Your Fall Skincare Routine Needs an Update, But Don’t Start Over

Your fall skincare routine doesn’t need to be completely different from what you used all summer. Fall is an interesting time for skincare because the weather can’t seem to make up its mind. One day it still feels like summer, and the next it’s cold, rainy, or somehow both. Depending on where you live, those changes can get pretty dramatic throughout the season.

That doesn’t mean you need to replace your entire routine. A few strategic changes can help you transition your skincare routine for fall while keeping the products that are already working for you.

If cooler weather starts leaving your skin feeling more dehydrated, these fall skincare tips can help you figure out what to change, what to keep, and when your routine is doing enough.

 

Your Summer Cleanser Might Be Doing Too Much

One of the first things I would consider changing for fall skincare is how you cleanse your skin. During the summer, you’re dealing with heat, sweat, sunscreen, makeup, and everything else that comes with hot weather. As temperatures start dropping, try swapping that ‘squeaky clean’ cleanser for something more moisturizing. Look for a cream cleanser, milky cleanser, cleansing balm, or cleansing oil that cleans your skin without leaving it feeling stripped afterward.

You don’t necessarily have to avoid every foaming cleanser. The goal is simply to find something that leaves your skin feeling comfortable and hydrated after cleansing instead of tight.

Fall skincare essentials to try:

• Aveeno – Calm + Restore Nourishing Oat Facial Cleanser
• The Inkey List – Oat Makeup Removing Cleansing Balm
• Dermalogica – Oil to Foam Total Cleanser
• Sulwhasoo – Gentle Cleansing Oil Makeup Remover
• Naturium – Fermented Camellia Creamy Cleansing Oil

 

Ease Up on Those Strong Actives

Your summer to fall skincare transition is also a good time to pay attention to how frequently you’re using stronger active ingredients. If you regularly use a retinol, retinol alternative, chemical exfoliant, or exfoliating acid, you may find that your skin doesn’t tolerate the same schedule as well once the weather changes. That doesn’t automatically mean you need to stop using your favorite treatments, just give your skin more recovery time between applications.

Fall skincare essentials to try:

• Beauty of Joseon – Ginseng Water Hydrating Toner Essence For Dull and Dry Skin
• The Ordinary – Saccharomyces Ferment 30% Milky Toner for Gentle Exfoliation and Hydration
• First Aid Beauty – Ultra Repair Hydrating Pillow Pads with Colloidal Oatmeal + Ceramides

 

Layer the Hydration Before You Reach for More Cream

One of my biggest skincare tips for fall is to start building hydration into more than just your moisturizer step. Hydrating serums, toners, and essences can add another layer of hydration without making your entire fall skincare routine feel heavy. Look for formulas with ingredients like glycerin, hyaluronic acid, and peptides. You can even add a hydrating toner or serum underneath the moisturizer you already own instead of immediately replacing everything.

Fall skincare essentials to try:

• Laneige – Perfect Renew 3x Signature Serum Advanced for Anti-Aging, Firming & Lifting
• Fresh – Rose & Hyaluronic Acid Deep Hydration Toner
• Fenty Skin – Fat Water Hydrating Milky Toner Essence with Hyaluronic Acid + Tamarind
• TirTir – Milk Skin Toner
• The Ordinary – Hyaluronic Acid 2% + B5 Hydrating Serum with Ceramides
• Beauty of Joseon – Glow Serum for Oil Control Care with Propolis & Niacinamide
• Byoma – Hydrating Milky Toner
• Beekman 1802 – Milk Shake Hyaluronic Acid & Squalane Facial Toner Mist

 

Still Feeling Dry? Give Your Moisturizer Some Backup

If adding a hydrating toner or serum isn’t quite enough, moisturizer may be the next part of your fall skincare routine to adjust. If you’ve been using a lightweight gel or lotion throughout the summer, this may be the time to move toward a richer face cream or moisturizer. You don’t necessarily need the thickest cream you can find. You’re looking for something that gives your skin enough moisture to stay comfortable as temperatures and humidity change.

You could also try applying a few drops of facial oil after your moisturizer. This gives your routine a little extra richness and helps seal everything in without forcing you to replace a product that’s otherwise working well.

Fall skincare essentials to try:

• Clinique – Moisture Surge 100H Auto-Replenishing Hydrator Gel-Cream Moisturizer with Hyaluronic Acid
• Drunk Elephant – Lala Retro Nourishing Whipped Refillable Moisturizer with Ceramides
• Skinfix – Triple Lipid-Peptide Cream Refillable Barrier Moisturizer with Ceramides
• SK-II – Skinpower Re-New Anti-Aging Cream Moisturizer for Wrinkles & Dryness
• Estee Lauder – Advanced Night Repair Multi-Recovery Complex Serum with Hyaluronic Acid & Peptides
• Kiehl’s – Midnight Recovery Concentrate Moisturizing Face Oil Serum

 

Don’t Put Away the Sunscreen

Sunscreen is still a fall skincare essential, but this is a great time to change the types of SPF you’re reaching for. Remember those sunscreens you pushed to the back of the drawer because they were a little too glowy, creamy, hydrating, or just felt like too much during the summer? Pull them back out. As the weather gets cooler and your skin needs more moisture, you may find that those same formulas work much better in your fall skincare routine.

Read: The Truth About Sunscreen: What I Learned After Testing 100+ SPFs

This is also the perfect time to work through sunscreen samples and minis you’ve collected. Before buying another SPF for fall, shop your stash and see whether something you already own works better now that the weather has changed.

 

Please Don’t Change Everything at Once

This might be the most important part of transitioning your skincare routine to fall: you don’t have to make every one of these changes. Start with what your skin is telling you. If your cleanser suddenly leaves your face feeling tight, change the cleanser first. If your skin needs more hydration throughout the day, add a hydrating serum. If everything feels fine until the end of your routine, maybe you need a richer moisturizer or a few drops of facial oil.

If you want to add something extra instead of changing your everyday products, this is also a good place for occasional treatments like an eye cream or hydrating mask.

Fall skincare essentials to try:

• Ole Henrikson – Banana Bright+ Vitamin C Eye Crème for Dark Circles
• Clinique – All About Eyes Rich Eye Cream with Hyaluronic Acid
• Medicube – Kojic Acid Turmeric Night Wrapping Mask
• Summer Fridays – Jet Lag Mask + Moisturizer Deep Hydration Treatment with Ceramides

Here’s the Thing

Building a fall skincare routine doesn’t mean starting over every September. The best fall skincare tips are really about paying attention to what your skin needs as the weather changes and making a few thoughtful adjustments. Change what your skin needs and leave the rest alone.

For more fall beauty tips and skincare recommendations, explore more on Nubelease.com. You can also follow @Nubelease on social media, subscribe to the Nubelease YouTube channel, and save your favorite Nubelease beauty guides on Pinterest.