When we talk about skincare, the main goal is to achieve smooth and healthy-looking skin that isn’t overly oily all while ensuring it’s well-hydrated.
This is where toners come into play. Think of toners as a gentle way to refresh your skin without taking away its natural moisture.
While choosing the right toner might take a little time, it isn’t entirely impossible. The right toner can visibly improve how your skin looks and feels, for sure! So, don’t think of skipping a toner in your skincare routine.
No matter what kind of skin type you have, we’ve made a list of some of the best toners in Malaysia to consider. And to save you time, we’ve sorted them out based on skin types.
So, browse through and we hope you find the “one”!
What’s a toner used for?
Often seen as the second step of a skincare routine, a toner helps cleanse and balance the skin. This is followed by application of serums, essences, moisturiser, and sunscreen.
Here are some of the benefits in using a toner:
- Cleansing: Even though you’ve cleansed, there may still be remaining traces of makeup, dirt, or oil left behind. A toner is used as a final cleansing step to ensure your skin is thoroughly clean.
- Balancing pH: A pH-balanced skin is a happy skin. Using a toner can help restore the skin’s natural pH balance, which might have been disrupted by harsh cleansers or tap water.
- Hydration: While this isn’t a conventional benefit, most toners these days also contain ingredients such as glycerin or hyaluronic acid to offer a moisturising effect. This help preps the skin so subsequent skincare products can absorb more effectively
How to use a toner?
You can use a toner both in your day and night routine. Here are two common methods for applying it:
- With a cotton pad: After saturating a cotton pad with toner, gently sweep it across your face from the centre of your face and outward. Always swipe in an upward motion to avoid tugging at your skin downward unnecessarily, which can lead to the appearance of signs of ageing.
- With your hands: Most skincare professionals prefers the first method because it reduces wastage of product and the cotton pad offers a gentle exfoliating effect to the skin. However, if you prefer to use your hands, there’s no harm in doing so – as long as you’re sure your hands are clean. Simply pour the toner into your palms and pat it onto your skin with gentle presses. Some professionals believe that this can help improve hydration of skin as the product can be pressed and absorbed more deeply into the skin.
You can consider paying special attention to the areas that require more toning. These may include your T-zone (forehead, nose, and chin) or areas with enlarged pores. Make sure you cover your entire face evenly and don’t miss any spot.
Make sure your toner is fully absorbed before proceeding to the next step of your skincare routine.
How to choose a toner in Malaysia?
You should take into account your skin type, concerns, and the climate when you’re choosing a toner to use in Malaysia.
We have a tropical climate with high humidity, which can influence your choice of skincare products based on what’s comfortable.
Here are some tips to help you choose a suitable toner for use in Malaysia:
Consider your skin type
- Oily skin: If you have oily skin, look for a toner that is oil-free and mattifying. Ingredients such as salicylic acid or witch hazel can help control excess oil and minimise the appearance of pores.
- Dry skin: For dry skin, opt for a hydrating toner with ingredients like glycerin, hyaluronic acid, or ceramides to boost moisture levels.
- Combination skin: If your skin is a combination of oily and dry areas, choose a toner that balances oil production while providing hydration. You might consider using different toners on different areas of your face if needed.
- Sensitive skin: If your skin is sensitive, look for a gentle, alcohol-free toner with soothing ingredients like chamomile or aloe vera.
Check the ingredients
Avoid toners with high alcohol content, as they can be drying and may not be suitable for the humid climate in Malaysia. Instead, look for alcohol-free or low-alcohol toners.
You can never have enough antioxidants in your skincare routine, so toners that contain ingredients such as vitamin C or green tea extract is always a plus to help protect your skin from environmental damage.
Texture matters
The best skincare product is the one you use – this is a philosophy that Daily Vanity deeply believes in. After all, even if you’ve bought the toner with the best formulation, if its usage experience is so bad that you avoid using it, it’s just another product down the drain.
In Malaysia’s humid climate, look for lightweight, non-greasy toners that feel refreshing. The toner also needs to absorb quickly and doesn’t leave behind any heavy, oily, or sticky residue.
Best toners for oily skin
Rose Deep Hydration Toner
This toner by Fresh is like a refreshing drink for your skin. It’s packed with real rose petals and hyaluronic acid, which work together to minimise pores while increasing hydration level by 46% for six hours.
Free from alcohol, this hydrating toner also has an unmatched amount of rose, all thanks to ingredients like toning rose fruit extract, strengthening damask rose extract, and nourishing rose oil. It deeply clears skin impurities, leaving it soft and refined.
This retails for RM205 (250ml) on Sephora.
Laneige Water Bank Blue Hyaluronic Essence Toner
Renowned for their moisturising lip sleeping masks, this Laneige toner stands out as a concentrated hydrating essence. It delicately eliminates dryness and replenishes the skin’s moisture, all while maintaining a matte appearance for a revitalised skin texture.
Its key feature is the PHA Soy-Yeast Complex, which rapidly hydrates sensitive skin, often aggravated by daily irritations. The PHA component gently exfoliates away rough, dead skin cells, priming the skin for the subsequent steps in your skincare routine.
