Our Best Eye Creams for Crow's Feet

While it’s not fair, it’s a fact of life: Because it’s so thin and sensitive, the delicate skin around your eyes is often prone to showing signs of aging, such as dark circles, sagging skin, fine lines and wrinkles, and crow’s feet, before other areas of your complexion. Here, we’re focusing on addressing crow’s feet—a particularly annoying, yet all too common and easy to get, sign of aging around the eyes. So, what can you do to prevent the formation of wrinkles under eyes? For starters, if you’re not already using an eye cream, it’s high time to add one into your regular skin care routine. Keep reading to learn more about what causes crow’s feet and wrinkles under eyes in the first place, how best to prevent and address them, and our best eye creams for crow’s feet.

WHAT CAN CAUSE CROWS FEET?

First things first, crow’s feet are those tiny wrinkles that can make themselves known at the outer corners of your eyes. Typically caused by the natural aging process and UV exposure, and deepened by constant squinting of the eyes, crow’s feet are one of the most common signs of aging around the eyes. Now, let’s break down some of the most common causes of crow’s feet.

1. Aging. One of the most likely reasons why you might be noticing crow’s feet is plain old aging. Some things in life are unavoidable, and aging is one of them. We all get older. And as we age, wrinkles under eyes can start to appear. Even if you haven’t noticed wrinkles forming elsewhere, it’s normal for the eye area to show signs of aging first.

2. Sun damage. Another cause of crow’s feet can be sun damage. Spending time in the sun sans protection can lead to visible signs of skin aging down the road, like dark spots and fine lines and wrinkles. (So, make sure to apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of 30 daily as directed, limit your amount of time in the sun, seek shade, and cover up exposed areas in long sleeves, pants, a broad-brimmed hat, and UV-blocking sunglasses.) Also, if you head outdoors without wearing proper UV-protection sunglasses, more likely than not you’re going to have to squint—which only makes crow’s feet worse! Yet another reason to take proper sun care measures and precautions before sun exposure.

OUR BEST EYE CREAMS FOR CROWS FEET

So, now that you know what causes crow’s feet—some of which is, unfortunately, just an unavoidable part of life—you likely want to know how to prevent and address them. Here, we’ve rounded up our best eye creams to help minimize the appearance of crow’s feet and under-eye wrinkles. Check out our options for different age groups to find the right one for your skin care routine.

If you’re in your 20s…try the L'Oréal Paris Age Perfect Hydra Nutrition Manuka Honey Eye Gel. Since you’re still young (lucky you!), your best defense against the future formation of crow’s feet is a good offense. Add a nourishing eye cream into your daily routine to keep your under-eye area moisturized at all times.

How to use it: Using the cool rollerball applicator, simply roll a bit of product onto your under and upper-eye areas, both morning and evening. Apply it to clean skin as the last step in your routine. In the mornings, you can layer your makeup on top.

If you’re in your 30s…try the L’Oréal Paris RevitaLift Anti-Wrinkle + Firming Eye Cream. With age, skin can start to look less firm and fine lines and wrinkles can appear more visible. As we’ve established, the delicate eye area is particularly susceptible to the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles (i.e. crow’s feet) as well as dark circles under the eyes. Even if you’re only in your 30s, and crow’s feet haven’t started to form yet, the best way to prevent them is by using an eye cream regularly. This eye cream can help minimize the appearance of crow’s feet and dark circles with continued use over time.

How to use it: Apply a small amount of eye cream to your eye area using your fingertip. Gently blend the eye cream out using the pad of your finger. Use morning and night as the last step in your skin care routine.

If you’re in your 40s…try the L’Oréal Paris Age Perfect Eye Renewal Eye Cream. As you age, you may notice a decrease in the overall appearance of vitality of your skin, even around the eye area. That’s where this eye cream comes in. This eye cream can help reveal a more radiant-looking eye contour. Almost instantly, your eye area is hydrated and appears more toned, while with continued use, crow’s feet will appear smoothed out, dark circles will look visibly minimized, and eyelid crepiness will appear reduced.

How to use it: Every morning and evening, apply a small amount of eye cream around the entire eye area using fingertips, then pat gently until thoroughly absorbed.

If you’re in your 50s…try the L’Oréal Paris Wrinkle Expert 55+ Anti-Wrinkle Eye Treatment. Your skin has evolving anti-wrinkle needs as it ages. Starting in your 50s, skin can lose vital nourishment, which can lead to an increase in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. This effective eye cream formula with calcium, helps to improve smoothness and visibly reduce the appearance of signs of aging, including crow’s feet and dryness.

How to use it: Every morning and night, apply a small amount of eye cream around the entire eye area using fingertips and smooth gently until absorbed.

If you’re a man…try the L'Oréal Paris Men Expert Hydra-Energetic Ice Cold Eye Roller. While the aforementioned products are absolutely, in no way, shape, or form off limits to you simply because you’re a guy, you might want your own eye cream, too. If this is the case, reach for this eye roller and smooth it onto your under and upper-eye areas every morning and evening. Bonus: The rollerball applicator is fast and easy and also helps to de-puff the eye area.

If crow’s feet aren’t your biggest eye area concern, don’t worry, they're not the only thing eye creams can help you with. Want to find an eye cream that can aid in minimizing the appearance of under-eye bags? Check out our article, Our Best Eye Creams for Puffiness.