If you feel like your skin is never clean enough, especially if you have oily, acne-prone skin, then a toner may be the missing piece in your skincare routine. A quick application of toner helps to purify the skin and remove oil from the surface, helping to reduce breakouts and leave you with shine-free skin. Gone are the toners of yesteryear with skin-stripping astringents, and in their place come modern formulations that are a godsend for controlling excessively oily skin when nothing else seems to work.
What Is a Toner?
Toners are popular skincare products that help to remove excess oil, dirt, and other impurities from the surface of the skin for a deep-down clean. They are formulated with hydrating, anti-aging, or targeted active ingredients to help improve the skin's health and appearance. Some of the best toners for oily skin can also temporarily tighten the pores, making them appear smaller and the skin less shiny.
This watery, skin-soothing product works best after cleansing the skin but before the rest of your normal skincare routine. It helps replenish the skin, restore its pH (which can easily become off-balance after cleansing), and prep it for the rest of the products in your skincare routine so that they work more efficiently and absorb into the skin better.
The Key Ingredients to Look For
When it comes to finding the best toner for oily skin, there are a few key ingredients to take stock of so that your skin reaps the benefits. Oily skin produces excessive amounts of sebum, so ingredients that help control oil production, like niacinamide, witch hazel, and zinc, and give a mattifying effect are key. Exfoliating agents like salicylic, glycolic, and lactic acids remove dead skin cells plus oil from the surface while improving the skin's barrier function.
To keep oily skin in check and healthy, consider a toner with a lightweight hydrator so that the skin does not feel dry or stripped. Noncomedogenic ingredients such as hyaluronic acid and aloe vera are compatible with oily skin and won't cause an uptick in oil production or lead to breakouts.
Shop the Best Toners for Oily, Acne-Prone Skin
1. SkinCeuticals LHA Toner
This triple-acid-based toner is the one to reach for to control oily, acne-prone skin. Formulated with a low-pH blend of lipo hydroxy, glycolic, and salicylic acids, it helps whisk away dead skin cells and impurities while purifying clogged pores. Use it daily to help keep excess oil and breakouts at bay or as needed when the skin becomes more congested.
Key Ingredients: LHA (caproloyl salicylic acid), glycolic acid, salicylic acid
Skin Benefits: Exfoliates, unclogs pores, brightens, refines, reduces breakouts
Beauty Insider Tip: For the best results, use the tones daily before applying vitamin C, moisturizer, and sunscreen to your skin.
2. Paula's Choice SKIN BALANCING Pore-Reducing Toner
To prevent dryness, make sure your toner provides some light hydration, as this one does, while still working its magic to balance out oil production and minimize the appearance of enlarged oil-packed pores. We like this skin-refreshing toner specifically for oily skin because it evens the skin's texture and leaves the skin feeling refreshed and with a hint of moisture.
Key Ingredients: Antioxidants, niacinamide, hyaluronic acid, ceramides, chamomile, burdock root extract
Skin Benefits: Minimizes the appearance of enlarged pores, moisturizes and smoothes skin
Beauty Insider Tip: If makeup remains after cleansing the face, swipe a cotton ball soaked in the toner across the skin to remove the last traces of it.
From the Expert: According to Joshua Zeichner, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist in New York City, the newest generation of toners is alcohol-free and may even contain high-trading or anti-aging ingredients.
3. Epionce Purifying Toner
Botanical ingredients have the innate power to improve sebum levels in the skin, purifying it. This plant-based clarifying toner works wonders for oily, problematic, and combination skin, helping smooth and refine the skin texture while brightening. Whether you use it in the morning, at night, or both, your skin feels cool and refreshed.
Key Ingredients: Willow bark, lavender, grape seed extract, menthol, cucumber extract, marshmallow root extract, orange fruit extract
Skin Benefits: Reduces skin shine, balances pH levels, helps remove dirt and makeup
Beauty Insider Tip: The mild formula doesn't leave skin feeling tight or itchy.
4. Obagi Medical Balancing Toner
No one wants shiny, greasy-looking skin, which is where this oil-balancing toner comes into play. Designed to shrink the size of your pores and leave the skin matte and free of every trace of shine, it also helps to rebalance the skin’s pH levels and leaves behind a hint of much-needed moisture.
Key Ingredients: Antioxidants, witch hazel, aloe
Skin Benefits: Shrinks pores, reduces oil production, eliminates impurities, hydrates
Beauty Insider Tip: While this toner benefits oily skin the most, it's also perfectly suitable for normal to dry skin.
From the Expert: If you’re more acne-prone, your skin will likely benefit from medicated cleansers and toners, says board-certified dermatologist Marnie Nussbaum.
