At times, when trying to create a skincare routine that works for each individual skin, we encounter some questions regarding how actives interact with each other. One of the common questions is if we can use Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same skincare routine. I will answer this question in this article, as well as provide a skincare routine that contains both actives and tell you what you should be careful of when trying to combine actives.
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Can you use Glycolic Acid and Retinol on the same night?
The short answer is yes, you can combine Glycolic Acid and Retinol together in the same skincare routine. You’ll actually see better results. The long answer is, that it depends on the actives’ strength, your skin type, how accustomed you are to actives, and if the products used are not interacting with one another, making the Glycolic Acid destabilize the Retinol.
You can easily overdo it, sensitize and irritate your skin which might cause other skin issues afterward. Having multiple actives with higher strength percentages into one skincare routine can be overwhelming for the skin and can lead to a disruption in the skin barrier. But with enough care and knowledge, you can use Retinol and Glycolic Acid together.
Just to be sure, we are talking about Glycolic Acid with Retinol in this post, not Glycolic with tretinoin. You should NEVER combine Glycolic Acid and tretinoin in one skincare routine. Tret or Retin-A is a very powerful strength active and combining them will damage your skin.
If you have sensitive skin or rosacea under no circumstance should you use Retinol and Glycolic Acid in the same skincare routine. You can use them at different times, like on different days or one in the morning(the glycolic Acid) and one in the evening(retinol). I do not recommend using retinol during the day because it will make your skin very sensitive and even with sunscreen you might still get sun hyperpigmentation.
If you want to combine different actives it’s always best to do it in the nighttime routine. I wouldn’t recommend doing this in the morning routine as it can be too much for the skin to handle during the day. In your daytime routine, you should include products that protect and help your skin barrier. Your skin can become very sensitive, very quickly during the day because of pollutants and the sun so just keep the combination of multiple actives for the PM routine.
You can exfoliate during the day, but I would recommend a gentle exfoliation, maybe a toner that both hydrates and exfoliates, as most of the toners with Lactic Acid do. The hydrating and exfoliating toner that I absolutely love is Clarins Chamomile Toner. It soothes the skin because of the chamomile extract while also gently exfoliating because of the 5% Lactic Acid. Because Lactic Acid has a higher molecule it doesn’t penetrate the skin as deep as a Glycolic Acid would do.
It’s crucial if you decide to combine actives to use sunscreen during the day with broad-spectrum protection of at least 30-50, preferably 50. I have a post here on some of the best sunscreens. I am comparing mineral and physical sunscreens, with white cast and without, and telling you what ingredient you MUST avoid because it was found to be bad for our health.
Why is the actives strength important when combining Retinol and Glycolic Acid together?
It’s crucial if you want to combine Retinol and Glycolic Acid together in the same skincare routine for them to be less potent, with a lower strength percentage. A higher percentage of any of them would be able to sensitize your skin too much and cause irritation, imagine what adding two highly potent products would do. You would add a very sensitizing second product to already irritated skin.
Why is skin type important when combining Retinol and Glycolic Acid together?
It’s important to know our skin type not only when trying to combine actives, but also when buying products. Choosing the right products, targeted for a specific skin type and condition is a prerequisite to starting any skincare routine.
Having dry and sensitive skin might stop you from having Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same skin care routine as you will get even drier and your skin will be more sensitive than before. If you still want to do it, follow the routine I’ll present in the second part of this post.
If you, on the other hand, have oily and combination skin you’ll probably be less prone to sensitivity and dryness because your skin already overproduces sebum. That means you might be able to exfoliate and then use Retinol and have no skin barrier damage. Your skin might even love this combination, and you can get some great results but you have to know your skin very well to do this.
I suggest you don’t combine them more than two to three times a week, probably once in the beginning.
Why is important how accustomed you are to actives when using Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same routine?
This is probably a no-brainer, but both Retinol and Glycolic Acid have exfoliating properties and individually can sensitize your skin. They are both powerful ingredients that can damage your skin if they are not used properly.
You should make sure first you handle each active on different days without getting any irritation and sensitive skin before adding them to the same skincare routine. Only after several months of using them on different days should you start combining Retinol and Glycolic Acid together.
