Product

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum: Dermatologist Review

Niacinamide 10% and little else for $6. Same too-high-dose caveat as every 10% serum.

Last Updated: September 8, 2026

Dermatologist's Verdict

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum is nine ingredients with nothing to hide behind — easy to troubleshoot if your skin reacts. It strengthens the barrier, reduces oil, and blocks pigment handoff into surface cells. The 10% is above the studies — 5% for pigment, 2% for oil — so if it flushes, switch to 5%.

Strongly recommendedRecommendedMixedNot recommendedAvoid

The cheat sheetKey Facts

−

Key active	Niacinamide 10%
Texture	Lightweight liquid serum
Best for	Oily skin; anyone who wants niacinamide with no extras
Approximate price	$6–$8
Fragrance	None
Essential oils	None
Drying alcohol	None
Lanolin	None

The short versionWhat It Is

−

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum is a thin, fragrance-free water serum, about $6 to $8. It treats oil and uneven tone — no acid, no retinoid, no zinc, and not a moisturizer.

Nine ingredients. Niacinamide, a form of vitamin B3, sits second at 10 percent. The rest holds the formula together — glycerin and dipropylene glycol for water, xanthan gum to thicken, preservatives. That bareness is the point, and why it feels like water and pills less than thicker versions.

Where it earns its keepWhat It Treats

−

Hyperpigmentation

Works some

Pigment cells make melanin and hand it to the skin cells around them. Niacinamide blocks that handoff, so patches fade as older cells shed. The landmark study used 5 percent. Slow work, measured in months.

Oily Skin

Good fit

Niacinamide lowers how much sebum the glands make, which is different from mopping oil off the surface. Here it comes in a water base with nothing greasy attached. The oil-control trials used about 2 percent, so 10 is well past what the evidence asked for.

Damaged Skin Barrier

Good fit

Niacinamide raises the skin's own ceramide production, rebuilding the barrier from the inside rather than laying fats on top. Nine ingredients also make this the easiest serum to troubleshoot if your skin has been reacting.

Don't expect miraclesNot the Best For

−

Melasma

Barely works

Niacinamide alone will not control melasma. Sunscreen plus tranexamic or azelaic acid does more.

Acne

Barely works

It calms redness and helps with oil, not the pore itself. Pair it with an acne active.

Dry Skin (Xerosis)

Poor fit

A bare water serum with nothing to seal moisture in. Add a moisturizer.

How it feelsTexture

−

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum is thin and watery. A few drops cover the face and absorb in seconds, leaving nothing tacky.

It pills less than thicker niacinamide serums, and sits under sunscreen and makeup without trouble.

Fragrance-free. Some people flush for a few minutes afterward — that is the 10 percent dose, above what the studies used.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Ointment

Almost all oil, no water. Sits on top and seals.

Good for very dry, cracked or raw skin. Easiest to use at night. Too greasy for most faces during the day.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Balm

Waxy and solid until it warms in your hands.

Good for dry patches, lips and hands. Useful in cold, windy weather. Heavy on the face.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Cream

Thick blend of oil and water.

Good for normal to dry skin. Good in winter. May be too thick for summer.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Oil

All oil, but spreads far thinner than an ointment.

Good layered over a moisturizer on dry skin. Sinks in faster than an ointment. Some oils clog pores on acne-prone skin.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Lotion

Mostly water. Pours and sinks in fast.

Good for normal skin and for large areas like arms and legs. Comfortable in summer. Often not enough for very dry skin.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Gel

Water based, no oil. Cool and slippery.

Good for oily and acne-prone skin. Good in heat and humidity. The alcohol in some gels stings broken skin.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Serum · this one

Thin and watery. Absorbs in seconds.

Usually carries active ingredients rather than moisture. Layers under a moisturizer. Rarely enough on its own for dry skin.

‹ HeavierLighter ›

Spray

A fine mist. Barely there.

Good for the back and other spots that are hard to reach. Easy in summer. Does little for very dry skin.

The house rulesHow to Use Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum

−

How much: A few drops, spread thin. More buys nothing.

Layering: It shares a routine with almost anything, retinoids and vitamin C included. It is not an acid, so it does not change the pH of anything over it.

