Should You Use a Serum and a Moisturizer?

With so many different products available, it can be hard to know what’s best to include in your daily skin care routine. Here are a few tips on how to consider what your skin needs most.

Your Skin Type

Are you easily prone to breakouts? Have an oily T-zone? Peeling from dryness?

If you have oily skin, choosing a lightweight, non-irritating moisturizer can be the best way to deliver hydration without causing additional breakouts. Using a moisturizer by itself may likely be enough, without the addition of a serum. An added benefit of a simple routine – you’re less likely to have products clash with each other and potentially cause new breakouts. There’s also the option to use a serum by itself, as long as it’s high-quality and non-oil based.

If you experience drier skin, sometimes a moisturizer alone won’t deliver the amount of hydration that you need. The smaller molecules in serums work to penetrate deeper into the skin and hydrate more of skin’s layers. While moisturizers work at the surface level, serums travel further down.

Time of Day

While moisturizers can be used throughout the day, many people opt for using them in the morning. Many moisturizers contain SPF to provide additional sun protection during daylight hours. Serums can be used day or night. As our skin loses moisture overnight, there can be some benefit from applying serums in the evening, to avoid skin feeling dehydrated in the morning.

Seasonal Shifts

As we move from winter to spring, spring to summer, and so on, our skin’s needs can change too. While winter and spring may bring dryness, summer demands additional sun protection. It may be that using a moisturizer and serum together feels essential in winter and spring, but you may opt for one or the other during summer and fall.

If you do experience drier skin, or seasonally drier skin, layering a serum and moisturizer together can be the best way to fully hydrate skin cells. Apply the serum first, allowing it to set for 30 seconds to a minute, before applying moisturizer. This combination will maximize the level of hydration and should leave skin feeling soft and smooth.