Difference between Retinol and Glycolic Acid
Even though both Retinol and Glycolic Acid help exfoliate the skin and improve the skin texture they are different actives. One is an acid, an AHA and the other one is a Vitamin A derivative. I’ll explain more about what each one does individually below.
What is Glycolic Acid?
Glycolic Acid is a type of Alpha Hydroxy Acids, also known as AHAs. It’s an exfoliant with a very small molecule which makes it easier to penetrate the skin layers. Glycolic Acid gently exfoliates the top layer of the skin helping in preventing and treating milia and acne. It basically helps in clearing the pores. Because it penetrates deeply into the skin, Glycolic Acid is best used before other products, as a toner because then the next products will be able to penetrate deeper into the skin and you’ll be able to see better results from them.
What is retinol?
Retinol is a Vitamin A derivative, that once it gets into the skin, your skin needs to metabolize it, to turn it into Retinoic Acid. This means it will take longer to start seeing results than with other potent Vitamin A derivatives like tretinoin. Retinol can be bought over the counter and is found in numerous skin care products.
Vitamin A is great for the skin because it promotes collagen synthesis resulting in a healthier complexion, fewer wrinkles, and smoother skin. It also has skin brightening properties so if you have sun spots and hyperpigmentation, then a Vitamin A product definitely helps.
The big difference between Retinol and Glycolic Acid is that Retinol is a long game, which means you’ll only see results after using retinol for at least a month. You can see more immediate results with Glycolic Acid but they won’t be as big as when using retinol products. Also, for anti-aging Retinol is the best out of the two actives.
After using any Retinol and/or Glycolic Acid make sure you use sun protection with high SPF levels every day and reapply it often during the day.
Nighttime skincare routine with Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same routine
If you really want to have Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same routine it would be best to first start with a product that has both glycolic acid and retinoid in it. That way, it shouldn’t irritate your skin as much because the formulator put them together with other ingredients that will help stabilize the formula and protect your skin. Of course, you can also go with 2 separate products of your choice that you used separately and know they are not irritating your skin. I will provide you with a skincare routine for each of the two scenarios.
- Remove make-up and sunscreen
Make sure you gently break down your make-up and sunscreen using a cleansing balm. A cleansing balm will make sure you get everything off without stripping your skin of its natural oils. A very good cleansing balm that I love to use is the Farmacy Green Clean cleansing balm. It is one of the most amazing cleansing balms on the market. It removes waterproof make-up, emulsifies completely, is paraben-free, mineral oil-free, and cruelty-free. Another great balm that I absolutely love is Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm. I consider this to be more suitable for dry and combination skin.
- Cleanse your skin with a gentle cleansing cream or gel
If you’re going to have both Glycolic Acid and Retinol in your skincare routine make sure your second cleanse is a gentle facial wash, not a drying one. Stay away from foaming cleansers and cleansers with BHAs like Salicylic Acid. You will have enough exfoliation in this routine without using a salicylic acid wash.
For a gentle cleanse I would recommend Cerave Daily Facial Cleanser or Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanser or even better La Roche Posay’s Gentle Cleanser. They are all cream cleansers, which will gently cleanse your skin without stripping it and letting a tight feeling after cleansing.
- Glycolic Acid
Now it’s the time to introduce the first active ingredient and that is the Glycolic Acid. An important factor when combining Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same skincare routine is that it’s better to either have the Glycolic Acid in a washable form like an exfoliation mask or a face wash or to have it in a toner. I’ll present both options below and you can choose one that suits you better.
a. I recommend using first an AHA wash-off mask. For this, I recommend the Clay mask with Glycolic Acid Glamglow Supermud Clearing Treatment. It is gentle on the skin, it purifies and it also exfoliates. After you applied the mask to your face, wait for 10-15 minutes and then wash your face with lukewarm water and remove the excess water with a face towel. Do not over-dry your skin, you need it damp for the next product.
b. Instead of a clay mask you can go with an Exfoliating toner like Pixie’s Glycolic Acid Toner. This toner is perfect because it has a lower strength concentration than other toners. It is weaker than those from The Ordinary or Cosrx or any other toner with more than 5% active strength but when combined with Retinol less concentration is better.
