Solid picks for a moisturizing cleansing experience.
Soap: For many of us, it falls under the umbrella of scarcely considered personal-care products, along with, say, floss. While body washes, scrubs, and shower oils can deliver a cleansing experience that's nothing short of luscious, there's something about good ol' bar soap that delivers a clean feeling that's second to none. On the other hand, it's that same clean feeling that can send people running for their hydrating shower oils — after all, it's no fun to strip your skin and leave it tight, itchy, or dry.
That said, for every bar soap that leaves skin feeling a little too squeaky-clean, there are just as many that deliver that coveted clean and improve the look and feel of skin. On a completely separate — yet equally as important — note, bar soap produces much less waste than a plastic bottle.
We did some scrubbing to find the best bars to lather up with during your next shower. Consider making room on your soap dish for one of these picks.
Dior Joy Pearl Bath Bar Soap
The Dior Joy Pearl Bath Bar Soap is truly a, well, joy to use in the shower. It lathers up nicely and has a citrus floral scent with notes of rose, neroli, and vanilla. It smells so good, you can't help but perk up as you suds up.
$26 (Shop Now)
Erno Laszlo Phelityl Cleansing Bar
Looking for an alternative to your liquid facial cleanser? You may want to try the Erno Laszlo Phelityl Cleansing Bar, which is made with hydrating glycerin and fatty acids to keep skin's natural pH level balanced as you wash up.
$38 (Shop Now)
Juara Candlenut Soap
Juara Candlenut Soap is made with nourishing candlenut, coconut, and moringa oils, as well as soothing shea butter so your skin isn't stripped of moisture when you use it. Once wet, it creates a creamy lather, which feels as good as it smells — a sweet blend of freesia, rose, and coconut.
$20 (Shop Now)
Krigler Manhattan Rose 44
Love rose? Krigler's Manhattan Rose 44 is the soap for you. The flower lies at the heart of its aroma but is balanced with violet and germanium, making it light and not overwhelmingly sweet.
$45 (Shop Now)
Dial Complete 2-in-1 Bar Soap in Manuka Honey
It's no secret we love manuka honey, so anything with this special ingredient, which contains antioxidants to protect skin from free radicals and has healing properties to treat damaged skin, is already a win in our book. The Dial Complete 2-in-1 Bar Soap in Manuka Honey does all of the above and more — leaving skin hydrated long after you rinse.
$4 (Shop Now)
Bastide Artisanal Provence Soap
Available in several sophisticated scents, this 2019 AllureBest of Beauty winner does so much more than just spread suds and leave behind a light fragrance. It's a triple-milled French soap made with the traditional saponification process that allows its Provence olive oil base to leave your skin as moisturized as it's left clean. But you may not find that out for yourself if you have a hard time opening beautifully packaged products.
$20 (Shop Now)
Nubian Heritage Lemongrass & Tea Tree Bar Soap
Is this Nubian Heritage's most moisturizing bar soap? No. But the moisturizing it does do truly exceeds expectations for a cleanser made to clarify body breakouts. While tea tree helps heal blemishes and lemongrass reduces inflammation, its shea butter can't help but replenish lost moisture, so your skin looks and feels balanced.
$4 (Shop Now)
Seaweed Bath Co. Exfoliating Detox Body Soap
As you might have guessed, seaweed is the star of this scrubby bar — but not the only one. Arabica coffee exfoliates and provides a boost of antioxidants, cinnamon invigorates skin and improves elasticity, and a blend of kukui, coconut, and sunflower oils leave the skin cells that haven't been sloughed off with a big boost of hydration. No wonder it received Allure's 2018 Best of Beauty Award for bar soap.
$8 (Shop Now)
Native Bar Soap
Native may be best known for its natural deodorant, but the brand is no slacker in the soap category. Like its deodorants, the soap comes in a variety of scents, like the classic Coconut & Vanilla and Cucumber & Mint and the seasonal Peony & Jasmine Tea and Pumpkin Spice Latte. But no matter which fragrance you favor, the cleansing experience comes with a hydrating heap of coconut oil, shea butter, and vegetable glycerin.
