The 15 Best Products to Buy for Hyperpigmentation, According to the Internet

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(Image credit: @laisribeiro)

As frustrating and stubborn as it may be, hyperpigmentation, according to the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology, is exceptionally common. And though causes can differ (you can hold everything from genetics to sun exposure to hormonal changes to acne responsible), hyperpigmentation is technically defined as a condition in which patches of skin become darker in color than the surrounding skin due to an excess of melanin. Life or death? No. Annoying? Absolutely.

Treatments of hyperpigmentation vary, and depending on the severity, we recommend seeing a dermatologist for a consultation and customized healing plan. That said, even though in-office procedures and treatments like lasers or prescriptions can reap some benefit (as can increased SPF use so spots don't darken further), making strategic additions to your skincare routine and product lineup can do wonders for issues of hyperpigmentation too.

As celebrity esthetician Renée Rouleau explains here, results obviously won't happen overnight, and patience will be key, but by protecting your skin with a great SPF formula every single day, adding exfoliating formulas to physically break up pigmentation (these will generally involve acids), and choosing products with specific ingredients to help brighten and fade discoloration, hyperpigmentation can often be alleviated over time. To get the show on the road and because we're always dreaming of bright, clear, and ultra-even skin, we scoured the internet to find 15 of the top-rated hyperpigmentation treatments our fellow skincare aficionados swear by for real results. Keep scrolling!

Beauty Director

Erin has been writing a mix of beauty and wellness content for Who What Wear for over four years. Prior to that, she spent two and half years writing for Byrdie. She now calls Santa Monica home but grew up in Minnetonka, Minnesota, and studied writing, rhetoric, and communication at University of Wisconsin, La Crosse. She studied abroad in Galway, Ireland, and spent a summer in L.A. interning with the Byrdie and Who What Wear family. After graduating from UW, she spent one year in San Francisco, where she worked as a writer for Pottery Barn Kids and PBteen before moving down to L.A. to begin her career as a beauty editor. She considers her day-to-day beauty aesthetic very low-maintenance and relies on staples like clear brow serum (from Kimiko!), Lawless's Lip Plumping Mask in Cherry Vanilla, and an eyelash curler. For special occasions or days when she's taking more meetings or has an event, she'll wear anything and everything from Charlotte Tilbury (the foundations are game-changing), some shimmer on her lids (Stila and Róen do it best), and a few coats of the best mascara-type product on earth, Surratt's Noir Lash Tint.