Using Glycolic Acid and Retinol or Tretinoin (Retin A) for Wrinkles

Dermatologist’s Anti-Aging Skin Care Treatment

Glycolic acid, retinol, and the prescription medicine Tretinoin (Retin A) are all powerful anti-aging skin care ingredients that are game-changers for fighting the signs of skin aging. They are also tricky to use.

I’ve successfully worked these ingredients together into thousands of skin care routines in my dermatology practice for over 35 years. I’ve also used them all on my own complexion for over 40 years. In this guide, I give you my advice and explain what I’ve learned.

Here’s a question I was recently asked by a reader:

Hi Dr. Bailey, I am 49 years old. I would like to try the combination of tretinoin and glycolic acid use. I currently use tretinoin 0.05% for sun damage and aging purposes. Is it possible to add Glycolic acid to my routine also? I am wondering if there is a glycolic face cream I can add? During the day I am currently using Daily Moisturizing Face Cream and (your zinc oxide) sunscreen. Thanks so much! Heather

Below I answer this and other questions I’m frequently asked about combining the powerhouse ingredients of glycolic acid and retinol or tretinoin to fight skin aging and sun damage.

Can I Use Glycolic Acid and Retinol or Tretinoin Together?

It's a tricky regimen and you have to use these products carefully, but yes, you can use glycolic acid together with retinol and/or tretinoin [1]. Combining these anti-aging ingredients gives fantastic rejuvenation benefit to skin including:

• Lightening age spots.
• Giving skin a smoother, luminous appearance.
• Reversing wrinkles by building new collagen [2] just beneath the surface of the skin.
• Slowing the breakdown of skin collagen that happens with age and sun damage.

However, you need to apply these products carefully, as I explain below.

It’s important to know that these 3 ingredients are from 2 different groups:

1. Glycolic acid is an alpha hydroxy acid. Alpha hydroxy acid products need to have an acidic pH to work for skin aging and this pH can be irritating if your skin is sensitive.
2. Retinol and tretinoin are retinoids related to vitamin A; tretinoin is retinoic acid and retinol is vitamin A, which is converted to retinoic acid in the skin. It is a fact that tretinoin products are more likely to irritate skin than retinol. Once skin is irritated, glycolic acid may sting and cause further skin irritation.

You can see why this powerful ingredient combination is tricky. That’s where my tips and what I’ve learned over the years comes in handy!

How Do I Combine Glycolic Acid and Retinol and/or Tretinoin?

I recommend starting with just one of these two types of ingredients.

1. Either select glycolic acid or your choice of retinoid: either retinol, especially if you have sensitive skin, or tretinoin if you have a prescription.
2. Let your skin adjust for a month or two before adding the second product.
3. I describe in detail below how I layer products to help patients tolerate glycolic acid and tretinoin and/or retinol.

Starting with Retinol

When starting with retinol, I recommend using the highest concentration (Retinol 10X Anti-Wrinkle Night Cream) at night 3 times a week and increase to nightly as tolerated. Once a complexion is able to use retinol nightly, I then add the glycolic acid.

Starting with Tretinoin

When starting with tretinoin, I usually have my patients try to get up to the highest tretinoin cream (0.1%) before adding glycolic acid. We hold there for two years and then begin the alternate night treatment with glycolic acid. (Remember, tretinoin is a prescription medicine and any changes in how you use it must be approved by your prescribing medical provider.) 

Once Your Skin Has Adjusted

• Use the second product a few days a week to begin.
• Gradually, as your skin adjusts to the second product, start using it every day.

If parts of your face do well with the combination but other areas become slightly irritated, don’t apply the second product to sensitive areas.

Should your skin become more irritated, stop using the products until your skin is back to normal. Then reintroduce the products as described above over a shorter period.

I have a number of patients whose skin allows them to combine glycolic acid and tretinoin skin care products on a regular basis. In my practice we use my Glycolic Acid Anti-Wrinkle Face Cream. These are true professional products with pharmaceutically pure glycolic acid made to the original formulation. They have a pH of under 4 and can irritate retinoid induced skin irritation.

Sensitive Skin

People with sensitive skin (especially people with rosacea, eczema or facial seborrheic dermatitis) typically have to pick either a retinoid OR glycolic acid. Retinoids are often better tolerated because they don’t have a highly acid pH. My Retinol Anti-Wrinkle Night Cream includes green tea to help reduce any potential for irritation on sensitive skin. See more in the below section:

Using Glycolic Acid with Retinol as a Substitute for Tretinoin

Retin A/Tretinoin can cause a ‘break in’ rash (called retinoid dermatitis [3]) when a person first starts using it. The skin adjusts in about a month and retinoid dermatitis usually clears up.

