Pallas
Tretinoin Cream

Skincare · Compounded prescription cream

Tretinoin Cream

Tretinoin with niacinamide 2%, prescribed for acne, fine lines, uneven tone, and rough, sun-aged skin. Three strengths: tretinoin 0.025%, 0.05%, or 0.1%.

Plan, provider care included · Cancel anytime

Tretinoin cream

$79/mo

Pay over time —available at checkout
Start your visit

Nothing is charged until a clinician prescribes.

  • Tretinoin, the retinoid prescribed for acne, fine lines, and rough or sun-damaged skin
  • Three strengths: tretinoin 0.025%, 0.05%, or 0.1%, each with niacinamide 2%
  • Your skin and health history reviewed by a US-licensed clinician
  • 30 g every 4 weeks, shipped free and discreet from a US-licensed pharmacy
Compounded in the U.S.A.FSA & HSA Eligible

Tretinoin is a retinoid, a prescription form of vitamin A applied to the skin. Dermatologists have prescribed it for decades for acne and for fine lines and rough, sun-damaged skin. At Pallas it's a compounded cream with niacinamide.

Adults with acne or breakouts, fine lines, uneven texture, or sun-damaged skin who want a prescription cream rather than an over-the-counter retinol. It isn't right for everyone: pregnancy, breastfeeding, and certain skin conditions or allergies are part of every review.

One price with provider care included, and nothing is charged until a clinician prescribes. Tretinoin cream is $79 every 4 weeks and renews until you cancel.

Complete a short online intake about your skin and your health history. A US-licensed clinician reviews it and, if appropriate, prescribes the cream. A partner pharmacy compounds it and ships it to your door every 4 weeks.

A woman in her forties applying cream to her cheek

What is tretinoin

A retinoid, prescribed for skin for decades

Tretinoin is a prescription form of vitamin A. Applied to the skin, it promotes the shedding of surface skin cells and helps unclog pores, which is why it is prescribed for acne, and for fine wrinkles, spotty discoloration, and rough-feeling skin 1. Pallas's cream pairs tretinoin with niacinamide, a form of vitamin B3.

  • Tretinoin with niacinamide, compounded into one cream
  • Prescribed for acne, fine lines, rough texture, and sun-damaged skin 1
  • Three strengths: tretinoin 0.025%, 0.05%, or 0.1%, each with niacinamide 2%
  • 30 g every 4 weeks, shipped free
See if you qualify

What's in it

Two actives, one cream

Tretinoin

A retinoid. It promotes the shedding of surface skin cells and helps unclog pores 1.

Niacinamide

A form of vitamin B3, used in skincare to support the skin barrier.

A strength chosen for you

Compounded in three strengths: tretinoin 0.025%, 0.05%, or 0.1%. Your strength can change as your skin adjusts.

What the research says

What trials of tretinoin found

Sun-damaged skin

In a 24-week trial of 296 adults with sun-damaged facial skin, 68% of those using a tretinoin 0.05% cream were rated improved, against 43% of those using the same cream without tretinoin; fine wrinkling, uneven brown spots, and roughness improved more with tretinoin 2. A second 24-week trial of 251 adults found 79% against 48% 3, and a trial of 204 adults found greater improvement than placebo over up to two years 4. The first trial also tested lower strengths, 0.01% and 0.001%, and found them no different from the cream without tretinoin 2. These trials tested one manufacturer's tretinoin cream at the strengths named; Pallas's compounded cream has not been tested in trials, and results vary.

Collagen

In a small biopsy study of 29 adults with sun-damaged skin, 10 to 12 months of tretinoin 0.1% cream increased the formation of collagen I by 80%, against a 14% decrease with the cream base 5.

Acne

The American Academy of Dermatology's 2024 acne guidelines make a strong recommendation for topical retinoids, the class tretinoin belongs to 6. Skin irritation, such as redness, peeling, and burning, was the most common side effect in the tretinoin trials above 23.

What it's prescribed for

What is tretinoin prescribed for?

A young woman at a bathroom mirror dabbing cream onto her cheek

Acne, fine lines, and rough texture — the concerns tretinoin is prescribed for 1.

A swipe of white cream on a slab of pale stone

Tretinoin and niacinamide, compounded into one cream.

A straw sun hat and sunglasses on a linen bench by a window

Tretinoin can make skin sensitive to sunlight 1, so daily sunscreen is part of using it.

A bedside table at dusk with a lamp, a glass of water and a white tube of skin cream

One step in your evening routine — tretinoin is usually applied at bedtime 1.

A hand holding a white tube of prescription skin cream

Find out if tretinoin is right for you

See if you qualify

The process

Start tretinoin in 3 simple steps

Get startedSee if you’re eligible

Start online and meet your provider

Step
1

Answer a few questions about your health and goals — about two minutes. A licensed provider reviews everything 100% online.

Hands holding a phone showing the Pallas online intake's goals question

Get your medication delivered to your door

Step
2

If eligible, your provider writes a prescription and medication ships free and discreet from a US-licensed pharmacy — often within a week.

A plain kraft shipping box marked Prescription only

Ongoing support and care, every step

Step
3

We stay with you the whole way, with regular check-ins and on-demand messaging with your care team.