Its refreshing sensation also makes this one of the most sought after toners in Malaysia.
This retails for RM135 on Laneige.
The Body Shop Vitamin E Moisturising Toner
Enriched with a blend of 96% natural goodness, the vitamin E moisturising toner from The Body Shop is the ultimate companion for your post-cleanse routine. It revitalises your skin while whisking away any sneaky dirt that might be lurking.
But the pampering doesn’t stop there. This toner is also infused with raspberry seed oil, a natural vitamin E source extracted from raspberries that would otherwise go to waste in the juice industry. So, it’s not just a treat for your skin, but also a little win for sustainability.
This retails for RM79 on The Body Shop.
First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Wild Oat Toner
Is your skin feeling thirsty? Quench its cravings with the oatmeal-powered goodness of First Aid Beauty’s alcohol-free toner.
Oat milk, colloidal oatmeal and wild oats are combined with honey and hyaluronic acid to help soothe, relieve redness and hydrate. It goes the extra mile to support your skin’s overall health, ensuring a beautifully balanced complexion that radiates well-being.
This retails for RM120 on Sephora.
Herbivore Botanicals Jasmine Green Tea Toner
If your skin frequently leans towards oily and is blemish-prone, Herbivore’s Jasmine Green Tea Toner might be the solution you need to tackle this issue.
This facial toner features the calming touch of jasmine flower water infused with green tea, willow bark, and witch hazel. Its goal is to strike a balance, bring clarity, and provide hydration for those combination, oily, and blemish-prone complexions.
The natural salicylic acid in clarifying white willow bark fights off blemishes, while ginger root soothes redness.
This retails for RM175 on Sephora.
Best toners for dry skin
Caudalie Vinoclean Moisturizing Toner
Frustrated with makeup removers that leave your skin feeling super dry?
Caudalie introduces their moisturising toner infused with mattifying organic rose water leaving your skin feeling fresh and clear, all while effectively eliminating makeup and impurities. Plus, it helps your skin get ready to fully absorb the benefits from your remaining skincare products.
A multitasker? That’s right. It’s definitely one of the best toners in Malaysia to check out.
This retails for RM105 (200ml) on Sephora.
Innisfree Blueberry Rebalancing Skin
Did you know that blueberries have antioxidants that help rebalance your skin’s pH, contributing to a healthy and harmonious complexion?
Innisfree’s Blueberry Rebalancing Line takes advantage of this natural power, ensuring a weak-acidic formula with a pH level of 5.5 across its products, a key indicator of skin health.
Harnessing the antioxidant prowess of blueberries, a revered superfood, this skincare gem by Innisfree delivers a healthy, toned complexion. Apart from being a gentle and refreshing oily-water based formula, it enriches your skin’s moisture and texture without causing irritation.
This retails for RM39 (150ml) on Innisfree.
Kiehl’s Ultra Facial Toner
Introducing a kind and alcohol-free toner for your face. This gentle potion not only tones, but also pampers and quenches your skin’s thirst.
Crafted with skin-friendly ingredients like squalane, apricot kernel oil, avocado oil, and vitamin E, this facial tonic knows how to throw a pH-balanced party for your skin. You won’t find any over-drying or oil-stripping shenanigans as it moisturises and hydrates your skin well. No wonder it’s one of the best toners in Malaysia to look out for.
This retails for RM119 on Kiehl’s.
Paula’s Choice Enriched Calming Toner
A milky, hydrating formula, from Paula’s Choice is the Enriched Calming Toner. It provides a moisture-rich solution to comfort dry and flaky skin.
This toner not only combats dehydration, environmental stress, and signs of ageing, but also nourishes and revitalises the skin. Packed with antioxidant-rich plant oils, it offers a protective shield while delivering essential moisture.
Its ability to eliminate dryness and flakiness leaves your skin feeling remarkably smooth. Remarkably, this toner is so delicate that it’s even suitable for those with eczema-prone skin.
This retails for RM125 on Paula’s Choice.
Melixir Vegan Balancing Toner
With a special dose of organic green tea extract, it gives your skin the hydration it craves while ensuring your skin’s pH levels are on point.
Overflowing with antioxidant polyphenols, it moisturises and balances your skin, making it look all clear and fresh. Not stopping there, this toner also acts as a cleanup crew for your skin. It clears out the stuff dead skin cells and dirt – making your skin feel its absolute best.
This retails for RM140 on Sephora.
Best toners for acne-prone skin
Dr.Jart+ Ctrl-A Teatreement Toner
Containing a one percent concentration of tea tree leaf extract, this toner is designed to nurture skin prone to acne. It swiftly provides hydration and equilibrium to the skin, as well as eliminates dirt and oil following cleansing.
The Ctrl-A Teatreement Toner is a fast absorbing water toner that calms the skin, diminishes redness, and promptly moisturises your skin. By focusing on problematic regions while leaving the rest of the skin barrier intact, it imparts a revitalising matte appearance.
This retails for RM85 on Sephora.
