Does toner go before or after serum?

Toner goes before serum. It is a thin, watery step that comes right after cleansing, and serum follows on top of it.

Where does a face mask go in a skincare routine?

Use a face mask after cleansing, leave it on only as long as the label says, then wash it off and apply moisturizer. The AAD advises against masks that repeat actives you already use, such as retinol or acids.

Do you put moisturizer on before or after sunscreen?

Moisturizer goes before sunscreen. The American Academy of Dermatology advises putting sunscreen on after your other skin care products and beneath makeup.

Should I put skincare on wet or dry skin?

Moisturizer can go on straight after cleansing while skin is still slightly damp. Treatments are different: the AAD suggests waiting 20 to 30 minutes after washing before applying a retinoid.

Skincare Routine Order: What Goes First

The order is simpler than the number of products on the shelf suggests. Clean skin first, active products next, moisturizer after that, and sunscreen on top in the morning. Everything else, from toner to eye cream, slots in between using the same logic.

This guide is for anyone building a routine or adding a new product and wondering where it goes. It covers the morning and night order in one table, the “thinnest to thickest” rule and when it does not apply, how long to wait between steps, which products not to stack, and a three-step routine for busy days.

It is cosmetic guidance, not medical advice. If a dermatologist has given you a prescription, follow their instructions first.

What is the correct skincare routine order?

The correct skincare routine order is cleanse, then treat, then moisturize and protect, then makeup. That is the sequence the American Academy of Dermatology gives in its guide to applying skin care in a certain order:

Wash your face with a gentle cleanser and gently pat dry.
Apply medication or treatment right after cleansing.
Apply moisturizer and/or sunscreen.
Apply makeup, if you wear it.

The AAD says the sequence “affects how well the products work,” and it warns that using too many products, especially more than one anti-aging product, may irritate the skin. Serums, toners and eye creams are all variations on these four steps.

What is the skincare order for morning and night?

The morning routine protects (it ends in sunscreen), and the night routine treats and repairs (it is where retinoids and stronger actives usually go). Here is the full order side by side. Optional steps are marked; you do not need all of them.

Step	Morning	Night
1	Cleanser (a gentle one, or water if your skin is dry)	Makeup and sunscreen removal, then cleanser
2	Toner (optional)	Toner (optional)
3	Serum, such as vitamin C (optional)	Treatment, such as a retinoid or exfoliating acid (optional)
4	Eye cream (optional)	Eye cream (optional)
5	Moisturizer	Moisturizer (often richer than in the morning)
6	Sunscreen, broad spectrum, SPF 30 or higher	None
7	Makeup (optional)	None

Two details from the AAD’s skin care guide for your 20s settle the most common questions:

Vitamin C usually goes in the morning. Dermatologist Rebecca Baxt tells patients to apply it “after washing your face in the morning, before you put on your sunscreen.”
Sunscreen is always last in skincare. The AAD says to put sunscreen on after your other skin care products and beneath your makeup, and to apply it 15 minutes before you go outdoors.

When you apply eye cream, the AAD suggests using your ring finger, because it is the weakest finger and will not pull on the delicate skin around the eyes.

Does skincare go from thinnest to thickest?

“Thinnest to thickest” is a useful rule of thumb, not a dermatology rule: watery products like toner go on before serums, and serums before creams, so heavier layers do not block lighter ones. It works most of the time, but there are clear exceptions:

Sunscreen goes last in the morning even if it is thinner than your moisturizer, because it needs to sit on top to protect.
Treatments go right after cleansing. The AAD’s order puts medication or treatment straight after cleansing, regardless of texture.
Oils and balms go near the end. Face oils sit on top of water-based products, so they usually follow moisturizer or replace it at night.
Spot treatments go only where you need them, after cleansing and before a light layer of moisturizer.
The label wins. If a product’s directions give a specific order or timing, follow them.

How long should you wait between skincare steps?

For most steps you only need to wait until the previous layer no longer feels wet, but a few products have specific timing. The AAD gives these:

Retinoid at night: Dr. Baxt recommends washing your face, waiting 20 to 30 minutes, then applying the retinoid. If it feels too drying, she suggests applying a moisturizer right after washing and the retinoid 20 to 30 minutes later.
Retinol if it irritates you: The AAD’s pores guide suggests washing your face and waiting 30 minutes before applying retinol.
Sunscreen: Apply it 15 minutes before going outdoors.
Moisturizer: No wait needed after cleansing; it can go straight onto slightly damp skin.

What skincare products should you not use together?

The main pairing to avoid is exfoliation on top of a retinoid, retinol or benzoyl peroxide. According to the AAD’s exfoliation guide, these products can make skin more sensitive or cause peeling, and exfoliating while using them “may worsen dry skin or even cause acne breakouts.”

Other combinations the AAD flags:

Several anti-aging products at once. Using more than one may irritate the skin.
Masks that repeat your actives. The AAD’s face mask guide advises avoiding masks with active ingredients you already use, “particularly if you are already using retinol or acid-containing products.”
Scrubs plus chemical exfoliants on the same day. Over-exfoliating can leave skin red and irritated.

A simple way to avoid clashes is to separate actives by time: vitamin C in the morning, a retinoid at night, and exfoliating acids on nights you skip the retinoid. Add one new product at a time, patch test it first, and give it at least 30 days before deciding whether it works, which is the timeframe the AAD gives.

What is a minimal 3-step skincare routine?

A minimal routine is cleanser, moisturizer and sunscreen in the morning, and cleanser, optional treatment and moisturizer at night. The AAD’s 20s guide names a mild cleanser and sunscreen as the two products dermatologists recommend every day, so everything else is optional.

Morning

Gentle cleanser (or a splash of water if your skin is dry)
Moisturizer suited to your skin type
Broad-spectrum sunscreen, SPF 30 or higher (or a moisturizer that already contains it)

Night

Cleanser, after removing makeup and sunscreen
One treatment, if you use one
Moisturizer

Which moisturizer and cleanser fit depends on your skin type. Our pages on oily, dry, combination and normal skin each include a morning and evening routine, and the skin type guide helps you work out which one you have. If you are chasing a dewy finish, see our post on glass skin.

Where does Beautify fit?

Beautify, an iPhone app, helps with the step before the order: knowing your skin type. From one selfie it gives a skin type result with a morning and evening routine for that type, plus a skin quality score among its eight scores out of 100. Its AI beauty assistant answers questions like where a new serum fits in your routine or which products are better kept on separate nights. It is not medical advice. The free alternatives work too: the AAD’s own four-step order covers most routines, and a board-certified dermatologist is the right person for prescriptions, irritation or breakouts that persist.

What matters most?

Cleanse, treat, moisturize, then sunscreen in the morning; makeup goes on top.
Thinnest to thickest is a guide; sunscreen last and treatments first are the exceptions.
Give retinoids 20 to 30 minutes after washing, and keep exfoliation away from retinoid nights.
Fewer products used consistently beat many products used at once.