5. La Roche-Posay Effaclar Clarifying Solution Acne Toner with Salicylic Acid
Every toner created for oily skin boasts its list of ingredients to improve the skin and mitigate breakouts, and this formulation combines tried-and-true skin-clarifying acids alongside thermal spring water to give the skin a soothing and hydrating effect. The salicylic and glycolic acid blend absorbs deep into the skin, helping dissolve dead skin cells that can clog the pores while slowing oil production for more even, bump-free skin.
Key Ingredients: Salicylic acid, glycolic acid, thermal spring water
Skin Benefits: Clarifies, controls oil production, exfoliates, refreshes the skin
Beauty Insider Tip: Pair the tone with the brand's three-step acne kit routine and notice breakout reductions in as little as three days.
From the Expert: “People with oily skin should look for ingredients like salicylic acid, a beta hydroxy acid that is soluble in oil and can help remove excess sebum from the face,” Dr. Zeichner says.
6. Neostrata Clarify Oily Skin Solution Toner with Glycolic Acid
If constant breakouts are the bane of your existence, then this oil- and fragrance-free glycolic acid-based toner will make a world of difference. Rich in acids to help target and prevent future breakouts, this exfoliating acne-focused treatment toner removes dead skin cells, evens out the skin tone, and removes pore-clogging dirt, oil, and impurities for healthier, clearer skin.
Key Ingredients: Glycolic acid
Skin Benefits: Targets and prevents breakouts, exfoliates, removes excess oil and impurities
Beauty Insider Tip: Use the toner mid-day to refresh the skin
From the Expert: According to Dr. Zeichner, toner with glycolic acid can help remove oil from the T-zone and is also useful in dryer areas like the cheeks.
7. COSRX AHA/BHA Clarifying Treatment Toner
This does-it-all toner is a must for breakout-prone skin that also craves moisture and balance. Ideal for beginners who are new to exfoliators, this daily-use formulation works well to control the oil that leads to blackheads while clarifying the skin so it also appears more even in tone and appropriately balanced.
Key Ingredients: Glycolic acid, alpha hydroxy acids, betaine salicylate, apple fruit water, white willow bark
Skin Benefits: Exfoliates, clarifies, prevents breakouts
Beauty Insider Tip: The toner is formulated at the perfect pH, making it gentle yet effective and safe enough for even sensitive skin to use
From the Expert: Dr. Zeichner explains that oftentimes, toners combine multiple different alpha and beta hydroxy acids at lower concentrations, which allows them to be effective while minimizing potential irritation to the skin.
8. Caudalie Vinopure Natural Salicylic Acid Pore Minimizing Toner
This daily-use toner helps control oil production and minimize the appearance of enlarged pores. Expertly formulated to exfoliate the skin while refining the pores to reduce blackheads, it also leaves the skin with a healthy glow, making it a skincare staple for oily and combination skin types.
Key Ingredients: Salicylic acid, grape and rose waters, essential oil complex, grape seed polyphenols
Skin Benefits: Exfoliating, improves skin texture, hydrating, glow inducing
Beauty Insider Tip: With regular use, skin appears less shiny and healthier yet slightly dewy but not greasy
9. Dermalogica Clear Start Micro Pore Mist
The hydrating meets skin-clarifying toner works on almost every part of the acne cycle. Its sebum-regulating ingredients help to keep oil production under control while hydrating agents lend a bit of moisture to the skin to help improve its appearance. Dark spot brighteners erase any lingering signs of post-acne spots. Since the tone is salicylic acid-free, it's safe for anyone using prescription acne medications to work this into their routine.
Key Ingredients: Green tea, niacinamide, Matricaria flower, witch hazel, cucumber
Skin Benefits: Shrinks pores, controls oil and shine, hydrates, brightens, helps with breakouts and post-acne marks
Beauty Insider Tip: Use this toner on hot summer days to cool down and calm the skin
10. Ursa Major 4-in-1 Essential Face Tonic
This versatile yet multi-functional tonic works on all skin types to clean, exfoliate, hydrate, and correct it. Natural ingredients eliminate excess oil and impurities without disrupting the skin's pH levels or stripping away natural moisture. Instead, all that's left behind is soft, firm, well-balanced skin.
Key Ingredients: Aloe, sugarcane, birch sap, willow bark, sodium hyaluronate
Skin Benefits: Removes dirt and oil, exfoliates, brightens, hydrates
Beauty Insider Tip: The tonic is a leave-on product, so there’s no need to wash it off
From the Expert: “Many modern-day toners go by the name of essences or tonics, depending on the product,” Dr. Zeichner shares.
