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Rhode

Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence.

Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence
Mists & Essences

About this product

A lightweight hydrating essence containing ceramides and glycerin, intended for use as an early step in skincare routines to hydrate skin and prepare it for subsequent products including makeup.

Type

Mists & EssencesLiquid

Key actives

Hyaluronic acidVitamin ECeramides

Formula notes

Fragrance-freeNo drying alcohol

Full ingredients

Guru Score

71%

Mixed

16 experts · Strong agreement
16Gurus
10Approved
4Mixed
2Skip
#12 in Mists & EssencesSee the ranking →

What the gurus are saying

This hydrating essence earns praise for its thick, non-runny texture that spreads smoothly and leaves a dewy glow, making it exceptional under makeup. Gurus particularly love using it as a post-cleanse step, especially for dry skin. However, there's a key caveat: applying it over sunscreen may reduce the sunscreen's protection, so it's best used early in a routine. A few prefer formulas that also contain active ingredients to address specific concerns.
Synthesized from 16 expert reviews · most recent take July 2026
Every take, in full

What the gurus are saying.

Every take we've logged from this product's reviews across YouTube. Click any row to watch the moment they said it.

All takes Approved takes Critical takes Mixed takes Hide sponsored
~Mixed
"The Rhode Glazing Milk, from a formulation perspective, I actually really like that product, and I like all the Rhode products, I stand behind the formulas and think they're great. But it's meant to be an initial step of your skincare routine, not something you follow sunscreen with, using it after sunscreen can impede the sunscreen's protective ability. Even though I like it from a formulation perspective, I still personally wouldn't really use that one on the regular, since I much prefer serums and moisturizers."
~Approved
"The glazing milk is where I started to pay attention, this one has interesting science behind it and it's a product for melanin rich skin specifically. It has four forms of hyaluronic acid, sodium hyaluronate cross polymer, hydrolyzed sodium hyaluronate, and sodium acetylated hyaluronate, so that's hydration at multiple skin depths, not just at the surface. This formula has a full ceramide complex, ceramide MP, AP and EOP, beta glucan for barrier support, and copper and zinc gluconate for skin regulating benefits. For melanin rich skin specifically ceramides matter more than most people realize, because when our skin barrier is healthy our melanocytes behave much better, and hyperpigmentation is significantly worsened by barrier disruption. Oleic acid, linoleic acid, and linolenic acid are listed here as standalone ingredients, and for acne prone skin those fatty acids at higher concentrations can be comedogenic, so if you have reactive oils on your face, patch test this one. This is actually the most functional formula in the Rhode lineup to me for our skin's actual needs, the multi-depth hyaluronic acid and full ceramide complex are doing real work for melanin rich skin focused on skin barrier health and long-term hyperpigmentation prevention, and this one genuinely earns its place."
~Approved
"Can I use only the Rhode Glazing Milk without any other moisturizer? In other words, can I use it as an everyday moisturizer? Yes, you absolutely can. I love that product. Personally, I find it a very hydrating, moisturizing, lightweight fluid. You don't necessarily need to use additional moisturizer, of course everyone's skin needs will vary, some people will benefit from additional moisturizer, but it can easily be used as a standalone moisturizer."
All 4 takes from Dr Dray
Dermatologist Q&A | Thin Skin, Epiduo, Weightlifting & More
"Can I use only the Rhode Glazing Milk without any other moisturizer? In other words, can I use it as an everyday moisturizer? Yes, you absolutely can. I love that product. Personally, I find it a very hydrating, moisturizing, lightweight fluid. You don't necessarily need to use additional moisturizer, of course everyone's skin needs will vary, some people will benefit from additional moisturizer, but it can easily be used as a standalone moisturizer."
I TRIED RHODE SKINCARE SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO
"When you dispense the product and apply it to the skin, it has more staying power. It doesn't just quickly run down the side of your cheek, it grips, so I find that it's easier to apply in comparison to many other liquid-based products. I have reviewed many essences and toners over the years, milky ones, hydrating ones, ones with acne ingredients, and I would say this is a pretty good essence. I genuinely enjoyed using this product. Is it necessary, is it essential? No. If you're someone who likes a hydrating essence, you may enjoy this. I really appreciate that texture, [...] its ability to spread on the skin nicely without just running off the side of your face and being all drippy, it's a lot easier to apply. I think products like this are a really good option if you shave in the morning but you don't want to do some complicated skincare routine. Using something like this as an aftershave is a really great option because it helps with barrier recovery, the ceramides, the hydrating properties, but it's not greasy or heavy, and therefore your sunscreen will go on over it very easily. [...] I would suggest applying this as the first step in your skincare routine, immediately after cleansing, to in theory enhance penetration of the ingredients. This has niacinamide, which is a B vitamin that is an antioxidant, is anti-inflammatory, helps calm down redness, and it's also useful for improving hyperpigmentation, or at least supporting the clearance of hyperpigmentation."
