Census · Published 2026-10-22 · recorded, not live
AI named a brand in 64% of answers. Named most: CeraVe, in 63%.
What a leading AI assistant names when a shopper asks about moisturizers for dry skin, from a basic cream to a vegan or cruelty-free pick. The first census for this category, 64 answers. 6,000+ data points measured by the Supracited AI engine. The buyer scenarios are further down.
Supracited AI engine
Every tracked brand on the dry-skin moisturizer shelf, filled to its share of the 64 recorded AI answers, the first census for this category. Hover or tap a jar for its share, how often it was named first, and one buyer question that named it.
CeraVe was named first in 8 of 8 of the Ceramides vs. cream scenario's answers, its widest lead. On two scenarios, no tracked brand was named first in any answer.
| Brand | Share of answers | Gen Z scenario | Named first | A real buyer question |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CeraVe | 63% | 8 of 8 | 35 of 64 | What's the best cream moisturizer? |
| Vanicream | 45% | 7 of 8 | 2 of 64 | What's the best cream moisturizer? |
| Cetaphil | 30% | 7 of 8 | 3 of 64 | What's the best cream moisturizer? |
| La Roche-Posay | 28% | 0 of 8 | 0 of 64 | What's the best cream moisturizer? |
| Aveeno | 17% | 5 of 8 | 0 of 64 | What is the most recommended cream for eczema? |
| First Aid Beauty | 16% | 0 of 8 | 1 of 64 | What's the best cream moisturizer? |
| CVS Health | 6% | 4 of 8 | Not tracked (store brand never enters the order) | I'm 22 and on a student budget, what's a decent drugstore moisturizer for dry skin that won't break the bank? |
| Aquaphor | 3% | 0 of 8 | 0 of 64 | What is the most recommended cream for eczema? |
| Eucerin | 3% | 0 of 8 | 0 of 64 | What is the most recommended cream for eczema? |
| Walgreens | 3% | 2 of 8 | Not tracked (store brand never enters the order) | I'm 22 and on a student budget, what's a decent drugstore moisturizer for dry skin that won't break the bank? |
| Equate | 0% | 0 of 8 | Not tracked (store brand never enters the order) | No recorded answer named it |
| Up&Up | 0% | 0 of 8 | Not tracked (store brand never enters the order) | No recorded answer named it |
55%
Named CeraVe first
The brand that came first most often, of any mention.
6%
Named a store brand
CVS Health, the store named most.
52%
Cited nbcnews.com
The site cited most.
Who answered: A leading AI assistant with web search on, 64 answers, recorded 2026-10-22. Assistants are identified to clients in their reports. Brand names here are measurement results, not recommendations.
Every answer, by buyer scenario
Supracited AI engine
- Best cream8 of 88 of 88 of 88 of 80 of 8
- Eczema pick8 of 88 of 80 of 85 of 86 of 8
- Budget8 of 87 of 87 of 80 of 85 of 8
- Ceramides vs. cream8 of 80 of 80 of 83 of 80 of 8
- What are ceramides0 of 80 of 80 of 80 of 80 of 8
- Combining0 of 80 of 80 of 80 of 80 of 8
- Other scenario8 of 86 of 83 of 82 of 80 of 8
- Vegan or cruelty-free0 of 80 of 81 of 80 of 80 of 8
CeraVe
63%
Vanicream
45%
Cetaphil
30%
La Roche-Posay
28%
Aveeno
17%
CeraVe: named in every one of them on five buyer scenarios each, against none of them on three buyer scenarios each.
Vanicream: named in every one of them on the best cream moisturizer and an eczema cream each, against none of them on four buyer scenarios each.
Cetaphil: named in every one of them on the best cream moisturizer, against none of them on four buyer scenarios each.
La Roche-Posay: named in every one of them on the best cream moisturizer, against none of them on four buyer scenarios each.
Aveeno: named in some of them on an eczema cream, against none of them on six buyer scenarios each.
Quoted from a recorded AI answer. Not medical advice and not our recommendation.
Each card shows the brands an answer named, in the order it named them. We quote only sentences we have checked as plain fact, such as what a brand is or where it is sold, and none of these answers has one.
| Buyer scenario | CeraVe | Vanicream | Cetaphil | La Roche-Posay | Aveeno |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best cream | 8 of 8 | 8 of 8 | 8 of 8 | 8 of 8 | 0 of 8 |
| Eczema pick | 8 of 8 | 8 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 5 of 8 | 6 of 8 |
| Budget | 8 of 8 | 7 of 8 | 7 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 5 of 8 |
| Ceramides vs. cream | 8 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 3 of 8 | 0 of 8 |
| What are ceramides | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 |
| Combining | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 |
| Other scenario | 8 of 8 | 6 of 8 | 3 of 8 | 2 of 8 | 0 of 8 |
| Vegan or cruelty-free | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 1 of 8 | 0 of 8 | 0 of 8 |
The names the answers gave
Each bar is the share of recorded answers that named it. Hover or tap a name for its count, its range and what the count means.
