The 21 Best Face Washes and Cleansers for Men to Maintain Healthier Skin

According to dermatologists, it's recommended that you wash your face twice a day—once in the morning and once in the evening as your skin builds up with oil and sebum through the course of the day. Now as we just mentioned, you might have to experiment a bit to see what works for you. This might mean using a gentle morning cleanser in the A.M., and a completely different face wash in the evening. If, however you decide two times a day is too much (or you choose to go a different route in the morning such as a hydrating facial spray), then at minimum you should wash your face with a cleanser every night to ensure you're removing any build-up from the day.

• Best For: All skin types

Oars + Alps offers a $20 affordable face wash that is suitable for all skin types, making this a solid choice for a morning cleanser as it isn't too heavy, or an option for those that may not yet know what category their skin type falls into. This face wash has prebiotics that help with balancing your skin PH for a healthy complexion, and aloe to prevent redness and irritation. We'd also say this is a good "transition" cleanser for those in the process of switching face washes that haven't made a decision yet on what they want to be their regular cleanser. You can really get a lot of bang for your buck out of the Gentle Cleanser, which is why we selected it as our best overall.

• Best For: Dry skin

Spoken from personal experience, dry skin can be a beast to deal with. It takes a combination of skin products (not just cleansers) and a great routine to tackle the problem, but the first start is finding a great cleanser that works for you. Nivea's Deep Cleaning Face Wash is a great cleanser to try out as it deep cleans with Provitamin B5 and Vitamin E (both essential for keeping the skin moisturized), and unblocks your pores. If it works for you then awesome! If not, the cleanser is only $13 so it's not like your out a ton of money.

• Best For: Oily skin

Oily skin can also be a beast to deal with that requires a full skincare routine to deal with. Once again, the base is your face wash, and Blu Atlas is awesome for exfoliating and removing the gunk from your skin. Most of the ingredients come from natural origins like plants, minerals, and fruits, and the volcanic ash also helps to purify your skin and tighten your pores. It's only $25 as well which is a steal considering the quality.

• Best For: Oily skin

Paula's Choice has a simple three step process to help you with clearing up and preventing acne outbreaks. You start with Pure Normalizing Cleanser, then you use the Anti-Redness Exfoliating Solution which helps to clear stubborn breakouts and unclog pores, and then you finish with the Daily Skin Clearing Treatment, which helps to prevent future breakouts. 1, 2, 3, and voila! You can get the entire package for $75.

• Best For: Exfoliating Skin

Obviously Neutrogena is renowned for being one of the best brands out there when it comes to skincare and skin care products, and they offer a range of different facial washes and cleansers for various different skin types. We selected their $6 Deep Clean and Facial scrub because it's a gentle exfoliator that's great for all skin-types, but you can definitely take a look at their entire selection either online or in-person since most Neutrogena products are at your local drugstores as well.

• Best For: Sensitive Skin

Geologie's Sensitive Face Wash helps those with sensitive skin by. stripping away the oil and dirt buildup that accumulates on your skin through the course of the day, which in turn leaves your skin balanced and refreshed. If you struggle with sensitive skin in particular and are looking to test something new, you can grab one, or two, or three for roughly $10 to $26 bucks.

• Best For: Sensitive Skin

If we had to pick one cleanser that we think would automatically work for everyone regardless of individual skin type, we would bet our money on Philosophy's One-Step Facial Cleanser as it has literally won awards for its formula. In fact, the cleanser is considered to be the number one cleanser in America. The prices range from $14 for their 3 oz bottle, to $64 for 32 oz bottle. We'd venture to say that you can't go wrong with the number one cleanser in the USA.

• Best For: Dry Skin/Combo

Rice-water sometimes gets overlooked when it comes to cleansers, and it shouldn't be because it has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that are very good for your skin. While this $40 Tatcha Rice Wash Skin-Softening Cleanser can be used for every skin type, it does work especially well for those with dry skin. Something to consider.

• Best For: Normal/Sensitive Skin

Klur's Gentle Matter cleanser is rightfully hyped as well, and not sure if this is a relevant piece of information, but it smell amazing. The cleanser blends antioxidants and organic botanicals, and you don't have to use a lot of the product to get results, which means while you're spending $40 upfront to purchase, it can easily last you about a year. Did we mention it smells good?