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"It's a silky milky creamy toner with peptides, which can improve moisture content in the skin's outermost layer, ceramide. In contrast to many other toners that I've used, this one almost had a little bit of grip to it, it was not quite as runny as other liquid toners, so I kind of like that textural aspect of it. I really like this. I liked putting this on after cleansing."
Which Milky Toner Actually Lives Up to the Hype? Byoma vs Rhode & Celimax
"The Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence is just a nice ceramide milky fluid. It has magnesium, zinc, and copper, which may benefit the skin as far as cutting down on oxidative stress. Now, it has beta glucan, which is very hydrating. But without a doubt, I found that the Rhode Glazing Milk was wow worthy. I really just felt like it provided this nice, almost soothing film layer onto my skin. I wish. [...] I don't believe you can go and buy it in a store. I think you have to buy it from their website."
~Mixed
"I actually find both of these really nice, they're really good quality products. They're just really standing out to me for different skin types and different skin concerns. The humectant content, the lightness in the application, the way it doesn't feel as heavy on my skin, and the way that it's not so overly rich, it's not causing congestion or whiteheads for me. It actually suits my skin really well right now, where some days are warm but still windy, some days can be a little on the cooler mild side, but I'm not going full on hardcore dry, and I'm still dealing with some oil and balancing out some potential congestion, so the Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence is really a nice balanced product for me right now. I do want to point out that this product does not contain hyaluronic acid."
~Mixed
"It feels nice. It has no fragrance in it, which I appreciate, but it has a little bit of a rubbery smell to it that dissipates pretty quickly. It's a little tacky, but you're going to be applying it underneath another serum anyway, and it feels really nice and hydrating and plumping. It does have that weird smell, but I'd rather have a rubbery tire smell than a floral lilac smell."
~Approved
"You're going to want to check out the Rhode Glazing Milk if you have not already. If you don't have this already in your routine, now is the time to add it. It is the best like makeup prep product. It mixes really well with other toners. It mixes great with sunscreens and moisturizers and it leaves a really beautiful glowy dewy finish to the skin. It's a staple, a must have. I love that Rhode is now at Sephora so that you can use your coupon on Rhode products."
Top Pick: face milk
All 11 takes from Allie Glines
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"You're going to want to check out the Rhode Glazing Milk if you have not already. If you don't have this already in your routine, now is the time to add it. It is the best like makeup prep product. It mixes really well with other toners. It mixes great with sunscreens and moisturizers and it leaves a really beautiful glowy dewy finish to the skin. It's a staple, a must have. I love that Rhode is now at Sephora so that you can use your coupon on Rhode products."
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"This is another favorite that I'm just beyond obsessed with, and it's something that is also unlike anything I've ever tried. It's the new Rhode Glazing Milk. [...] The texture of this is so interesting, I genuinely have never tried anything like this before. It's essentially an essence, so you put it on after you cleanse the skin, and you can feel it sinking into the skin so beautifully. It helps all of your other products absorb so well into the skin. It also leaves a really nice glow on the face, which is just beautiful. I love wearing it morning and night, and it works really well with my other skincare products. It also makes my makeup lay down really well too. [...] When they first were teasing this on Instagram, I thought I had tried something similar, and then I bought it and tried it out and it's like no, this is not like anything that I've ever tried. It has ceramides in it as well."
Ok fine.. Let's try "strawberry girl" makeup 👁️👄👁️
"We're going to start off with prepping the skin. She used her Rhode Glazing Milk. I actually love this stuff, I love this stuff, it's so good. So I'm going to take a bit of this on my hands and just prep the skin. I've actually never applied makeup on top of this right after, like I've never prepped my skin for makeup with this, but I use it morning and night, so technically it's underneath my makeup, but I've never done it right before a tutorial, so I'm excited to see how it looks."
