The Differences Between BB, CC and DD Cream

I don’t usually wear makeup, mainly because I don’t like the idea of painting my face with colourful liquid and cream (and whatever). Besides, I always got confused by the endless number of cosmetic products in the market. However, I noticed that BB cream has becoming very popular in the market and among my friends so I decided to Google it up. It seems that BB cream is very useful and there are many tips for beginners like myself to start using in.

BB cream was developed in the 60s by a Germany dermatologist and it was not until 2011 that it becomes popular in the market. Then it came the CC cream, usually stands for ‘Colour Control’ or ‘Colour Correcting’, which was also a commercial success, unsurprisingly, we have the follow up DD and EE cream. However, most couldn’t tell the difference between these creams, so I decided to write this article and let’s play the ‘Learn the Alphabet Cream’ game.

BB cream

BB cream was developed by a Germany dermatologist to protect skin and coverage after laser treatment. The word BB stands for ‘Beauty Balm’ and ‘Blemish Balm’ or ‘Beblesh Balm’. It is a multipurpose product that gives you the benefits of primer, foundation, moisturizer and sometimes sun blocks.

They are a god sent for the busy traveller and busy ladies as it reduce the number of cosmetics products that you need to carry, not to mention the time saved by using just one cream to replace a few of them. Contradict to common believes, survey shows that 86% of ladies spent less than 15 min on their makeup (so that we can have more time outside!), which is why multipurpose product like BB cream was such as hit in the market.

BB creams are best for women with normal skin that don't require a lot of coverage and suitable for Asian female skin. Other than this, it can also whiten your face and covers the aging are most welcome by the ladies.  

However, BB cream is not without its shortcoming, one of it would be the limited choice of shades.  Normally there are three to maximum five different shades available for purchase. Mostly are fair-light, light-medium and medium-deep.

If you are in hurry and rushing to work or a small get-together, BB cream can be your rescuer. Always keep in mind that you must let the cream settle down. Apply and wait for at least 20 minutes before you go out. It’s perfect for lazy day and daily sun protection.

CC cream

CC cream stands for ‘Complete Correction’, ‘Colour Correction’ and also ‘Colour Control Cream’.

CC cream is an all-in-one make up and skin care product came after BB cream formula packed with higher SPF, moisturizer and anti-aging ingredients. All of these contribute to reducing redness, shallowness and balance the uneven skin tone.

The difference between BB and CC cream is not great but the latter is light and easy absorb by the skin, and it is this feature that makes it popular among the ladies.

Besides that, SPF of CC cream is higher than BB cream which helps to protect from aging, wrinkles and also has the colour correction to balance the uneven tone.  It also contain vitamin c and e that are absent in BB cream.

DD cream

DD cream stands for ‘Daily Defence’ and ‘Dynamic Do-All’. While BB creams contain primer, antioxidant protection, and SPF to standard tinted moisturizers and CC creams added colour-correcting ingredients into the mix, DD creams is the combination of BB and CC cream, which offers all those benefits with stronger anti-aging benefits to help smoothen skin and reduce fine lines. This make the DD cream selling like hot cakes.

Cream is generally even lighter in texture than the CC cream. Like the BB cream and the CC cream, the DD cream generally has brightening and anti-aging ingredients. But because of the “defence” aspect, you rarely find a DD cream without sunscreen.

The anti-aging specialty of the DD cream works to diminish wrinkles and fine lines throughout use. Additionally, DD cream has the effect of balancing skin tone and protects the most sensitive areas of your skin. DD cream's strongest selling point is their anti-aging benefits. If you're looking to reduce the appearance of wrinkles, this cream is for you.

At the end, each cream has the similar function where the difference are small. These alphabetical cream has become a trend in the beauty industry was because these cream was a convenient product and excellent time savers. Undenied truth they were great product and bring beneficial and enhancement for the skin and save time for the busy traveller.

Still confuse which cream to use? Just check the table below

Desired for more beautiful skin? Check out for this article which I listed the top 5 skin specilaists in KL and Selangor.