Why Use a Toner in Your Skincare Routine

Have you ever wondered, “Why use a toner in my skincare routine? What does it even do?” You are not alone. There are many different reasons to use facial toners in our daily skincare routine. 

When looking at the order of your skincare routine, face toners come after a cleanser. This is because toners will remove the dirt and grime that the facial cleanser missed. 

Toners also readjust your skin’s pH level after using a cleanser. Our skin is acidic and has a pH between 4.5 to 5.5, mentions Dan Kern. Typically you want a toner to be right around the pH of 5.

Toners also prepare the skin for the rest of the skincare products in your facial routine. When you use a toner, you are adding moisture to the skin. This prepares your skin to receive all the benefits your serum and moisturizer offer.

Can You Use a Toner Instead of a Cleanser? 

You should never use a toner in place of a cleanser. A toner removes the dirt or grime that the facial cleanser missed. Toners are designed to be used after a facial cleanser to balance the skin back to the correct pH level. Cleansers disrupt the pH of the skin, and toners reset it.

You should use facial cleansers every day to wash off the pollutants, dirt, dead skin cells, and other impurities that have landed on your face throughout the day. Facial cleansers can wash away more dirt and grime on your face than a toner can. 

Why Use a Toner in Your Skincare Routine?

After the way their skin felt when using toners, some people may have wondered, “Why use a toner if it makes my face feel so dry and uncomfortable?”

Historically, people used toners to tighten up the skin, and this would cause some people’s skin to feel uncomfortable. 

Toners have changed throughout the years to focus more on hydrating the skin. We can thank Korean skincare routines for this. 

Now, toners can have two different focuses. One focuses on removing excess oil, makeup, or dirt that your cleanser missed. On the other hand, some toners make your skin feel refreshed and hydrated.

Another function of a facial toner is it prepares the skin for serums and moisturizers. When the skin is effectively hydrated, serums and moisturizers will penetrate the skin better and benefit your skin more.

Different Types of Toners

There are two different categories that I would put toners in hydrating and traditional. Your skin type could play a role in deciding what toner you want to buy for your skin.

Hydrating Toners

Hydrating toners refresh and add moisture to your skin. It will replenish the moisture that was lost when using a cleanser. 

Hydrating toners will not contain any harsh ingredients like alcohol. If it does contain witch hazel, it will be one that has no alcohol.

Another type of ingredient that you will find in hydrating toners is humectants. Humectants bring moisture to the skin by attracting water to your skin from the air around you. An example of humectants is aloe vera and glycerin.

Hydrating toners are best for dry and sensitive skin. These toners are beneficial for all skin types.

Traditional Toners

Traditional toners focus on removing excess oil and dirt from your skin. This can make your skin feel tight and, to some people, uncomfortable. This feeling is because of the alcohol used in some toners.

These types of toners will sometimes be called astringents.

When looking for clean skincare products, we want to stay away from ingredients like alcohol because they can be harmful to our skin.

Traditional toners do not need to contain alcohol to give your face the refreshed feeling of your desire. You can use clean ingredients such as glycerin or non-alcoholic witch hazel.

For traditional toners, you want something hydrating that does not strip, dehydrate, or irritate the skin.

People with oily skin types will lean towards traditional toners.

Toners to Check Out

100% Pure: Fermented Rice Water Toner

This toner from 100% Pure is created for normal, dry, oily, and combination skin types. It promotes hydration and plumping of the skin. 

This toner also contains shiitake mushrooms which help to brighten the skin.

100% Pure: Tea Tree & Willow Clarifying Astringent 

Tea Tree & Willow Clarifying Astringent is created for oily and combination skin types. It helps soothe and clear up acne and fight breakouts. This astringent hydrates, nourishes, softens, and purifies the skin.

Conclusion 

Using toner in your skincare routine is important. Toners balance out your skin’s pH after using a cleanser. It also removed the grime and dirt that the facial cleanser missed. 

Although toners help remove dirt and grime, they can not replace your daily facial cleanser. Toners are not able to remove all the pollutants that cleansers can.

Also, toners prep your skin to gain the maximum benefits from the skincare products that you will be applying after it. It helps the skin absorb all the nutrients from your serums and moisturizers.