This Is the Perfect Skin Care Routine, According to Dermatologists (Including the Right Order)

Every great skin care routine starts with three basic steps: cleanse, moisturize, and protect (via SPF). From there, things can get a bit more complicated, adding in additional steps for exfoliation, treatments, essences, toners, eye creams, and every other skin care product under the sun. But steps aside, how do you create a truly effective routine for your skin type? 

According to Ranella Hirsch, MD, a board-certified dermatologist based in Boston, focus is key. “Figure out what your significant concerns are, and then orient what  you select to that,” she explains. Joshua Zeichner, MD, board-certified dermatologist and director of dermatology cosmetic and clinical research at the Mount Sinai Hospital agrees, adding that it’s important to choose the right products for your skin’s particular needs. 

For example, if you have oily or acne-prone skin, choose a cleanser that contains ingredients like salicylic acid to remove excess oil from the skin, and a lighter, gel-based moisturizer. On the other end of the spectrum, those with dry or aging skin should look for hydrating cleansers and heavier, rich creams.

But let’s break it down even further. And keep in mind, your best skin care routine is whatever works best for your skin.

A.M. Skin Care Routine Steps

1. Cleanse

Morning-time cleansing is an optional step, generally suggested for those with particularly oily skin types. Even with our own normal-to-dry skin, we like to start with a swipe of Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micellar Water on a cotton pad.

2. Treatment

Both Dr. Hirsch and Dr. Zeichner suggest looking at the morning as a time of prevention and protection from environmental damage. For some, this may just be protecting via SPF (more on that later), while others might choose to add a hydrating serum or one with antioxidants like vitamin C.

3. Moisturize

Some sunscreens function as an SPF and a moisturizer, like the Naturium Dew-Glow Moisturizer SPF 50, in which case you can skip the moisturizing step altogether. If not, or if your skin is particularly dry, you’ll likely want to add a moisturizer before applying sunscreen. Regardless of your skin type, we suggest using a lighter moisturizer for your morning routine. We’re big fans of the Byoma Moisturizing Gel Cream, which delivers a lightweight boost of hydration to the skin while improving tone and texture with niacinamide and green tea.

4. Eye Cream

Yet another optional step in your morning skin care routine (noticing a theme here?), we like to use our eye cream to visibly brighten the under eyes. Lately, we’ve been reaching for the Replenix Tinted Brightening Eye Cream, which uses an orange-y hue to color correct dark circles.

5. Sunscreen

Sunscreen is one step you won’t find us skipping—ever. It’s absolutely essential to protect your skin from damage and signs of aging. When it comes to finding the right SPF for you, just make sure you’re using a broad-spectrum sunscreen (meaning it protects against both UVA and UVB rays) with an SPF of at least 30. Other than that, your perfect SPF is whichever you’ll use every single day. 

P.M. Skin Care Routine Steps

1. Remove Makeup

A double cleanse isn’t always necessary, but it’s a great way to help remove makeup and heavy SPF after a long day. Use either micellar water, an oil-based cleanser, or a cleansing balm to fully and completely remove all traces of dirt, grime, makeup, and SPF from your face.

2. Cleanse

When it comes to cleansing, you can go one of two routes. Keep things simple with a gentle cleanser or opt for one more focused on your particular needs, as discussed above. When in doubt, the CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser is a great option that works with virtually all skin types.

3. Exfoliate

As far as exfoliation goes, most people only need to do it around once a week. Of course, others will benefit from more or less frequent exfoliating. Dr. Zeichner suggests incorporating an exfoliating ingredient into your skin care routine once a week and gradually increase or decrease frequency as your skin can tolerate it. We love using the Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel Pads every week or so to gently exfoliate and visibly smooth skin.

4. Treatment

We always suggest discussing the best treatment for your skin and particular goals with your dermatologist. Oftentimes, they can suggest products or write you a prescription for targeted treatments. As a general rule of thumb, consider what your skin is lacking.

If you’re particularly sensitive or experience a lot of acne-related irritation, look for treatments that contain soothing ingredients like niacinamide or licorice root extract; if you struggle with dehydrated skin, opt for a ceramide- or peptide-rich formula, like the Laneige Cream Skin Toner. When in doubt, we always opt for a gentle barrier-repairing serum, like the Krave Beauty Great Barrier Relief. Both dermatologists say that less is more when it comes to skincare, so we suggest sticking to one treatment at a time, but if you use several, apply them from thinnest formula to thickest formula. If you feel your skin is particularly finicky, you can also skip the treatment step altogether. 

5. Moisturize

While we like to use a richer moisturizer before bed to allow our skin to really soak up that extra moisture and hydration, you can absolutely use the same moisturizer you use in the morning if you’d like. Again, the moisturizer is a great opportunity to factor in your skin type—oilier skin types will want to look for lightweight, gel-based moisturizers and lotions, while drier skin types should opt for more occlusive, heavier creams.

6. Eye Cream

Like in the morning, eye cream is an optional—but nice to have—step. According to Dr. Hirsch, it certainly has its benefits, particularly with specific active anti-aging ingredients at lower concentrations that are appropriate to apply around the eye, but it’s by no means necessary. If you’re especially worried about visible signs of aging, an eye cream is a great way to target those concerns.

7. Oil/Slugging

A final, very optional step is sealing in your night-time skin care goodness with an oil or occlusive for a slugging effect. It’s a great way to deeply moisturize the skin overnight, but it’s not always the best option for those with oilier or acne-prone skin types. We usually slug once a week in the wintertime, using a very tiny amount of the Future Wise Slug Balm over the entire face.