64 recorded answers, eight buyer scenarios each asked 8 times, collected 2026-10-22.
- Named in 86% of recorded answers (55 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 67 to 100%. Effective n: 18 of 64 answers (ICC 0.35, design effect 3.5). In the first three names: 55 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 83% of recorded answers (53 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 66 to 97%. Effective n: 27 of 64 answers (ICC 0.20, design effect 2.4). In the first three names: 47 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 63% of recorded answers (40 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 25 to 88%. Effective n: 8 of 64 answers (ICC 1.00, design effect 8.0). In the first three names: 32 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 45% of recorded answers (29 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 13 to 75%. Effective n: 9 of 64 answers (ICC 0.85, design effect 6.9). In the first three names: 3 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 30% of recorded answers (19 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 5 to 59%. Effective n: 11 of 64 answers (ICC 0.72, design effect 6.0). In the first three names: 5 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 28% of recorded answers (18 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 6 to 55%. Effective n: 13 of 64 answers (ICC 0.57, design effect 5.0). In the first three names: 1 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 22% of recorded answers (14 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 3 to 45%. Effective n: 15 of 64 answers (ICC 0.46, design effect 4.2). In the first three names: 11 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 17% of recorded answers (11 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 0 to 41%. Effective n: 12 of 64 answers (ICC 0.61, design effect 5.3). In the first three names: 1 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 16% of recorded answers (10 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 0 to 39%. Effective n: 12 of 64 answers (ICC 0.60, design effect 5.2). In the first three names: 1 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 6% of recorded answers (4 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 0 to 22%. Effective n: 16 of 64 answers (ICC 0.43, design effect 4.0). In the first three names: 0 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
Show 4 more names
- Named in 3% of recorded answers (2 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 0 to 11%. Effective n: 32 of 64 answers (ICC 0.14, design effect 2.0). In the first three names: 0 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 3% of recorded answers (2 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 0 to 9%. Effective n: 64 of 64 answers (ICC 0.00, design effect 1.0). In the first three names: 0 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 3% of recorded answers (2 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 0 to 11%. Effective n: 32 of 64 answers (ICC 0.14, design effect 2.0). In the first three names: 0 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Named in 2% of recorded answers (1 of 64). Range if the census ran again: 0 to 6%. Effective n: 64 of 64 answers (ICC 0.00, design effect 1.0). In the first three names: 0 of 64. Counts mentions, including cautions; not recommendations.
- Share of answers that named it
- Range if the census ran again
Asked through the Supracited AI engine, with web search on, rather than inside the assistant’s own app, which may answer differently.
See the numbers as a tableevery name given, with both ranges, position and top three
Each row leads with a cluster-bootstrap range, which allows for the same question being asked again; the narrower Wilson range beside it assumes every answer is an independent draw. The method page explains why the bootstrap leads.
Exploratory: 8 buyer scenarios. An industry framework (IAB, August 2026) treats a program with fewer than 50 buyer scenarios as exploratory rather than directional; read these ranges as a guide, not a precise estimate. Known limits.
ICC, the intraclass correlation, is how alike the answers to one buyer scenario are: 0 is no more alike than chance, 1 is the same answer every time. The design effect is how much that widens a range, and effective n is the answers divided by it, roughly what they are worth as separate draws.
64 answers with web search
64 answers: 8 buyer scenarios, each asked 8 times, collected 2026-10-22. Asked through the Supracited AI engine, with web search on, rather than inside the assistant’s own app, which may answer differently.
Narrow screen: scroll the table sideways for more columns.
