How to Find Your Skin Type (and the Best Korean Skincare for It)

Not sure whether you have oily, dry, combination, sensitive or normal skin? Take the 2-minute quiz above to find your skin type, your main concern and the Korean ingredients best suited to you. Below, we explain how to identify your skin type at home and which K-beauty ingredients work best for each one.

What are the 5 skin types?

Most people fall into one of five skin types, and knowing yours is the first step to a routine that actually works:

• Oily — makes excess oil and looks shiny, especially in the T-zone; prone to enlarged-looking pores and breakouts.
• Dry — feels tight, rough or flaky and lacks moisture and oil.
• Combination — an oily T-zone (forehead, nose, chin) with normal or dry cheeks.
• Sensitive — reacts easily with redness, stinging or irritation to new products.
• Normal — balanced, comfortable skin that is neither very oily nor very dry.

How to know your skin type at home

You can identify your skin type with a simple bare-face test. Cleanse with a gentle cleanser, then wait about 30 minutes without applying anything and notice how your skin feels:

• Tight or flaky all over → likely dry.
• Shiny across the whole face → likely oily.
• Shiny T-zone, normal cheeks → likely combination.
• Red, itchy or stinging → likely sensitive.
• Comfortable and balanced → likely normal.

Remember that dehydration is different from dry skin: any skin type can be dehydrated (lacking water) and still make oil. If your skin feels oily but tight, it may be dehydrated rather than truly dry.

Best Korean ingredients by skin type

Once you know your type, choose ingredients that support it:

• Oily skin: niacinamide to balance oil and pores, BHA and other exfoliating acids to clear pores, and soothing centella.
• Dry skin: hyaluronic acid to draw in water, ceramides to seal it in, and hydrating snail mucin.
• Combination skin: lightweight niacinamide and hyaluronic acid, with gentle exfoliation where needed.
• Sensitive skin: calming centella and cica, barrier-repairing ceramides, and gentle snail mucin.
• Normal skin: brightening vitamin C, plumping hyaluronic acid, and glow-boosting PDRN.

Whatever your type, daily sunscreen is the single most important step. Not sure where to start? Take the quiz above for a personalized set of picks, or browse best sellers.

Frequently asked questions

What skin type am I?

The easiest way to tell is the bare-face test: cleanse, wait 30 minutes, and see how your skin feels. Tight means dry, shiny all over means oily, shiny only in the T-zone means combination, and easily irritated means sensitive. The quiz above walks you through it in two minutes.

How do I know if I have combination skin?

Combination skin has an oily T-zone (forehead, nose and chin) alongside normal or dry cheeks. If you blot your face and the tissue picks up oil from the center but not the cheeks, you likely have combination skin.

Can my skin type change?

Yes. Skin type can shift with age, hormones, climate and season, so it is worth reassessing now and then. Many people are oilier in humid summers and drier in winter.

What is the best Korean skincare for oily skin?

For oily skin, look for lightweight, water-based textures with niacinamide to balance oil, a BHA to keep pores clear, and soothing centella. Finish with a gel moisturizer and daily sunscreen.

What is the best Korean skincare for dry or sensitive skin?

Dry and sensitive skin do best with gentle, fragrance-free formulas built on hydrating hyaluronic acid, barrier-repairing ceramides, and calming centella. Introduce any active ingredients slowly.