Having two different cleansers for morning and night sounds unnecessary, but Jaliman says it's good to mix it up. “You can use a salicylic acid–based cleanser in the morning to unclog pores and avoid acne and a glycolic acid–based cleanser at night to exfoliate your skin and get rid of dead skin cells,” notes Jailman.
Your morning and nighttime skincare routines most likely follow the same basic steps: cleanse, tone, boost, and hydrate. That being said, these routines should not be exactly the same! While many skincare products can be used twice a day, morning and night, most are more effective during one or the other.
Cleanser – No matter how much you skimp on your skin care routine, you should always wash your face at least once a day. Those with oily or combination skin may benefit from twice daily washes (morning and night) while drier skin may be fine with just a nightly wash.
When used together, they can help soften the skin and give it the nourishment it needs to remain attractive and radiant despite the harsh conditions it faces every day. You can use your regular daytime cleanser at night, but you will have better results if you use a gentler, night-specific cleanser.
“The benefit of double cleansing is that the first cleanser will break down any makeup, remove dirt and excess oils from the day and clean your skin. The second cleanser will address your particular skin type or concern and should have ingredients to hydrate, smooth or exfoliate and treat acne.
Essentially, the double cleanse aims to clean your skin as thoroughly as possible by using the two kinds of cleansers to get rid of the different kinds of dirt on your face. Your face is getting cleaner than if you used only one cleanser that might not fully take off the makeup or sweat or SPF.
“Bacteria builds up on your skin when you sleep at night, so you need to wash it off in the morning,” says Debra Jaliman, MD, an assistant professor of dermatology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and author of Skin Rules: Trade Secrets from a Top New York Dermatologist.
It protects your skin's natural barrier
Your skin works hard all night building its own natural barrier against the world (a layer of helpful oils keeps skin soft), so why strip it all away as soon as you wake up with a face wash? “Washing your face in the morning can strip your natural defense barrier,” says Carlen.
“You should wash your face in the morning for various reasons,” she says. “Bacteria can accumulate throughout the night and, also, you should prime your skin by cleansing it for your morning skincare routine, not to mention to remove your nighttime creams and serums used the night before.”
Recap. Acne is caused by factors like bacteria and hormones—not a dirty face. Still, you should remove dirt and oil by washing your face morning and night with a gentle cleanser.
During the day as you're upright, the dermal fluid moves towards your legs, but overnight, when your body is horizontal during sleep, dermal fluid settles back. This swells up your facial skin, reducing the appearance of wrinkles, like pumping water back into a raisin or rehydrating a shriveled, dried sponge.
Lamb, the associate professor of dermatology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, says that washing your face twice per day is always a good idea. "In the morning, it's a good way to remove dead skin cells that have turned over on your face after sleeping," she says.
Regardless of whether or not you wear makeup or suffer from acne, it's important to wash your face before going to bed. Washing your face helps to: Clear pores. As you remove makeup from your skin, your pores open and your skin can finally breathe.
Whether you choose a gel or a cream cleanser, a dime-sized amount is all you need. For foaming cleanser, one pump should get the job done. Miami dermatologist Alicia Barba, MD, suggests washing once in the morning and twice in the evening if you wear makeup, or only once at night if you don't wear makeup.
While nighttime skincare is incredibly important, morning skincare is just as crucial. Between pollution, sweat, and sun exposure, our skin goes through a lot each day—and it's important to take the time to prep and protect it for what's ahead.
However, while a cleanser and face wash both serve the same basic function—to nix makeup, oil, product, and grime from your face—the way in which they do so is different. A face wash is usually better for very oily skin types, while a face cleanser is often universally helpful.
Do this step: Morning and night.
"A cleanser gets rid of dead skin, pollutants, oils, dirt, and bacteria," says Rabach. Both she and Ciraldo recommend also doing this step when you first wake up in the morning, in order to prep your skin to absorb the active ingredients in your other products.
Can You Use Both Face Wash and Skin Cleanser? You can use face washes and cleansers together. If you plan on using both products, use the face wash more frequently than the cleanser to keep your skin feeling healthy, hydrated, and refreshed. If your skin feels dry, you can alter or adjust your routine or products.
But what is it exactly? In short, the '7 skin method' is the process of layering three to seven layers of toner or an essence-and-toner-in-one onto your skin immediately after cleansing. As for the name, Koreans call toning and essence products "skin," thus, the seven-skin method was born.
By cleansing first you help removing dirt, sweat and make up off skin's surface. You are then working with a clean base to then exfoliate away dead skin cells that can pile up on skin's surface. Exfoliating can soften your skin and allows a fresh layer of skin cells to emerge as dead skin cells are washed away.