CeraVe - any opinions?

I didn’t get on with CeraVe at all.

I use the blemish control Cerave stuff, cleanser, serum, moisturiser etc., my skin has really cleared up since. I also use a L'Oreal day/night moisturiser every day otherwise the Cerave can dry out my skin

They sell you a lifestyle. £2.99 and in a boring tub means it's not great, £150 and in a fancy pot it must be fantastic.
The ingredients might be the same.

By the way I heard someone say the reason some of the cheap moisturisers are cheap is because they don’t spend a lot on advertising. Not sure how true that is

I don’t know about anti aging (maybe there’s two eye creams?) but cerave eye cream is the most relaxing, hydrating, fab eye cream out there. Adore it (but although I’m 43 I’m not really into anti aging, just love it as it’s comfortable and in the morning a good primer for concealer

I was so optimistic buying Ceve but it’s a pile of crap, it’s no better than the £1.99 rubbish in home bargains. Maybe it’s just my skin but it never feels clean after the Ceve cleanser and feels super greasy after the moisturiser.

Cerave is excellent but it's really increased in price recently, used to be about a tenner!

I buy a range of facial products, priced from £2.99 but never over £10..

For me it's consistency of use rather than the cost of the product itself.

Warm water flannel wash morning and evening and at the moment it's Nivea eye and face cream with Vitamin C.
Nothing fancy.

I think CeraVe is a pretty good mid range brand. I use a moisturiser from them but not the ones you mention specifically. It works well for me.

With the more expensive face and eye creams, my view is that it is worth paying a bit more than the very cheap stuff you can get in the supermarket (Simple, Nivea, etc), but there comes a point where it is not worth it.

I'd never pay a lot of money for a product that claims to have 'anti ageing' properties. I think in the low concentrations that they are allowed to sell to the public, most ingredients don't really do a lot.

If you have concerns about your skin then you should just go to a dermatologist or use one of the online services (like Dermatica/ Skin + Me etc) because they are actual prescription products that work.

Other than that, just use an SPF and a decent moisturiser, eat well/ exercise, and accept that your skin will naturally change and age as you do!

Skin care ingredients do not have to cost a fortune to work. What works and doesn't is well known, anything £££ is just selling you a feeling of luxury.

Cerave is a good quality moisturiser with good ingredients - ceramides and niacinamide. That said, some people are sensitive to niacinamide.

It won't give you a miracle but it's a good product, better than a lot at much higher price points.

CeraVe's moisturisers don't agree with my skin, but their hydrating oil cleanser is my holy grail. That said, moisturisers don't have to be expensive to be good - as @Poachedeggavocado said, you're better off having a basic moisturiser and a serum with active ingredients to target your specific concerns. I like the Geek & Gorgeous happy barrier cream as my am/pm moisturiser and that's only a tenner.

In my experience moisturisers are all pretty good and you should ideally moisturise daily. However if you want to see a difference you need active ingredients. Those can cost thousands or a few pounds once you know what you want or need. Sunscreen is necessary to prevent aging and sun spots. Retinol works to slow aging. Salicylic acid prevents built up and spots, glycolic acid is great for softening skin. I could go on but the point is the ingredients not the brand.

The Ordinary is a good place to start. I have a few firm favourite products but I've landed upon them through quite a bit of research.

What specifically do you want to achieve?