Do whitening products like whitening creams really work?

I tend not to trust advertisements, so I only use the exact cosmetics I use. That worked when I was younger because my skin was beautiful, but as I get older and my skin becomes duller, I find myself increasingly drawn to functional cosmetics. When I was young, I disliked having a lot of freckles, but I didn't worry too much about it because I was told they were actually a cute feature. However, as I get older, they seem to be getting bigger and turning into melasma. Consequently, my skin tone has become dull, and I hate looking in the mirror. Do the whitening creams on the market really work? I know that if my overall skin tone is darkening due to a lot of melasma or blemishes, it's better to just go to a dermatologist for a procedure, but I'm scared to touch it like that, and the cost is quite high. If anyone has used whitening creams consistently and seen results, any product recommendations would be really helpful.