If your forehead wrinkles are becoming eyebrow-raising (literally!) and you'd like to make them magically disappear—or at least look a little smoother—you've come to the right place. Despite Internet rumors, you can't just exercise your face or tape your forehead to get rid of wrinkles—but there are science-backed solutions proven to work. Good Housekeeping Institute Beauty Lab experts plus a top dermatologist and veteran makeup artist share their secrets for how to minimize even deep forehead wrinkles, including the best treatments both at the doctor's office and at home.

First, what causes forehead wrinkles?

There are three factors that can contribute to the development of forehead wrinkles: intrinsic aging, extrinsic aging, and repeated facial expressions, says GH Beauty Lab Senior Chemist Danusia Wnek. “Intrinsic aging is the natural progression of skin as we age and is influenced in part by genetics, while extrinsic aging occurs from environmental exposures, like UV light and lifestyle habits,” she explains.

Horizontal forehead wrinkles are also caused by repeated movement of the forehead muscle and can form as early as our 20s and 30s, depending on anatomy and how much we use the muscle, adds Deanne Mraz, M.D., assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Yale New Haven Hospital. "Sun damage will worsen these wrinkles as UV radiation breaks down collagen, the building blocks of the skin,” she says.

How can you prevent them?

While you can’t stop signs of aging like lines from forming entirely, you can slow their progression with a few key practices.

  • Be religious about sunscreen. “Applying sunscreen every day is the best way to prevent premature aging from sun exposure that can cause lines and helps slow its progression,” Wnek explains. “Daily exposure to UV light can damage and degrade skin’s structural proteins like collagen, causing wrinkles to form.” The GH Beauty Lab recommends a broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher for daily use.
  • Spice up your diet. Phytonutrients in herbs and spices such as cinnamon, oregano, cloves, ginger, and garlic may help reduce skin’s production of compounds that degrade collagen and elastin and can cause lines and wrinkles, according to the GH Nutrition Lab. Aim to add these to your meals daily for a skin-smoothing, flavor-enhancing boost.

Smooth forehead wrinkles with skincare

You can soften forehead lines with at-home fixes such as certain skincare products and DIY devices, dermatologists and GH Beauty Lab experts say.

  • Use collagen-boosting skincare. Look for leave-on skincare products like wrinkle creams and serums with ingredients like peptides and retinol that are proven to support collagen production. “Retinol is a well-studied ingredient that can help minimize the look of forehead wrinkles,” Wnek says. “Collagen and elastin are proteins in skin that are responsible for its structure and elasticity, and retinol inhibits the breakdown of collagen and is thought to stimulate the production of both proteins, which can help reduce the appearance of lines.” Dr. Mraz also suggests treatments that contain topical peptides "to support collagen and elastin fiber formation." Follow the individual product’s directions for best results, Wnek says. “For long-term use of anti-aging products like retinol or at-home devices, it can take from four to 12 weeks to see effects,” she adds.
  • Consider a high-tech tool. “Over the last decade or so, we have seen technology previously only available at dermatologist offices become available for safe use at home, like microcurrent, LED, and even lasers,” Wnek says. “When we evaluated various types of at home anti-aging devices, lasers showed the most visible improvement in forehead wrinkles after four weeks of use.” The innovative LYMA Laser, a Good Housekeeping Beauty Award winner, is FDA-cleared and uses low-level light to help stimulate collagen and elastin production, she notes.
  • Try an instant filler. “Instant wrinkle filler products work by temporarily filling in lines, skin texture, and pores to give a blurred appearance,” Wnek explains. “They can leave skin looking smoother primarily due to silicones, but some also contain light reflectors like the minerals silica and mica to give an overall soft-focus effect.”

Disguise forehead lines with makeup

For an instant (but temporary) fix, turn to cosmetics. “Avoid foundation that’s too thick or luminous, which can enhance forehead lines," suggests Sarah Lucero, a makeup artist in Los Angeles. "Dab a clean, damp makeup sponge over your base to make the pigment melt into skin for a blurred effect and to ensure that no excess product is sitting on top, emphasizing texture." Pressing a clear mattifying primer over the area with your fingertips can also temporarily fill lines, she says.

Choosing certain cosmetics colors can help minimize the look of forehead wrinkles, too. "A warm coral or peach cream blush blended on the apples of cheeks and over cheekbones perks up skin so your features look balanced," Lucero explains. "And shimmery eyeshadow draws attention to the eyes rather than your forehead.”

Treat creases with derm procedures

To get the most noticeable, fast-acting, and lasting forehead wrinkle-smoothing effects, visit a dermatologist. Treatment options include:

  • Injectables: These are as close as you can come to erasing wrinkles, albeit temporarily. “A dermatologist can immediately reduce the appearance of forehead lines with botulinum toxin injections like Botox, Letybo, Dysport, Xeomin, and Jeuveau," Dr. Mraz says. "They stop the forehead muscle from contracting, which allows the overlying skin to relax, making it smoother." The injections can be priced from $200 to $600 each depending on the dose and where you live, with results lasting about three to four months, she notes.
  • Skin-resurfacing laser: For long-lasting results, your doctor may recommend skin-resurfacing lasers such as Fraxel and PicoSure, Dr. Mraz says, which can stimulate collagen production to smooth lines. The cost: about $350 to $1,000 or more based on the number of treatments needed.
Headshot of Danusia Wnek
Expert consulted:Danusia Wnek
Senior Chemist

Danusia (she/her) is a senior chemist in the Beauty and Personal Care Lab at the Good Housekeeping Institute where she evaluates haircare, skincare, cosmetics and beauty tools. She holds a B.S. in chemistry from St. John’s University and a M.S. in pharmaceutical sciences with concentration in cosmetic science from the University of Cincinnati. Danusia has over 15 years of experience in the personal care industry including formulation, product development, claim evaluation and performance testing. The number one skincare rule she lives by: never go to bed with makeup on.