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A Morning and Evening Skincare Routine for Beginners

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The short answer: three products cover most of what a beginner needs. A gentle cleanser, a moisturizer and a broad-spectrum sunscreen do the bulk of the work, and almost everything else is optional. The routine below uses them twice a day, with one small change between morning and evening, and leaves room to add a single treatment product later.

Before buying anything, notice how your skin behaves on an ordinary day. Skin that looks shiny by midday, particularly across the forehead and nose, usually does well with lighter gel or lotion textures. Skin that feels tight or flaky after washing tends to prefer richer creams. Skin that stings or turns red with new products needs the shortest ingredient lists you can find, without added fragrance.

Morning

  1. Rinse or cleanse. If your skin is dry or sensitive, lukewarm water alone is often enough in the morning. If it is oily or you sweat overnight, use a gentle, unscented cleanser, then pat your face dry with a clean towel rather than rubbing.
  2. Moisturize. Apply moisturizer while your skin is still slightly damp, which helps it hold on to water. Ingredients such as glycerin, ceramides and hyaluronic acid are common in well-tolerated formulas. If you get breakouts, look for "non-comedogenic" on the label, meaning it is formulated not to clog pores.
  3. Sunscreen, every day. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) recommends a broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher. Broad spectrum means it protects against both UVA rays, which contribute to skin aging, and UVB rays, the main cause of sunburn.
  4. Use enough of it. Most people apply far less sunscreen than the amount used to test the SPF on the label, so the real protection is lower. Cover your whole face, ears and the back of your neck in a generous layer.
  5. Reapply when you are outdoors. The AAD advises reapplying about every two hours outside, and after swimming or sweating. If you spend most of the day indoors away from windows, the morning application usually does the job.

Evening

  1. Cleanse properly. This is the wash that counts, because it takes off the day's sunscreen, sweat and grime. Use the same gentle cleanser with lukewarm water. Hot water and rough scrubbing strip the skin and can make dryness or redness worse.
  2. Apply a treatment, if you use one. For a beginner this step is often empty. If you have added a treatment product, this is usually where it goes, on dry skin.
  3. Moisturize. A slightly richer moisturizer than your morning one can suit dry skin at night. Oily skin can use the same light lotion twice a day.
  4. Leave the skin alone. Picking at spots or squeezing blackheads pushes inflammation deeper and raises the risk of marks that last for months.

Adding one active ingredient at a time

Once the basic routine has run smoothly for two to four weeks, you can add one treatment product aimed at a specific concern. Common choices include salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide for breakouts, niacinamide for oiliness and redness, and a retinoid for acne, uneven texture and fine lines. Adapalene 0.1% gel, a retinoid that was once prescription-only, has been sold over the counter in the US since the FDA approved it for that use in 2016.

Retinoids are the most likely of these to irritate. Start with a pea-sized amount for the whole face, two or three nights a week, and only build up to nightly use if your skin tolerates it for several weeks. Mild dryness and flaking in the first weeks is common; burning, swelling or peeling that does not settle is a reason to stop. Retinoids also make skin more sensitive to the sun, which makes the morning sunscreen even more important. If you are pregnant, trying to conceive or breastfeeding, ask a doctor before using any retinoid.

Never introduce two new products at once. If your skin reacts, you will not know which one caused it. The AAD suggests testing a new product first on a small patch of skin, such as the inside of the elbow, twice a day for about a week before putting it on your face. Acne products typically take six to eight weeks to show a clear difference, so judge a product on two months of steady use.

Signs it is time to see a dermatologist

  • Acne that has not improved after two to three months of consistent over-the-counter treatment, or acne that is deep, painful or leaving scars.
  • A mole or spot that is new, changing in size, shape or color, itching or bleeding, or that looks different from your other moles.
  • Redness, burning, itching or a rash that keeps coming back or lasts more than a couple of weeks, even after you stop the most recent new product.

For the mole check, the AAD's ABCDE guide is the easiest to remember: Asymmetry, irregular Border, uneven Color, Diameter larger than about 6 millimeters (roughly a pencil eraser), and Evolving, meaning any change over time. Photograph any mole you are unsure about against a ruler, then compare the photo with the mole a month later.