What is online prescription skincare - and is it worth trying?

With the growing market for customisable lotions and epigenetic treatments based on DNA swabs, personalised products are the hot new trend for skin woes.

Products like these save endless hours of trying and testing and are more sustainable for the planet (because you’re not buying a bunch of new goodies each week in search of your saviour!). Oh, and your bank balance benefits, too. But the skin savvy among us want even more.

Enter prescription skincare — a customised, easy and effective service. But is it worth it?

1. Software

Software is an online platform providing made-to-order prescription skincare, on a subscription basis. You’ll have access to doctors, dermatologists and pharmacists helping with anything from acne to anti-ageing.

Simply fill out the questionnaire, add photos of your skin and Software does the rest. Founder Niamh Mooney created the service after frustrations with the health system. “I had to drive three hours to see a dermatologist,” she explains.

Cost: From AU$44 (S$45.08) a month + AU$29 initial doctor’s consult

Website: skin.software

Process: The Software process was simple – alter a comprehensive online questionnaire, where I uploaded pictures of my skin, I was put in touch with a doctor to answer more in-depth questions before being prescribed my first product. I’m all about anti-ageing, so my arum was a combo of vitamin A, niacinamide and hyaluronic acid.

At first, !used it every third night, then increased it to every other night. My skin responded well the first month and I received my automatic top-up for the second. When it comes to the third month, I’ll have a fellow-up consult to adapt the prescription to my secondary concern, pigmentation. All in all, it was such an easy process, specific to my needs!” 

2. QR8 MediSkin

Dr Michele Squire, founder of Qr8 MediSkin (pronounced as ‘curate’), is one expert whose advice you’re going to want to hear. She’s been helping us regular folks take control of our skin concerns with unbiased, evidence-based advice for years – and thus, Qr8 MediSkin was born.

The prescription service utilises Telehealth to chat with clients aged 18 and above to provide customisable, safe, and medically robust treatments in a convenient, comfortable environment.

Cost: From AU$130

Website: qr8mediskin.com

Process: “After completing Qr8’s detailed questionnaire, including photos, a one-on-one secure Telehealth appointment was scheduled with their lead doctor, Dr Scott Ellis. After talking through my concerns, he prescribed a mild azelaic acid with niacinamide treatment.

This was compounded into a cream and delivered to me in just four days! I loved how I didn’t have to overhaul my existing routine – it was more about fine-tuning what I already did. I’ve been using it three times a week for a couple of weeks now and my complexion is brighter.”

ALSO READ: 5 local skincare brands worth trying

3. The Secret

Founded in early 2020 by Perth’s Dr Clara Hurst and Dr Deb Cohen-Jones, The Secret Skincare provides highly effective solutions for complex cosmetics conditions.

Their three-step e-consultation system takes the pain out of long waits in the dermatologist’s office and buying the wrong skincare. Simply pick the products you like, add to cart, and select ‘choose for me’.

Fill in a questionnaire, and voila! Your medical-grade, vegan products are then formulated in Perth and delivered to you. You can have ongoing consults, too.

Cost: AU$500 for The Secret Essentials Set

Website: thesecretskincare.com.au

Process: “As an eczema sufferer who has tried almost every product under the sun, the idea of a tailor-made service was music to my ears. Dr Hurst and Dr Cohen-Jones reviewed my chart and prescribed me a night cream, day elixir, and eye serum, which I received just five days after ordering. I’m usually scared to try new skincare in case of flare-ups, but having used The Secret for around a week now, I’m a convert!”

This article was first published in The Singapore Women's Weekly.