However, skin with retinoid dermatitis can become more irritated from the acid pH of glycolic acid or vitamin C products.

For those unable to overcome the retinoid dermatitis, retinol is a better choice than Retin A because it offers similar benefits while being much easier to tolerate. Retinol also does not require a prescription. My medical-grade Retinol Anti Wrinkle Night Cream provides the highest allowed concentration of retinol (1%) formulated with soothing green tea antioxidants in an FDA regulated laboratory. This combination allows even the most sensitive complexions the opportunity to include a retinoid in their anti-aging skin care routine.

My Skin Can’t Tolerate Glycolic Acid and Retinol – What Can I Do?

It’s important to use a product that helps fight skin irritation if you are initially unable to tolerate glycolic acid and retinol. Green tea EGCG polyphenol antioxidants help quiet irritation and inflammation. I have found that adding a high concentration green tea product into the skin care routine is often all it takes to help skin tolerate glycolic acid and a retinoid together.

• Green tea antioxidants are formulated with retinol in my Retinol Night Cream.
• A proprietary high concentration of them are present in my Green Tea Antioxidant Skin Therapy which can be applied in the morning and layered under Retin A at night.

If you are still unable to combine these ingredients, then you may want to try using a vitamin C product in place of glycolic acid. Try using the retinoid at night and vitamin C during the day.

In my dermatology practice I sometimes recommend intermittent glycolic acid peels in the place of daily glycolic acid. It is important that this treatment is carried out by an experienced professional because the peel may be too deep and unpredictable on exfoliated skin and may damage the skin, potentially causing scarring.

Using Vitamin C Products with Glycolic Acid and a Retinoid

Combining a retinoid like Retin A or retinol with glycolic acid and vitamin C brings powerful anti-aging benefits. Each of these ingredients works to rejuvenate the skin by a different mechanism. Therefore, combination therapy yields more age reversal benefits than using just one alone. But, vitamin C is fragile and needs to be used alone, not layered with an AHA or retinoid.

• Retinoids, glycolic acid, and vitamin C are all proven to stimulate collagen production which improves the elasticity of the skin.
• They even out skin color, helping fade age spots.
• Glycolic acid penetrates skin well, hydrating and brightening the skin quickly.
• Both glycolic acid and retinoids increase the skin’s production of hyaluronic acid to give skin a supple, dewy, and youthful glow.

When someone is able to use a glycolic product during the day, I may have them eventually add a vitamin C product. I have people use vitamin C every second or third day in place of the glycolic acid product to reap the benefits of vitamin C in their skin care routine.

Combining Vitamin C with a Retinoid and Glycolic Acid

Here are my recommendations based on what I found works best for my patients in my practice. Follow these steps to start a powerful anti-aging skin care routine with the combination of tretinoin and/or retinol, glycolic acid, and vitamin C:

• Start with tretinoin or retinol at night. Use tretinoin for at least 2 months (as described below).
• Once your skin has adjusted, add glycolic acid to your skincare routine. My top choice is my robust medical-grade Glycolic Acid 15% Face Cream made with ultra-pure pharmaceutical grade glycolic acid.
• Apply it during the day under sunscreen or at night before or after your retinoid (Retin A or retinol).
• When your skin can tolerate the combination of tretinoin or retinol and glycolic acid every day, start applying a vitamin C serum alone in the morning under moisturizer as it does not combine well with glycolic acid or retinoids.
• For the first week, apply vitamin C daily.
• After that, apply it every 4 days alternating with glycolic acid or Green Tea Antioxidant Skin Therapy which I feel provides better antioxidant benefits than vitamin C and helps to calm any retinoid dermatitis or glycolic acid skin irritation.

• Alternatively, if you don’t want to layer a retinoid and glycolic acid at night, you can alternate vitamin c and glycolic acid during the day.

Pro-Tip:

The half-life of vitamin C in skin is 4 days so you don’t need to use it daily to benefit your skin.

4-Step Anti-Aging Skincare Routine Layering Products

Because combination therapy is complicated and involves layering products on the skin, I write out the order of product application for my patients. I also make sure that all the skincare products they use in my Complete Skin Care Routine are compatible and support their skin as it adjusts to their anti-aging routine.

