Retinol
The best-evidenced over-the-counter ingredient for lines, texture, and acne — if you can stick with it.
Retinol is converted by the skin into retinoic acid, the active form. That conversion is why it is gentler than prescription tretinoin and also why it is slower. It speeds up cell turnover, boosts collagen production over months, and keeps pores from clogging. Nearly everyone goes through an adjustment period of dryness and flaking in the first few weeks. Meaningful results on wrinkles take three to six months of consistent use.
How to use it
Night only. Start twice a week on dry skin, buffered with moisturiser, and build up slowly.
What it helps with
Pairing with other actives
Retinol and glycolic acid are both doing turnover work on the same skin.
Alternate nights rather than layering them.
Stacking a retinoid with a BHA is a common route to a stripped, stinging barrier.
Use the BHA in the morning and the retinoid at night, or alternate nights.
Benzoyl peroxide oxidises most retinoids on contact, and both are drying.
Benzoyl peroxide in the morning, retinoid at night. Adapalene is the exception — it is stable alongside benzoyl peroxide.
Both are potent and prefer different conditions; together they irritate more than they help.
Vitamin C in the morning under sunscreen, retinol at night. This is the standard pairing.
Products containing it
Related reading
What order to apply your skincare
Thinnest to thickest, with two exceptions that matter more than the rule itself.
How to introduce a new active without wrecking your skin
Most bad reactions come from starting too fast, not from the wrong product.
Skincare during pregnancy and breastfeeding
What to stop, what is fine, and what to use instead. Confirm anything with your own clinician.
Ingredient conflicts: what's real and what's repeated
Some combinations genuinely cause problems. The most famous one does not.
Routine is educational and is not medical advice. Recommendations are generated from the answers you gave and general dermatological guidance — they cannot account for your full history. For persistent or severe skin conditions, or before starting anything new during pregnancy, speak to a doctor or dermatologist.