When you get to the sink in the morning, you do you. Most dermatologists don't really care whether you wash your face every morning.

(If you're thinking "eww," just know: Eva Longoria doesn't wash hers.)

"Having a generality — 'You need to wash your face twice a day' — is too much," Dr. Tanya Kormelli, a board-certified dermatologist and founder of the Derm & Rejuvenation Institute in Santa Monica, said.

She's not alone.

Doctors we spoke to in San Diego and in New York agree, and so does a dermatology startup founder who literally sells cleanser. When it comes to deciding how often to wash your face, a lot depends on what kind of skin you're in.

"Someone who is a greasy teenager will need a lot more cleansing with some kind of a soap," Kormelli said. "If you are an 80-year-old man, I don't know if you need to really use soap and water twice a day."

Keep it gentle — suds strip the skin

Scrubbing your face can feel great with a foamy, soapy cleanser, but the same chemicals that make suds possible (called surfactants) can strip away the skin's surface, so it's best to use gentle cleansers low in ingredients like sulfates. This is especially true for older adults, who don't have the same hormone levels that drive oil glands to produce more oil, and for people with dry skin or eczema.

Dr. Sama Carley, a board-certified dermatologist at Sharp HealthCare in San Diego, said that, especially with winter approaching and in drier climates, easing up on cleansers with salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide in them by either reducing the frequency of use or pausing your routine can also help with dryness.

Scrubbing isn't necessary, and doesn't do much to stimulate new collagen; it's simply drying out your skin.

"That squeaky clean feeling is your skin being stripped of its oils," Carley said. "We sometimes associate that with complete cleanliness, but it doesn't necessarily mean more clean. It's just more stripped."

The key time for cleansing, according to several board-certified dermatologists who've spoken to Business Insider, is in the evening, when pollution, sunscreen, sweat, and possibly makeup all pile up on the skin.

Moisturizing doesn't have to cost a fortune — some of the best options are dirt cheap

Dermatologists are categorically in love with one skin-friendly ingredient to keep skin moisturized after you wash. It's the one they all tend to mention by name: ceramides.

Our skin produces some ceramides naturally, which help create a skin barrier and seal in moisture. Hyaluronic acid is another ingredient that helps trap and hold moisture in the skin like a sponge, and niacinamide can help boost ceramide production.

"A lot of the simple, boring moisturizers can have a lot of ceramides in them, and those tend to work much better than the really expensive creams," Carley said.

Other products can be irritating at high doses or for certain skin types. Dermatologists may recommend adding serums with alpha hydroxy acids (glycolic, lactic, or mandelic) to clear away dead skin cells and achieve a bright "glass skin" effect, or ingredients like retinol that also speeds up cell turnover and boosts collagen production. Use them sparingly, and try them one at a time.

"People keep going to Sephora, and they're hoping to find that magic transformative product," Kormelli said. "Sometimes patients benefit from having prescription products combined with their skincare so that they don't have to use the harshest cleanser."

Carley uses a thin layer of a prescription compounded retinol-plus-niacinamide cream at night to keep her skin even, clear, and plump, while Kormelli sometimes recommends tretinoin to her patients for acne.

CeraVe (it's got the "cera" from ceramides right there in the name) is one moisturizer and cleanser that many dermatologists mentioned, but Carley's favorite is Vanicream, which you can get in a giant, one-pound pump bottle for about $15.

"I have no affiliation," she said of the brand. "It's just a white tub with a blue top for face and body. It's the simplest and most moisturizing moisturizer you can get, and it's safe for all ages."