How to identify your exact skin type

Wash your face in the evening with a gentle cleanser and pat it dry. Then apply nothing for a while and observe how your skin feels and looks in good light. This is a rough self-check, not a diagnostic test, and there is no evidence-based 30-to-60-minute cutoff that defines a skin type.

Tight, slightly rough, or flaking anywhere means dry. An even sheen across forehead, nose, and cheeks means oily. Shine limited to the T-zone with comfortable or tight cheeks means combination. If the face stays comfortable and only shines lightly later in the day, your skin is normal and any well-formulated basic routine will suit you.

Do the test on a day you have not exercised, sat in air conditioning for hours, or used an exfoliating acid, since all three temporarily distort the result.

Two to four hours after cleansing, press a clean blotting sheet against your forehead, then your nose, then each cheek, using a separate area of the sheet for each zone. Hold each one up to the light.

Oil on every zone means oily. Oil only on the forehead and nose means combination. Almost no oil anywhere, and skin that feels tight, means dry. This test is quick, cheap, and the fastest way to confirm what the bare-face test suggested.

Dry skin lacks oil and is a skin type — it does not change from week to week. Dehydrated skin lacks water and is a temporary condition that any skin type can develop, including very oily skin, usually after over-cleansing, alcohol-heavy toners, a long flight, or dry indoor heating.

The tell is oily-but-tight skin: shine on the surface, a squeaky feeling after washing, and fine crepey lines that disappear when you press hydrated skin. Dehydration is fixed with humectants (glycerin, hyaluronic acid) and gentler cleansing, not with a heavier cream — which would only clog an already oily surface.

Skin behaves differently across a month and across a year. Take a quick note each evening for seven days: how the skin felt after you left it product-free, whether shine appeared by midday, and whether anything stung. Note the weather and whether you were in air conditioning, since both shift the result.

Humidity raises oil and lowers tightness; winter air does the reverse. Hormonal cycles can push skin from combination to oily for a week at a time. If your seven days point clearly in one direction, that is your type. If they straddle two, treat the drier reading as your baseline — it is easier to add oil control than to repair a stripped barrier.

Every skin type needs the same three anchors: a cleanser that suits your oil level, a moisturizer at the right weight, and a broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher every morning. What changes is texture and actives — a gel cleanser and a fluid SPF for oily skin, a cream cleanser and an occlusive night cream for dry, zone-specific treatment for combination, and a short fragrance-free set for sensitive skin.

If you would rather not assemble it yourself, the Quiz asks about the same signals described on this page and builds a matched morning and evening routine.