Niacinamide: uses, strength, evidence, and side effects

At a glance

U.S. status

Cosmetic ingredient

Jobs

Barrier support · Redness · Oil and pore appearance · Uneven tone

Watch for

2–5% is where the evidence lives; 10–20% adds flushing and stinging for many people without added benefit. It is not the same as niacin.

Access

Inexpensive and in most drugstore moisturizers; paying more for a higher percentage rarely pays off.

Forms and strengths

2–5% in moisturizers and serums (most evidence)
10% serums (popular; less studied)
Oral nicotinamide for skin cancer prevention (supplement, medical advice needed)

How to use it

Once or twice daily in a moisturizer or serum; layers with almost everything. Starting with a low-concentration moisturizer avoids flushing.

Side effects and cautions

Flushing or warmth at high concentrations
Stinging
Rare irritant dermatitis

Get advice first if

Compatible with pregnancy. Oral nicotinamide has its own evidence for reducing non-melanoma skin cancer in high-risk people and should be discussed with a clinician, not started from a skincare video.

Regulatory status

Cosmetic ingredient with no premarket review.

In the trends

A fixture of 'skinimalism' routines and a frequent victim of the 'more percent is better' fallacy.

In our files

Guide 01: The skin barrier, explained without the mythology

Sources on file

These links support the claims above. Reviewed September 1, 2026. Drug labels link to DailyMed searches so the current label is always one click away.