If it flushes: Use less, or every other day. If it keeps up, the dose is the cause, and a 5 percent serum is closer to the evidence.

What to expect: Less shine within a couple of weeks. Pigment is slower — give it 8 to 12 weeks, and wear sunscreen daily.

Where It Fits in Your Routine

−

Pick what fits you and the routine rebuilds around it. Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum is marked in the steps it belongs to.

This product is good for

What's insideHow Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum Works

−

Niacinamide is vitamin B3, and skin turns it into a coenzyme cells use to repair themselves and build fats. Three effects follow. It raises the skin's own ceramide production, strengthening the barrier. It cuts how much sebum the oil glands make. And it interrupts the handoff of melanin from pigment cells to the cells around them, so dark patches fade as older cells shed.

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum delivers that and almost nothing else for around $6. Remarkable value for an active this well evidenced, and the short list is useful if you are working out what your skin reacts to.

The dose is the caveat. The strongest pigment work used about 5 percent, the oil work about 2 percent. No trial shows 10 percent doing more, and higher doses flush more. Nothing here buffers that, and there is no zinc for extra oil control.

Tap an ingredient to see where it works

In the pore

In the skin barrier

Niacinamide turns oil production down a little and interrupts pigment being handed to the cells above. The evidence for clearing spots is thin; it earns its place for the marks left behind, and for making stronger actives easier to tolerate.

The outer layer, and the only one anything in a jar reaches. It renews itself constantly: a cell made at the bottom takes about a month to reach the surface and flake off. Most of what a skincare product does, it does here.

The cells that make pigment. They sit along the base of the epidermis and hand melanin to the cells around them, which is what gives skin its color. Dark marks, melasma and the patch left behind by a spot are all these cells making more than usual.

A narrow tube running from the surface down into the skin, with an oil gland at the bottom of it. Oil travels up and out. When the tube blocks, what is behind it has nowhere to go — which is where blackheads and spots start.

Makes sebum, the oil that keeps the surface soft and stops water escaping. How much it makes is set by hormones, not by how often you wash — which is why scrubbing does not fix oily skin.

Cutibacterium acnes lives in the pores of everyone with skin. It is not an infection and it is not a hygiene problem. It only causes trouble when a pore blocks and it multiplies in the oil trapped behind it.

The scaffolding in the dermis that keeps skin firm and springy. It is built by fibroblasts and broken down by age, sun and smoking. Lines and looseness are collagen lost faster than it is replaced.

The living layer underneath, holding the blood vessels, the nerves and the collagen. It is where lasting change happens and it is hard to reach: most of what is sold for the skin never gets this far.

Pulls water into the surface and holds it there.

A gentle water-binder that also takes the edge off stronger ingredients.

The outermost layer, and the one every moisturizer is aiming at. It is dead — flattened cells stacked like bricks, with a mix of fats as the glue between them. That glue is what holds water in and keeps irritants out.

The living layer underneath, holding the blood vessels, the nerves and the collagen. It is where lasting change happens and it is hard to reach: most of what is sold for the skin never gets this far.

Short list or longNumber of Ingredients

−

This is how many ingredients are on the label. The more a product contains, the more chances one of them bothers you. That matters most if you have sensitive skin, eczema, or a known allergy. If your skin tolerates most things, a long list is not a problem by itself.

This product has
10 ingredients

7 ingredients

The Ordinary Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate Solution 20% in Vitamin F

10 ingredients

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum · this one

11 ingredients

The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%

14 ingredients

SkinCeuticals Discoloration Defense Serum

25 ingredients

Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster

45 ingredients

Cosrx Peptide Serum

51 ingredients

The Ordinary Buffet

52 ingredients

Anua Dark Spot Correcting Serum

752

39 serums reviewed, from The Ordinary Ascorbyl Tetraisopalmitate Solution 20% in Vitamin F (7) to Anua Dark Spot Correcting Serum (52). Tap a dot to see which.

