A winter skincare routine is less about adding a ten-step regimen and more about swapping the things that worked in July for things that work in January. The fourteen changes below are what to add and what to quietly retire once the heat comes on, and each one comes with how long it takes and the skin type it suits best.
Quick Take: Fourteen winter skincare swaps, each tagged with the time it takes and the skin type it is best for, almost all of them straight from dermatologists’ advice for dry, cold-weather skin. Most cost nothing or replace something you already own, and the biggest wins are the boring ones: warm instead of hot water, moisturizer on damp skin and a cream instead of a lotion. If you change only one thing, make it moisturizing on damp skin at number 03.
The 14 swaps at a glance
What’s Inside
- 01. A Cream Cleanser Instead of Foam
- 02. Warm, Not Hot, and Shorter Showers
- 03. Moisturize While Skin Is Still Damp
- 04. Ease Off Acids and Retinol
- 05. Trade Lotion for a Cream or Ointment
- 06. SPF Every Morning, Snow Included
- 07. A Humidifier by the Bed
- 08. Slugging on the Driest Nights
- 09. SPF 50 for Ski Days
- 10. Look for Ceramides
- 11. Plain Petroleum Jelly for Lips
- 12. Fragrance-Free for Sensitive Skin
- 13. Hand Cream After Every Wash, Gloves Outside
- 14. Body Moisturizer Before the Towel Is Dry
- The Skincare Habits To Skip This Year
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The Last Word on Your Winter Skincare Routine
The instinct with winter skin is to fight it with more products: a stronger serum, a new mask, another exfoliating toner. I think that is exactly backwards. What works is the opposite, a shorter routine with gentler steps and much more moisture, and that is the logic behind this whole list.
The swaps start at the sink and the shower and end with lips, hands and body. If your skin is oily or acne-prone, look at the “best for” line on each one; a few of them are only for dry skin, and I have said so.
Why Your Winter Skincare Routine Needs to Change
Cold air outside and dry heat inside pull water out of the skin, and the result is the tight, flaky, itchy feeling most of us know by December. The American Academy of Dermatology keeps its advice for dry skin refreshingly short: limit baths and showers to “five to ten minutes, using warm water”, wash with a gentle cleanser and apply moisturizer while the skin is still damp.
The other half is protection. The Skin Cancer Foundation points out that snow “reflects up to 80 percent of the sun’s UV light”, so sunscreen does not get a winter break. I find the protection part harder than the moisture part, because nobody feels like sunscreen when it is 25°F outside.
In winter, the best routine is the shortest one that still keeps the water in your skin.
01. A Cream Cleanser Instead of Foam
Clean Without the Squeak
Takes: 1 minute · Best for: dry, normal and combination skin
Who else still thinks skin should feel squeaky after washing? That squeak is a sign the cleanser is taking more than dirt. A cream, milk or balm cleanser still removes the day and leaves the skin soft, which is why the AAD’s winter advice asks for a cleanser that puts moisture into the skin rather than taking it out.
Massage it onto dry or damp skin for thirty seconds and rinse with warm water. If you wear heavy makeup or sunscreen, use a cleansing balm first and the cream cleanser second.
Compared with a foaming gel, a cream cleanser leaves the skin calm instead of tight. It is the first swap I would make.
02. Warm, Not Hot, and Shorter Showers
Takes: no extra time · Best for: all skin types
A long, hot shower is the best part of a cold morning and the worst thing for dry skin. Dermatologists recommend five to ten minutes and warm water instead of hot. Set a song or two as a timer and turn the dial one notch cooler than feels natural before you step in.
Two songs is about the right length.
03. Moisturize While Skin Is Still Damp
Seal the Water In
Takes: 1 minute · Best for: all skin types
If I could keep only one habit from this list, it would be this one. Pat your face and body lightly with a towel and apply moisturizer while the skin is still a little damp, so the cream seals in the water instead of applying itself to dry skin.
Keep the moisturizer next to the sink and the shower so it is the next thing you reach for. Do it again after you wash your hands and whenever your skin feels tight; the AAD lists all three moments.
Compared with moisturizing later on completely dry skin, the same cream does more here.
