Niacinamide for skin: benefits, side effects and pregnancy

What niacinamide is

Niacinamide, also called nicotinamide, is the amide form of vitamin B3.¹ Niacin, the other form, is converted into niacinamide in the body.¹ On a label they are separate ingredients with separate names, so a serum that lists niacinamide is not a niacin serum.

In the body, vitamin B3 is used to make a family of coenzymes involved in cell energy.² On skin, researchers presume niacinamide helps by regulating the cells’ oxidative balance, but a 2021 review says no specific molecular target has been found.²

What it does for skin

The best evidence is for dark patches. In a 2002 study, a niacinamide moisturiser reduced facial hyperpigmentation and increased skin lightness compared with a plain moisturiser after four weeks.³ One trial used 5% niacinamide in 18 people. Another tested 2% niacinamide with sunscreen in 120 people.³ Both were small and short, so read the result as a signal, not a guarantee. Its authors work for a consumer-products company.³

In the lab, the same paper found niacinamide did not slow pigment production itself. It reduced the transfer of pigment from pigment-making cells to the skin cells above them.³

Reviews also point to benefits for the skin barrier, inflammation and signs of ageing. A 2021 review concludes that topical niacinamide, alone or with other actives, reduced the progression of ageing and hyperpigmentation in clinical trials.²

Acne is where the evidence is thinnest. A Cochrane review of topical acne treatments found four trials of nicotinamide. All compared it with an antibiotic, and none measured whether people felt their acne had improved.⁴ The review searched up to May 2019, so newer trials may exist, but it cannot say how well niacinamide works for acne.

Who it suits, and what to expect

Topical niacinamide has been studied for acne, melasma, atopic dermatitis and rosacea.¹ That tells you where researchers looked. It does not tell you it works equally well for each.

If dark spots are why you are buying it, expect weeks, not days. The main 2002 results were measured at four weeks.³

Product pages tend to advertise a percentage. The trials above used 2% and 5%, and did not compare higher strengths.³ They cannot tell you whether a 10% serum does more than a 5% one.

Side effects and tolerability

A 2021 review describes topically applied nicotinamide as well tolerated by skin.²

A 2014 review of nicotinamide in dermatology also covers the possible effects of excessive nicotinamide exposure.¹ If you take niacinamide as a supplement as well, mention it to your doctor.

Using niacinamide with other products

We did not find a source saying niacinamide has to be kept apart from another active. What exists is mostly small studies of finished products that contain it alongside other ingredients.

Those studies test one product. They do not show what happens when you layer two products you bought separately, so read each row as what has been tried, not as proof of a good match.

Niacinamide in pregnancy and breastfeeding

No pregnancy-specific evidence is not the same as safe, or as unsafe.

Niacinamide is a form of vitamin B3, which is also sold as a nutritional supplement.² That tells you what it is. It is not evidence about using a serum while pregnant.

Evidence on cosmetic products in pregnancy is limited overall, so ask your doctor or midwife about the specific product you use.⁸

What you will see on the label

Niacinamide may be written as niacinamide or nicotinamide. “Vitamin B3” turns up in marketing, but it can also mean niacin, so look for the actual name in the ingredient list.¹

Snifff shows niacinamide as Risk-free, the lowest of its four ingredient levels. For the rest of the formula, see what the score means and how to read the list.

As Snifff shows it

Niacinamide

Risk-free

Pregnancy and nursing

We found no pregnancy- or lactation-specific evidence for this ingredient.

Wording as it appears in the extension, which can change between releases.