My Ageless Rejuvenation Skin Care Kit contains all the products you see in this guide to fight skin aging.

This is an example of a product application regimen, but you need to follow a routine specifically designed for your skin.

Morning Routine

Step 1: Cleanse

Wash with a gentle cleanser such as my Extremely Gentle Foaming Facial Cleanser. This is my personal favorite cleanser to use with my glycolic acid and retinoid anti-aging skin care routine.

Step 2: Correct

Apply Green Tea Antioxidant Skin Therapy Cream then layer Glycolic Acid Face Cream or your favorite Vitamin C serum.

Step 3: Hydrate

Apply my Daily Moisturizing Face Cream if, or where, you are not applying the Glycolic Acid Face Cream.

Step 4: Protect

Always use an SPF with 5% or more zinc oxide sunscreen. My personal favorite is my Sheer Strength Pure Physical Matte Tinted SPF 50+ Sunscreen.

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Night Routine

Step 1: Cleanse

Wash with a gentle cleanser like my Extremely Gentle Foaming Facial Cleanser.

Step 2: Correct & Hydrate

You have choices depending on how your skin tolerates glycolic acid and retinol and/or tretinoin:

Option 1: Using Tretinoin

• Apply Green Tea Cream
• Then your moisturizer, such as Daily Moisturizing Face Cream
• Wait at least 15 minutes then apply tretinoin

Pro-tip: It is important to wait 15 minutes after cleansing your skin before applying tretinoin to help skin tolerate tretinoin with less peeling and retinoid dermatitis drama. Also, to begin with, I have my patients apply tretinoin every third night and gradually work up to every night.

Option 2: Using Retinol

If you are using my Retinol Ultra-Intensive Night Cream the order is reversed:

• Apply my Retinol Night Cream (which includes green tea antioxidants)
• Follow with my Daily Moisturizing Face Cream

Option 3: Adding Glycolic Acid

Eventually, your skin may allow you to layer the Glycolic Acid Face Cream on top of the Retinol Night Cream in place of the Daily Moisturizing Face Cream - this simple nighttime routine is my favorite way to combine a retinoid and glycolic acid!

Tretinoin users may be able to apply glycolic acid before or after layering tretinoin. Since tretinoin is a prescription, this combination must be approved by your prescribing physician.

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How to Stop Skin Peeling from Glycolic Acid and Tretinoin?

This is a common question and I was asked it by a reader recently. I include my tips below:

Dear Dr. Bailey, I am using tretinoin 0.5% and glycolic acid. Recently I've been alternating every other night, but I find this always leads to a "peely" day on the mornings after glycolic acid nights. In order to avoid this, yet still reap the benefits of both, I'm considering doing a glycolic acid week alternated with a tretinoin week. Do you think this is a good idea?

In the past, I've done glycolic acid in the AM and tretinoin in the PM, but I find this to be too much, and enjoy just a nice, simple antioxidant/sunscreen routine in the morning. I like protecting and preventing my skin from aging, but having peely days is no fun! Thank you for your time! Emilee

This is both an excellent and an aggressive anti-aging regimen. The good news is that, overall, your skin seems pretty tolerant since the ‘peely day’ is not accompanied by redness and irritation. You're lucky because combining these two anti-aging ingredients gives fantastic rejuvenation benefits to skin! It's a tricky regimen though, as you have seen.

I created my Complete Facial Skin Care Kit to support my patients on a powerful anti-aging skin care program using Tretinoin. It contains the right cleanser, green tea antioxidants, the right moisturizer and perfect sunscreen - all of which work to help skin tolerate tretinoin or retinol and glycolic acid.

Here is How I Troubleshoot the Peeling:

1. First, I take a look at what skin cleansers are being used

It's often the cleanser which is the step in a skin care regimen where a little irritation sets off the peeling. I always recommend gentle cleansers and avoiding cleansers with sodium laurel sulfate when tretinoin patients suffer from peeling.

Sodium laurel sulfate also compromises the barrier strength of the skin, and we don't want that because the skin is exfoliated by both the tretinoin and the glycolic acid.

For these complexions who need a pH balanced gentle foaming cleanser, I use the Extremely Gentle Foaming Skin Cleanser. This is the cleanser I personally use daily. VaniCream Cleansing Bar is another very gentle alternative for people with very sensitive skin. Some people don't feel that it gets their skin clean enough.

