A men’s skincare routine doesn’t have to be complicated. In fact, just three products and five minutes a day can help you feel more confident and comfortable in your skin.
If this is your first time building a skincare routine, let us be the first to extend a warm welcome. Skincare is for anyone at any age who simply wants to feel more confident in their own skin. Once you begin, you’ll get hooked by the grounding and restorative practice that is self-care.
In the best way, there’s no turning back.
Statistically speaking, more men than ever are building a skincare routine. The only tricky part about this transition for men is choosing the right products. There are so many options out there, and many of them are synthetically made, so they just aren’t good for your skin cells or your hormones. If you need a bit of support as you begin this journey (or just want to mix things up for your regular routine), here’s our guide to must-have products and simplified natural skincare for men.
Build Your Three-Step Men’s Skincare Routine (With Only Natural Products)
A skincare routine doesn’t have to drain your wallet or take thirty minutes out of your day. With just these three steps (cleanse, moisturize, and nourish), you can experience healthy skin with almost zero effort.
Step One: Cleanse
The skin on your face is thinner than the rest of your body, so it’s considered more sensitive. It’s important to choose a gentle cleanser for your skincare routine that takes this into consideration while removing dirt, pollution, and impurities from your pores.
Ideally, this cleanser is oil-based, free of toxic chemicals, and nourishing to the cells. An oil-based cleaner may sound counterintuitive, but hear us out: plant and animal-based oils help balance the natural oils your skin produces. They also cleanse, soften, and nourish the skin all at once, which means fewer steps in your skincare routine.
How to Use a Cleanser: If you’re using an oil cleanser, refer to the oil cleansing method for tips. Otherwise, apply your tallow face soap to damp skin using your hands, a natural fiber washcloth, or a natural sponge. Rinse off as normal.
Oil-Based Cleansers We Recommend:
Our Favorite: Seabuckthorn Cleansing Oil
Step Two: Nourish
If you really want a bare-bones skincare routine, you can technically skip the serum. But we don’t recommend it. A serum is super easy to use (it’s applied in 3–5 drops) and can transform your skincare routine. It’s really the cherry on top.
The goal of a face serum is to address very specific skin concerns with natural and targeted ingredients. For example, there are serums to support better aging, acne-prone skin, and hyperpigmentation. The right serum should make your skin appear bright, clear, even, toned, and smooth — everything you want out of a skincare routine.
How to Use a Face Serum: After cleansing, apply about 3–5 drops of serum to your face and neck (the package may have more specific dosing instructions). Once finished, lock in nutrients with a moisturizer.
Our Favorite: The Glow Serum
Best for Aging Skin: The Reparative Serum
Step Three: Moisturize
Moisture can prevent your skin from showing early signs of aging, like fine lines, wrinkles, and dehydration lines. It also makes your face soft to the touch and can enhance your shaving experience. The right moisturizer (our pick is beef tallow) is a natural confidence-booster, gently restoring your complexion and providing the building blocks needed to create healthy skin cells.
How to Use a Moisturizer: A moisturizer is typically the last step in your skincare routine. It locks in the nutrients from a face serum and any other skincare products. Start with a small amount (about a pea size) and work it into your face and neck. Add more moisture as needed. The best time to apply moisturizer is at night, but you can use it for your morning skincare routine, too.
Moisturizers We Recommend:
Our Favorite: Frankincense Face Balm
Super Easy: Hydrating Tallow Stick
Nontoxic Product Recommendations for Shaving and Beard Care
Don’t build a nontoxic skincare routine just to hinder your progress with a hormone-disrupting shave soap. Tallow soap, a moisturizing serum, and beard oil can transform your morning routine from chore to exciting self-care.
Tallow Soap
Made with 100% grass-fed beef tallow, tallow soap is not just cleansing but also extremely moisturizing. This is important because a good shave experience requires deep hydration. Tallow is completely natural and even eco-friendly, since it’s a primal and nose-to-tail ingredient. You’ll get excellent slip, achieve a close shave, and experience better after-shave hydration than with drugstore soaps.
Our Pick: Tallow Shave Soap
Super Easy: The Activated Charcoal Face Bar
Skin-Soothing Serum
Even though it’s a regular habit, shaving can disrupt the skin some. It’s slightly exfoliating and may lead to irritation or in-grown hairs. To avoid this (and to brighten your complexion while you’re at it), use a nutrient-dense serum as aftershave. A serum packed with natural oils and herbs should moisturize dry skin and improve skin cell health, not to mention help you smell amazing.
Our Pick: The Glow Serum
Beard Oil
If you’re growing out your beard, the right care is essential. Nourishing products help to brighten, tame, and soften one of your most prominent features. Beard oil is perfect for this, since it’s designed to soften hair, boost hair growth, fill in patchy areas, and leave your face smelling like pine and fir trees. It’s a must-have final step in your grooming routine.
Our Pick: The Toups Beard Oil
Skincare for Men, but Make It Easy
Let’s be realistic: you want to feed your skin with healthy ingredients, but you’re not willing to sacrifice hours of your time doing research. The good news is, you don’t have to. We understand that quality skincare and ingredient research shouldn’t take over your life.
That’s why we’ve created a multifunctional skincare and grooming kit — with done-for-you research and product curation. That way, you can enjoy the benefits of natural products instantly.
Treat Yourself to the Men’s Grooming Set