Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream Review

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Took me three jars of Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream before I could finally make up my mind about this review. Yes, you read it right. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what I liked or didn’t like about this cream, and it took me four years to build my take on how it performed.

But after loving, unloving, and even feeling apathetic towards this cream, I finally found the problem and how I can make it work under makeup.

And if not for the packaging, I think this one can be in your kit as a makeup artist!

This post is all about the Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream: its ingredients, benefits, side effects, and how it performs on different skin types.

Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream Review

At A Glance

Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream Ingredients

I was sold as soon as I saw the word “Ginseng” in the ingredient list! I mean … I’ve known the benefits of ginseng since I was in fourth grade, when I realized how happy my teacher was when I gave this plant to her as a project. I researched it a lot, even as a kid, and I’ve admired the plant ever since.

In this jar, the key ingredient is Panax Ginseng Root Water, which helps hydrate and support your skin’s moisture barrier.

Ginseng aside, here are the rest of the Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream ingredients worth knowing, and the benefits each one brings.

Notable Ingredients:

• Rice Bran Water – Rice has been a Korean beauty staple for centuries, and rice bran water is known for softening and hydrating the skin while helping dull skin look brighter and more even. It’s also naturally rich in antioxidants. 
• Niacinamide – Also known as vitamin B3. It helps support the skin barrier, evens out the look of skin tone, and can help with the appearance of pores and excess oil over time. 
• Squalane – A lightweight emollient that’s similar to the oils your skin already makes. It softens and smooths without feeling greasy, which is probably why this “cream” never feels heavy. 
• Adenosine – In Korea, adenosine is a registered functional ingredient for helping improve the look of wrinkles. So if you’re searching for a Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream review for wrinkles, this is the ingredient behind that claim. 
• Three forms of hyaluronate/hyaluronic acids – Humectants that pull water into the skin and hold it there. Having different forms means the hydration works at different levels instead of just sitting on the surface.  
• Ceramide NP – Ceramides are lipids that naturally make up your skin barrier. Think of them as the mortar between bricks: they help keep moisture in and irritants out.

What’s Not Inside:

No parabens, harsh preservatives, and no pore-clogging filler. Thank goodness!

First Impressions on Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream

As I’ve said in my Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum review, I’ve always been fascinated with Ginseng. So opening this jar for the first time felt like meeting an old friend.

Packaging

I remember the first time I opened this product and I had to pull out a soft sheet of paper to reveal the jar. Ah-mazing. It’s like opening your first iPhone! Whoever thought of this idea deserves a raise. For how they market the brand, the packaging is so on-point.

As for the jar itself, it’s glass, and therefore a kit-heavy moisturizer. If you want this in your kit, you’d have to repack it in lighter, more kit-friendly packaging.

Texture + Finish

It was confusing to me when I first used this moisturizer, because you can see the word “cream” right on the label. Dynasty Cream. But when I first applied it on my face, it felt like a gel.

Okay. For context, the first time I used this moisturizer, I was 28 years old. My skin was still a bit plump and young, and I had a combination skin type. A tad bit dry on my cheeks, and quite oily on the T-zone.

So if you’re wondering when to use Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream, it depends on your skin. Back then, I kept it for nighttime only, because it appeared too oily on me in the morning.

Now that I’ve aged and my skin demands more hydration, my skin looks like it has nothing on when this cream is applied.

Fragrance + Stinging

Thank goodness there’s no fragrance. As for Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream side effects, there’s also no stinging … and if you have extremely dehydrated skin, and your skin’s pilling, please don’t use this. It’ll sting on weak skin barrier areas.

4 Years Into Using Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream

So … I first bought the Dynasty Cream back in 2022 and had no expectations whatsoever from it. At the time, I was just so mystified with their marketing. I’m an avid reader and try to read every single word on any website, let alone on the skincare products I’m so interested in.

Also at that time, I didn’t have any issues with my skin. I just wanted to maintain it and not look dull.

Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream Before and After

When I was 28 years old and my skin was combination, my cheeks were a tad dry and my T-zone was quite oily. My skin was young and plump, and honestly, I didn’t need much from a moisturizer. On me, this cream didn’t look dewy. It looked oily. That’s why I never used it in the morning back then.

I didn’t appreciate that first jar, and I’ll admit my attention was elsewhere: I was too busy being amazed by the Beauty of Joseon Revive Eye Serum.

Now, at 32, my skin is dry. In between, there was a hard year. In 2025, my skin was dehydrated, and that changed everything about how this cream behaved on me (more on that below).

Today, my skin sits somewhere between dry and normal, and when I put this cream on, my skin just eats it up. It doesn’t give me the dewiness or the oiliness I used to see. But it doesn’t leave my face dry, either. It just looks like skin.

Performance Under Makeup

When my skin was combination, I used the Fenty Beauty Eaze Drop Blurring Skin Tint on top of this moisturizer and, as I’ve said in that review, my face looked greasy.

In 2025, I was already a certified makeup artist, so I bought my second jar to put it to the test. By then, my skin had started showing dryness, so I wore this cream under my makeup. I tried it lightly. I tried it heavily. Both pilled. No matter the brand or the type of foundation, the result was the same.

So I did what any engineer would do: I changed one variable. I switched to other moisturizers. They pilled too. That’s when I realized the cream wasn’t the problem. My dehydrated skin was.

Toward the end of that second jar, I moisturized religiously and did everything I could to help my skin: sleeping early, less coffee, more water. Then I used the cream one last time under makeup. No pilling.

And just last week, I wore it under Kylie Cosmetics’ skin tint. No pilling, no fuss.

When using Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream on oily skin, apply it in light layers. I’m not oily myself, but at 27 my T-zone was, and that’s exactly where it looked shiny on me. Beauty of Joseon itself recommends a dot about half the size of a pea for oily, combination, and blemish-prone skin.

When using Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream on dry skin, hydrate with toners and serums first. These days, I layer my Skin1004 Hyalu-Cica toner, serum, and ampoule before it. Then I apply the cream in multiple light layers, letting each one settle before applying the next.

The Verdict

It’s not my go-to when my skin is dehydrated and crying out for help, because no cream will fix pilling on its own. But for everyday hydration under a light base? It earns its spot on my shelf.

Would I repurchase? I already have. This is my third jar.

Like this review?

If you found this helpful, give it a like or save it for later. Know someone hunting for a moisturizer that won’t pill under makeup? Send this their way. And if there’s anything I didn’t cover that you’re curious about, drop it in the comments. I’m all ears! 

Beauty of Joseon Dynasty Cream Review