The Best French Pharmacy Bodycare Products

When I started putting together my edit of the best French beauty, I realised I would have to split it into two parts—there are just too many incredible brands and products to cover. For all of your facial skin care needs please refer back to my first post here; as this one is going to be all about body care.

Why seek out French brands when it comes to body products, you might wonder? Well, all the good ingredients that I typically look for in facial products (soothing thermal water, niacinamide, ceramides, and so on) are typically also present in French pharmacy body care products, while the price remains reasonable. It’s not that easy to find products for the body formulated with as much care and as many skin beneficial ingredients as their face-bound counterparts. I’m including hair in this category too because there are some fantastic products that I think more people need to know about. With that in mind, let me introduce you to some of the very best French body care products I’ve found.

Body washes, shower oils, and scrubs

I don’t often welcome high levels of fragrance in my skincare for fear of irritation; it’s a different story when it comes to the (more robust) skin on my body. With many pharmacy body washes, you don’t need to compromise as the formulas smell incredible and are carefully created to respect your skin. Take this Caudalie Shower Gel Duo, which at only £12 is unbelievable value, especially considering how sophisticated the scents are (one is a blend of musk, ginger, and neroli flower while the other is a pink peppercorn and rose pairing). Plus, they’re soap free, meaning they won’t dry out your skin.

For seriously dry and sensitive skin (or anyone looking for an alternative to shaving foams and gels), there are shower oils, like this Bioderma and Avene. They’re completely soap-free and highly moisturising, gently cleansing your skin without stripping the natural oils, much like an oil cleanser for the face. Use them for shaving too to get an incredibly close shave and moisturised skin in one fell swoop. Finally, let’s talk body scrubs. I’ll be honest that I don’t use one every time I shower (who has the time, right?) though I find that a weekly treatment gives me the smooth skin I’m looking for while preventing and treating small bumps and pesky ingrown hairs. As a wine lover, I find myself enjoying Caudalie’s Crushed Cabernet Scrub a lot; it’s full of grape-derived antioxidants and gentle brown sugar particles, while Nuxe’s Reve de Miel Scrub is even more luxurious, thanks to the inclusion of honey and argan oil.

Shop UK & EU

Shop USA

Lotions and oils

I want my body creams and oils to be as efficacious and elegant as the formulas I use on my face. However, I don’t want them to cost the same! That’s why I turn to French pharmacy body products. One of the best all-rounder lotions, in my opinion, is this Uriage Xémose Emollient Milk; it’s light and soothing thanks to shea butter, raspberry seed and borage oils, packaged in a convenient pump bottle (always a positive) and fragrance-free too. Hyaluronic acid features alongside glycerin and niacinamide in Bioderma’s cream, perfect for smoothing skin texture and hydrating deeply.

One of my favourite summer multitaskers is a dry oil and both the Nuxe and Caudalie are cult classics. I love to wear them after a day at the beach or the pool to give the skin a light sheen and I rub whatever’s left on my palms into my hair too. The scent of both is addictive, so you’re really getting a head-to-toe treat.

Shop UK & EU

Shop USA

Hand creams

With all the extra hand-washing I’ve been doing for the past four months, I’ve definitely had to step up my hand care game. It feels a little bit extra but I think having a few hand creams helps. For everyday use I like something light and fast absorbing, like Uriage Thermal Water Hand Cream, as I hate feeling like there’s a film on my hands while I work. At night-time however I love applying a luxurious and rich balm to work its magic as I sleep; La Roche Posay’s Cicaplast Soothing Hand Cream is one of the best I’ve found for taking care of dry, over-washed hands. Finally, let’s talk hands and SPF. Our hands are exposed to the sun all the time and could use a little extra protection. I always apply the remnants of my facial SPF to the back of my hands in the morning but it inevitably gets washed away thirty minutes later; now I try to carry Vichy’s Hand and Nail SPF15 cream in my handbag to hydrate and protect my hands throughout the day.

Shop UK & EU

Shop USA

Shampoos

The French pharmacy is well-known for body and face care treasures, but I’ve found that fewer people realise how many fantastic hair products are available there too. The skin on our scalp usually functions like the skin on our face, meaning that those with dry facial skin typically have a dry scalp and those with oily skin find their hair getting oily faster too. There are two dedicated hair brands you need to know about: Klorane and Phyto. Both use a mixture of active botanical ingredients and science to create great hair products that centre the health of the scalp. Klorane also makes one of the best dry shampoos in the world, as well tinted versions to help minimise white cast. Phyto was founded by the inventor of the blow-dry, Patrick Alès, so you know you’re in safe hands with the brand’s products. Their Phytojoba Moisturising Shampoo is a good place to start, it’s gently cleansing and deeply hydrating while helping to strengthen hair with continued use. You’ll find conditioners that match many of the shampoos mentioned linked in the next carousel.

Shop UK & EU

Shop USA

Conditioners and masks

I see hair masks and treatments the same way I do body scrubs, they’re a lovely treat when I have the time to do one, which isn’t as often as I’d like. Thankfully, even infrequent treatments make a lot of difference to how my hair feels and looks, so I like to keep a few around and select one based on hair needs now and then. When my hair is feeling brittle and unmanageable, there’s nothing like Phyto’s Hydrating Oil Treatment; using it is a whole ritual and a lovely way to really pamper yourself - I’m all about the self-care. To remove product build-up and give my scalp a deep cleanse, I reach for Phyto’s Detox Pre-Shampoo Mask, which uses ghassoul clay, eucalyptus oil, and burdock extract to draw out impurities and really clean the scalp. I’ll sometimes swap out my usual conditioner for a mask when I’m in a rush but still in need of extra nourishment, reaching either for Klorane’s Desert Date mask (it contains keratin) or Vichy’s Dercos Nutri Protein Mask, with quinoa extract, to get the job done.