You might spend some extra time prepping your skin for the day in the morning, but the nighttime routine brings the most results. After dark is your skin’s time to repair itself, as cell turnover increases when you are in deep, restful sleep. Overnight facial masks (also known as sleeping masks) supply your skin with all the right ingredients to accelerate the P.M. skin repairing process.
What Are the Overnight Face Masks
Overnight masks are treatments meant to be applied after your nighttime routine to work while you sleep. Also known as sleep masks and night masks, these are typically cream or gel formulas designed to support your skin’s natural repair process and provide the added benefit of deep hydration, exfoliation, and radiance improvement.
The idea is that overnight masks work while you sleep, so they stay on your skin longer and penetrate deeper. As a result, you wake up with the best skin ever!
The Best Overnight Face Masks for Various Skin Concerns
Different types of overnight masks target various skin concerns. Depending on the key ingredient in each formula, overnight sleep masks could help you with skin hydration, firmness, and radiance.
Hydrating Sleeping Masks
Overnight masks that hydrate your skin are the most common, and they truly work! Especially if we are talking about gel formulas. These lightweight masks are suitable for acne-prone skin as they don’t clog the pores. Since they stay on your skin longer, they penetrate deeper — you’ll feel the difference if you struggle with dehydrated skin.
If your skin is lacking moisture, look out for these ingredients in your hydrating sleep masks: Hyaluronic Acid, Squalane, Glycerin, and Ceramides.
Some of the best overnight hydration masks to try:
- PCA Skin Hyaluronic Acid Overnight Mask: The gel texture of this mask makes it suitable for all skin types, including acne-prone and excessively oily.
- Belif AquaBomb Sleeping Mask: You can’t beat the added hydration level this overnight mask provides!
- Laneige Water Sleeping Mask: This K-beauty mask is what started the overnight mask trend. The gel-like formula of this sleep mask helps to transform dry and dull skin overnight.
Radiance Sleeping Masks
Overnight masks for improving skin luminosity (radiance sleeping masks) typically contain Vitamin C, Niacinamide, and Lactic Acid. These sleep masks combat skin’s dullness, address texture concerns and refine pores.
- Omorovicza Midnight Radiance Mask: Designed to brighten and hydrate the skin, this luxurious mask delivers on all the promises. With the help of Salicylic Acid, Sand Lily, Black Willow Extract, and Red Algae this gel mask helps you to wake up with glowing skin.
- Korres Wild Rose Night-Brightening Sleeping Facial: If your skin reacts positively to Vitamin C, consider incorporating this cult favorite into your nighttime routine. It helps transform dull skin and address uneven texture issues.
Lifting & Firming Overnight Facial Masks
Antiaging overnight masks are the way to go if your skin could use some TLC when it comes to firming and lifting.
- Fresh Black Tea Firming Overnight Mask: This gentle yet effective formula improves skin’s elasticity thanks to black tea extract and hydrates the skin with the help of hyaluronic acid.
- KORA Organics Noni Glow Sleeping Mask: A pillow-proof mask that uses the power of Silver Ear Mushroom and coconut milk to improve skin elasticity and boost hydration levels overnight.
Skin-Calming Overnight Masks
If you have sensitive skin, cica-based overnight calming masks might be a solution. If your concerns are skin redness and inflamed skin, consider these skin-calming masks you could use overnight.
- Laneige Cica Sleeping Mask: This gentle mask helps to soothe and calm your skin overnight with the help of the skin-soothing ingredient, cica.
- Dr. Jart Cicapair Tiger Grass Sleepair Intensive Mask: Struggling with uneven skin tone and redness? Consider this gentle radiance-improving mask that works while you sleep.
- Fresh Floral Recovery Redness Reducing Overnight Mask: One of the most social media hyped sleep masks to fight redness that shows the results overnight.
Exfoliating Sleep Masks
Exfoliating overnight masks contain AHAs and BHAs that provide light chemical exfoliation. As a result, you wake up with smoother skin that glows from within.
- Glow Recipe Watermelon Glow Sleeping Mask: Achieve a gentle yet effective exfoliation suitable even for sensitive skin types. Formulated with Watermelon Extract and Hyaluronic Acid, this yummy-smelling mask helps visually tighten your pores and promote skin clarity.
- Perricone MD Vitamin C Ester Overnight Treatment: If visible sun damage and age spots are your skin’s main concern, you’d love this Vitamin C-based overnight mask. With the help of Glycolic Acid it gently exfoliates your skin to reveal a brighter, sun spot-less complexion.
How to Choose a Perfect Overnight Face Mask
Like the rest of your skincare routine, pay attention to the ingredients your skin is too sensitive to when picking overnight face masks.
For instance, avoid night masks with this ingredient if you break out in rashes from Vitamin C serums. Since overnight products stay on your skin longer and work when your skin’s metabolism peaks, skin irritants that don’t work for your skin during the day would be even more irritating at night.
Another potential issue is layering the ingredients in your p.m. serum and overnight face mask. For instance, don’t use two exfoliating products at once: you’ll over-exfoliate your skin! Same for mixing retinoids and AHAs: not every skin could handle it. So if you plan on using your retinoid serum overnight, it’s better to stick to hydrating night mask formulas to avoid potential irritations.
When picking an overnight face mask, scan the ingredient list for hyaluronic acid, ceramides, and peptides. Those moisture-locking and skin-smoothing ingredients are the gentlest and work for most people.
How Often Should You Use an Overnight Facial Mask?
Similar to other types of face masks, it’s recommended to use sleep masks once or twice weekly. After washing your face, applying a toner, eye cream, and serum, put on your overnight mask as if it was a night cream. Regardless of how many steps your nighttime routine takes, a thin layer of a sleeping facial mask should be the final step.
