The correct skincare order
There is one rule: thinnest to thickest, water-based before oil-based. In the morning: cleanser → toner or essence → serum → eye cream → moisturiser → sunscreen, always last. At night: oil cleanser or makeup remover → cleanser → exfoliant or acid, on the nights you use one → toner or essence → serum → eye cream → retinoid, if you use one → moisturiser → face oil. If you don't own a step, skip it — the order still holds for everything else.
This is general cosmetic guidance, not a medical assessment. Active skin conditions — severe acne, rosacea, dermatitis — belong with a dermatologist, and no ordering of steps changes that.
Build your own sequence
Almost nobody owns all eleven steps, and nobody needs to. Tick only what's actually on your shelf and both lists renumber themselves.
Morning
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Cleanser
Morning cleansing is the light one — it takes off overnight oil. If your skin runs dry, water alone is a legitimate answer.
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Toner
The most watery thing in the routine, so it goes on early. Modern toners are hydrating rather than astringent: if yours stings, be suspicious of it.
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Essence
Same logic as toner — light, watery, ahead of anything denser. If you use both, which one goes first is one of the genuinely unsettled questions.
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Serum or treatment
The most concentrated step you own. Mornings are usually where antioxidants like vitamin C live.
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Eye cream
The skin there is much thinner. It goes before facial moisturiser so a heavier texture doesn't push it around.
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Moisturiser
It seals the watery layers underneath it. This is thinnest-to-thickest in practice: cream after serum, never the other way around.
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Face oil
Oil gets through cream; cream doesn't get through oil. In the morning it sits between moisturiser and sunscreen.
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Sunscreen
Always the last morning step, no exceptions: nothing from your routine goes over it. Makeup, if you wear it, comes after — and reapplying through the day is part of using it properly.
No steps ticked for this time of day.
Night
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Oil cleanser or makeup remover
Oil lifts what water can't: sunscreen, makeup, a day's worth of sebum. That's why it goes before your normal cleanser, and only at night.
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Cleanser
Night cleansing is the one that matters: it clears sunscreen, grime and the rest of the day before anything active goes on.
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Exfoliant or acid (AHA, BHA) 1–3 nights a week
Acids go on clean skin, right after cleansing, before anything that forms a layer. Not a nightly step — over-use is where most irritation starts.
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Toner
The most watery thing in the routine, so it goes on early. Modern toners are hydrating rather than astringent: if yours stings, be suspicious of it.
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Essence
Same logic as toner — light, watery, ahead of anything denser. If you use both, which one goes first is one of the genuinely unsettled questions.
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Serum or treatment
Night is where treatment serums sit — niacinamide, peptides, hyaluronic acid — always before any cream.
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Eye cream
The skin there is much thinner. It goes before facial moisturiser so a heavier texture doesn't push it around.
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Retinoid (retinol, adapalene, tretinoin) night only, start slow
Goes on dry skin, before creams, and only at night. Starting twice a week and building up is what usually keeps the peeling away.
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Moisturiser
It seals the watery layers underneath it. This is thinnest-to-thickest in practice: cream after serum, never the other way around.
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Face oil
Oil gets through cream; cream doesn't get through oil — which is why it's the last thing you put on at night.
No steps ticked for this time of day.
Why this order
The logic underneath the list
It isn't etiquette or superstition. The order exists because every layer changes what the next layer meets.
- Thinnest to thickest
- A heavy texture forms a film on the skin, and whatever follows has a much harder time getting past it. Hence water before cream, and cream before oil.
- Water-based before oil-based
- Watery formulas — toners, essences, most serums — don't travel through an oil layer. The reverse works fine.
- Actives sit close to cleansing
- Acids and retinoids are the most active things in the routine, so they go straight after cleansing, before anything that builds a barrier — just not at the same moment as each other.
- Sunscreen closes the morning
- It needs to sit as an even film over everything else. Putting serum or moisturiser on top disturbs that film, so it is the full stop of the morning routine.
- A short routine is still a routine
- Cleanser, moisturiser and sunscreen already make a complete routine. Extra steps are only worth it when they do something specific you actually want done.
Being honest
What is genuinely unsettled
These five get stated online with far more confidence than the evidence supports. It's worth knowing where the rule ends and preference begins.
Toner or essence first
Depends who you ask. Western convention puts toner first; much of the Korean tradition flips it. Since both are light and watery, the practical difference is likely small — thinnest-to-thickest already covers you.
Acid and retinoid on the same night
The most contested question in the routine. Plenty of people alternate nights precisely because the combination irritates easily; some dermatologists do pair them in specific situations, with supervision. If you're new to either, alternating is the conservative call.
Waiting between layers
You'll find everything from "apply straight through" to "wait twenty minutes". What can be said with some confidence is that letting skin dry before a retinoid reduces irritation for many people. The precise timings that circulate don't have solid backing.
The vitamin C pH rule
The idea that you must wait a set number of minutes after an acid for vitamin C to "work" comes from formulation studies, not from bathroom-sink use. Treat it as uncertain rather than as law.
The right number of steps
There isn't one. A ten-step routine and a three-step routine can both suit the same face; what changes is what each step is there to do — and how many products you can realistically keep up with.
The harder question
The order is the easy part
The sequence above is the same for everyone. What belongs inside each step isn't — and that's where the expensive doubt shows up: does this serum I just picked up actually suit MY skin? Glowy+ reads the ingredient list straight off a photo of the label and answers for your skin type, your sensitivity and what you want to work on, including which step of the routine that product would fit into.
Frequently asked questions about skincare order
Does serum go before or after moisturiser?
Before. Serum is thinner and more concentrated; moisturiser is denser and seals the layers underneath. Applying serum on top of moisturiser makes it fight through a film that was just created.
Does sunscreen go before or after moisturiser?
After. Sunscreen is always the last step of the morning routine. If you wear makeup, it goes on after sunscreen — sunscreen ends the skincare, not the face.
Can I use an acid and a retinoid on the same night?
This is the most debated question in the routine. If you're new to either, alternating nights is the conservative approach, because the combination irritates easily. People who have used both for a while and tolerate them sometimes do combine them, ideally with dermatological guidance.
Do I need to wait between steps?
Usually no. The most defensible exception is letting skin dry before a retinoid, which reduces irritation for many people. The exact waiting times that circulate online don't have solid backing.
Is toner still necessary?
It isn't mandatory. A modern toner is effectively a light hydrating layer. If yours isn't doing anything specific for you, skipping it doesn't break the routine.
What's the minimum routine that makes sense?
Morning: cleanser, moisturiser, sunscreen. Night: cleanser and moisturiser. That is already a complete routine. Everything beyond it is optional and should earn its place.
Does the order change for a Korean routine?
The logic is identical: thinnest to thickest. Korean routines simply include more watery layers — essence, ampoule, serum — so they look longer. The rule underneath doesn't change.
Where does a product that does several things go?
Use texture as the tiebreaker and slot it where its consistency belongs. A fluid "serum-moisturiser" goes at the serum stage; a creamy one goes at the moisturiser stage.
Find out whether your products suit you
Photograph the label, get a verdict, and see where each product belongs in your routine.
