COSRX
From Korean brand Cosrx, this brightening serum is pretty much every beauty editor's secret weapon for radiant skin. It's packed with 20.5 percent pure vitamin C, a.k.a. the stuff that helps lighten pigmentation. It also contains 72 percent black chokeberry, which helps to balance out the vitamin C, so your skin also stays hydrated. It's this editor's favorite brightening product, but if that's not enough of a sell, the fact that it's always sold out should tell you something, too.
Caudalie
While most brightening products swear by vitamin C or kojic acid to regenerate skin cells and form new dewy, more radiant skin, this brand says grape vine sap is loads more effective than vitamin C. In fact, its main ingredient, viniferine, slows down tyrosinase production, which, therefore, regulates melanin—overproduction of which is the reason behind your dark spots or discoloration.
Proactiv
If these single-use pads are good enough for actress and brand spokeswoman Olivia Munn to lighten her acne scars, it's worth a try in our book.
Mark Correcting Pads, $22.42
SkinMedica
Not familiar with this brand? It's usually found in medical spas and dermatologist offices. This particular product is made specifically for red or pink scars. This stuff is no joke, as it's often used to heal scarring caused by minor injuries, cosmetic surgery or c-sections...or perhaps in your case, crazy acne aftermath. It's pricey, but reviewers have said they've seen significant results in less than two weeks.
Kate Somerville
Not only does the peptide-infused formula promote skin renewal, but the rollerball in which the serum dispenses from helps flatten out scars. Double-whammy!
Kiehl's
Yes, expect vitamin C—or Activated C, as the brand calls it, in this formula, but you also get white birch extract, which helps restore hydration and elasticity back into the skin's layers. Because once you brighten those dark scars and discolorations, you still need to smooth out your skin, too.
Clinique
Got pigment discoloration? This baby may be for you. The non-fragrant, oil-free formula will subtlety lighten dark spots to one to two shades lighter, over a few months, but even better, it will help prevent existing dark spots from getting darker.