First Aid Beauty Skincare Guide: What to Buy for Your Skin Type

First Aid Beauty, or FAB, is a US skincare brand made for dry, sensitive and easily irritated skin, and it is best known for Ultra Repair Cream with colloidal oatmeal. Lilli Gordon founded it in 2009, and Procter & Gamble has owned it since 2018. For most people the core buys are the Ultra Gentle Pure Skin Face Cleanser, a moisturizer matched to skin type, and one of its two face sunscreens.

If you are comparing FAB jars on a shelf, you can scan the barcode or photograph the label with the ingredient scanner in Pori to check the formula against your skin type. Pori points out ingredients to watch; it does not diagnose skin conditions.

This guide covers who owns FAB, what the brand is known for, its main face-care lines, which products suit which skin type, prices and the caveats. We compared published ingredient lists, brand claims and listed prices; we did not test these products on skin. Prices are Ulta list prices as of November 2026.

Who owns First Aid Beauty?

Procter & Gamble. P&G bought the brand in July 2018. The price was not disclosed, and press reports put it at about $250 million. At the time, FAB was nine years old and sold online, at Sephora and at Ulta Beauty. Founder Lilli Gordon stayed on to run it after the deal.

The brand now has its own CEO, Catherine D'Aragon. In January 2026 FAB announced a major rebrand alongside a deal to be the official skincare of Team USA for the Milano Cortina Winter Games. Part of that refresh shows up on shelves as new names: the Pure Skin Face Cleanser is now sold as the Ultra Gentle Pure Skin Face Cleanser, for example. Check names carefully so you don't buy the same formula twice.

What is First Aid Beauty known for?

FAB built its name on one tub. Ultra Repair Cream is a rich cream labeled with 0.5% colloidal oatmeal as an over-the-counter skin protectant, with shea butter, squalane and ceramide NP. It carries the National Eczema Association Seal of Acceptance. Our full review covers the formula, the eucalyptus oil question and face-versus-body use, so we won't repeat it here.

The rest of the range follows the same idea: soothing ingredients such as oatmeal, allantoin and licorice root, ceramides for the barrier, and texture that leans creamy. The brand has also grown a set of treatment pads, a niacinamide brightening line and two sunscreens. Not every product is as gentle as the flagship. Some pads contain essential oils, and several newer products make no fragrance-free claim at all, so the label matters more than the brand's sensitive-skin reputation.

What are First Aid Beauty's main face-care lines?

• Ultra Repair: the oatmeal family. Ultra Repair Cream, Ultra Repair Face Lotion, Rescue Barrier Balm, Firming Day and Night Creams, a Retinol Serum, a Hydration Boost Serum, an Oat Milk Essence and two eye creams.
• Ultra Gentle cleansers: the Pure Skin Face Cleanser and the Cream-to-Foam Face Cleanser.
• Brighten + Glow: a niacinamide dark spot serum, an exfoliating gel cleanser with AHA and a niacinamide eye cream.
• Pads: Facial Radiance Pads with glycolic and lactic acids, and Acne Clearing Pads with 2% salicylic acid.
• Moisturizers for oilier skin: Hydrating Dewy Gel Cream and Daily Resurfacing Moisturizer with 2% niacinamide.
• Sunscreen: Hydrating Sunscreen Milk SPF 45 and Ultra Light Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30.

Which First Aid Beauty products suit my skin type?

Dry or sensitive skin

Start with the Ultra Gentle Pure Skin Face Cleanser. Ulta describes it as fragrance-free, and its ingredient list is built on sodium cocoyl isethionate, a mild cleansing agent, with glycerin, allantoin, aloe and licorice root extract. Ulta lists it from $12 for a 2 oz travel tube to $34 for 8 oz. Our guide to cleansers for sensitive skin compares it with drugstore options.

For moisture, Ultra Repair Cream is the rich choice. If a heavy cream feels like too much on your face, the Ultra Repair Face Lotion ($28 for 1.7 oz) is the lighter sibling. It lists colloidal oatmeal, shea butter, avocado oil and ceramide NP, Ulta notes it is fragrance-free, and the brand calls it non-comedogenic. For cracked or chapped patches, the Rescue Barrier Balm ($39) uses 1% dimethicone as its protectant.

