Get clean and clear skin with the best cleansers available on the market
Finding the best cleanser for your skin type can be quite the challenge, especially because the long-term effects aren’t seen immediately.
Yes, your skin will instantly feel fresh, clean and soft (especially if you use a face cleanser brush), but in the long run, cleansers should also be a huge part of your anti-ageing regime. They work hard to fight off the years and reversing the daily effects of make-up and dirt on your skin – results that won’t be seen until much further down the line.
This is why you need to do your research or visit our sister site Powder who will find a cleanser that’s specifically matched to you. Like finding the best make-up remover for your skin, finding the ultimate cleanser for yourself in a saturated market can seem near impossible, so you’ve got to rely on recommendations from those who have tried them all.
That’s why we pulled together a team of beauty experts to give you a list of the best cleansers available on the market right now.
Best cleanser for acne
Clinique Anti-Blemish Solutions Cleansing Gel, £18.50, Fabled
Containing 2% salicylic acid (which works by breaking up the bond that sticks dead skin cells together and clog pores) this cleanser will get rid of daily grime without drying out your skin.
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Best cleanser for oily skin
Aveda Botanical Kinetics Exfoliating Cleanser, £22, Liberty London
Infused with jojoba exfoliating beads, this cleanser helps increase cell turnover and remove impurities while helping to balance your sebum production.
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Best cleanser for dry skin
Neutrogena Hydro Boost® Micellar Water, £7.99, Beauty Expert
This easy peasy cleanser protects and hydrates the skin while also removing make-up. Its patented cleansing technology and hyaluronic acid work together to protect your skin’s natural barrier and lock in moisture. No more dry skin woes.
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Best cleanser for pores
Kiehl’s Rare Earth Deep Pore Daily Cleanser, £18, John Lewis
This foams up a little bit, but definitely won’t strip your skin and leave it with that uncomfortably tight sensation. Instead, it washes away dirt and debris on the surface, while Amazonian white clay helps unclog and minimise the appearance of pores.
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Best cleanser for combination skin
Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser, £14.50, Fabled
There’s a reason why this plant-based cleanser is a multi-award winner. Phase one, removes all traces of daily grime and make-up, even stubborn mascara. Then, phase two polishes your skin by using the pure muslin cloth to gently dislodge dead skin cells, making it purified and smooth.
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Best cleanser for sensitive skin
Bobbi Brown Soothing Cleansing Milk, £32, Fabled
Lightly scented and soothing, this make-up removing cleansing cream is super gentle but packs a punch when it comes to cleansing power. You may be wary of using a cream cleanser near your eyes, but the formula is irritation free and removes every last scrap of even the toughest mascara.
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Best cleanser for blackheads
Mario Badescu Acne Facial Cleanser, £15, BeautyBay
Blackheads are no match for salicylic acid, and Mario Badescu’s cleanser contains just the right dose. Paired with botanical extracts, it removes makeup, grime, and oil from the skin while tackling clogged pores.
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Best cleanser brush
Clarisonic Mia 2 Sonic Skin Cleansing System, £120, Fabled
A face cleanser brush takes your daily face wash to the next level. Using one of these in your skincare routine will leave your skin feeling smoother and will give your pores a much deeper clean than just using your hands or cotton pads. The best, like Clarisonic’s Mia 2 Cleansing System, are designed to be gentle enough for every day use, though if you have sensitive skin that’s easily irritated, it’s best to use every other day should you feel a bit wary about overdoing it with the scrubbing.
According to top derms, a facial cleaning brush beats your hands or flannel hands down. The Mia 2 has two different speeds depending on your skin’s sensitivity, a pulsing timer option, and a handy travel case (we’re also big fans of it’s little sister, the Clarisonic Mia Fit Device).
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Your complexion has never been clearer.
Shop more of our failsafe cleansers in our edit below.
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Optimal Skin ProCleanser, £32, ESPA
This handy tube does it all: cleansing, exfoliating, brightening, you name it. It's packed with natural ingredients like moringa seed extract, jojoba and pumpkin enzymes to give your skin a helping hand.
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Eve Lom Gel Cleanser, £45, Fabled
Best face cleanser for: Skin refresh
Fans of Eve Lom's cult cleanser, which first launched 30 years ago, will love the new addition to their skincare family. Formulating a cleanser that's ideal for the modern woman (lightweight, pump dispenser and no muslin cloth needed) to nourish, clean and fresh the skin. Key ingredients include shea butter, grapeseed oil and argan oil.
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Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser, £8.99, Boots
Best face cleanser for: All skin types
Benefits: Whether you have sensitive, oily, dry, blemish prone or combination skin, this cleanser will deeply clean while rebalancing your skin's pH balance to provide, effective, gentle skincare without stripping away your natural protective oils.
Shop now: Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser for £8.99 from Boots
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Elemis Pro-collagen Cleansing Balm, £41, Fabled
Best face cleanser for: A deep cleanse
Benefits: This powerful balm deeply cleanses your skin to dissolve makeup and get rid of daily pollutants, without drying it out, so you end up with noticeably clearer skin that's also hydrated.
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Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser, £15, Glossier
Best for: A hydrating, comfortable cleanser.
This has earned its cult status for a reason. It makes sure makeup and dirt slips away, and gives your skin a refreshing boost first thing in the AM - all without that squeaky clean feeling. You NEED this.
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La Roche Posay Toleriane Dermo Cleanser, £12.50, Boots
Best face cleanser for: Sensitive skin
Benefits: If your skin reacts to the simplest of beauty products, you need this wipe-off milk cleanser. It contains glycerine and La Roche-Posay Thermal Spring Water to deeply clean your skin without disturbing its normal balance and because you wipe it off with a cotton pad, you don't have to worry about irritation from warm water.
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Epara Cleansing Lotion, £40, Harrods
Best face cleanser for: Hyper-pigmentation
Benefits: As it turns out, people of colour are more likely to suffer from dryness and discolouration. Enter Epara, the first skincare range designed for (but not exclusive to) darker skin tones, and the cleansing lotion feels and smells absolutely divine. Within a matter of days, your complexion will look more even and nourished.