A woman smiling at her phone as a message from her provider asks how she is feeling
Glass medication vials on a pharmacy filling line

Pharmacy & safety

Prescription-only. Pharmacy-prepared.

Your cream is compounded for you once it's prescribed, with a new 30 g fill every 4 weeks.

Compounded in state-licensed US pharmacies
Free, discreet shipping

Common questions

Tretinoin is a retinoid, a prescription form of vitamin A applied to the skin. Dermatologists have prescribed it for decades for acne and for fine lines and rough, sun-damaged skin. At Pallas it's a compounded cream with niacinamide.

Adults with acne or breakouts, fine lines, uneven texture, or sun-damaged skin who want a prescription cream rather than an over-the-counter retinol. It isn't right for everyone: pregnancy, breastfeeding, and certain skin conditions or allergies are part of every review.

One price with provider care included, and nothing is charged until a clinician prescribes. Tretinoin cream is $79 every 4 weeks and renews until you cancel.

Complete a short online intake about your skin and your health history. A US-licensed clinician reviews it and, if appropriate, prescribes the cream. A partner pharmacy compounds it and ships it to your door every 4 weeks.

Your clinician decides. The cream is compounded in three strengths: tretinoin 0.025%, 0.05%, or 0.1%, each with niacinamide 2%. The clinician chooses where you start based on your skin, your history, and whether you've used tretinoin before, and can adjust it later.

Follow the directions on your prescription label. A tretinoin cream is usually applied at night to clean, dry skin, with sunscreen every morning. Message your care team with any question about fitting it into your routine.

Tretinoin can make skin more sensitive to the sun, so daily sunscreen is part of using this cream. It is generally avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding; tell your clinician if you're pregnant, breastfeeding, or trying to conceive, and they'll decide whether it's appropriate. Some dryness, redness, or peeling is common in the first weeks, and your care team is a message away.

No. It is compounded per patient by a state-licensed US compounding pharmacy, and compounded skincare preparations are not FDA-approved. Compounding pairs tretinoin with niacinamide in a strength chosen for you.

No. Photos are optional. After checkout you can add up to three (front, left, and right) from the Documents page of your Pallas portal, and only your clinician and care team see them.

From our members

More from our members

Feedback from Pallas members across our programs.

“NAD+ therapy gave me a mental clarity I didn't realize I'd been missing — the afternoon fog is gone. I feel sharper, steadier, and more motivated throughout the day.”
Sarah M.Verified member
“Since starting the treatments, I'm sleeping more deeply and waking up with real energy for the first time in a long while. My workouts feel stronger, and recovery doesn't drag on the way it used to.”
Tanya L.Verified member
“After a few weeks of treatments, my skin looked brighter and more even than it has in years. I feel refreshed, and friends keep asking what I've changed.”
Amanda G.Verified member
“The whole process was easier than I expected — a few questions online, and my clinician followed up the same day.”
Sarah M.Verified member
“Shipping was fast and discreet, and the care team actually answers when I message them.”
David R.Verified member
“I never felt rushed. My provider explained every option and let me decide what fit.”
Jenna K.Verified member
“Checking in is simple, refills arrive on time, and support replies within hours.”
Marcus T.Verified member
“From sign-up to delivery, everything just worked the way it should.”
Alicia P.Verified member

Quotes from Pallas members, shared with permission; names abbreviated for privacy. Testimonials reflect individual experiences — individual results vary.

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Sources

The class facts on this page — that tretinoin is a retinoid used to treat acne and to reduce fine wrinkles, spotty discoloration, and rough-feeling skin, and that it can make skin sensitive to sunlight — are from MedlinePlus's drug information for tretinoin topical. The trials in "What the research says" studied one manufacturer's FDA-approved tretinoin cream at the strengths named; they describe that product, not Pallas's cream, and nothing on this page is a promise of a result. Pallas's tretinoin cream is compounded per patient with niacinamide by a US-licensed pharmacy, and compounded preparations are not FDA-approved.

  1. MedlinePlus (NIH National Library of Medicine). Tretinoin Topical — drug information.
  2. Olsen EA, Katz HI, Levine N, et al. Tretinoin emollient cream: a new therapy for photodamaged skin. J Am Acad Dermatol. 1992;26(2 Pt 1):215-224.
  3. Weinstein GD, Nigra TP, Pochi PE, et al. Topical tretinoin for treatment of photodamaged skin. A multicenter study. Arch Dermatol. 1991;127(5):659-665.
  4. Kang S, Bergfeld W, Gottlieb AB, et al. Long-term efficacy and safety of tretinoin emollient cream 0.05% in the treatment of photodamaged facial skin: a two-year, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Am J Clin Dermatol. 2005;6(4):245-253.
  5. Griffiths CE, Russman AN, Majmudar G, et al. Restoration of collagen formation in photodamaged human skin by tretinoin (retinoic acid). N Engl J Med. 1993;329(8):530-535.
  6. Reynolds RV, Yeung H, Cheng CE, et al. Guidelines of care for the management of acne vulgaris. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2024;90(5):1006.e1-1006.e30.