| Name | Kind | Share of answers (bar: bootstrap range, tick: observed) | Wilson range (assumes independent answers) | ICC · design effect · effective n | Average position when named (1 = first) | In the first three names |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ceramides | Ingredient | 67 to 100% · 55 of 64 | 75 to 92% | 0.35 · 3.5 · 18 | 1.76 | 55 of 64 (86%) |
| Hyaluronic acid | Ingredient | 66 to 97% · 53 of 64 | 72 to 90% | 0.20 · 2.4 · 27 | 2.38 | 47 of 64 (73%) |
| CeraVe | Brand | 25 to 88% · 40 of 64 | 50 to 73% | 1.00 · 8.0 · 8 | 2.08 | 32 of 64 (50%) |
| Vanicream | Brand | 13 to 75% · 29 of 64 | 34 to 57% | 0.85 · 6.9 · 9 | 4.28 | 3 of 64 (5%) |
| Cetaphil | Brand | 5 to 59% · 19 of 64 | 20 to 42% | 0.72 · 6.0 · 11 | 3.58 | 5 of 64 (8%) |
| La Roche-Posay | Brand | 6 to 55% · 18 of 64 | 19 to 40% | 0.57 · 5.0 · 13 | 5.39 | 1 of 64 (2%) |
| Petrolatum | Ingredient | 3 to 45% · 14 of 64 | 14 to 33% | 0.46 · 4.2 · 15 | 3.29 | 11 of 64 (17%) |
| Aveeno | Brand | 0 to 41% · 11 of 64 | 10 to 28% | 0.61 · 5.3 · 12 | 5.09 | 1 of 64 (2%) |
| First Aid Beauty | Brand | 0 to 39% · 10 of 64 | 9 to 26% | 0.60 · 5.2 · 12 | 6.50 | 1 of 64 (2%) |
| CVS Health | Store brand | 0 to 22% · 4 of 64 | 3 to 15% | 0.43 · 4.0 · 16 | 6.50 | 0 of 64 (0%) |
| Eucerin | Brand | 0 to 11% · 2 of 64 | 1 to 11% | 0.14 · 2.0 · 32 | 5.00 | 0 of 64 (0%) |
| Aquaphor | Brand | 0 to 9% · 2 of 64 | 1 to 11% | 0.00 · 1.0 · 64 | 7.00 | 0 of 64 (0%) |
| Walgreens | Store brand | 0 to 11% · 2 of 64 | 1 to 11% | 0.14 · 2.0 · 32 | 8.00 | 0 of 64 (0%) |
| Urea | Ingredient | 0 to 6% · 1 of 64 | 0 to 8% | 0.00 · 1.0 · 64 | 7.00 | 0 of 64 (0%) |
| Equate | Store brand | 0% · 0 of 64 | 0 to 6% | Not named | Not named | 0 of 64 (0%) |
| Up&Up | Store brand | 0% · 0 of 64 | 0 to 6% | Not named | Not named | 0 of 64 (0%) |
Store brands are counted by name here. Reading each mention for whether it names a product to buy, as the pain relief census did for its main table, is still to come.
The sites the answers were built from
The twelve domains cited most, ranked by how many answers linked them. Hover or tap a site for what it is.
The twelve sites cited most, out of 64 recorded answers.
- Cited in 52% of recorded answers (33 of 64). What it is: News site. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 13% of recorded answers (8 of 64). What it is: Skincare product discovery and comparison site. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 13% of recorded answers (8 of 64). What it is: Health myth-busting and fact-check platform, India. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 9% of recorded answers (6 of 64). What it is: American Academy of Dermatology, a medical specialty society. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 9% of recorded answers (6 of 64). What it is: Trivia and lifestyle magazine. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 9% of recorded answers (6 of 64). What it is: Product review and buying-guide site. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 9% of recorded answers (6 of 64). What it is: Product sampling and discovery platform, India. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 8% of recorded answers (5 of 64). What it is: CeraVe's own brand site. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 8% of recorded answers (5 of 64). What it is: Health information site. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 8% of recorded answers (5 of 64). What it is: Hospital system. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 8% of recorded answers (5 of 64). What it is: Lifestyle newsletter and media site. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Cited in 6% of recorded answers (4 of 64). What it is: National Eczema Association, a patient advocacy nonprofit. Cited in: linked at least once in the answer.
- Share of answers that linked the site at least once
Cited in: the number of the 64 answers that linked the domain at least once. Types checked on each site’s own homepage on 2026-10-22.
The buyer scenarios asked
Written the way a shopper types, naming no brand. How each one is run, counted and checked: the method page.
Hover, focus or tap a scenario to read the question as asked.
One buyer scenario is counted in the totals above, not shown individually.
Correctionsevery change to this page, dated
- 2026-10-22: first publication. A pilot census: 64 answers, one wave; the base for a larger census.
We measure and source. We do not write, edit or suggest any statement about what a product does; that stays as your label states it. Brand names in our censuses are measurement results, not recommendations.
How we countOther censuses
Multivitamins
AI named a brand in 47% of answers. Named most: Nature Made, in 30%.
Sleep supplements
Melatonin came up in 67% of answers. The top brand, Thorne, in 30%.
OTC hearing aids
92% of answers named a hearing aid brand. Jabra Enhance led, in 75%.
Pain relief and headache
100% of answers named a brand. 1% named a store-brand product.
Dandruff
All answers are in and being read.
Want your own brand on this shelf?
Start with three buyer scenarios. We send back which brands AI named, which sites it cited and one source worth a closer look.