Collagen

Does collagen help your skin?

Updated 9 Nov 2026

Short answer

Reviews of 19 and 26 trials found better skin hydration and elasticity with collagen peptides.[1][2] But a 2025 review of 23 trials found no effect in the trials not funded by companies and in the high-quality trials.[3]

What the reviews found

A 2021 review pooled 19 trials with 1,125 people aged 20 to 70, and 95% of them were women. Hydrolyzed collagen improved skin hydration, elasticity and wrinkles more than placebo. The authors concluded that 90 days of use reduces signs of skin aging.[1]

A 2023 review of 26 trials with 1,721 people also found better hydration and elasticity. Its authors found several kinds of bias in the trials and asked for large trials to confirm the effect.[2]

A 2026 review of 25 trials found better hydration in 10 of 15 trials, better elasticity in 10 of 13 and less wrinkle depth or volume in 9 of 10. It rated most trials at high risk of bias.[4]

Who paid for the trials

A 2025 review of 23 trials with 1,474 people split the trials by funding and by quality. Across all trials, collagen improved hydration, elasticity and wrinkles. In the trials not funded by companies, it had no effect on any of them, while the trials funded by companies did show effects.[3] The high-quality trials also found no significant effect.[3] The authors concluded that there is no clinical evidence that collagen supplements prevent or treat skin aging.[3]

One trial in detail

In one trial, 114 women aged 45 to 65 took 2.5 g of collagen peptides or placebo a day for 8 weeks. The volume of wrinkles around the eyes was 20% lower than with placebo. In a subgroup, skin samples had 65% more procollagen type I, the first form of new collagen, and 18% more elastin than with placebo.[5]

Why it may work

  1. After a dose, collagen peptides such as Pro-Hyp appear in the blood and peak after 1 to 2 hours.[6]
  2. Fibroblasts are the cells that make collagen.[7]
  3. In a lab study with mouse skin, Pro-Hyp made fibroblasts grow faster. This was not a study in people.[8]

What is still unknown

In the 2026 review, the trials had 13 to 236 people each. Its authors ask for larger and longer trials to confirm the effect and the safety.[4]

Collagen can come from fish, and people with a fish allergy may react to fish collagen.[9][10]

Sources (10)

  1. Effects of hydrolyzed collagen supplementation on skin aging: a systematic review and meta-analysis. de Miranda RB, Weimer P, Rossi RC Int J Dermatol, 2021. PMID 33742704
  2. Effects of Oral Collagen for Skin Anti-Aging: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Pu SY, Huang YL, Pu CM, Kang YN, Hoang KD, Chen KH, et al. Nutrients, 2023. PMID 37432180
  3. Effects of Collagen Supplements on Skin Aging: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Myung SK, Park Y Am J Med, 2025. PMID 40324552
  4. Efficacy and safety of hydrolyzed collagen supplementation on skin health outcomes: a systematic literature review of randomized controlled trials. Bassila C, Bassila JC, Slim M Eur J Clin Nutr, 2026. PMID 42342959
  5. Oral intake of specific bioactive collagen peptides reduces skin wrinkles and increases dermal matrix synthesis. Proksch E, Schunck M, Zague V, Segger D, Degwert J, Oesser S Skin Pharmacol Physiol, 2014. PMID 24401291
  6. Identification of food-derived collagen peptides in human blood after oral ingestion of gelatin hydrolysates. Iwai K, Hasegawa T, Taguchi Y, Morimatsu F, Sato K, Nakamura Y, et al. J Agric Food Chem, 2005. PMID 16076145
  7. Biochemistry, Collagen Synthesis. Rahimi N, Launico MV StatPearls, 2026. PMID 29939531
  8. Effect of Prolyl-hydroxyproline (Pro-Hyp), a food-derived collagen peptide in human blood, on growth of fibroblasts from mouse skin. Shigemura Y, Iwai K, Morimatsu F, Iwamoto T, Mori T, Oda C, et al. J Agric Food Chem, 2009. PMID 19128041
  9. Hydrolyzed Collagen-Sources and Applications. León-López A, Morales-Peñaloza A, Martínez-Juárez VM, Vargas-Torres A, Zeugolis DI, Aguirre-Álvarez G Molecules, 2019. PMID 31703345
  10. Collagen-An Important Fish Allergen for Improved Diagnosis. Kalic T, Kamath SD, Ruethers T, Taki AC, Nugraha R, Le TTK, et al. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract, 2020. PMID 32389794

More about collagen

What is collagen?Can you get collagen from food?What is collagen used for?How long does collagen take to work?Is collagen safe?Does collagen help joint pain?

For education; not medical advice. Talk to a doctor before you start, stop or change a supplement.