2. Second, I add Green Tea Antioxidant Skin Therapy

This product often makes all the difference when it comes to tolerating tretinoin or retinol with other anti-aging products.

I use it twice daily and my skin loves it. I have my patients use green tea twice a day after washing and before anything else goes on the skin. This is a key trick to coax the skin into accepting this regimen without peeling; it helps to soothe the skin, allowing us to push on with the tretinoin or retinol and glycolic acid products.

Learn Further: Green tea’s scientifically-proven benefit to the skin and using a pharmaceutical-grade green tea product on your skin.

3. Third, I always stress the importance of waiting 15 minutes after washing and applying products at night before applying tretinoin

If not, the peeling starts in a few days. I have patients wash their face, apply Green Tea and my Daily Moisturizing Face Cream, wait 15 minutes and then apply tretinoin before going to bed. I keep my tretinoin at my bedside.

My Ageless Rejuvenation Skin Care Kit provides all the products I use to help my patients’ complexions tolerate tretinoin, retinol, and glycolic acid, whether these age-fighting products are used alone or in combination. The kit comes with the Extremely Gentle Foaming Cleanser, Green Tea, pharmaceutically pure Retinol, medical grade Glycolic Acid, Daily Face Cream, and Sheer Strength Pure Physical Sunscreen. This is the perfect routine to add to tretinoin, retinol and/or glycolic acid and makes the ultimate anti-aging skin care routine.

Knowledge is Power:

• Complete guide to how to apply and build tretinoin into your skincare routine
• How to Apply Tretinoin Cream: A Guide to Demystifying Its Use
• How to Use Retin-A/Tretinoin for Anti-Aging, Acne and Wrinkles
• Tretinoin Use (Retin-A and Renova) and Scaly, Puffy Eyelids
• Retinol, Retin A & Tretinoin for Rosacea: Best Anti-Aging Treatment

Alternating Glycolic Acid and Tretinoin

I've never recommended that patients alternate at one-week intervals as Emilee, is considering in her question above. My usual recommendation is to use tretinoin nightly for at least 2 years then drop down to at least twice a week to maintain results. This gives a person an opportunity to increase the frequency of glycolic acid use and/or add in a vitamin C product during the day as I mentioned above. My preferred goal is to continue with a retinoid at night - every night - and to use glycolic acid as often as one’s skin will tolerate.

Often, switching from tretinoin to retinol allows the complexion to better tolerate adding glycolic acid into the skin care routine - see more in the using glycolic acid with retinol section of this guide.

Of course, this information is general information from my patient experience. You need to ask your prescribing doctor for advice for your specific treatment with Tretinoin as it is a prescription drug. I've listed some more of my guides about Tretinoin use below.

See the section below that explains why you need to be careful using glycolic acid and tretinoin.

Why Do I Need to Be Careful Using Retin A and Glycolic Acid?

Retinoids such as retinol and Retin A (tretinoin) are very exfoliating. Glycolic acid also exfoliates the skin which is why it’s tricky to combine these wonderful and effective anti-aging ingredients.

Exfoliated skin has a more refined and luminous appearance, but it also absorbs things faster. Glycolic acid has an acid pH that can be irritating to exfoliated skin. This means only people with tolerant skin can combine glycolic acid and a retinoid (although sometimes those with sensitive skin can tolerate retinol – see more here).

Those who can’t tolerate using a retinoid with glycolic acid can sometimes tolerate using just one of these ingredients in a routine that includes a topical antioxidant such as vitamin C product. This is because vitamin C does not exfoliate.

However, vitamin C has a highly acid pH so it too can be irritating to exfoliated skin, which makes it still a little tricky.

Should You Use Sunscreen When Combining Glycolic Acid and Retinol or Tretinoin?

Of course, any person following an exfoliating anti-aging skin care routine must use a broad-spectrum facial sunscreen 365 days a year or there will be no anti-aging benefits!

Exfoliation of any type enables damaging sun rays to penetrate your precious skin more easily. Sunscreen is vital to prevent skin cancer and it’s also critical for anti-aging skin rejuvenation to be effective. - Dr. Bailey

In my 35+ years of clinical experience, I’ve observed that broad spectrum sunscreens like my zinc oxide pure physical SPF sunscreens, offer the best and most reliable UV skin protection available today. My facial zinc oxide sunscreens are weightless on your skin and look great, without giving the skin a white tone. My patients MUST wear a zinc oxide sunscreen with a minimum of 5% or more zinc oxide.