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"It makes my skin feel lightly exfoliated, a little more plump and hydrated. It doesn't strip the skin, and if you're wearing makeup, it does help kind of remove makeup as well. It's so beautiful, so good. Now that Rhode is available at Sephora, I wanted to recommend this to anyone who wants a little bit of an essence to go into their skincare routine. I love this one, the Glazing Milk from Rhode. I would say this is the one I use maybe more frequently, and [...] this one is a staple. [...] If you haven't tried it, it would be a great time to try it. It's a great thing to incorporate into your morning and evening skincare routine, and it also works great underneath makeup. It also works great paired with dream cream, that's what I've been doing before makeup a lot."
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"This is a holy grail product for me. This is from the brand Rhode, this is their Glazing Milk. I love this formula so much, you guys have seen me use it time and time again. It has the most beautiful texture and it gives really great lightweight moisture. It plumps up the skin, soothes the skin, and adds a really, really nice glow as well. Something I also love doing with this is adding it all over the body, I feel like that's something that depending on your neckline can really help you just look healthy and make your makeup look better. It works great underneath makeup, you can also mix it into makeup, but honestly I just usually use it as a toner before moisturizer, and it's one of my all-time favorite things, especially with the drier months coming up. Fall and winter is when my skin really just kind of shrivels up, so it's important to add a little boost of hydration. In the summertime you can sometimes even use this on its own if you just want a really lightweight layer of moisture, but I love layering it with my moisturizer."
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"I'm going to start things off with the Rhode Glazing Milk. I love this stuff. I feel like their skin care is so good, and honestly I would recommend this to anybody just wanting a good solid routine that's easy to remember, easy to stick to, that's also not going to break the bank. I feel like their price point is really good, to where you feel like you're not overdoing it, but you're also investing a little bit more in higher quality and effective ingredients. The glazing milk just sinks into the skin, and because it's an essence it helps prep the skin for more products going in. I love that about Rhode too, they work really well underneath makeup, so if you're stumped on a good line to try out that would work for any age, any skin type, and work underneath makeup, I really love Rhode products."
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"This is the Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence. It just sinks into the skin and really helps to hydrate any dry flakiness. I feel like it just balances the skin, and it works so well underneath makeup, that's one thing I do know about this. I feel like it just adds a nice glow and really, really plumps the skin, which also helps your skin look healthier and in turn helps your makeup look like you have healthy skin, because it just sinks into the products underneath."
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"The Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence is my most used essence this year, and I've used it since it launched. It's phenomenal and I will never not use it."
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"For a toner today I used the Rhode Glazing Milk. It's something I know won't break me out, and I also brought it down onto my neck and chest."
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"The Rhode glazing milk is one of my all-time favorite skincare products, something I genuinely can't live without. If there's one thing from the skincare lineup that I think you need to try, it's this. It's a holy grail product for me and it deserves an award time and time again. I love it."
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"This is one of my favorite discoveries of the year. I have never tried anything like this formula, this is the Rhode Glazing Milk and boy is it phenomenal. You can use this however you want really, I use it as my toner before applying moisturizer, but I also love applying it all over the body before my body moisturizer, especially on the neck and chest, it leaves the most beautiful glow all over the skin. I actually just did my new sister-in-law, she just got married to my brother-in-law, I did her makeup for her wedding and we used this on her body as a body glow, I mixed in a little bit of a liquid highlighter and put it all over her skin and her skin looked like it was glowing from within. The nice thing is it sinks into the skin so it doesn't leave your body feeling sticky if you do use it on the body, and it's phenomenal obviously on the face as well. Out of almost everything that I have in this video, I feel like this is something that everybody should try, it's just such a cool formula, I don't think I'll ever be able to live without it honestly."
~Skip
"Rhode sent me just a little mini of the viral glazing milk essence, and it's fine, it's fine. I think Rhode is just one of the most overhyped brands I've ever seen, when I tried their products I was just kind of baffled that they were so popular. I think Cycler's essence is just as good."
~Approved
