4 Best Toners For Acne-Prone Skin & Why The Controversial Skincare Product Is Actually Important

Let’s be honest, toners have been rather controversial over the last couple of years. Deemed as an unnecessary skincare product in the world of minimalism, a lot of shade has been thrown at it. But, that’s far from the truth. Once a hero of the CTM routine, toners actually play a rather important role in many ways, especially if your skin is prone to breakouts. Toners for acne prone skin don’t just have the ability to get rid of acne, they also help prevent future breakouts. How?

Well, the toners nowadays are formulated with ingredients that reduces inflammation, gets rid of acne-causing bacteria, reduces oiliness, controls oil levels, and cleanses the pores. Basically you get all the benefits of a toner for your face, plus the extra TLC your acne-prone skin truly deserves. Scroll down to see our picks of the best toners for acne prone skin, why this face care product is necessary, and how to pick a toner that is right for your skin type and concern.

What Is A Toner & Why Is It Necessary For Skin?

First things first, a toner isn’t a redundant product no matter what people say. The primary job of a toner is to balance out your skin’s pH levels, while refreshing it. It helps remove all traces of impurities like dirt, makeup, and extra oil – something your cleanser might have missed. The formula also gently exfoliates the surface of your skin, leaving it brighter and more nourished. This improves your skin texture over time too. Now, a toner for acne prone skin contains anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, and antimicrobial ingredients that help fight the anti-acne battle. It’s one of the simplest products to use, especially  when you’re trying to look at how to get rid of oily skin. Toners often help balance out oil levels and reduce excess oil production. This in turn reduces the chances of future breakouts, and the appearance of large pores.

Wondering if toners and acne work well together? The answer is yes! Toners help provide you with a clean canvas, so that other skincare products absorb better. This includes your spot treatments too. A toner for acne prone skin will help exfoliate dead skin cells, reducing the risk of future breakouts. Clearly, it is a winner for acne-prone skin!

4 Best Toners For Acne-Prone Skin

A good daily skincare routine for oily skin needs to be put in place, and one of the important products to incorporate is a toner. Remember, when trying to understand whether it’s toner or serum first, always apply your toner and then a serum. Scroll down to take your picks from our selection of the best toners for acne prone skin and how to use a toner on your face, so that you can make the most of this product.

1. Acne Control Mattifying Face Toner: Neem & Tulsi

A mattifying toner formulated with neem and tulsi, this one acts like an antifungal, anti-bacterial, and antimicrobial that detoxifies your skin and prevents future breakouts. Enriched with basil extracts, jojoba, and allantoin, it also gently nourishes your pores and preps your skin to absorb other skincare products. The formula also helps to get rid of acne, rashes, bumps, and other skin infections, while controlling oil production. This toner is suitable for both men and women, and is a good fit for all skin types from oily to dry.

2. Acne Control Mattifying Face Toner: Green Tea & Moringa

Formulated with green tea and benefits of moringa powder for skin, this toner is enriched with other skin-loving ingredients including jojoba oil, spinach leaf extract, lemon extract, niacinamide, and many more. It helps control excess oil, prevents acne breakouts, and hydrates skin. The toner gently gets rid of impurities, controls excess oil, and prevents future breakouts. Hello, happy and healthy skin!

3. Australian Tea Tree Anti Acne Face Toner

Refresh your skin, tighten your pores, and treat acne-prone skin all in one go with this amazing tea tree face toner. The formula helps get rid of excess oil, soothes the skin, tightens the pores, balances pH levels, treats acne, soothes inflammation, hydrates, and even brightens the complexion. It’s the one-stop-solution your skin needs.

Price: 399 INR

Buy link: Australian Tea Tree Anti Acne Face Toner

4. The Mom’s Co Natural Green Tea Face Toner

This is an alcohol-free toner that is enriched with green tea extracts and apple cider vinegar. The formula helps control oils, reduces acne, gently exfoliates, and tightens pores, and also contains aloe vera and cucumber extracts that boosts hydration and soothes the skin.