Full Ingredient List

Water, Niacinamide 10%, Dipropylene Glycol, Glycerin, 1,2-Hexanediol, Betaine, Ammonium Acryloyldimethyltaurate/Vp Copolymer, Xanthan Gum, Ethylhexylglycerin

The fine printA Dermatologist’s Concerns

−

May irritate at this strength: 10% is higher than the evidence justifies. The best studies used 5% for pigment and 2% for oil. Nobody has shown 10% works better, and higher doses cause more flushing. If your skin objects, that is why — a 5% product would serve you better.

Nothing in it calms the irritation: no soothing agents, no barrier support, just niacinamide in a simple base.

It contains no zinc: no zinc, unlike The Ordinary's version, so less oil-control support at the same price.

The texture is plain: it does what it says and nothing more.

What it runsPrice per Ounce

−

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum costs $5.94 per ounce. That is cheaper than 37 of the other 38 serums priced on Dermapedia, which run from $4.14 to $190 per ounce.

Price per ounce is a fair way to compare value, but not the whole story — a thicker product goes further per application, and an expensive active costs what it costs.

This product costs
$5.94 per ounce

$4.14 per oz

Cosrx Peptide Serum $4.14

$5.94–$6.00 per oz

Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum · this one $5.94

The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1% $6.00

$20 per oz

The Ordinary Buffet $20

$78 per oz

Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster $78

$114 per oz

SkinCeuticals Discoloration Defense Serum $114

$190 per oz

Revision C+ Correcting Complex 30% $190

$4.14$190

39 serums priced, from Cosrx Peptide Serum ($4.14) to Revision C+ Correcting Complex 30% ($190). Priced on the 1.01 oz size at $6.00. The scale is logarithmic. Tap a dot to see which. Prices current as of September 2026.

Its siblingsThe Rest of the Line

−

One cheap serum per job. Nothing here is a multitasker.

Targets one problemBasic hydration

Niacinamide 10% Serum

One active and almost nothing else. For oil and the look of pores.

You are here

Discoloration Correcting Serum

Tranexamic acid instead. Aimed at dark marks left by acne.

Vitamin C Serum with Oryzanol

The brightening option, for mornings under sunscreen.

Super Peptide Serum

Peptides for firmness. The line's anti-aging serum.

Shop aroundSimilar Products

−

Options if 10% is too strong, or if you want zinc with it.

Tranexamic Acid 5% Serum with Niacinamide 5%

Niacinamide at 5%, the dose the landmark pigment study used, plus 5% tranexamic acid. Closer to the evidence for pigment.

We recommend more

The Ordinary Niacinamide 10% + Zinc 1%

The same 10% dose at the same price, with zinc PCA for oil control. It pills, which is the usual complaint.

About the same

Paula's Choice 10% Niacinamide Booster

Still 10%, softened with licorice root, panthenol and green tea. About seven times the price.

About the same

Questions Patients Ask

Is Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum better than a 5% niacinamide serum?

No trial shows that. Higher doses only flush more.

What does the niacinamide in Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum do?

Strengthens the barrier, cuts oil, fades pigment.

Why is Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum so cheap?

One active, simple formula, remarkable value.

Is Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum fragrance-free?

Yes.

Is the short ingredient list in Good Molecules Niacinamide 10% Serum a downside?

No. Fewer things to react to.

References

The effect of niacinamide on reducing cutaneous pigmentation and suppression of melanosome transferBacks the claim that niacinamide fades hyperpigmentation by blocking melanosome (pigment) transfer into keratinocytes rather than acting on tyrosinase; the 5% formulation significantly reduced hyperpigmentation in a clinical trial.
The effect of 2% niacinamide on facial sebum productionSupports the claim that niacinamide reduces sebum, and that the sebum evidence used a 2% concentration (lowered sebum excretion rate and casual sebum levels).
Mechanistic Basis and Clinical Evidence for the Applications of Nicotinamide (Niacinamide) to Control Skin Aging and PigmentationPeer-reviewed review supporting that niacinamide strengthens the skin barrier by upregulating ceramide and other stratum corneum lipids, and reduces pigmentation by slowing melanosome transfer from melanocytes to keratinocytes.
Good Molecules Niacinamide Serum 30mlConfirms the product-specific facts: it is a 10% niacinamide serum priced at $6.00.