Daytime vs Nighttime Skincare - What’s the Difference?

If you’re new to skincare or looking to step up your anti-aging game, you’ve probably come across lots of products marked for daytime or nighttime use. What’s the deal?

Simple - your skin needs different stuff in the morning and the evening to look and feel its best. 

It’s logical - your skin is exposed to different things during the day and overnight. So your routine should adjust to fit the changing needs of your skin between the morning and the evening. 

Don’t worry - you won’t need a complicated chart to figure out what to use in the morning or the evening. Just stick to this logical order of skincare and anti-aging products.

Daytime Skincare

During the day, your skin will be exposed to a variety of potentially harmful stressors, including:

• UV rays
• Wind
• Dry Air
• Dirt
• Oil
• Pollution
• Bacteria

The goal of your morning skincare routine should be protection. You want to start your day with clean, clear skin that will stay hydrated and won’t be negatively affected by these outside attackers. Here’s how to make it happen:

Step 1: Wash

Use face wash to get rid of oil, bacteria, and other detritus that’s collected on your skin overnight. Make sure it’s a gentle formula that doesn’t strip away all of of your skin’s natural oil - like our Purifying Charcoal Face Wash.

Step 2: Exfoliate (2-3 times per week)

Use face scrub to deep clean your pores. This digs bacteria and other gunk out of your skin to prevent blemishes and irritation. Exfoliation also prepares your skin for a smooth, irritation-free shave.

Step 3: Shave

Use shave oil or shave cream to lubricate your skin and prevent any nicks or irritation. Make sure you rinse your blade frequently. And don’t get stingy on yourself - use a fresh blade regularly. Bacteria can proliferate between multi-blade razors and contribute to unpleasant redness and itch. Follow up with aftershave to soothe your skin - but don’t move on to the next step until it’s dried completely. 

Step 4: Serum

Anti-aging serums are thin, nutrient-dense products that work best when they absorb deep into your skin. That’s easiest after washing and exfoliating. In the morning, you’ll get the best results from our Reviving Day Serum. It’s made with hyaluronic acid, concentrated aloe vera, and protein peptides. These ingredients ensure all day hydration and promote firmer skin.

Step 5: Cream

Once your serum has absorbed completely, it’s time to seal in all the benefits with anti-aging cream and eye cream. These products are thicker than serums and sure up your skin’s natural barrier. That’s what protects you from outside aggressors that want to damage your skin. In the morning, our Resurfacing Anti-Aging Cream is best. Its lightweight formula that includes vitamin C and borage oil is designed to keep your skin bright and smooth all day long.

Step 6: SPF

If you want to fight the aging process, get into the habit of using an SPF product every day. UV damage caused by the sun is the #1 accelerator of the aging process. To make sure you’re not doing unnecessary harm to your skin in the process, avoid questionable ingredients and go instead with a mineral based product like our Daily Defense Face Moisturizer with SPF 20.

Nighttime Skincare

Overnight, you want to help your skin stay hydrated and provide the nourishment it needs to rejuvenate itself. Strengthening your skin barrier is less of a concern because you won’t be outside exposing your skin to the elements. The main goal is to wake up with refreshed, healthy skin.

Follow this routine about 30 minutes to 1 hour before you got to bed for the best results.

Step 1: Wash

Get rid of the day’s junk on your skin with face wash. All of your other skincare products are more effective when applied to clean skin, so this is a critical first step. 

Step 2: Serum

Yes, you should use serum again for overnight skin rejuvenation. But no, it shouldn’t be the same one you apply in the morning. Our Repairing Night Serum is designed to work with your skin while you sleep to smooth out any age spots or pigmentation issues - with plant stem cells and MSM.

Step 3: Cream

Your skin loses some moisture while you sleep, so you should use a hydrating cream before bed. This locks in moisture and helps your skin stay full and firm. You’ll wake up to smoother, perkier skin when you use our Revitalizing Anti-Aging Cream and Restoring Eye Cream at bedtime.

Adjust Your Routine to Fit Your Skin’s Needs

These basic outlines of morning and evening skincare routines work for most men. But you may need to make adjustments based on your needs. Maybe you have oily skin and need to use toner most days. Perhaps your dry skin calls for additional hydration and less exfoliation. It all depends on you.

The goal here isn’t to set hard and and fast skincare rules. Rather, it’s to help you understand your skin so you can look your best - and get top notch results from your skincare products every time you use them.