Oily or combination skin

The Hydrating Dewy Gel Cream ($38 for 1.9 oz) is the one FAB pitches for oily and combination skin. It pairs hyaluronic acid, ceramides, niacinamide and squalane, and is labeled non-comedogenic. The page makes no fragrance-free claim. The Daily Resurfacing Moisturizer ($30 for 1 oz) is lighter still, with 2% niacinamide, ceramide NP and a little lactic acid, and FAB aims it at acne-prone skin. Neither has SPF.

Acne-prone skin

The Acne Clearing Pads ($39 for 60) carry 2% salicylic acid, the top over-the-counter strength. The catch is the rest of the list: rosemary leaf oil, tea tree leaf oil and cinnamon bark extract. If essential oils sting you, a fragrance-free salicylic acid product is a safer start; our face wash for acne guide lists some.

Dull skin, dark spots and fine lines

The Facial Radiance Pads ($39 for 60) exfoliate with glycolic and lactic acids. FAB calls the percentages proprietary, so you can't compare strength with other AHA products. The label carries a sunburn alert, which the FDA recommends for AHA products, so wear sunscreen while you use them. Read how often to exfoliate before using them twice a day as the directions allow. For dark spots, the Brighten + Glow Dark Spot Serum ($49) is built around niacinamide.

For lines, the Ultra Repair Retinol Serum ($49 for 1 oz) uses a 0.3% retinol complex, a mix of retinol and retinyl propionate, with a peptide. FAB pitches it as gentle enough for sensitive skin. Any retinoid can still cause dryness at first, so start two or three nights a week; retinol for beginners has the full plan.

Which First Aid Beauty sunscreen should I use?

FAB sells two face sunscreens at $38 each, and they are very different.

• Ultra Light Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30 (1.5 oz): 22% zinc oxide as the only filter, with a sheer tint. It is labeled non-comedogenic and safe for sensitive skin. The better pick if chemical filters sting you.
• Hydrating Sunscreen Milk SPF 45 (1.7 oz): a chemical formula with avobenzone 3%, homosalate 7%, octisalate 5% and octocrylene 9%, plus colloidal oatmeal. With no zinc oxide, it is less likely to leave a white cast on deeper skin tones. A few Ulta reviewers mention stinging near the eyes.

Both meet the American Academy of Dermatology advice of broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher. As with any sunscreen, the number on the label assumes a full layer; see how much sunscreen to use.

Is First Aid Beauty worth the price?

FAB sits between drugstore and luxury. Ultra Repair Cream lists from $20 for 2 oz up to $66 for the largest size at Ulta, which is several times the price per ounce of a drugstore ceramide cream such as CeraVe Moisturizing Cream. What you pay extra for is the 0.5% colloidal oatmeal active, the texture and the NEA seal. If those matter to you, it is a fair buy. If you just need a plain, fragrance-free rich cream, the drugstore option does a similar job. Our drugstore vs luxury skincare guide explains where the extra money tends to go.

What should I watch out for with First Aid Beauty?

• Essential oils in a "sensitive" brand. Ultra Repair Cream contains a small amount of eucalyptus oil, and the Acne Clearing Pads contain rosemary and tea tree oils. Our guide to fragrance and essential oils explains why that matters for reactive skin.
• No fragrance-free claim on several newer products. The pads, the Dewy Gel Cream and both sunscreens don't make one on Ulta. Read the ingredient list or ask the brand.
• Undisclosed acid strengths. The Facial Radiance Pads don't list their glycolic or lactic acid percentages.
• Renamed and retired products. After the 2026 rebrand, some names changed, and the red clay deep cleanser no longer appears in Ulta's FAB lineup. Match the product to its ingredient list, not its old name.
• Formula changes. Several Ulta reviewers say the Face Lotion's scent or feel changed over time. If an old favorite suddenly stings, compare the new label with the old one.
• Too many exfoliants at once. Radiance Pads, Acne Clearing Pads and the Retinol Serum in the same week is a lot. Add one active at a time, as in how to introduce new products.

Is First Aid Beauty good for eczema-prone skin?

Ultra Repair Cream is the strongest fit. It is listed in the National Eczema Association's Seal of Acceptance directory, and colloidal oatmeal is an FDA-recognized skin protectant. The fragrance-free Pure Skin cleanser pairs well with it. Treatment products such as the acid pads and the retinol serum are a different matter, and they can aggravate eczema-prone skin. A moisturizer helps with dryness; it does not treat eczema, so a flare that keeps coming back needs a dermatologist. Our eczema on the face guide covers the basics.