.