What do you get at the drugstore for your skin?

This is a common question I get from patients. Many people don’t want to pay for dermatologist-recommended products, or they don’t want to make a separate appointment with their doctor just to get products that you can find in your local drugstore.

The only problem is, many of the drugstore brands are very heavily marketed, and many of them are not effective. So, what do you buy? Do you have to spend hundreds of dollars on expensive creams and serums?

Well, the good news is that there are several products that you can get at the drugstore that are quite effective. You just need to know which ones to choose! In this article, I am going to walk you through five of my favorite drugstore products that I think every woman should use.

There are many wonderful products at the drugstore that can help you with your skin concerns. I wanted to create a blog that would share the best of them with you.

So, you don’t want to go to a dermatologist or aesthetician. You want to figure out what your skin needs and purchase it over the counter at a drugstore. This is a great idea, but you have to know what products will help with your concerns.

To start, you should use a gentle cleanser every time you wash your face. If you are using an exfoliating cleanser, don’t use it more than twice a week. It can be drying and irritating if used too often, so make sure you aren’t overusing it! I would also recommend getting some type of hydrating serum and moisturizer for dryness and dehydration concerns. If you are more oily, get something that will mattify your skin like an oil-free moisturizer or gel moisturizer.

If you have acne-prone skin, look for products with salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide. Salicylic acid will help unclog pores while benzoyl peroxide will fight bacteria. If you are oily, stay away from thick creams because they can clog pores easily and cause breakouts. You can also get a clay mask to remove excess oil from the skin.

If your concern is sun damage and wrinkles, I

You can get a lot of great products from a drugstore. They are more affordable and you can get them without a prescription. A few of my favorite skin care products are:

CeraVe Facial Moisturizing Lotion AM SPF 30. This is a great moisturizer with sunscreen, it is light and non-greasy. It is fragrance free and safe for sensitive skin.

Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion. This is another great moisturizer that is super hydrating and non-greasy. It absorbs quickly and will not clog pores.

Neutrogena Make-Up Remover Wipes. These wipes are gentle yet effective in removing make up and they condition your skin while they remove the make up. They are perfect to use before bed or when you are traveling.

I hope these suggestions help!

Drugstores are great because they carry a variety of products at a range of price points, and they’re conveniently located. For those reasons, I sometimes get asked to recommend drugstore skincare products. Here are some things I’d tell you to consider getting if you were in my office:

For acne, benzoyl peroxide is the most effective over-the-counter product available. Typically it comes in a 2.5% or 5% strength, with the latter being stronger and more drying. If your skin can tolerate it, start with the 5%. It’s well worth the extra money to avoid having to do multiple treatments and visits just because the first one wasn’t strong enough.

It’s a new year, and that means it’s time to take stock of what you have in your medicine cabinet and get rid of the things that are just not working for you. Maybe you’re still using that old cleanser from college, or maybe you have a moisturizer that gives you pimples. Resolve to check the expiration dates on all your products—most products have an expiration date on the bottom, or will start to smell rancid when no longer good. If a product has changed color in any way, toss it. If your skin is irritated, pick out one product at a time and try to figure out which one is causing the irritation.

Start the new year with a clean slate! But what do you replace all those bad products with? Below are my top recommendations of drugstore products I recommend most often to my patients:

I’m not here to talk about how to get clear skin—I can’t help with that! All I can do is tell you what products I use and recommend.

If you want to go through and look at everything, or just see what products there are for a particular concern, here’s the whole list. If you have something specific in mind, though, I’ve put together a quick guide.

If your skin is dry:

A good day moisturizer (one with SPF if your skin burns easily)

An exfoliating scrub

A hydrating serum or sleeping mask (you probably don’t need both)