Cream to Help Reduce Scars | What Actually Works

For the full breakdown, see our best Cream For Spot Scars guide.

If you’re looking for a cream to help reduce scars, the honest answer is that no OTC product erases them completely. What a good scar cream can do is meaningfully improve redness, texture, thickness, and overall visibility — and the evidence points squarely at silicone as the ingredient that works best.

Timing matters more than which brand you buy. Scar creams work best on newer scars that are still changing, started within the first year after the wound heals. Here’s what dermatologists and health authorities actually say about making scar creams work.

What Scar Creams Can And Can’t Do

Scar creams improve appearance; they don’t remove the scar. The realistic outcomes are reduced redness, softer texture, less thickness, and fewer visible irregularities.

The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) notes that scars fade slowly, and the NHS says this can take up to 2 years or more. OTC products work alongside that natural process rather than replacing it.

• What they help: newer scars, surgical scars, injury scars, and some raised scars.
• What they won’t do: erase deep scars, flatten mature keloids, or reverse years of scar tissue.
• The honest limit: benefit drops sharply for scars older than a year, where professional treatment outperforms creams.

Silicone Is The Ingredient That Works

Dermatology sources consistently identify silicone as the best-supported OTC option. It comes as a gel, sheet, or ointment and works by creating a protective layer over the scar that reduces redness, thickness, hardness, and itch.

It’s the ingredient dermatologists most often recommend for first-line OTC use.

Other ingredients appear in many products but have weaker support. The AAD specifically notes that evidence for onion extract is limited, and research on vitamin A and vitamin E is thin. Allantoin appears in some gels to moisturize, but it doesn’t have silicone’s track record.

How To Use Scar Cream Correctly

Using a cream to help reduce scars correctly matters as much as choosing the right one. Start only after the wound is fully closed, the scab has fallen off naturally, and the skin beneath is healed.

1. Clean and dry the area before each application.
2. Apply as directed on the label — more frequent use doesn’t speed healing.

One more safeguard: keep scars out of the sun.

When To See A Dermatologist Instead

Scar creams have limits, and knowing when professional care beats at-home treatment saves you time and money. A dermatologist should evaluate scars that are raised, painful, very itchy, growing, or limiting movement.

The AAD lists pressure therapy, silicone, steroid injections, lasers, cryotherapy, and scar surgery as medical options for problem scars. Keloids, in particular, often resist OTC treatment entirely — dermatologist-monitored care typically outperforms cream alone for these stubborn scars.

One final note: silicone products are safe for most people, but stop using any scar cream if it irritates your skin. The right cream, used consistently on a fully healed scar, is a legitimate step toward less visible scarring — just don’t expect a miracle in a tube. AAD’s scar treatment overview offers the same guidance dermatologists give their own patients.