04. Ease Off Acids and Retinol
Takes: no extra time · Best for: dry and sensitive skin, and anyone using retinol
Winter is the time to cut back on scrubs, acid toners and strong retinol. The AAD’s winter survival kit notes that many dermatologists recommend minimizing glycolic acid, salicylic acid and retinol in cold weather, or using them less often or at a lower concentration. Keep the retinol, but try every other night until spring, and skip exfoliating acids on retinol nights; the AAD warns that exfoliating while using retinoids may worsen dry skin.
Less is the whole point of this one.
05. Trade Lotion for a Cream or Ointment
Thicker Is Better in January
Takes: 1 minute · Best for: all skin types, especially dry
Lotions are mostly water, which makes them light and pleasant in summer and not quite enough in winter. The AAD is clear: “Ointments and creams add more moisture to skin and are more effective than lotions”. Look for a thick cream in a jar or tube rather than a thin lotion in a pump.
If you have oily or acne-prone skin, a gel-cream labeled non-comedogenic gives you the extra moisture without the heaviness. Save the richest ointments for the driest spots: elbows, shins, the sides of the nose.
It feels heavier than your summer lotion for the first week, and then it just feels normal.
06. SPF Every Morning, Snow Included
Takes: 1 minute · Best for: all skin types
Snow reflects up to 80 percent of UV light, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation, so a sunny winter day can mean a double dose. The AAD recommends sunscreen year-round on any skin not covered by clothing, with SPF 30 or higher. A moisturizing sunscreen can double as your morning cream.
Ski days get their own rule, at number 09.
07. A Humidifier by the Bed
Fix the Air, Not Just the Skin
Takes: 2 minutes a day · Best for: all skin types
Indoor heating dries the air, and your skin loses water to it all night. A cool-mist humidifier in the bedroom puts some of that moisture back. Mayo Clinic says it is ideal to keep home humidity “between 30% and 50%”, and a cheap hygrometer will tell you where you are.
Clean it every three days and change the water daily if you can, ideally using distilled water, so you are not breathing in whatever grows in the tank. Keep the reading under 50 percent; the EPA says indoor humidity should stay below 60.
Compared with yet another night cream, a humidifier treats the cause rather than the symptom, and it helps your lips too, especially if you breathe through your mouth at night. It is the winter skincare buy I would recommend first.
Coming from a fall routine? The fall skincare routine covers the first swaps, and the cozy winter home guide has more ways to fight the dry air indoors.
08. Slugging on the Driest Nights
Takes: 1 minute · Best for: very dry skin; skip it if you are acne-prone
Slugging means a thin layer of petroleum jelly over your moisturizer before bed, to seal everything in overnight. A dermatologist at Ochsner Health says once a week suits most people, and that people with oily or acne-prone skin should avoid it. Use a thin layer and an old pillowcase.
Save it for the nights your face feels tight before bed.
09. SPF 50 for Ski Days
Takes: 1 minute, plus reapplying · Best for: all skin types
A day on the slopes is the most sun most of us get all winter. The Skin Cancer Foundation says UV exposure increases 4 to 5 percent with every 1,000 feet of elevation, on top of the light snow bounces back, and recommends SPF 50 or higher for outdoor winter sports. Cover your ears, the tip of your nose and the underside of your chin, which goggles and hats tend to miss.
Throw an SPF lip balm in the jacket pocket too.
10. Look for Ceramides
Takes: no extra time · Best for: dry and sensitive skin
The AAD lists ceramides among the ingredients to look for in a hand cream, alongside humectants like glycerin and occlusives like petrolatum, and the same trio is worth looking for in a face cream for dry winter skin.
Worth paying a little more for.
11. Plain Petroleum Jelly for Lips
Skip the Flavored Balm
Takes: 10 seconds · Best for: all skin types
Who else keeps reapplying a minty balm that never seems to work? The ingredients that make it tingle are part of the problem. The AAD’s advice on chapped lips names camphor, eucalyptus, menthol, fragrance and flavorings like cinnamon, citrus and mint among the ingredients to avoid, and recommends a thick ointment such as white petroleum jelly instead.
Apply it several times a day and before bed, and use a lip balm with SPF 30 or higher when you go outside. Above all, stop licking your lips; it feels like relief and makes them drier.