• Best For: Dry/Normal Skin

Dove's Men + Care facial wash contains a unique formula that helps to replenish moisture, which it makes it an ideal choice for those that struggle with dry skin. It also provides advanced protection to last you through the entire day which is an added bonus in our book. It's only about $5 as well! Something to try if searching for a new cleanser.

• Best For: Pre-shaving

Jack Black's Pure Cleanser contains sulfate-free surfactants that helps to prep your skin for shaving. Bumps and irritation are no fun to deal with at all, so any little thing you can do to prevent that is a big help to your skin routine. If shaving irritation is a problem that you struggle with, then you should definitely check out Jack Black's $13 cleanser.

• Best For: All skin types

Kiehl's $34 Facial Fuel is exactly that—a facial fuel. The cleanser is an energizing moisturizer treatment that is both paraben and sulfate-free. The reviews say that this cleanser is great, with some going as far as to say they are never going back to the face wash they were using before trying out Kiehl's. That's enough to have us sold on including.

• Best For: Acne and dry skin

L'Oreal's Men Expert Facial cleansers contains charcoal that helps to fight problems caused by skin buildup which include oily skin, shininess, and clogged pores. The cleanser also helps to remove dirt and excess oils from your face, which leaves your skin looking healthy and fresh. You can purchase this special formula for roughly $12 at Amazon.

• Best For: Sensitive skin

If sensitive skin is an issue and you've yet to try Bulldog's $7 cleanser, consider this your sign that you should give it a shot. Their Sensitive Face Wash contains the ingredients Baobab, oat oil, and willow herb, which has undergone a specific formula to help you achieve skin that is flawless. Bulldog's products are also fragrance-free, which helps to avoid irritation. The natural ingredients really make this cleanser a winner.

• Best For: Oily skin

La Roche-Posay Toleriane $20 Purifying Foaming Face Wash transforms a gel texture into a foam that helps to remove dirt, unclog pores, and restore moisture in the face. While the cleanser is especially helpful for oily skin, it can be used for normal and sensitive skin types as well, making it a versatile wash that will have your skin feeling rich.

• Best For: All skin types

The Naturium Niacinamide Cleansing Gelée has three percent niacinamide that helps to improve your complexion through balancing your natural skin properties. The $18 cleanser contains hyaluronic acid, vitamin c, and other properties that will have your skin thanking you. And then you'll be thanking us for putting you on!

• Best For: All skin types

Hawthorne's Natural Skin Face Cleanser is an all-natural face wash built to calms sensitive skin with its centella asiatica and aloe vera properties. The aloe vera contains skin-repairing enzymes that repair the skin and calms itchiness, the glycerin helps your skin retain moisture all day, and the centella asiatica soothes irritation. You get all this for the price of $14. Not bad.

• Best For: All skin types

If you're into skincare (or know of somebody that is), then you are probably already more than aware of Drunk Elephant's Beste No. 9 $34 skin cleanser, as it's been one of those skincare products that have been heavily hyped (especially on social media). The cleanser is a gentle one in the form of a jelly, and it's also fragrance and cruelty-free and vegan.

• Best For: Normal to oily skin

Warning: this may not be the best face wash for dry skin as it's listed as best for normal to oily. That said, CeraVe's $18 Foaming Facial wash is another face wash that taken social media by storm due to its affordability and the fact that works very well. Foaming cleansers as a whole makes the skin feel amazing, and this one in particular can be used as either a day or night face wash.

• Best For: Oily skin

Sunday Riley's $35 Ceramic Slip French Gray Cleanser might seem a little pricey compared to some of the others we've listed, but it's well worth the splurge as it is a gentle plant-based cleaner that purifies and hydrates the skin at the same time giving you a perfect smooth shine to your face.

• Best For: All skin types

For a $9 smooth rich cleanser that leaves your skin moisturized to the fullest, check out the Squalane Cleanser by The Original. The brand is a sustainable one, and keeps the skin healthy by not removing the barrier.