Healthy, well-maintained skin doesn’t just enhance your appearance—it also boosts your confidence and contributes to your overall well-being. While starting a skincare routine can feel overwhelming, consistency and a well-structured plan are key to achieving your desired results.

The best steps for skin care should include three essential practices – cleansing, moisturizing and protection. These steps are the holy grail for any kind of skincare routine and every other step branches off from them. 

A skincare routine should have products to match your concerns and skin type, and the products should be used at the right time, in the right way and in order. For instance, the lightest products in your routine should generally go in first while the heaviest one go in last.

These are the steps a skincare routine should have, the holy grail:

This is the first and most basic step for every process. It means washing or cleansing the skin with a cleanser. You should do this twice a day - in the morning and at night, especially after a day of labour, dirt and sweat. You should not cleanse more than twice a day, so you don’t strip your skin of natural oils.

Moisturizing involves hydrating the skin, so it does not become dry, flaky and even wrinkled. For every skin texture that isn’t dry, you should opt for a moisturizer that is lightweight, gel-based and fragrance-free.

Depending on the suitability and other factors, someone with dry skin can opt for heavy, oil-based moisturizers as they offer extra hydration. However, if you have specific skin concerns that can be rectified by a moisturizer, you can get one that contains ingredients that address those concerns.

Protection involves shielding the skin from free radicals and the harmful effects of UV rays. You could even say it is the most important on the list – one to stick to even when the other skincare routine steps are not feasible.

Protection mostly involves using sunscreen. You should apply sunscreens with SPF (sun protection factor) of 30 and above daily, making it the final process before you step out. Apply 30 minutes before stepping out in the sun (and even when there is no sun in sight) and reapply after every two hours.

Below we describe 10 steps for a good skin care routine, including their order and the most suitable application time:

People with dry skin may tend towards cleansing in the morning, but as someone with oily skin, you should cleanse twice a day. Evening cleansing is particularly essential to get rid of the grit from the day.

We recommend a hydrating cleanser to everyone just starting with skincare; it is the safest bet. Fragrance-free cleansers with ceramides and glycerine are a great option.

If you are cleansing in the evening and wear heavy makeup, double cleanse to get all the grease out. First, use a makeup remover and then a cleanser.

Exfoliation involves scrubbing dead skin and debris off the skin. It is optional and unlike many other steps, you only need to do it once a week. You may do it more often, but with a weekly routine adjust as necessary. Exfoliation

You could get an exfoliating cleanser to cleanser and exfoliate at the same time. Unlike dedicated exfoliants, you can use an exfoliating cleanser daily.

Dedicated exfoliants can either be chemical or physical. Chemical exfoliants comprises of AHAs and BHAs and are good for cell turnover but can irritate so it’s best to pace yourself.

Physical exfoliants on the other hand are used to scrub away dead skin. It could be a face scrub or a homemade one with sugar, honey and the like.

Toners are used to further hydrate the skin, especially after cleansing. They are also one of the first products to use after cleansing because they are lightweight thus serve as a perfect base for the other products. If your toner is an exfoliating one, you should only use it at night but other types like hydrating toners can be used twice daily. Avoid using exfoliating toners and retinoids or exfoliants together.

Face masks have dedicated ingredients to help resolve skin issues. They are of different types, including sheet masks, overnight masks, clay/mud masks, brightening masks, and calming masks.

Sheet masks are dedicated to hydration; they cover the skin and speed up absorption. Overnight masks are just what their name implies; they trap ingredients underneath the skin overnight. Clay or mud masks absorb oil and do some exfoliation.

Like exfoliants, face masks should only be used once a week.

This step is for people who have specific skin concerns that require treatment. Such concerns can be acne, wrinkling and fine lines, hyperpigmentation and discolouration. Treatments usually involves using active ingredients like vitamin C, niacinamide, retinol, AHA/BHAs, glycerine, ceramides, and hyaluronic acid to address these specific concerns. These must be prescribed by a professional.

Also optional, serum has varying uses and compositions and this determines its usage. That said, you can use hyaluronic acid serums for hydration, anti-inflammatory effects (niacinamide based), and to even skin tone.

Serums with antioxidant abilities are typically applied during the day to fight free radicals while those with hydrating abilities can be applied at nighttime (and morning too) to hydrate overnight.

Water-based serums, due to their lightweight nature, go under moisturizers while oil-based serums go after moisturizers.

This is dedicated to the area around the eyes. It helps with antiaging, dark eye circles, puffiness, wrinkles and dryness, seeing as the eyes are one of the most vulnerable areas to ageing. You can use eye creams twice daily and may even get different creams for morning and night. If worried about harshness, you can apply a light moisturizer under your eyes instead of an eye cream.

Retinoids should be used only at night. It should be applied after cleansing and before moisturizing. They are used to reduce the effects of ageing and promote cell regeneration.

It is essential for dry sensitive skin but in a mild dosage. You should take it alongside ingredients like niacinamide to offset the possible effects.

Start slow say once weekly if you are new to it until you see that it is safe to increase your dosage. This is because they can be quite harsh and drying and increase your skin’s sensitivity. So best to use sunscreen in the morning. Avoid retinoids if you are pregnant.

You can moisturize with a lotion or a cream. Aim for non-comedogenic products.

You should use face oil if you have dry or normal skin. Of course, if your skin is oily, avoid face oils. Face oils finalize the moisture retention process as they lock in moisture from moisturizers and other products.

Sunscreen is not necessary for a nighttime routine but would come in handy during the daytime as it protects from sun-based damages.

For nighttime routines, sleep on satin or silk pillowcases and sheets to repel products.

Products you need for a good skincare routine include the following:

With skincare routines, you need consistency to get results. That said, skincare routines are deeply personal journeys; they differ from person to person. So, if you have something that is doing wonders for your skin, hold on to it.