Azelaic Acid 10% and the Gentle Routine Around It

Azelaic acid has the least glamorous backstory in skincare. It is made naturally by a yeast called Malassezia that already lives on your skin, and it turns up in grains like wheat, rye and barley. Dermatologists have prescribed it for years, as a 15 percent gel or foam and a 20 percent cream, for rosacea and acne. Over the counter, formulas go up to about 10 percent, which is why azelaic acid 10% has become the number people search for.

What I like about it is the temperament. Retinoids and strong acids can leave sensitive skin raw. Azelaic acid is gentler, and it is known for helping with the look of redness, bumps and the dark marks a breakout leaves behind, all at once. It usually works morning or night and plays well with the rest of a routine. It can tingle for the first week or two, which is normal and tends to fade. I went deeper on a related idea in Anua Azelaic Acid and the Gentle Acid for Redness and Marks.

The Ordinary's Azelaic Acid Suspension 10% is the simplest place to start, a light cream that brightens skin. Paula's Choice's 10% Azelaic Acid Booster adds salicylic acid for clogged pores, and Shani Darden's Rescue Serum uses a 10% azelaic complex for dark spots and post-blemish marks. ALPYN's 3-in-1 Barrier Repair Serum pairs azelaic acid with barrier care, made for redness and uneven tone.

If you prefer a toner, the Brighten Up toner from Farmacy combines 3% tranexamic acid with azelaic acid for dark spots. EADEM's Cashmere Peel is a milky exfoliant with azelaic acid and a soft, hydrating feel. And Skinfix's Acne+ spot treatment pairs 2% BHA with azelaic acid for the single blemish that shows up right before a big day.

When you start an active, the cleanser is where most routines go wrong. A foaming wash that leaves skin squeaky strips the barrier you need to keep calm, and then the acid stings more than it should. You want something that takes off makeup and sunscreen and leaves skin feeling like skin.

First Aid Beauty's Ultra Gentle cleanser is fragrance free and turns from cream to a soft foam, the one I would give anyone with reactive skin. Fresh's Soy cleanser is gentle enough for morning and night and has a lovely, barely there texture. Kiehl's Ultra Facial Barrier-Hydrating Cleanser is cream to foam as well and takes off sunscreen while it hydrates.

Tatcha's Rice Wash is a creamy, non-stripping cleanser that leaves skin soft. Youth To The People's Superfood gel cleanser removes makeup, SPF and extra oil without drying, better for combination skin. Origins' Checks and Balances is a frothy wash that rinses clean, and Clinique's All About Clean Liquid Facial Soap is quick rinsing and non-drying, the kind of simple cleanser that makes a routine easy to stick to.

If you wear full makeup, start with a balm. Elemis' Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm softens and melts makeup first, then your gentle cleanser does the rest. Use lukewarm water, not hot, and pat your face dry instead of rubbing it with the towel. Those two small changes keep redness from getting worse while the azelaic acid does its work.

Azelaic acid works best on skin that is not already irritated, so a good moisturizer is half the routine. Look for ceramides and hyaluronic acid, and skip heavy fragrance if your skin is sensitive.

Tower 28's SOS Daily moisturizer is intentionally basic, with hyaluronic acid and ceramides, made for sensitive skin. Tatcha's Indigo Overnight Repair is fragrance free and endorsed by the National Eczema Association, a rich cream that calms the look of redness. Honey Halo from Farmacy is an intense ceramide moisturizer for dry, distressed skin, and Caudalie's Premier Cru Rich Cream supports the barrier with bio-ceramides.

For oily or combination skin, Biossance's Probiotic Gel is light and non-comedogenic, and LANEIGE's Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Cream gives long-lasting hydration. EADEM's Cloud Cushion is dewy and plumping, a nice base for makeup. Summer Fridays' Jet Lag works as a moisturizer or a mask, and I use it thickly on nights my skin feels tight.

If your skin feels tight or flaky in the first few weeks, add moisturizer before and after the azelaic acid, a little sandwich that softens it without stopping it from working. A simple order works. Cleanse, apply the azelaic acid to dry skin, wait a minute, then moisturize. In the morning, finish with sunscreen, because azelaic acid is most useful for dark marks when you are also protecting them from getting darker. Without sunscreen, you are fading a mark with one hand and deepening it with the other, and that is a frustrating way to pass two months.

Azelaic acid is not a quick fix. Improvements in redness and texture usually take weeks, not days, so take a photo in daylight on day one and compare it at week eight. Start every other night if your skin is sensitive, then build up. A pea-sized amount covers the whole face, and more will not make it work faster, it will only make it sting.

Keep the rest of your routine quiet while it works. No new acids, no scrubs, no retinoid added in the same month. And if you have real rosacea or acne that is not budging, a dermatologist can prescribe the stronger 15 or 20 percent versions and help you use them well. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Naturium Azelaic Acid, the 10% Serum and Its Rivals and Water Based Concealer.

Once the basics are in place, I wrote a separate guide on what to pair with azelaic acid, one companion at a time.