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Mar 28, 2024

The 23 Best New Cleansers Of Summer 2023

OUAI St. Barts Body Cleanser Serums and moisturizers tend to get all the love in the skincare world, leaving the cleansing category woefully undervalued. But using the right cleanser is key to

OUAI St. Barts Body Cleanser

Serums and moisturizers tend to get all the love in the skincare world, leaving the cleansing category woefully undervalued. But using the right cleanser is key to starting your skincare routine out right—and that goes for your face and body. To make the most of sudsing up, it’s crucial to find a cleaner that’s designed for your skin type and complexion goals. Ensuring there’s truly something for everyone, we’ve tried and tested everything from foaming cleansers to gels to cleansing balms to powders and more, bringing you the top options from head to toe. Read on to discover the best new cleansers of 2023 for a clean, healthy complexion.

Renee Rouleau Better Than Balm

It’s a big claim, but yes, this face wash really is better than most cleansing balms. That’s because it’s essentially two cleansers in one, as the dual-phase formula lets you skip a step. It starts off as an oil cleanser to remove oil, makeup, dirt and debris. Next, add water and it’ll transform into a gel cleanser—thanks to sucrose laurate, a sugar-based emulsifier—leaving no greasiness or any residue behind. It also contains sunflower seed oil, which is rich in linoleic acid to soften skin, as well as humectant glycerin to moisturize. $45.50, reneerouleau.com

Vintner’s Daughter Active Renewal Cleanser

When Vintner’s Daughter releases a new product, it’s genuinely a big deal. The brand’s third product in a decade is a foaming cream face wash that was worth the wait. A two-step cleanser in one bottle, it removes dirt, oil, makeup, sunscreen and daily impurities, leaving pores looking less visible and skin balanced and brighter. The hero ingredient is the Phyto Radiance Infusion, a plant-powered complex that is loaded with nutrients. $98, vintnersdaughter.com

Kiehl’s Rare Earth Deep Pore-Minimizing & Polishing Powder Cleanser

The concentrated powder-to-foam formula means this face wash uses 50 times less water than the average liquid cleanser. Made with a 100% PCR packaging and cap and renewably sourced ingredients, it’s just as good for your skin as it is for the planet. Featuring fair-trade Amazonian white clay and AHAs, the powder cleanser is designed for oily skin, since it purifies pores, is clinically proven to reduce oil and shine by 96% and fights dullness. $38, kiehls.com

Tatcha The Indigo Cleansing Balm

Designed with sensitive skin in mind, this fragrance-free luscious balm truly melts into skin to remove even the most stubborn mascara. Made with Japanese indigo extract, it also works to boost the skin barrier while cleansing. $38, tatcha.com

CeraVe Hydrating Foaming Oil Cleanser

If your skin feels drier than the Sahara Desert, this is the cleanser for you. The ingredient list is a who’s who of hydrators, including hyaluronic acid, ceramides, squalane and triglycerides, so the daily cleanser gets the job done sans stripping moisture. $17.99, ulta.com

Versed The Purist Antioxidant Cleanser

At this point we all know that antioxidants are our skin’s best friend, and this facial cleanser is chock full of them, specifically ones that hydrate. The super gentle cleansing gel blends blueberry, raspberry, apple and cucumber extracts with aloe leaf juice and a glycerin base that’s safe for sensitive types and breaks down dirt, oil and impurities without stripping the skin. $9.99, versedskin.com

Junk Theory JUNI – Juniper Biome Cleanser

New skincare line Junk Theory is taking the beauty industry’s plastic problem seriously. Thanks to their aluminum packaging, which is the most recycled material, if you used Junk Theory products for 25 years, that would still generate less plastic waste than a single average plastic beauty product. Another thing to love: Their made-from-scratch formulas are crafted in small batches in Southern California. The Juniper Biome Cleanser spotlights blue-green algae, sugar beet extracts and aloe to leave skin cleansed, soft and moisturized, with the acid mantle intact. $28, junktheory.com

Oak Essentials Pure Gel Cleanser

Much like her clothing and home collections, Jenni Kayne’s Oak Essentials is all about beautiful minimalism and the new Pure Gel Cleanser is no exception. Designed to be used day or night, the calming, soothing cleanser removes it all in just one go. It contains apple fruit extract, which is chock full of vitamin C and AHAs to deliver a brighter, younger complexion, as well as aloe barbadensis leaf juice to soothe and refresh. $42, oakessentials.com

Augustinus Bader The Foaming Cleanser

Give your everyday face wash an upgrade with this lightweight cream-to-foam cleanser from Augustinus Bader that purifies skin from makeup, excess oil and impurities. Its hero ingredient is the brand’s signature TFC8, so the formula brightens, evens, reduces pigmentation and protects the skin’s microbiome. $70, augustinusbader.com

Furtuna Skin Cleansing Oil Balm

In keeping with Furtuna Skin’s farm-to-face ethos, the formula is loaded with eight wild-foraged plants that were hand-picked from the brand’s certified organic farm in Sicily. As soon as it hits your skin, the solid balm transforms into an oil, and then transforms once again into a milky lather when it touches water. Designed to work with all skin types, it provides a double cleanse in one step, working to melt away sunscreen, dirt, oil and pollution. This is one cleansing balm that won’t stick around, since it completely rinses off, leaving the moisture barrier stronger and skin softer. $85, furtunaskin.com