$8 for two bars (Shop Now)
Fresh Seaberry Exfoliating Soap
Seaberry oil — otherwise known as seabuckthorn oil — is an antioxidant that's rich in omega 3 and 6. It's the hero ingredient in this hefty bar soap, which also contains shea butter plus naturally exfoliating cranberry and bamboo particles. Not only will your skin feel uber-soft after a single use, but also it'll smell every-so-slightly zesty, thanks to an infusion of orange peel, which also acts as another natural exfoliant.
$17 (Shop Now)
Herbivore Bamboo Charcoal Detoxifying Soap Bar
If body blemishes are an issue, consider switching your soap to this little black bar, which harnesses the pore-purging powers of charcoal. Plus, it's laced with a blend of tea tree and bergamot essential oils, which not only give it a pleasantly herbal scent, but also aid in balancing skin's oil production.
$12 (Shop Now)
Origins Gloomaway Grapefruit Bath Bar
While you may not have time to set positive intentions every morning, this soap oozes happy energy every time you hop in the shower, thanks to notes of zingy grapefruit and bright orange.
$18 (Shop Now)
Chanel No. 5 The Bath Soap
This soap makes one chic shower. Not only does it look elegant atop a soap dish (or really anywhere), but it also smells divinely like Chanel's iconic No. 5 fragrance. (Need we say more?)
$26 (Shop Now)
Dove White Beauty Bar
This Allure Best of Beauty winner looks like soap and smells like soap, but don't be fooled — it contains zero trace of the stuff. Instead, it relies on a much milder cleanser, sodium lauroyl isethionate, to whisk away grime without stripping skin. On the contrary, this beauty bar leaves skin soft and supple, thanks to its composition of one to four moisturizing cream.
$9 for eight bars (Shop Now)
Caress Daily Silk Beauty Bar
Caress is an expert at infusing its products with luxurious-smelling fragrances. This bar, for example, elicits notes of orange blossom and white peach, which linger ever-so-subtly as you lather up — and after you dry off.
$7 for eight bars (Shop Now)
Cetaphil Gentle Cleansing Bar
Similar to its liquid cleanser counterparts, this soap-free cleansing bar is a godsend for dry, itchy skin. It lathers without stripping skin of its natural oils, and it doesn't leave any semblance of residue. Plus, it's formulated for all skin types and features a mild, non-polarizing scent, making it a can't-go-wrong option for shared shower spaces.
$4 (Shop Now)
Shea Moisture African Black Soap
If you've dismissed bar soap as a dry skin culprit, allow this one to restore your faith. Made from African black soap — i.e. ashes from the likes of plantains and cocoa pods — plus an infusion of shea butter, aloe, and oats, this multipurpose bar simultaneously soothes skin and targets acne blemishes. It's so gentle, in fact, that it can even be used to calm eczema-prone skin.
$4 (Shop Now)
Aesop Body Cleansing Slab
This oversized vegetable-based soap smells equal parts citrusy and sexy, thanks to natural infusions of bergamot, ylang-ylang, and lime. When mixed with water, the pH-balanced bar produces a barely-there lather that cleans skin without stripping it.
$25 (Shop Now)
Meow Meow Tweet Coconut Cacao Body Soap
In case you've ever contemplated the sum of cocoa butter, coconut milk, sunflower seed oil, and castor seed oil, this bar soap is the answer: It smells cozy and feels like a hug. Plus, it's 100-percent natural and formulated without essential oils (which can sometimes cause irritation), making it the perfect treat for natural-beauty buffs and sensitive skin types alike. Lastly, we'd be remiss not to mention its adorable cat-centric packaging.
$10 (Shop Now)
Lano Lanolin & Egg White Gentle Cleansing Bar
If streamlining your morning shower appeals to you, give this two-in-one cleanser a go — it contains lanolin and goat milk to hydrate and cleanse both face and body, plus a healthy dose of egg whites to tighten pores. Simple, effective, and 99.8 percent natural to boot.
$6 (Shop Now)
L'Occitane Extra-Gentle Soap
This hefty, 100-percent vegetable-based soap doesn't provide much lather — or a super-strong scent, for that matter — but it does leave dry skin quenched and supple, thanks to its high concentration of shea butter.
$14 (Shop Now)