How to refresh tired eyes and dark eye circles
Written by: Lucy Partington
Updated on: 6th March 2025
Modern life – staring at screens, stress and sleepless nights – can all have an impact on how your eyes look and feel. While all of those things can affect different people in different ways, such as accentuating exhaustion and weariness, the appearance of dark circles, tiredness, puffiness and sagging skin are all very common concerns that a lot of people can face.
But don’t worry: if this all sounds familiar, we’re here to help. Addressing dark circles and refreshing tired eyes can help restore a youthful look, and over time that can enhance self-esteem and confidence.
Here, we break down the causes of dark circles and tired eyes, along with arming you with the right tools and knowledge to help reduce their appearance, plus the products we believe can make an incredible difference.
What causes dark circles and tired-looking eyes?
The appearance of tired eyes can develop for a few different reasons, and add to that eye bags, under-eye wrinkles and dark circles, and chances are you’re feeling like you look exhausted all the time – even if you’re managing to get a decent amount of sleep each night.
But what actually causes dark circles and that unwanted tired-looking appearance? Well, there are a few different things, which can include:
Skin ageing:
Collagen levels deplete as we age, leading to a lack of elasticity and thinner skin, which can amp up the appearance of tired eyes.
Lack of sleep:
Insufficient amounts of sleep can cause blood vessels around and under the eyes to dilate, leading to circles and puffiness.
Eyestrain and digital devices:
Extended use of phones, laptops, iPads and other electronic devices can strain the eyes, leading to them looking tired and puffy.
Lifestyle habits such as smoking:
Smoking reduces blood flow and starves the skin of much-needed oxygen, which can contribute to bags.
Fluid retention:
Most often caused by high salt intake, fluid retention can cause swelling and puffiness.
Dehydration:
Lack of water intake causes a dull, sunken appearance which can highlight both dark circles and bags.
Allergies:
Allergies can lead to inflammation and swelling, causing puffiness.
Delicate skin area:
Skin around the eye area is extremely delicate, which makes it more prone to showing signs of fatigue.
Sun damage:
Sun exposure can break down collagen and elastin, leading to dark circles, fine lines and bags.
Genetics:
Oftentimes genetics play a huge part in dark circles and puffiness, and some people are unfortunately predisposed to the development of them, but it’s important to remember that they are completely natural and embracing them can be a great act of self-love.
Hyperpigmentation:
Uneven tone and pigmentation in the skin underneath the eyes can result in dark circles, making your eyes look tired.
13 different ways to reduce dark circles
1. Incorporate eye creams into your skincare
We always suggest adding a moisturising eye cream into your nighttime skincare routine as early in your life as possible as it’s one of the easiest ways to tackle tired-looking eyes.
Plus, ensuring you keep your skin nourished is a great way to help prevent the onset of fine lines and wrinkles, which can cause your eyes to have that telltale exhausted look. As well as that, it’ll help improve the elasticity and resilience against puffiness and darkening in your delicate eye area.
And remember that, just like everything else in your skincare routine, consistency is key so ensure you are applying it each night to ensure you’re getting the results that you want.
2. Indulge in an eye massage
Eye massage is a great way to help even out skin tone and reduce inflammation. It’s really easy to do, too, simply tap your index and middle fingers in a gentle circular motion around your sockets, across your brows and along cheekbones. It’ll also help enhance lymph drainage.
3. Try these skincare ingredients to revive dark circles and tired-looking eyes
Caffeine:
Found in Medik8’s Advanced Day Eye Protect Cream, caffeine helps to target dark circles and puffiness for a more rejuvenated appearance, while SPF30 and 5* UVA protection shields the eye area from the damaging effects of UV rays along with environmental stressors.
Vitamin A/Retinol:
As well as helping to stimulate collagen production and thicken the skin, vitamin A also makes underlying blood vessels less noticeable, restores skin firmness and improves dark circles. Find it in Medik8’s rRetinoate Eye Serum powered by our exclusive encapsulated retinyl retinoate - proven to be 8x more powerful than standard retinol*. It’s also in Crystal Retinal Ceramide Eye Cream, a powerful line-reducing, hydrating formula bolstered with retinal – and that won’t cause irritation.
*H. Kim et al., Synthesis and in vitro biological activity of retinyl retinoate, a novel hybrid retinoid derivative, Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry, 2008, 15;16(12), pp 6387-93
FAQ's
It can be due to a few reasons, including a lack of sleep, dehydration, excessive screen time, long drives, late nights, diet and lifestyle along with sun damage. It can also be health-related, or even because of either the central heating or air conditioning.
There are a few ingredients worth looking out for, including caffeine, vitamin A, niacinamide and hyaluronic acid which will work to help boost collagen, reduce puffiness, and hydrate the area which will reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles. Gentle facial massage can also help brighten tired eyes.
In some cases, dark under-eye circles are hereditary and are therefore permanent – if this is the case for you then remember it’s entirely natural and learn to accept them can help boost your confidence. If the dark circles aren’t hereditary, you can improve their appearance with the right products and some lifestyle or diet changes.
In short, no, and dark circles are entirely normal and nothing to be ashamed or embarrassed about. However, the skin around our eyes is unique and naturally thinner and is also more prone to changes in colour and texture. However, using expertly formulated products designed for that specific area can be helpful.
There is only so much skincare can do, but consistently using well-formulated products containing proven ingredients will help.
Retinol won’t be able to completely get rid of dark circles but it can help improve their appearance! Retinol – or vitamin A – works by stimulating the production of collagen, which in turn can thicken the skin and improve the look of dark circles. Opting for a formula specifically created to use around the eyes is key, as is using it consistently and being patient.
Lucy Partington
Lucy Partington has been a beauty editor for over a decade and has written for titles including Stylist, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, British Vogue and GQ Middle East. She loves trying new sunscreens, cleansing her face at the end of a long day and is on a constant quest for glowing skin.