Best Pregnancy Skincare Brands 2026: Our Gentle Edit
Our edit of the best pregnancy skincare brands for 2026, chosen from the brands Botā stocks: African Botanics, 100% Pure and Little Butterfly London. Gentle body oil and face care for stretch marks, dry skin and the months after birth. Talk it through with your midwife or doctor.
9 min read
Pregnancy skincare does not need to be complicated. A few gentle, well-made products, chosen with your midwife or doctor, go a long way.
A GENTLE EDIT FOR PREGNANCY AND POSTPARTUM
African Botanics: a body oil made for stretching skin
African Botanics is a skincare brand built around botanical oils. For pregnancy, the product to know is its Stretchmark Botanical Body Oil.
The brand describes this oil as suitable for use during pregnancy and postpartum, and as designed to support skin as it stretches and changes. It blends organic marula, rosehip and baobab oils with jojoba and avocado. The brand describes baobab as highly emollient, which means it softens and hydrates dry skin. The blend leaves skin feeling soft and supple.
The brand is also honest about the limits. It says no topical skincare can completely remove stretch marks. Stretch marks are very common in pregnancy, and whether you get them is not something skincare decides. What a daily massage can do is keep skin comfortable, help it feel less tight and itchy, and give you a few quiet minutes to yourself.
How to use it:
+ Warm a few drops between your palms.
+ Massage slowly over the bump, breasts, hips and thighs, morning, evening or both.
+ Many people find it most welcome from the second trimester, when skin starts to stretch faster.
Best for: body care through pregnancy and after the birth, dry or tight-feeling skin, and anyone who wants an unhurried daily ritual.
Pregnancy skincare does not need to be complicated. A few gentle products, chosen with your midwife or doctor, are enough.
100% Pure: gentle face care for sensitive days
100% Pure is not a pregnancy brand, and it does not market these products for pregnancy. We include it because many people want a gentler, simpler face routine while pregnant, and these three products are easy to build around. Take the full ingredient list of each to your midwife or doctor before you start.
+ Calendula Flower Cleansing Milk. A soft cleansing milk with calendula, chamomile and rose. It removes make-up without a tight, stripped feeling, which suits skin that has become more reactive.
+ Rose Hyaluronic Acid Serum. Hyaluronic acid in rosewater. Hyaluronic acid holds water in the skin, so this serum hydrates and helps skin look plumper and dewier.
+ Coffee Bean Caffeine Eye Cream. A light eye cream for mornings when broken sleep shows around the eyes.
Best for: a short, gentle face routine, dry or sensitive-feeling skin, and days when you want fewer steps, not more.
Our edit: African Botanics for the body, 100% Pure for a gentle face routine, and Little Butterfly London for calm bedtimes after the birth.
Little Butterfly London: for the months after the birth
Little Butterfly London makes organic care for babies and mothers. Its Fall Into Dreams Mother & Children Massage Oil is an organic massage oil with lavender and chamomile, made for a slow bedtime massage.
We place it in the months after the birth rather than in pregnancy. It is a lovely way to share a calm bedtime ritual with your baby, and a gentle oil for your own dry skin. Essential oils such as lavender are worth checking with your midwife or doctor, both in pregnancy and while your baby is very small.
The same brand makes the Dewdrops At Dawn Baby Body Lotion and other baby care in our Baby & Mamas collection, so you can keep one familiar brand for you and your baby.
Best for: postpartum bedtime rituals, baby massage, and a softer end to the day.
What to look for in any pregnancy skincare brand
Whatever brand you choose, a few simple checks help.
+ Read the full ingredient list, not just the front of the pack. Words like "natural" or "gentle" do not tell you what is inside.
+ Retinoids, including retinol, are commonly advised against in pregnancy. If a face product lists retinol, retinal or retinyl palmitate, ask your midwife or doctor before using it.
+ Fragrance and essential oils can feel different on pregnant skin. Patch test new products on a small area first.
+ Look at what the brand itself says. Some brands state that a product is suitable during pregnancy or breastfeeding. That is the brand's own statement, and it is still worth checking with your midwife or doctor.
