The available concentrations – ranging from least to most powerful – are 0.01%, 0.025% (this cream), 0.05%, and 0.1%. These numbers can be confusing because of the decimal points, but if you look them over again you will see that the least powerful one is 1/10th the strength of the most powerful – so there is a big range here in what’s available!

Personally, I prefer the 0.025. I have tried the Retin A Micro which comes in a different strength than the ones listed – 0.04% – and the irritation to my skin was so intense, I can’t even imagine someone using the 0.1! I was using mine initially to treat acne vulgaris, but most recently I have been using the cream to help prevent wrinkles, too. I have read first-hand accounts online of women that have been using this stuff when it first came out over 15 years ago. They started using it around the age of 40, and now over 15 years later, they say that they don’t really have not really developed any significant wrinkles during that time. They really noticed this when they compared themselves to friends whom are the same age as them and have not aged as gracefully during that time period.

So even though my acne has subsided as I’ve gotten older, I am continuing this Renova wrinkles regime as a preventive measure. Being that this is the only topical treatment that is actually approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration for treating wrinkles, I figure there’s no better one to use than this which has actually been endorsed by the federal government to work!

The good news is that nowadays there is also generic Renova that is available so you don’t have to pay an arm and a leg. But even if you did by the name brand, this is a surprisingly affordable treatment method. Because you only apply a super thin layer once per day, one regular-sized tube of tretinoin cream 0.025 lasts me a full year, no joke! Compare this to the crap you buy at the grocery store that costs $30 and only lasts 6 weeks. So actually, not only is this a more effective method, it’s probably the cheapest too!