"Sometimes I'll get a little crazy with the hydration where I'll use the Rhode Glazing Milk. [...] Everybody has these beautiful essences because I think we did the right thing by taking on some of these K-beauty steps, essences are beautiful. I prefer an essence over a hydrating serum any day because I find that with a hydrating serum you have to dampen your face first, whereas the essence just puts it together."
~Approved
"I love using this because it keeps the under eyes hydrated but allows your concealer to still set in place. If you don't have access to Prequel, something like the Rhode Glazing Milk would work really well here."
~Approved
"I'm going to use the Rhode Glazing Milk first, this is so good. I'm going to get that on my fingertips and take my time rubbing that into my skin. The formula is really interesting, it's really slippy to begin with but the more you rub it into your skin and really massage it, it starts to get a bit tackier, and taking the time to make sure the product gets a chance to do that makes all the difference when you're going in on top with foundation. It's just a nice hydrating layer, especially good if you've got dry skin."
All 2 takes from Jamie Genevieve
A BIG GORGEOUS GLAM MAKEUP TUTORIAL | JAMIE GENEVIEVE
"I'm going to use the Rhode Glazing Milk first, this is so good. I'm going to get that on my fingertips and take my time rubbing that into my skin. The formula is really interesting, it's really slippy to begin with but the more you rub it into your skin and really massage it, it starts to get a bit tackier, and taking the time to make sure the product gets a chance to do that makes all the difference when you're going in on top with foundation. It's just a nice hydrating layer, especially good if you've got dry skin."
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"I'm just going to start with the Rhode Glazing Milk, I spoke about this before, I really like it. For a product that doesn't feel like much when it's going on, like it's nothing too special almost, it's really nice."
~Approved
"I love a bit of Rhode, I love the Rhode milk, it's lovely. Yeah, they've done well, I think clever, clever marketing, good marketing team. The formulas are lovely, and she's going to people that know formula, like Ron Robinson and Beyond."
All 2 takes from Caroline Hirons
Glad We Had This Chat Takes New York - Katie Jane Hughes
"I love a bit of Rhode, I love the Rhode milk, it's lovely. Yeah, they've done well, I think clever, clever marketing, good marketing team. The formulas are lovely, and she's going to people that know formula, like Ron Robinson and Beyond."
S2 Ep22: GLAD WE HAD THIS CHAT TAKES NEW YORK: Katie Jane Hughes
"I love Rhode. The Glazing Milk is lovely. They've done well, I think, clever marketing, good marketing, but the formulas are lovely too. She's going to people that know formula, like Ron Robinson and Beyond."
~Skip
"I would really say you can get a Korean toner for $15 and you would be just fine I don't think this is worth the money"
Translated from the guru's original language.
~Mixed
"This is a milky toner that I absolutely wanted to love, however it is more on the thicker side of milky toners, so as somebody with a very oily T-zone I just found this maybe a bit too on the moisturizing side, and it also broke me out a fair bit, but compared to other milky toners it hasn't got that much more going for it, [...] though objectively I think it's nice and I see why people enjoyed this."
All 3 takes from James Welsh
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"Do I think this is going to help my skin? I absolutely do. It's been doing a great job so far. Whilst I do think this isn't the best milky toner out there, as I mentioned, there are Korean alternatives that I think are much more affordable, and you also get lighter weight milky toners which do essentially the same thing. I do think this is a really, really good one if, A, you want to support the brand, and two, you have slightly drier, dehydrated skin. I really think you'll love this. I'm going to finish it up. Would I buy another one? I think I actually would, to be honest with you. This and the lip product I think are probably the best products from their full range."
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"I at first really loved the Rhode Glazing Milk, though I find their actual skincare just fine. It is a milky toner, but it is a little thicker than the nice milky toners we are used to from K beauty, and it was just a bit too heavy. If you are oily or like to layer products in a multi step routine it is maybe too much, so I actually finished it up on my body, which drank it up."
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"This is a milky toner that I absolutely wanted to love, however it is more on the thicker side of milky toners, so as somebody with a very oily T-zone I just found this maybe a bit too on the moisturizing side, and it also broke me out a fair bit, but compared to other milky toners it hasn't got that much more going for it, [...] though objectively I think it's nice and I see why people enjoyed this."
~Approved
"The only other thing that I use when I'm having a flare-up of perioral dermatitis would be our Rhode Glazing Milk. It's super gentle, it helps calm the skin, it doesn't irritate it any further."
