The Case for Bakuchiol

Maybe you tried retinol for smoother, more even-looking skin, and the stinging and flaking made it hard to keep using. A plant compound called bakuchiol may be a gentler way to get the results you were after. In a trial that compared it directly with retinol, both creams improved wrinkles and pigmentation, and the people using bakuchiol had less scaling and stinging.¹ That's reason enough to try it, as long as you know what the research does and doesn't show.

Does it actually work?

Bakuchiol's clearest results are for wrinkles and uneven pigmentation. In the 2019 trial against retinol, neither the participants nor the researchers knew who was using which cream. Both creams had the same strength, but bakuchiol was applied twice a day and retinol only at night, for 12 weeks. The study wasn't designed to test whether they're equivalent, so it can't tell you whether bakuchiol works as well as retinol.¹ For a closer look at how they compare, see Bakuchiol vs. Retinol: How Do They Compare?

A 2026 trial checked whether bakuchiol does anything on its own, by comparing it with the same base formula without it. Over 84 days, Chinese adults using the bakuchiol cream showed greater improvements in wrinkle severity and pigmentation in clinical assessments. They also showed improvements in radiance and the appearance of pores.² Because bakuchiol was the only difference between the two creams, the extra improvement points to bakuchiol itself. Not every analysis has been as clear. A 2025 review that pooled studies of sun-related skin aging couldn't determine whether bakuchiol reduced fine wrinkles, but it didn't include the 2026 trial.⁴

Blemishes are an earlier lead. In a small pilot study with no comparison group, people with mild or moderate acne used a bakuchiol cream for 12 weeks. Researchers reported fewer inflamed blemishes, and the dark marks that breakouts can leave behind (post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation) improved. The cream's other ingredients and the natural course of acne could also explain some of the change.⁹

Why it may be easier on your skin

The 2019 trial's result on scaling and stinging is encouraging, but the trial left out people with a known sensitivity to either ingredient. It didn't test bakuchiol in people who couldn't tolerate retinol.¹ If retinol stung you, that trial can't promise bakuchiol won't. A study of sensitive skin is the closer match to your situation. Women with eczema, rosacea or cosmetic intolerance used a bakuchiol cleanser and moisturizer together. Their skin's moisture measurements rose 16% while water loss through the skin stayed the same. Ten percent reported minimal stinging, mostly participants with eczema.⁶ With two products in the routine, it's unclear how much bakuchiol itself contributed to hydration or barrier repair.

Even with good results in studies, finding a bakuchiol product your own skin likes can take some searching. Writing in Who What Wear, beauty writer Shawna Hudson described years of difficulty with retinoids on her easily irritated, acne-prone skin. She liked the idea of bakuchiol from the start, but several bakuchiol products didn't suit her either. Eventually she found a serum containing bakuchiol that she could use every night, and after about a month her breakouts looked calmer.⁵ If you've ever hesitated before putting something on because you weren't sure how your skin would feel the next day, you can relate.

Not every experience turns out that well. Kate Etue, who favors naturally derived skincare, wrote in Cool Mom Picks about using a serum containing bakuchiol for seven weeks. Her skin was smoother and more hydrated, but the visible results were mixed, and for what it cost, she decided it wasn't worth continuing.⁷

How it might work

Researchers have only started working out how bakuchiol acts in skin. Most of the work so far is in cells and lab models of skin, with a few findings in people, so treat it as a set of leads.

In a 2014 study in a skin model, bakuchiol changed the activity of certain genes in a similar way to retinol, even though the two have different chemical structures. It also affected collagen-related genes and proteins, which could help explain changes in firmness and the appearance of lines.³ The study's title calls bakuchiol "retinol-like," and in a lab, at least, the gene results back up the nickname.

In a 2022 paper, bakuchiol showed antioxidant activity in chemical tests, which matters because reactive molecules contribute to the oxidative stress involved in visible aging. In human skin cells, it also reduced two signaling substances involved in inflammation, a possible explanation for a calming effect.⁸ Neither finding has yet been shown to make a noticeable difference in everyday use.

The same paper also measured a protein called fibronectin in people. Fibronectin works a bit like the ties on a scaffold, helping hold skin's supporting proteins, collagen among them, in place. Forearm skin treated with a bakuchiol formulation had more fibronectin than untreated skin or skin treated with the same formula minus bakuchiol, measured in fluid from small suction blisters.⁸ Whether bakuchiol increases collagen itself in human skin is a separate question.

Choosing a bakuchiol product

For some people, knowing that bakuchiol comes from a plant adds to the pleasure of using it. It's found especially in the seeds of Psoralea corylifolia, commonly called babchi.³ If the plant origin is part of the appeal, check which form you're buying. The studies in this article used purified bakuchiol, isolated from the plant, while a whole babchi oil or extract is a broader mixture of substances and a different material.³ How an ingredient is extracted and purified decides which substances remain, so if a particular sourcing method or degree of processing matters to you, ask the product's maker.²

The rest of the formula matters too, as Hudson found.⁵ Other ingredients affect how moisturizing a product is and how it spreads and sits on your skin. That helps explain why one bakuchiol product might suit you when another doesn't.

Where to start

Retinol may have left you choosing between better-looking skin and comfortable skin, and bakuchiol gives you a real shot at both, with studies in people behind it. Pick a formula you enjoy putting on, and give it 12 weeks, the length of the trials, before you judge it.

Sources

1. Dhaliwal S, et al. Prospective, randomized, double-blind assessment of topical bakuchiol and retinol for facial photoageing. British Journal of Dermatology, 2019.
2. Khan ZEH, et al. Prospective, Double-Blind, Vehicle-Controlled Assessment of Topical Bakuchiol on Photoaging in a Chinese Population. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2026.
3. Chaudhuri RK, Bojanowski K. Bakuchiol: a retinol-like functional compound revealed by gene expression profiling and clinically proven to have anti-aging effects. International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2014.
4. Lin L, et al. Comparative efficacy of topical interventions for facial photoaging: a network meta-analysis. Scientific Reports, 2025.
5. Hudson S. Firsthand serum review. Magazine article, Who What Wear.
6. Draelos ZD, et al. Clinical Evaluation of a Nature-Based Bakuchiol Anti-Aging Moisturizer for Sensitive Skin. Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2020.
7. Etue K. Seven-week firsthand review. Blog post, Cool Mom Picks. February 25, 2020.
8. Bluemke A, et al. Multidirectional activity of bakuchiol against cellular mechanisms of facial ageing - Experimental evidence for a holistic treatment approach. International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2022.
9. Brownell L, et al. A Clinical Study Evaluating the Efficacy of Topical Bakuchiol (UP256) Cream on Facial Acne. Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2021.