Retinoids on Your Skincare Plan: Which Strength, and How to Start
Retinoids are among the best-studied skincare ingredients for ageing skin, and the easiest to get wrong. The product matters less than the pace you start it at.
By Dr Amber Halliday, MRCGP MBBS BSc (Hons) | Blue Bird Aesthetics, Worthing | Last reviewed October 2026
Your skincare plan, section by section
Not in pregnancy or while breastfeeding
This applies to every product in this section, including the eye gel and the neck cream. If you are pregnant, trying to conceive or breastfeeding, stop them and let me know, and I will adjust your plan.
Retinoids are vitamin A derivatives. Over months, they speed up the turnover of surface skin cells and support collagen, which is why they help with fine lines, uneven tone, texture and congestion all at once. That same activity is what causes dryness, flaking and irritation if you start too strong or too often. For the science and the most common mistakes, read my honest guide to using retinol properly. This article is about the five products on your card and how to use them.
The strength ladder
Step 1 · where most people start
IntelliRET 0.3+
0.3% microencapsulated retinol, released gradually overnight, with niacinamide, honey and hyaluronic acid for comfort.
Step 2 · once 0.3 is comfortable
Retinol Resurfacing Serum 0.5
A higher, time-released strength for experienced users, with niacinamide and a peptide.
Step 3 · resilient skin only
Retinol Resurfacing Serum 1.0
AlumierMD’s highest strength, 1% encapsulated retinol. Not a goal in itself: many people do very well staying on step 1 or 2.
All AlumierMD, all evening only. The card’s morning box is greyed out for each.
Retinoid serum · PM only
Retin-ACE
CellDerma’s retinoid, for the evening only, like every retinoid on the card. I usually start it twice a week and build up. A good fit if the rest of your routine is CellDerma.
Eye area · PM only
Retinol Eye Gel
A lightweight gel with microencapsulated retinol for fine lines around the eyes. Pat a small amount along the bone, not onto the eyelid. If you would rather avoid retinol here, AluminEye is the alternative. See eyes and lips.
Neck and chest · PM only
Neck & Décolleté Firming Cream
For an area most routines forget, even though it shows sun damage early. It contains retinol, so it is paced like your face retinoid. For crepey skin that has gone beyond what creams can do, see crepey skin.
A typical pace for starting
This is how I introduce a retinoid for most people. The dark squares are retinoid nights. If your card says something different, follow your card, and if your skin is complaining, drop back a row for a week or two rather than stopping altogether.
From week 9, nightly if your skin is comfortable. Many people settle happily at every other night, and that is fine. Exfoliation nights go on the light squares.
What you might notice, and what to do: tap to open
Dryness or light flaking in the first few weeks
Common, and usually settles as your skin adjusts. Add a richer moisturiser at night, or apply moisturiser first and the retinoid on top for a while. Keep your cleanser gentle and pause exfoliants.
A few more spots than usual
Some people notice this in the first month, especially in areas where they usually break out, and it tends to settle. Spots in new places, or ones that are painful, are more likely irritation. Drop back a row on the schedule and let me know.
Stinging, burning or raw-looking patches
That is more than your skin can manage at the moment. Stop the retinoid, go back to cleanser, moisturiser and sunscreen until it has calmed, and message me before restarting. My skin barrier guide explains the reset.
No change at all after a month
That is normal. Visible change in fine lines and tone usually takes three months or more of steady use. Moving up the ladder too early is the most common reason people give up.
Rules that apply to every retinoid
- A pea-sized amount for the whole face, on clean, dry skin. More does not work faster.
- Sunscreen every morning, because retinoid-treated skin is more sensitive to the sun. See choosing your SPF.
- Avoid the corners of the nose and mouth and the eyelids, where skin is thin and irritation shows first.
- No waxing on areas where you use a retinoid. Retinoid-treated skin can lift with the wax.
- Pause around treatments. Retinoids stop before peels, needling and NeoGen and restart on the date on your card. See skincare around your treatment.
- Vitamin A supplements. AlumierMD notes that its retinol contains vitamin A and suggests considering your daily intake. If you take a supplement containing vitamin A, mention it to me.
- One retinoid at a time on each area, unless I have ticked more than one for different areas.
Retinoids work gradually, at the surface and just below it. For changes they cannot reach, such as deeper lines, laxity or scarring, in-clinic treatments like NeoGen or microneedling may be worth discussing. A retinoid is often part of preparing for them.
Commercial disclosure: Blue Bird Aesthetics sells AlumierMD and CellDerma products and may earn commission on purchases made in clinic or through our links. You are free to buy elsewhere, or not at all. Our clinical advice does not change either way.
Common questions
When should I move up a strength?
Only once you have used your current strength nightly, comfortably, for at least a couple of months, and only after we have talked about it. Plenty of people never need to.
I have sensitive skin or rosacea. Can I use a retinoid?
Sometimes, very slowly, once the skin is calm. For redness-prone skin I usually settle things first with Calm-R and a gentle routine. See my rosacea guide.
Is a retinoid worth starting in my 50s or 60s?
Yes. Skin responds at any age. After menopause, skin is often drier and thinner, so I start more gently and pair the retinoid with a richer moisturiser. See perimenopausal and menopausal skin.
Can I use a retinoid if I am on medication from my GP?
Usually, but tell me what you take. Some prescribed skin treatments and medicines that increase sensitivity to light change what is sensible.
Thinking about starting a retinoid?
I will choose the strength, set your pace and review it with you, so you get the benefit without the irritation.
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