+ Fewer products is often kinder. Skin can feel more sensitive in pregnancy, and a short routine is easier to keep up when you are tired.
+ If you use a prescription treatment, check with your doctor or pharmacist before adding anything new.
A simple routine using these brands
You do not need a long routine. This is one gentle way to put these products together.
Face (morning)
1 - 100% Pure Calendula Flower Cleansing Milk, or simply rinse with water.
2 - 100% Pure Rose Hyaluronic Acid Serum on damp skin.
3 - Your usual moisturiser.
4 - A broad-spectrum sunscreen every day. Sun can make pigmentation such as melasma look darker, so daily sun protection matters in pregnancy.
Face (evening)
1 - 100% Pure Calendula Flower Cleansing Milk to remove sunscreen and make-up.
2 - 100% Pure Rose Hyaluronic Acid Serum.
3 - 100% Pure Coffee Bean Caffeine Eye Cream.
4 - Your usual moisturiser.
Body (morning and evening)
+ African Botanics Stretchmark Botanical Body Oil on the bump, breasts, hips and thighs.
After the birth
+ Keep going with the African Botanics body oil for skin that is still changing.
+ Little Butterfly London Fall Into Dreams Mother & Children Massage Oil for a calm bedtime massage, once your midwife or doctor is happy for you to use it with your baby.
If you are breastfeeding, keep products off the nipple area unless the brand says a product is made for it, and ask your midwife if you are unsure.
Where to spend and where to keep it simple
Where a good product earns its place:
+ Body oil. You will use it every day for months, on a large area of skin, so it is worth choosing one you enjoy using.
+ Sunscreen. Daily protection is one of the simplest things you can do for pigmentation.
Where to keep it simple:
+ Cleanser. A gentle cleansing milk or plain water is enough for most skin.
+ Extra steps. Serums, masks and treatments can wait. A short routine you keep up is better than a long one you skip.
+ Body lotion for areas away from the bump. Any gentle, fragrance-free cream you already like will do.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is no single best brand for everyone. It depends on what you need. From the brands we stock, we reach for African Botanics for body care, as the brand describes its Stretchmark Botanical Body Oil as suitable during pregnancy and postpartum. We like 100% Pure for a short, gentle face routine and Little Butterfly London for the months after the birth. Talk any new product through with your midwife or doctor.
No product can promise that. Stretch marks are very common in pregnancy, and even African Botanics says no topical skincare can completely remove them. What a good body oil can do is keep skin soft, comfortable and less itchy as it stretches, and a daily massage is a calming ritual. If your skin is very itchy or sore, ask your midwife or doctor.
African Botanics describes its Stretchmark Botanical Body Oil as suitable during pregnancy and postpartum. The other brands here do not make a breastfeeding statement for these products. Keep products away from the nipple area unless they are made for it, and check with your midwife or doctor.
Retinoids, including retinol, are commonly advised against in pregnancy. Guidance on some other ingredients varies, so the simplest step is to take the full ingredient list of anything you use to your midwife or doctor. Our guide to skincare ingredients in pregnancy explains the general guidance in more detail.
African Botanics, 100% Pure and Little Butterfly London are all available at Botā. You will find our pregnancy and baby edit in the Baby & Mamas collection.
Many people keep much of their usual routine. It is worth checking your products with your midwife or doctor, especially anything with retinoids. A body oil for the bump is where many people like to add something new.
Your pregnancy skincare shortlist
Our gentle edit of the best pregnancy skincare brands comes down to three names we stock: African Botanics for the body, 100% Pure for a short and gentle face routine, and Little Butterfly London for calm bedtimes after the birth. Choose what feels good on your skin, keep the routine short, and wear sunscreen every day.
Read this with our guide to skincare ingredients in pregnancy, our pregnancy skincare routine, trimester by trimester, and our retinol and pregnancy guide.
Every pregnancy is different. Talk any new product through with your midwife or doctor, and see them about anything on your skin that is persistent, painful or worrying.
