On TikTok, there will always be those girls who take off their makeup with micellar water and call it a day. What they never do, however, is take a cotton pad or white towel and touch their face afterwards. If they did, they would see the leftover makeup transfer onto it.

Cleansers are a vital step in any skincare routine, and are extremely underrated. A cleanser is a skincare product that provides benefits while also washing dirt, makeup, and residue off of your face.

In an ideal skincare routine, you double-cleanse at night time. To double cleanse, you first use an oil cleanser to remove makeup from your skin. Then, you can use a water-based cleanser to remove any oily residue. You would then proceed with your night skincare regimen.

This is ideal because it ensures all makeup is removed from your skin. Sleeping in makeup is terrible for your skin and can cause acne, irritation, and more. It can even cause clogged pores, dehydration of the skin, and early signs of aging.

Cleansers can also have other benefits due to ingredients inside of them. Cleansers like PanOxyl have benzoyl peroxide inside of them, which is an ingredient that can dry out acne and help treat it. Other ingredients include hyaluronic acid, oatmeal, ceramides, and squalane. All of these ingredients help moisturize the skin and heal the skin barrier.

Overuse of cleansers with active ingredients like salicylic acid, glycolic acid, lactic acid, and benzoyl peroxide, can lead to a damaged skin barrier, causing more acne, dryness, and skin irritation. This is why, while they are helpful, they must be used in moderation. Generally, these are good to use at night time when you are more likely to use skin-healing ingredients.

However, you do not want to use cleansers with active ingredients at the same time as other active ingredients such as more salicylic acid, retinol, tretinoin, and adapalene. If used in the same routine, it may cause more skin irritation than necessary.

Plus, oil cleansers remove sunscreen residue on skin, which, if left there, can cause acne, irritation, and premature aging.

Some good oil cleansers include:
ANUA Heartleaf Pore Cleansing Oil
The INKEY List Oat Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm
Glow Recipe Papaya Sorbet Smoothing Enzyme Cleansing Balm & Makeup Remover

Some good water-based cleansers brands include:
CeraVe
Cetaphil
Glow Recipe
Laneige
Laroche Posay
Byoma
The Inkey List
The Ordinary

Overall, cleansers are important in any skincare routine, whether you use makeup or not, and must be used correctly to reap the benefits they promise.