11. Guinot Microbiotic Toning Lotion
The main goal of this toning lotion, which is more like a liquid lotion than a traditional watery toner, is to regulate sebum production in oily skin for matte skin and fewer breakouts. The unique antibacterial formula helps clarify the skin and refine congested and enlarged pores for a smoother, more even complexion.
Key Ingredients: Sebocidine
Skin Benefits: Tightens pores, purifies, mattifies the skin
Beauty Insider Tip: To fully remove stubborn makeup, after cleansing, saturate a cotton round in this toning lotion and swipe across the entire face until the round shows clean.
12. PCA SKIN Smoothing Toner
Formulated to leave the skin looking and feeling smoother and clearer, this aloe and lactic acid-rich toner lifts away dead skin cells without stripping it. Its unique blend of botanicals gives astringent-like qualities without any unnecessary dryness, helping to minimize the look of enlarged pores, calm the skin, and promote a more radiant complexion.
Key Ingredients: Aloe vera leaf juice, lactic acid, marigold, goldenseal, cucumber, sage, guarana and ivy extracts
Skin Benefits: Purifies, removes dead skin, reduces the appearance of large pores, calms the skin
Beauty Insider Tip: Let the toner work its magic by applying it to the skin using upward and outward strokes across the entire face and neck.
13. REN Clean Skincare Ready Steady Glow Daily AHA Tonic
Packed with a trio of exfoliating acids, this gentle toner gives way to brighter, more evenly toned skin with less noticeable pores. Since oily skin can easily become bogged down with dead skin cells deep within the pore, leading to unwanted breakouts and preventing sebum from flowing out of the pores properly, this daily-use tonic helps control that natural process, leaving skin smooth and healthy-looking.
Key Ingredients: Lactic acid, salicin, azelaic acid
Skin Benefits: Exfoliates, brightens, minimizes the appearance of large pores, boosts radiance, evens out skin tone
Beauty Insider Tip: To avoid potential irritation, make sure not to apply the tonic to the lips or around the eyes.
14. Holifrog Utopia Micoflora Toner
Bacteria are essential for healthy skin. In oily and acne-prone complexions, the perfect balance of bacteria helps prevent breakouts, keeping the skin calm and healthy. This post-cleansing, untraditional toner acts like a probiotic for your face, creating an ideal environment for balanced skin.
Key Ingredients: Sodium hypochlorite, aloe leaf juice, glycerin, jojoba seed oil, birch sap, rice extract, apple cider vinegar, black BeeOme, sunflower shoot active, probacillus revive, atoligomer
Skin Benefits: Promotes a balanced microbiome and skin barrier, calms, softens, hydrates, allows other active ingredients to absorb better
Beauty Insider Tip: Press the toner into the skin until absorbed, like a serum, for maximum penetration.
15. Perricone MD No:Rinse Intensive Pore Minimizing Toner
Even the oiliest and most stubborn large pores don't stand a chance against this shine-busting toner. The powerful formula controls visible shine on the skin for a matte finish and tightens enlarged pores. It also gently exfoliates the skin's surface and purifies it of residue and impurities. Skin stays matte but never dry all day long.
Key Ingredients: DMAE, copper complex, salicylic acid
Skin Benefits: Minimizes enlarged pores, controls oil, mattifies
Beauty Insider Tip: Since the toner's consistency is liquid-y, allowing it to dry thoroughly before applying subsequent skincare products in your routine is best.
FAQs
What does toner do for your skin?
Toner can do a lot to improve the appearance of your skin. Considered a "prep" step, they remove any residual dirt, oil, impurities, and makeup left on the skin after cleansing. A good toner also helps to balance the skin's pH levels so that it does not become irritated or inflamed, which can happen if the cleanser you use is not a pH match for your skin. The best toners for oily skin also offer the added benefit of exfoliation, helping to lift away pore-clogging dead skin cells from the surface.
Is there a right way to apply toner?
One of the easiest and most effective ways to apply toner to your skin is directly after cleansing. You can use it morning and night or as needed for your skincare routine.
Simply soak a cotton ball in toner and gently sweep it across your face and neck. Alternatively, you can pour the toner into the palms of your hands and pat it into the skin until it is fully absorbed.
Will using a toner dry out my skin?
As long as you don’t use an alcohol-based toner it won’t dry out the skin or strip it.
The Bottom Line
Adding a toner for oily and acne-prone skin into your routine can do wonders for the health of your skin. Not only will it help remove pore-clogging oil, dirt, and debris from the skin, but it will also help to reduce the incidence of breakouts since the skin is left cleaner than washing can achieve alone. Incorporating a toner into your skincare routine is a quick and easy step that takes just a few seconds but offers up serious skin benefits that are totally worth it.
Discover Dermstore’s curated collection of toners & mists for oily skin.
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