Personally, I use my:

• Sheer Strength SPF 50+ Matte Tinted Creme Sunscreen on my face daily, and
• Citrix SPF 40 Sunscreen on my neck, chest, ears and the back of my hands and arms, if exposed.

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These are water resistant sunscreens making them a great choice even when you are sweating or swimming. The Matte Tinted SPF also contains iron oxide to help block visible light that can darken pigment problems.

Ideally, it is important that you also wear a hat to keep your face out of direct sunlight as much as possible. My favorite hat is this Women's Sun Protection Bucket Hat.

Bottom Line with Using Glycolic Acid Together with Retinol/Tretinoin for Anti-Aging Skincare

Combining glycolic acid with retinol or tretinoin can noticeably improve the appearance of your skin by reducing wrinkles, fading age spots, and boosting collagen production. However, it requires careful consideration and a gradual approach.

Start with one ingredient (retinol or tretinoin) and slowly introduce the other. Listen to your skin, and don't hesitate to adjust your routine based on its tolerance. If you experience excessive irritation, consult with a dermatologist for personalized guidance.

It's important that all the products in your skin care routine support your glycolic acid and retinoid products so that you have success; from your facial cleanser, moisturizer, antioxidant product, and sunscreen the formulations need to be compatible and prevent skin irritation.

Your Complete Routine

If you're ready to take your anti-aging skincare routine to the next level, consider using my Ageless Rejuvenation Skin Care Kit.

This kit includes all the essential products mentioned in this guide. I've created it to successfully combine medical grade glycolic acid and retinol with supportive and compatible products to achieve success with this powerful age-fighting combination:

• Extremely Gentle Foaming Facial Cleanser
• Antioxidant Green Tea Skin Therapy
• Daily Moisturizing Face Cream
• Glycolic Acid Anti-Wrinkle Face Cream
• Retinol Ultra-Intensive Anti-Wrinkle Night Cream
• Sheer Strength Pure Physical Matte Tinted Creme Sunscreen, SPF 50

Together, these products offer a comprehensive approach to fighting wrinkles, improving skin texture, and protecting your skin from sun damage.

If you are using tretinoin, be sure to talk to your tretinoin prescribing doctor about what you’ve learned here. This information is general, and I can’t promise it is appropriate for your specific skin. I wish you the best of luck.

Cynthia Bailey MD, Dermatologist

Further Your Knowledge:

• Glycolic Acid is the Best AHA for Smooth, Hydrated Body Skin
• How to Apply Tretinoin Cream: A Guide to Demystifying Its Use
• How to Use Retin-A/Tretinoin for Anti-Aging, Acne and Wrinkles
• Tretinoin Use (Retin-A and Renova) and Scaly, Puffy Eyelids
• Retinol, Retin A & Tretinoin for Rosacea: Best Anti-Aging Treatment

References

1. Mukherjee S, Date A, Patravale V, Korting HC, Roeder A, Weindl G. Retinoids in the treatment of skin aging: an overview of clinical efficacy and safety. Clin Interv Aging. 2006;1(4):327-48. doi: 10.2147/ciia.2006.1.4.327. PMID: 18046911; PMCID: PMC2699641.
2. Narda, Mridvika et al. “Glycolic acid adjusted to pH 4 stimulates collagen production and epidermal renewal without affecting levels of proinflammatory TNF-alpha in human skin explants.” Journal of cosmetic dermatology vol. 20,2 (2021): 513-521. doi:10.1111/jocd.13570
3. Kang, Seongsu et al. “Anti-Irritant Strategy against Retinol Based on the Genetic Analysis of Korean Population: A Genetically Guided Top-Down Approach.” Pharmaceutics vol. 13,12 2006. 25 Nov. 2021, doi:10.3390/pharmaceutics13122006

Author: Dr. Cynthia Bailey M.D. is a Board Certified dermatologist practicing dermatology since 1987. She has done well over 200,000 skin exams during her career and authors the longest running physician written skin health blog in the world.

Disclaimer: Please realize that availing yourself of the opportunity to submit and receive answers to your questions from Dr. Bailey does not confer a doctor/patient relationship with Dr. Bailey. The information provided by Dr. Bailey is general health information inspired by your question. It should not be a substitute for obtaining medical advice from your physician and is not intended to diagnose or treat any specific medical problem (and is not an extension of the care Dr. Bailey has provided in her office for existing patients of her practice). Never ignore your own doctor’s advice because of something you read here; this information is for general informational purposes only.