OUAI St. Barts Body Cleanser

Turn your shower into a tropical vacation with this body wash featuring notes of orange blossom, dragon fruit, tuberose and musk. It does more than just smell good: It’s spiked with rosehip oil, which is loaded with antioxidants like vitamins A and C to brighten, hydrate and soften skin, as well as jojoba oil to help nutrients absorb into the skin and deeply moisturize. $28, theouai.com

Glow Recipe Avocado Ceramide Moisture Barrier Cleanser

A healthy skin barrier equals healthy skin, and that’s exactly what this gentle cleanser is designed to do. Formulated to soothe and calm—no redness or flakiness here!—it eases redness by restoring hydration by repairing the barrier and is clinically proven to keep working throughout the day. $28, sephora.com

Alpyn Beauty Juneberry & Collagen Hydrating Cream Cleanser

Like all Alpyn Beauty products, this one is filled with wild ingredients foraged from the mountains of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It’s spiked with wild juneberry, which is packed with vitamins A, B, C and E for anti-aging perks; vegetable collagen to plump and hydrate; and spherical jojoba beads to loosen up dry, dull skin. Consider this nature’s version of a cold cream. When you slather it onto your skin, you’ll be met with a delightfully cooling sensation. Providing a deep cleanse, it gently exfoliates and removes oil, dirt and impurities for a deep clean that leaves skin soft. $39, alpynbeauty.com

Dove Glowing Mango & Almond Butters Body Wash

Dove body wash has always been close to perfect. But when you wanted to stand the bottle upside in the shower to get out every last drop, the pointy cap made it a tricky balancing act. Dove heard that feedback and designed a new flat cap, making it a cinch to do so—and ensuring that none of the hydrating formula goes to waste. Plus, the combo of mango and almond butters makes for an incredibly moisturizing power couple that leaves skin glowing. $28 for four, amazon.com

Nakery Beauty Eczema Relief Soothing Wash Face + Body

Anyone with eczema knows how easily their skin can get irritated. That often means no fun body washes in the shower. With that in mind, Nakery Beauty created this delicate cleanser for face and body that works to reduce redness, dry skin, rosacea and irritation. Loaded with 2% colloidal oatmeal to heal and protect, the restorative formula heals and calms skin, offering both instant and long-term relief. The repairing wash is also spiked with aloe and niacinamide and works into a lather-rich foam. $28, nakerybeauty.com

Beloved by Love Beauty and Planet Love & Calm Vegan Shower Gel + Bath

Taking the “calm” part of its name seriously, this body wash will instantly relax your mind. You can thank the blend of essential oils for that, specifically natural moringa oil and ethically sourced eucalyptus oil, with natural oat extract rounding out the soothing blend. Plant-based cleaners work to wash away impurities, with a 92% natural formula. $13.49, target.com

Oribe Bar Soap

Leave it to Oribe to elevate and glamorize the humble bar soap. Their new Bar Soap Collection is rounded out with two of their fan favorite scents—Valley of Flowers and Desertland—which join the band’s signature fragrance, Côte d’Azur. The nourishing formulas leave skin cleansed and soft. $35, oribe.com

Norie Kimchii Cleanser

Choosing the right face wash for acne-prone, oily or combination skin can be tricky—you want something that stops breakouts in their tracks but doesn’t over-dry. Enter Norie Kimchii Cleanser. The clear gel facial cleanser washes away sweat, makeup and excess oil, leaving the complexion brighter and clearer. The potent combo of fermented daikon radish and 2% salicylic acid works to gently exfoliate and cleanse pores, while apple fruit extract and betaine moisturize, smooth and soften skin. $20, norieshop.com

La Roche-Posay Lipikar AP+ Gentle Foaming Cleansing Oil

Sensitive skin types and those with thirsty complexions will want this gentle oil-to-foam body and facial cleanser in their arsenal. The fast-working formula starts working in the shower to soothe and deliver 24-hour hydration. Accepted by the National Eczema Association, it’s so gentle that it’s safe for babies as young as two weeks old. $16.99, laroche-posay.us

Lumene Nordic Clear Balancing Clay-to-Foam Cleanser

Clay is a magic ingredient for those with acne-prone, combination or oily skin and this face wash lets it take center stage. The formula works to remove excess oil, dirt, impurities and makeup, helping to prevent breakouts along the way. Staying true to Lumene’s Nordic roots, it’s made in Finland and spiked with Nordic meadowsweet to balance, as well as Arctic roseroot and organic Nordic hemp seed oil to calm. $19, amazon.com

Eminence Organic Skin Care Kombucha Microbiome Foaming Cleanser

If you love the efficacy of micellar water but miss that face wash feel, then this is the cleanser for you. The liquid-to-foam cleanser taps kombucha, white tea and ginger to restore and pamper the microbiome while efficiently cleansing away impurities, leaving the skin perfectly balanced. $46, eminenceorganics.com

Winky Lux Mermaid Moisture Hydrating Cleanser

The glittery, sea green formula will take you straight under the sea. Mermaidcore at its best, this oil-to-foam facial cleanser is full of—you guessed it—marine actives, like sea aster extract, sea lavender extract and a superfood blend with spirulina and Japanese kelp to hydrate, soothe, brighten and deliver an even skin tone. $23, winkylux.com

Motif Abundance Plumping Phytoceramide Cleanser

Created by a new mom for other new moms, this creamy face wash is meant to be gentle—but effective. That’s why it’s formulated with a whopping 18 active ingredients, including South Asian monkey fruit, a brightening ingredient; Thai pineapple ceramides to soften and plump; licorice root and French white orchid to even tone and brighten; bromelain to soothe and reduce redness and inflammation; and luffa fruit fibers to gently exfoliate. $65, motifskincare.com