Compared with a fancy tinted balm, plain petroleum jelly is boring, cheap and works. It is the one I keep in every coat pocket.
12. Fragrance-Free for Sensitive Skin
Takes: no time at all · Best for: sensitive and eczema-prone skin
Dry winter skin is easy to irritate, so fewer extras is better. Dermatologists recommend products labeled “fragrance-free”; look for those exact words on your moisturizer and body wash.
Unscented is not on the list; fragrance-free is the label to find.
13. Hand Cream After Every Wash, Gloves Outside
Tube by the Sink, Gloves by the Door
Takes: 10 seconds · Best for: all skin types
Hands get washed more than any other part of the body, and in winter that adds up fast. The AAD’s advice for hands is simple: every time you wash or use a sanitizer, apply a moisturizer too. A cream in a tube is usually richer than a lotion in a pump, and fragrance-free is better.
Keep one by every sink and one in your bag. Outside, wear gloves; the AAD notes that gloves that protect dry skin from cold, dry air can help it heal.
Compared with a weekly hand mask, a tube by the sink and a pair of gloves do far more.
14. Body Moisturizer Before the Towel Is Dry
Takes: 2 minutes · Best for: all skin types
The same damp-skin rule applies from the neck down. Keep a body cream in the shower and apply it before you fully towel off, focusing on shins, elbows and hands. The AAD’s winter guidance calls moisturizing the body while skin is still damp an effective way to keep it hydrated.
Your shins should itch less under your jeans.
The Skincare Habits To Skip This Year
- Long, hot showers. They feel wonderful and strip the oils your skin needs. Five to ten minutes, warm water.
- Scrubbing flaky skin away. Harsh scrubs make dry, flaky skin worse in winter. Moisturize first, and keep any exfoliating gentle and occasional.
- Skipping sunscreen because it is cold. The AAD says sunscreen is a year-round habit on any skin clothing does not cover. Keep SPF in the morning routine.
- Licking chapped lips. Saliva evaporates and leaves lips drier than before. Reach for petroleum jelly instead.
The advice comes from the American Academy of Dermatology’s tips for dry skin, winter skin survival kit and chapped lips guidance, the Skin Cancer Foundation and Mayo Clinic. For more routines, the skincare archive has every guide we have published, and the fall skincare routine is the step before this one.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a good winter skincare routine?
Keep it short: a gentle cream cleanser and warm water, moisturizer applied on damp skin, a thicker cream than in summer, and SPF 30 or higher in the morning. At night, cut back on exfoliating acids and retinol, and add a humidifier in the bedroom if the air is dry.
Why does my skin get so dry in winter?
Cold outdoor air holds little moisture and indoor heating dries the air further, so your skin loses water faster than it can replace it. Hot showers and harsh cleansers make it worse by stripping the natural oils that keep water in. If your skin cracks, bleeds or itches enough to keep you up at night, see a board-certified dermatologist rather than adding another cream.
Do I need sunscreen in winter?
Yes. Dermatologists recommend sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher year-round on skin not covered by clothing, and snow and altitude both add to the UV you get on a bright winter day.
Should oily skin change its routine in winter?
Yes, but less dramatically. Swap a harsh foaming cleanser for a gentler one, cut back on exfoliating acids, and choose a non-comedogenic gel-cream rather than a heavy ointment. Skip slugging if you are prone to breakouts.
Before the cold sets in
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The Last Word on Your Winter Skincare Routine
A good winter skincare routine is mostly subtraction: less hot water, less scrubbing, fewer active ingredients, and more moisture applied at the right moment. The boring swaps do the most.
The one change I would never drop is moisturizing on damp skin, because it costs nothing and makes every cream on the shelf work better. Real talk: winter skin does not need a new product. It needs you to stop fighting it.
Real Talk. Delivered. XOXO
Photos by Bruna Pontelo, Justin Villanueva, Felicitas Maggi, Elisa Morey, Cora Pursley and Sabrina Pros via Dupe Photos, featured photo by Cora Pursley via Dupe Photos
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xoxo, Edina
The girl behind Can We Talks — I test the recipes, wear the trends and plan the parties so you don’t have to guess. More about me