Saturday Skin Pore Clarifying Toner
Don’t be fooled by the name “Saturday” – this toner isn’t just a once-a-week treat. Jokes aside, this toner is your answer to achieving clear and radiant skin. Infused with a combination of 10% glycolic acid and pore control complex, it swiftly transforms your skin into a remarkably smooth state.
The toner works on enhancing skin tone and texture through its unique ingredients such as witch hazel, tea tree oil, and red clover. This blend contributes to the creation of a smooth and poreless complexion.
This retails for RM130 (125ml) on Sephora.
Mario Badescu Glycolic Acid Toner
If you’re seeking an alternative toner for acne-prone skin, consider giving Mario Badescu’s Glycolic Acid Toner a shot.
This toner works by accelerating the skin’s natural cell renewal process, shedding away dead cells to unveil a fresh, radiant complexion.
Enriched with a generous dose of soothing aloe vera, it aids in calming the skin. Additionally, this toner contributes to refining the skin’s surface, effectively blurring the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, and pores, while addressing concerns of ageing, dullness, and uneven skin texture.
Its multi-dimensional treatment approach certainly makes this one of the best toners in Malaysia.
This retails for RM105 on Sephora.
Cosmoderm Tea Tree Oil Clarifying Face Toner
Incorporate Cosmoderm’s oil-free toner into your skincare regimen for a triple-threat approach to pimple treatment.
Acting as the first line of defence, this toner not only addresses existing blemishes, but also plays a crucial role in eliminating bacteria and excess oil, setting the stage for a clear complexion.
It doesn’t stop just there, this toner is designed to curb sebum production, aiding in preventing future breakouts, while simultaneously working to minimise the formation of scars. Perfectly suited for those moments of pesky oiliness, it serves as a refreshing pick-me-up, ensuring your skin remains balanced and revitalised.
This retails for RM20.90 on Guardian.
The Ordinary Glycolic Acid 7% Toning Solution
An exfoliating toner that sets its sights on skin improvement, this solution contains a potent 7% glycolic acid alongside a blend of nourishing ingredients.
With continued use, the glycolic acid exfoliates skin to improve skin radiance and texture, while Tasmanian Pepperberry can help reduce irritation associated with exfoliation. This formula also contains ginseng root and aloe vera which work in harmony to deliver visible radiance and soothing benefits.
This retails for RM80 on Sephora.
Best toners for combination skin
Mamonde Rose Water Toner
Crafted using a whopping 90.97% of the finest Bulgarian damask rosewater, this Korean toner packs a punch of hydration that your skin will love. Not to mention, it’s a pro at giving your skin a thorough clean, whisking away all that dirt and removing dead skin cells.
It’s formulated without any synthetic pigments, animal oils or mineral oils, making this ideal even for those with sensitive skin. So, if you’re all about treating your skin with kindness, this rose water toner will give your skin all the gentle care it deserves.
This retails for RM119 on Threebs.
Farmacy Deep Sweep 2% BHA Pore Refining Toner
With a 2% BHA content and no alcohol in sight, this toner works by exfoliating your skin gently. It banishes excess oil without over-stripping skin and deep cleans pores.
The inclusion of papaya enzyme delicately exfoliates and clarifies the skin, while chlorella provides nourishment and soothing benefits. The moringa seed and moringa water effectively remove pollution-induced impurities.
This retails for RM158 on Sephora.
Elemis Soothing Apricot Toner
Exclusively available through Sephora’s online store, this facial toner offers a gentle and alcohol-free approach to hydrating and revitalising your skin.
Tailored for delicate skin, it helps maintain your skin’s natural pH balance without any alcohol or harsh cleansing agents. The hydrating blends of apricot, sweet betty flower, and quillaja wood saponins, brings comfort and balance to your complexion, revealing a fresh and radiant look.
This toner also acts as a preliminary layer of hydration as it seamlessly preps your skin for moisturiser – a great toner to have in Malaysia, for sure.
This retails for RM165 on Sephora.
Benton Aloe BHA Skin Toner
This aloe vera-infused in this Korean skincare toner stands as a dynamic solution to both hydration and acne concerns.
With a gentle 0.5% BHA content, it delicately exfoliates, banishing dead skin cells and thwarting blackheads to promote clear and acne-free skin. The snail secretion filtrate and hyaluronic acid provides hydration benefits and lavishes the skin with deep moisture.
This retails for RM70 on Threebs.
Minimalist Polyhydroxy Acid (PHA) 03% Toner
This quick absorbing Minimalist toner is a multi-tasking marvel, delivering a daily dose of gentle exfoliation, pH balance, pore tightening, and skin hydration all in one.
Enhanced with pre- and probiotics, it balances your skin microbiome and accelerates the recovery of skin’s barrier function. The PHA used in this formula also provides up to 50% protection against UV radiation, offering an extra layer of defence for your skin.
Being free from fragrance and is non-comedogenic, this toner ensures a skin-friendly experience that won’t clog pores or cause irritation.
This retails for RM24.49 on Minimalist.