After applying the toner make sure you wait for 20-30 minutes before applying the next product. The best thing you can do is actually wash your face with lukewarm water after you applied the toner and waited for 30 minutes. Then, the Glycolic Acid would have already done its job, penetrating the skin and doing a gentle exfoliation, while also prepping the skin for the next products. If you wash your toner, then there is a smaller chance of it interacting with Retinol and it will actually be a higher exfoliation and penetration of the Retinol product into the skin.
Do not use retinol and glycolic acid pads together in the same skincare routine. Glycolic Acids pads usually have 10 to 20% Glycolic Acid active ingredient which is a lot. Your skin will probably not gonna be able to handle the Retinol afterward and you’ll end up breaking your skin barrier and irritating your skin.
- Hydrating serum or essence
This is a very important step that you don’t want to miss. You should always use a buffer between a Retinol product and a Glycolic Acid product. A buffer can be a product like a Hydrating Hyaluronic Acid serum – the Vichy Mineral 89 serum with Vichy Thermal Water is a great choice. It not only provides hydration but also soothes the skin after exfoliation. Hyaluronic Acid is best applied on damp skin as it will retain the water and make your skin plumper.
Another product you can use instead of Vichy’s Serum is Cosrx Snail Mucin. It has a high percentage of snail slime in its composition providing hydration and helping the skin barrier repair itself.
Never use Glycolic Acid and Retinol one after another without something hydrating(serum, essence) in between.
- Moisturizer
a. Make sure you choose a very hydrating moisturizer with Retinol. The one that I like most is the Paula’s Choice Barrier Repair Moisturizer. It is gentle on the skin and it provides enough moisturization so that it won’t get your skin dry in the morning.
b. You can skip step 3 entirely and use instead a product formulated with both Glycolic Acid and Retinol. It is best to use a product with both elements already combined as this was already tested and the formulators should’ve taken into account that the Glycolic Acid can destabilize the Retinol and they should’ve formulated it specially. One product that you can use and it has both Glycolic Acid and Retinol in it is Liquid Gold Midnight Reboot Serum from ALPHA-H. It has 14% Glycolic Acid in it and a 1% Granactive Retinoid together with peptides and Vitamin E.
- Facial Oil or Heavy Moisturizer
If you are going to combine Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same routine you should add more hydration to your skin. That’s when a facial oil comes in handy because it moisturizes the skin and locks that hydration from the Hyaluronic Acid and Moisturizer from prior skincare steps.
Paula’s Choice Renewal Facial oil contains a selection of oils together with ceramides which are essential in repairing and protecting the skin barrier.
If you don’t have a facial oil on hand you can get another thick moisturizer on top of your Retinol Moisturizer/Serum otherwise you might feel your face drier in the morning. I recommend you go with a good and simple moisturizing cream like Cerave Moisturizing Cream with ceramides or Vanicream. Both creams are very moisturizing and are recommended by a lot of people and dermatologists.
- Lip Balm
Laneige lip balm is a great choice of a balm. Make sure you provide your lips with enough moisturization during the night, especially if you use retinol products near the mouth. Aquaphor is another great option as a lip moisturizer.
Do not use Glycolic Acid and Retinol in the same routine more than twice a week as it might irritate the skin and break your skin barrier. In the days when you don’t use them make sure you use a lot of hydrating products and no other exfoliants combined. You should have at least a few days a week to only cleanse your skin and moisturize it.
If after applying Retinol you feel like your face is getting on fire or you see any allergic reaction please wash your face as soon as possible and apply a simple, hydrating cream like Paula’s Choice Omega Moisturizer with ceramides. You might still have a small tingling on the skin and that’s ok but if it gets worse then just clean your skin and take it easy.
If you don’t want to use Glycolic Acid and Retinol together, the best option is to either use them on alternate nights, or is perfectly ok to use Glycolic Acid in the morning and Retinol at night. Make sure you always use sunscreen during the day with an SPF level of at least 30, preferably 50. For good sunscreen options that won’t leave a white cast and are not harmful to the skin check out this post, Best Physical, and Chemical Sunscreens.
So, all in all, Retinol and Glycolic Acid can be used together in the same routine just make sure you follow the tips presented above, and if you see any rising sensibility in your skin go to a basic routine of only cleansing and moisturizing for a few days.
Where there is a will, there is a way.