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"This contains that same trio of ceramides, the skin identical lipid concentrate. This is ceramide MP, AP, and EOP, so we know that this is very hydrating. It also contains a blend of magnesium, zinc, and copper, so an antioxidant complex, vitamin E, another antioxidant, and then glycerin, which is a humectant. So this reads to me as a very simple, no frills, no fuss hydrating serum. I think the main benefit of this is that it will help your skin stay hydrated. This doesn't contain any actives that I think would help you with any of your problem areas, like there's no vitamin C, azelaic acid, niacinamide. But again, I don't think that's the purpose of this product. I think this is purely a hydration product. And so if you feel like your skin is dry, if you need a little boost of hydration for your morning routine, I think this is a fine staple. Would I use it personally? I personally like my hydrating step to also contain some actives that can treat some of my problems, [...] so I kind of like multitaskers that not only hydrate but also do other things as well. But if you're someone who just needs a little bit of hydration, I think this is a fine product for you."
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"The only other thing that I use when I'm having a flare-up of perioral dermatitis would be our Rhode Glazing Milk. It's super gentle, it helps calm the skin, it doesn't irritate it any further."
~Approved
"This is one of my holy cards. [...] I love it, it's so milky, it is so hydrating. The girl can make some product, I have to say. [...] Do a little shake, I always give it a shimmy. [...] It's quite watery, but not runny, [...] it's somewhere in there, it's quite rich, so medium, you know. Nothing's knocked it off. [...] I use this in the morning."
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All 2 takes from Skin Obsessed Mary
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"This is one of my holy cards. [...] I love it, it's so milky, it is so hydrating. The girl can make some product, I have to say. [...] Do a little shake, I always give it a shimmy. [...] It's quite watery, but not runny, [...] it's somewhere in there, it's quite rich, so medium, you know. Nothing's knocked it off. [...] I use this in the morning."
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"So it contains ceramides, which are fundamental to our skin's barrier, and it also helps to strengthen it and to retain moisture. It has antioxidants to protect against free radicals. It has a blend of magnesium, zinc, and copper, which are there to soothe the skin and also have antibacterial properties. Plus it has beta glucan, which is a humectant that can soothe the skin and also hydrate, so it can give a little bit more of that plumping effect. In my opinion this texture is perfection. Now a lot of the essences I use are kind of more on the watery side, so they're kind of hard to control and they're running around your hands, but this is a little bit thicker and it has a little bit more of a hang on, I guess, and I find it so incredibly soothing. I keep mine in my little fridge, so when I put that on it gives an immediate cooling effect. If you have irritated skin or kind of heated skin, you might find that a really good combination. Starting off with clean skin, the first thing that I will always do is spritz, I like to get that additional layer of hydration, I'm always using my Neom mist here, and then you give the bottle a shake and then you pour some of that product into the hand and you kind of swipe it or press it into the skin, and immediately my skin feels bouncy, it feels hydrated, and it feels plump. So what I can say after my few weeks of using this, I'm officially obsessed with this product, and I can tell you right now that when it's gone I'm buying a new one. It's just doing incredible things for my skin."
~Approved
"I always go in with Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence. I like to do a pretty generous amount of this because it just soaks right into the skin and gets the skin really dewy and hydrated and glazed. I love the first step. A lot of times when you apply makeup after a while it starts creasing, mostly because skin is really dehydrated, so applying this hydrating essence before applying makeup is really really nice, and essences are even lighter than serums."
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Common questions

Frequently asked.

What is Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence?

A lightweight hydrating essence containing ceramides and glycerin, intended for use as an early step in skincare routines to hydrate skin and prepare it for subsequent products including makeup.

Is Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence worth it?

The gurus are split. 10 of the 16 gurus give it their stamp of approval while 2 would skip it, which lands it in the middle at a Guru Score of 71%.

What is Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence's Guru Score?

Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence holds a Guru Score of 71%. That is our read on how warmly the experts talk about it, based on the verdicts of 16 expert reviewers we have collected. At least one expert has named it a Top Pick in its category.

Who is Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence best for?

Rhode Glazing Milk Ceramide Facial Essence is generally suited to dry skin and sensitive skin.

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