Washing your face properly is a key part of any good skin care routine. And the convenience of makeup wipes makes it tempting to use them alongside — or even instead of — a traditional facial cleanser. But, as helpful as face wipes can be, experts say they don't actually wash your skin and can even cause irritation and dryness.
“When we wash our face, we remove grime, dirt, bacteria and other microorganisms,” Dr. Shari Lipner, associate professor of clinical dermatology at the Weill Cornell Medical Center, tells TODAY.com.
To keep your skin feeling and looking its healthiest, you should wash your face regularly with a gentle cleanser, TODAY.com explained previously. For most people, that means washing your face at least every morning and evening.
The normal cleansing process involves surfactants — chemicals in face washes that remove that makeup, oil, bacteria and dirt from the skin — and water that washes it all away. "The makeup wipe is a different concept," Lipner says. You're using a "moistened wipe to wash the face, but there's no water involved."
While makeup wipes can be the start of your cleansing process, they aren't a substitute for actually washing your face, experts tell TODAY.com. And relying on face wipes too heavily or using them too aggressively can actually cause or exacerbate skin issues.
Do makeup wipes actually wash your face?
Washing your face involves using a cleanser and water. But with makeup wipes, "you're wiping things on the skin to get the oil, makeup and dirt off," Dr. Nada Elbuluk, associate professor of clinical dermatology at USC Keck School of Medicine, tells TODAY.com. "But you're leaving some of the residue from the wipes on the skin," she says. "And that's something that needs to be cleansed off as well."
While using a face wipe can help, the experts agree that they are not an appropriate substitute for washing your face with soap and water.
"They really don't do a comprehensive or complete job (of washing the skin)," Dr. Shari Marchbein, clinical assistant professor of dermatology at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, tells TODAY.com.
Are makeup wipes good for your skin?
Makeup wipes contain a few ingredients that can be harsh, Lipner says. Specifically, they frequently contain the surfactant cocamidopropyl betaine as well as fragrances and parabens (chemicals that act as preservatives), which are common sources of irritation for people with sensitive skin.
But it's not just about the wipes themselves. The way you use them can also cause irritation.
"If you have rosacea or eczema or you've got very sensitive skin, just using the wipe to rub off your makeup can, in and of itself, cause redness and irritation," Marchbein explains. "Certainly, if that's happening, you should not be using (the wipe). You want to use just a gentle cleanser."
Even people without skin conditions can be guilty of doing "a lot of aggressive rubbing, especially around the eye area, which is a very delicate area,” Elbuluk explains. “You have to be gentle with your skin — even with the wipes.”
If you’re repeatedly using wipes without washing afterward or you’re using the wipes aggressively, you can may end up with dryness, irritation and inflammation, Elbuluk says.
Do you need to wash your face after using makeup wipes?
If you wear a lot of makeup or other products on your face that are tough to get off at the end of the day, using a facial wipe can be a good first step in a cleansing routine. But that shouldn't be the only thing you do to wash your face, the experts say.
Instead, you should follow the wipe with a traditional cleanser that's right for your skin type.
"I use (wipes) as a part of a double-cleanse routine," Marchbein says. "The first part of that routine is using the wipe and then the second part is using a gentle cleanser."
How often should you use makeup wipes?
Lipner generally recommends people don't use face wipes. "In a pinch, it's probably fine for most people to use a makeup wipe," she says. "But it definitely shouldn't be in your daily routine."
She adds, "If you have the time and the energy to wash your face, you'll always be doing a better job."
If your choices are using a face wipe or doing nothing, using a wipe is likely to be a better option, the experts say. For instance, maybe you get home late after a night out and simply don't have the energy for your full skin care routine.
"Letting (makeup) sit on the skin overnight is going to clog pores and lead to a buildup of dirt and bacteria too," Elbuluk says. If washing your face just isn't in the cards that night, using a makeup wipe is better than nothing because "it will help with getting off at least the initial layer of whatever you have on," she adds.
Other situations where wipes can be a good idea could be when you're camping, if you want to freshen up on a plane or if you need to wipe away some sweat after a workout class before you head home. In those circumstances, an occasional makeup wipe isn't likely to do much harm for most people.
"Other than those situations, I wouldn't recommend using cleansing wipes on a routine basis," Marchbein says.
If you start to rely on them too frequently, if you use them instead of cleansing your face or if you have a specific skin type or condition, you could be putting yourself at risk for irritation.
Single-use products like wipes can also be particularly wasteful, Marchbein says. (Some companies do make compostable wipes, she adds, but they're still single-use.)
If you find yourself needing to use wipes frequently, Marchbein suggests using micellar water wipes instead, which work by encapsulating dirt and bacteria in microscopic micelles. These wipes tend to be gentler on the skin because they use this technology to cleanse, she says.
While there are certain situations in which makeup wipes can be really helpful, they don't really wash your face. So, you should not think of face wipes as an alternative to using a cleanser.
"Yes, doing a wipe alone is better than nothing," Elbuluk says. "But in your normal everyday circumstances, you certainly still want to be cleansing your face as usual."
