Where Toner Fits in Your Skincare Order
When exactly do you put these toners and serums and creams on?
Starting out your skincare journey can be confusing, and if you might slap everything on thinking it doesn't matter.
Doing things wrong won't kill the effectiveness of your products, but it can decrease it nonetheless.
Layering your skincare in the correct order helps your products work effectively to deliver the best results for your skin.
We're here to let you know exactly where toner fits in your skincare routine and explain why it should always be applied before moisturizer.
What is Toner and Why Use It?
Toner is a water-based skincare solution designed to be applied immediately after cleansing and before moisturizing.
It does a lot for your skin, such as:
- removing residual dirt, oil, makeup, or SPF after cleansing
- rebalancing the skin's natural pH
- preparing the skin to better absorb other skincare products
Everyone can benefit from using toners, but they're especially good for those with oily, acne-prone, or combination skin types.
That's because they usually have ingredients that help minimize oil and the appearance of pores.
Toners are also great for people living in harsh climates or places with hard water.
They're helpful, but they're not an absolute must have for everyone.
Those with sensitive skin might opt out of using one if they find they can't tolerate it.
The Skincare Routine Order
A good rule of thumb to follow is to layer products from thinnest to thickest consistency.
This helps make sure that each one can be properly absorbed into the skin without being blocked by heavier products.
Toner bridges two faces of your routine as the final step in cleansing and the first step in preparing your skin for active treatments.
Generally, the order should be:
- Cleanser: Wash your face to remove impurities
- Toner: Apply toner to sweep away residue and prep the skin
- Serum: Follow with a serum to target your specific skin concerns
- Moisturizer: Hydrate and seal all the previous layers
- Sunscreen/Night Cream: Finish your routine with sun protection in the AM or reparative products in the PM
If you're using a spot treatment, that should go after serum and before moisturizer.
Why Using Toner Before Moisturizer Matters
You can think of your toner like your skin's warm up. It gets things ready for what comes next.
Toner creates a perfectly clean slate for your products to work on.
The purpose of moisturizer is to nourish and seal. If you put it on too early, it becomes less effective because there's nothing to seal yet.
So if you flip the order, it just creates a barrier that prevents other products from penetrating the skin.
Your product then is sitting on top of the moisturizer, not on top of your skin.
Best Practices
We've established that toner should go first, then any serums or treatments, and then moisturizer.
Dermatologists suggest giving your toner about 10 to 30 seconds to let it sink in.
Then, while your skin is still slightly damp, go in with your other products and moisturizer.
This seals the actives and hydrations and enhances the effectiveness of all your products.
Common Myths
There's a lot of skincare advice floating around.
With information and products more accessible than ever, anyone can claim to know what they're talking about.
The downside to that is sponsored “advice” and conflicting claims.
Let's go through some myths together so you can make more information choices about your toner.
One popular myth is that applying moisturizer before toner can help “protect” your skin by acting as a barrier.
The intention makes sense, but that's not how it actually works.
Moisturizer is designed to lock things in, and so applying it first can cause other products to be locked out.
Putting moisturizer on first would be a waste of your toner.
Another misconception: toner is unnecessary or outdated.
The idea comes from the fact that skincare routines are so advanced now your pH is never off.
That may be true for developed areas.
But as I mentioned before, that's not the cause if you live somewhere with harshly humid or dry climates, hard water, or lots of environmental pollutants.
There's things like hormones to be considered too.
Today's toners are advanced too. They don't just balance your pH, they're made with other ingredients that provide benefits to your skin.
Let's run it back.
Toner is an important step in your skincare routine, and should always go before moisturizer.
This is so that your skin has a clean slate to work with.
Following the correct sequence isn't a suggestion, but a way to make sure you're getting the most value out of your products.
If you're starting to build your routine, check out our acne toner, detox toner, and moisturizer to see if they're what you need to tackle your skincare concerns.