Put your products on in the right order.
Tick the products you own and the tool sorts them into a morning and an evening routine, thin to thick, water before oil, with sunscreen last in the day and the face oil last at night. You get the conflicts named, the retinoid and acid nights spread over a 7-night plan, and a card with both routines on it.
Tick what you own and the routine sorts itself.
Skincare goes on thin to thick, water before oil. Everything you tick lands in the morning, in the evening or in both, sunscreen closes every morning whether you tick it or not, and the acid and the retinoid never share a night. The grid starts on a common routine, so untick what you do not use.
Skin type
Sensitivity
Your products
6 of 15 tickedMorning
sunscreen lastEvening
Nothing ticked for the evening yet.
Seven nights
the pattern repeats weeklyHow it works.
- Set your skin type and sensitivity, or let the tool take them from your Skin Type Finder result.
- Tick every product you own. Both routines rebuild with each tick, in the order the products go on.
- Read the conflict notes and the 7-night plan, then save the card with the morning and the evening on it.
Thin to thick, water before oil
Two ideas decide the order. A product with a water base has to reach the skin, so it goes early; anything with an oil or silicone base leaves a film that the layers under it cannot cross, so it goes late. Within the water group, texture sets the sequence: a toner at the consistency of water, then serums, then creams. That is why a humectant serum belongs on damp skin with the moisturiser sealing it within about 60 seconds, and why a face oil is the last thing you put on at night. The morning ends differently: sunscreen is tested as a film on top of everything, at 2 mg per square centimetre, which is roughly 1.2 g for face and neck. The layering order guide walks through the sequence, and how much sunscreen the face needs explains the measure.
Why acids and retinoids sleep on different nights
Both speed up how quickly the skin renews itself, and the irritation from the two adds up. On the same night, a leave-on acid and a retinoid buy you redness and flaking rather than a better result, so the plan separates them: the retinoid on 2 to 4 nights depending on your type and sensitivity, an acid on 1 to 2 of the nights in between, and the rest left free. Over-the-counter retinol usually sits between 0.1 and 1 percent, and skin needs roughly 8 to 12 weeks to settle into it, which is why the frequency starts low and stays there for a while. Benzoyl peroxide keeps its morning slot, about 12 hours away, because it can oxidise some retinoids on the skin, with adapalene as the stable exception. The retinoid guide compares the three strengths.
One myth, and what this tool is not
Vitamin C and niacinamide are still called incompatible. The warning traces back to work from the 1960s on unstabilised ascorbic acid solutions held at high heat, where the two formed a compound that flushes the skin. Formulations sold today are stabilised and used at room temperature, and the pair is common in one routine. Keeping vitamin C in the morning and the retinoid at night remains the simplest split, because each active then works at the pH it prefers; the vitamin C guide covers the forms. What the tool does not do: it cannot see your skin, read your formulations or know your prescriptions, and it does not decide whether a product suits you. If a routine stings for more than 2 weeks, take steps out rather than add them, and ask a dermatologist.
Frequently asked.
Does the order of skincare really matter?
For two reasons, yes: an oil-based layer blocks most of what you put on after it, and an active needs contact with skin to do anything. Thin to thick and water before oil covers most of it, and sunscreen last in the morning is the part with the clearest evidence behind it.
Can I use an exfoliating acid and a retinoid on the same night?
The plan never puts them together. Both raise cell turnover and the irritation adds up, so the tool spreads the retinoid over 2 to 4 nights and the acid over 1 to 2 of the nights in between.
Why does sunscreen appear even though I did not tick it?
Because it is the one product every morning routine needs, and because several actives above it leave skin more sensitive to light. It is added as the last morning step, at 2 mg per square centimetre or about 1.2 g for face and neck.
I am pregnant. What changes in the routine?
Retinoids are avoided during pregnancy and while breastfeeding, so untick the retinoid and the plan drops those nights. Azelaic acid and niacinamide are often suggested instead, but that decision belongs with your midwife or doctor.
How many steps should a routine have?
Four to six products do most of the work: a cleanser, a moisturiser, sunscreen and one or two actives. The tool counts your steps so you can see when a routine has grown past what your skin is asking for.
What does the tool store?
Only your last product selection, in your browser's local storage under one key. Nothing is sent anywhere, and clearing site data removes it.
Guides behind this tool
Skincare
In what order to apply skincare: the layering rules
Ingredients
Retinol, retinal or tretinoin: strengths, conversion and results
Ingredients
Vitamin C serums: forms, concentration and stability
Skincare
How much sunscreen a face needs: the 2 mg per square centimetre ruleMore tools
The Routine Architect sorts the products you tick into an order and names the common conflicts. It cannot see your skin, read your formulations or know your prescriptions, and it does not diagnose. This page is for general information and does not replace advice from a dermatologist, physician or qualified practitioner.