Ingredient · INCI listed
Cholesterol
One of the three core barrier lipids, alongside ceramides and fatty acids. On its own it does little; in the right ratio with the other two, it is essential to genuine barrier repair.
Evidence — Well-established
Data summary
Products containing
48
Most common in
25 products
moisturizers
Typical pairing
Ceramides
Evidence level
Well-established as a barrier lipid. Research shows the optimal ratio is approximately 3:1:1 (ceramides:cholesterol:fatty acids) for maximum barrier repair efficacy.
Verified reviewer
In the catalog
Cholesterol by the numbers.
Cholesterol appears in 88 products across the DermFND catalog, and it's strongly concentrated in moisturizers — 46 products, 52% of where it shows up. Those products average a 78/100 formulation score — well above the catalog norm — topping out with CeraVe Moisturizing Cream at 92/100.
48 formulas containing cholesterol clear our 80/100 standout threshold. Its most frequent formulation partners are Ceramides (76 shared formulas) and Hyaluronic Acid (35 shared formulas). The median price of a cholesterol product here is $26.
Where it shows up
