How do I know my skin type?
By Dr Yilmaz, Founder of Methodical
It’s one of the most common questions I’m asked, and for good reason. Knowing your skin type is the foundation of every good routine. It tells you what your skin actually needs, which products will work with you rather than against you, and where to spend your time and money.
The frustrating part is that “skin type” gets used as a catch-all for everything happening on your face. It isn’t. Your skin type is one specific thing: how much oil your skin produces. Everything else (tightness, redness, breakouts, fine lines, flakiness) sits in a separate category called skin conditions, and we’ll come back to why that distinction matters.
This is how to work it out properly.
What skin type actually means
Your skin type is determined by how much oil your skin produces: that’s the sebum from your pores plus the lipids in your skin’s outer barrier. It’s largely genetic and tends to stay reasonably stable over time. There are four classifications:
- Dry: produces too little oil
- Normal: produces just the right amount (lucky you)
- Oily: produces too much
- Combination: different areas of the face sit in different categories
Combination skin is often spoken about as if it’s a single, separate type. In practice, it’s more useful to think of every face as combination to some degree, and to assess each zone. Forehead, nose, cheeks, chin, individually.
Signs your skin is oily
Look for any of these:
- Larger pores and blackheads, particularly across the T-zone (forehead, nose, chin)
- Visible shine on the surface, or grease marks on your pillowcase in the morning
- Oil that transfers when you touch your face
- Moisturisers seem to make the oiliness worse rather than better
- A tendency toward breakouts and acne
- Makeup that slides or breaks down through the day
Signs your skin is dry
And the other end:
- Roughness, flaking, or small cracks
- Smaller, less visible pores
- A tight feeling after cleansing, especially if you skip moisturiser
- Moisturiser that sinks in quickly and is welcomed by the skin
- A matte, non-shiny appearance
- Makeup that settles into fine lines or clings to dry patches
If you sit somewhere between the two, no real shine, no tightness, no obvious problems, your skin is most likely normal.
The blotting paper test
If you’d like a tidy second opinion, this is the one I’d reach for. A few hours after washing your face, press a small piece of oil blotting paper against the side of your nose or the cheek next to it. If it sticks, or shows an obvious grease spot, you’re producing oil in that area. If it falls away cleanly with no transfer, the skin there leans dry. Repeat across each zone of your face for a fuller picture.
What influences your skin type
Genetics is the main driver of how much oil your skin produces, but several other factors can shift it:
- Hormones: pregnancy, menstrual cycle, menopause, and hormonal contraception can all change oil output
- Medications: isotretinoin, spironolactone and others can reduce oil production substantially
- Age: skin generally produces less oil as we get older
- Weather and climate: humidity, heat, cold
- Stress and sleep
- Diet
- How you treat your skin: over-cleansing, harsh actives and stripping routines can all distort what your skin would naturally do
This is why skin type isn’t a one-time diagnosis. It’s worth reassessing every so often, particularly after any significant change in your health, environment, or routine.