Price: 226 INR

Buy link: Natural Green Tea Face Toner

Benefits Of Using Toner for Acne Prone Skin

If you’re wondering how a toner helps acne-prone skin, here are the quick pointers for you:

• It helps balance skin’s pH level and calm it down.
• Its astringent effect helps control oil secretion on the skin’s surface and tightens enlarged pores.
• It offers an instant dose of hydration for your skin and increases the absorption capacity of skincare products.
• Toners with antibacterial properties help purify pores preventing chances of future breakouts and acne.
• It helps control sebum levels preventing facial greasiness.

Learn how to apply toner on face in different ways.

How To Choose The Right Face Toner for Acne-Prone Skin

Looking for the perfect toner for acne prone skin? Look no further! Check out our ultimate guide to finding the right toner that suits your skin type, needs, and concerns. Follow this, and you’ll definitely find ‘the one’.

1. Consider Your Skin Type

Did you know that acne-prone skin doesn’t necessarily fall under the ‘oily skin type’? It also applies to dry skin types. You see, when your skin is extremely dry, it can push your sebaceous glands to overproduce oils. Extra oils eventually trap more dirt and grime into your pores resulting in acne. When choosing a toner, make sure to look for oil-control (for oily skin) and something more hydrating (for dry skin). This’ll help keep your skin’s sebaceous glands in check, either way, and will prevent your skin from breaking out excessively.

2. Look For The Right Ingredients

When dealing with acne-prone skin, make sure to opt for ingredients like salicylic acid, glycolic acid, niacinamide, benzoyl peroxide, tea tree oil, and other such acne-busting elements in your toner. Avoid any formulations with fragrances, parabens, and sulfates that will irritate your skin further. Important ingredients to look out for in your toner are:

1. Alpha Hydroxy Acids – glycolic, lactic, mandelic acid

2. Beta Hydroxy Acids – salicylic acid

3. Humectants – Glycerin, aloe vera, hyaluronic acid

4. Antioxidants – Vitamin C

3. Go For Alcohol-Free Formulations

This one is important, as alcohol can really strip your skin off its natural oils which eventually leads to more breakouts. Alcohol in general can irritate the skin, making your acne worse than before. So it’s best to steer clear of alcohol-based formulas and opt for those that are alcohol-free.

4. Consider Other Concerns

While acne is your primary concern, there are other skin concerns that can also be kept in mind when trying to figure out a toner for your skin type. If you’ve got post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation or any sort of dark spots, it’s important to also look for ingredients that will help fade them away. If dullness is another concern, then look for antioxidants that will help brighten your complexion. If oiliness is a concern, then opt for a formula that helps keep the extra oils at bay, whereas if dryness and dehydration is a concern, then go for hydrating and nourishing formulas that will provide that extra boost of moisture to your skin.

5. Start Slow

If you are just a newbie and are starting off, we recommend starting slow and low with your toner, especially if it contains active ingredients that your skin might not be used to. Incorporate it into your routine only twice a week, as part of your nighttime skincare routine and then work your way up.

FAQs

Are toners good for acne?

Toners often contain acne-soothing and acne-treating ingredients that help kill the bacteria, control oil, and prevent acne from recurring constantly. 

Can I use a toner everyday for acne prone skin?

Toners can help cleanse your skin, improve complexion, treat acne, and leave you with a more even texture and tone. Toners can be used everyday for acne prone skin, as long as they have a gentle, non-drying formula.

Can I leave toner on my face overnight?

Toners aren’t meant to be washed off. They are supposed to be applied just before you apply face serum or moisturiser. They can be left on the face overnight too.

What sets apart a toner formulated specifically for acne-prone skin from regular toners?

Toners made for acne prone-skin have astringent and antibacterial properties which helps purify pores, control excess oil production on the face and prevent acne.

Conclusion

Toners have got quite the bad reputation over the years, but that shouldn’t sway you away from including a toner in your skincare routine. As a matter of fact, using a toner for acne prone skin helps keep the acne at bay while treating existing breakouts. It’s the perfect addition to your routine that leaves your skin feeling cleansed, balanced, and treated.

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