PSA: Exfoliating Gloves Are the Key to Super-Smooth Skin

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Fact: Few things annoy me more than splotchy self-tanner, ingrown hairs from shaving, or speckled ~strawberry legs~ that never seem to go away. That's exactly why I treat trying out new exfoliating products like it's my job (also bc it kinda is!). Whether it's an exfoliator for my face, a chemical exfoliant (trust, it's not as scary as it sounds), or even a cleansing brush, I'm always on the search for the latest and greatest step to add to my skincare routine. And my new favorite go-to? Exfoliating gloves—i.e., the easiest, laziest tool for getting ridiculously smooth skin without the mess of products.

Exfoliating gloves are exactly what they sound like: gloves that mechanically exfoliate your skin with their abrasive texture, helping to buff away dead skin cells, break down bumps, and smooth uneven texture on your arms, legs, and butt, says board-certified dermatologist Karan Lal, MD. Just slip one over your hand in the shower and gently massage it over your wet skin. Easy, right? There's just one catch: Some exfoliating gloves can seriously irritate your skin barrier (especially if you're dealing with active acne breakouts, psoriasis, eczema, or keratosis pilaris). So, to help you choose the best exfoliating gloves for your skin type, I did some testing and consulted countless online reviews to find the best ones out there:

Keep reading for the full breakdown of the best exfoliating gloves, tested and reviewed, along with tips from dermatologists on how to choose the best gloves and what to look for before you buy.

Gentle Bath + Shower Gloves

Chances are you've used or at least heard of EcoTools. The v popular brand offers simple yet effective products, and these shower gloves certainly don't fall short of that. I especially like these exfoliating gloves because they're gentle enough for everyday use. Just slip your hands in, add your favorite body wash, cleanser, or body scrub, and they gently exfoliate wherever your hands can reach. Plus, the gloves are infused with avocado oil to add that extra touch of hydration, which I'm sure we could alllll use.

Glowing Customer Review: "They say they are gentle exfoliating, and when you feel them they feel soft and like they couldn't possibly work well...but they do! Very happy with the level of exfoliation when wet."

Korean Exfoliating Mitts

I’m all about testing top-rated Amazon beauty products, including these “Korean Italy'' exfoliating gloves with more than 39,000 reviews. While traditional Korean Italy towels have been routinely used in Korean spas to deeply buff and polish the skin on your body (you may have seen them online in the form of a bright green abrasive mitt), this one takes a similar fabric and makes it more durable in the form of a fitted glove. Just note that it’s on the rougher, harsher side, so limit it to once-weekly use, and skip it altogether if you’ve got inflammatory skin conditions, breakouts, or sensitive skin.

Glowing Customer Review: "These easy to use mitts are perfect for in the shower. You can use without soap or with soap just depends on what you prefer. Exfoliating is unbelievable. You don’t realize how much that skin is on your skin until you use these mitts and afterwards your skin feels brand new."

Tan Build Up Remover Mitt

Every Thursday night, I whip out a self-tanner for my pale skin (my favorite is the new St. Tropez body serum, FYI), slather it on my body, and spend the weekend with a bronze glow. All good things, until Monday hits, and I’m left with tanner that’s patchy, faded, and uneven. Enter: This tan-removing glove that’s designed with a four-way mesh material to help even out or buff off your fake tan. I like to suds up the glove with a body wash in the shower, gently massage the patchy areas on my skin (see: elbows, knees, ankles, feet, and hands), then rinse off and layer on a gradual-tan moisturizer to help prolong my tan until Thursday.

Glowing Customer Review: "This is the best exfoliating mitt ever. Literally takes off your whole tan. Absolutely amazing, everyone who fake tans needs this!"

Exfoliating & Clarifying Mitt Trio

As a refresher, ingrown hairs are caused by hair getting trapped under your skin during growth, leading to an inflamed, irritated bump. The fix? A combo of chemical exfoliation (with an acid-based body wash or an acid-based body pad) and physical exfoliation, like an exfoliating glove. This set by Fur includes three mitts—made with cotton and nylon—that have a textured side for buffing the “tougher” areas of your body (see: legs, arms, and butt) and a softer side for exfoliating your sensitive zones (see: swimsuit area, armpits, and inner thighs). Just remember: Exfoliating gloves can worsen active ingrown hairs, so skip the inflamed areas and spot-treat the irritation with 1 percent hydrocortisone cream instead.

Glowing Customer Review: "I bought this because I get a Brazilian wax once a month and was struggling with ingrowns. This is mitt is MAGIC! I used it all over my body also my skin feels so clean and soft. I wish I would have known about this product so much sooner."

Illuminate Glove

If you've got keratosis pilaris, you already know that scrubbing the hell out of your skin only makes your bumps and inflammation worse. The best KP treatment will always be a gentle chemical exfoliant and a rich moisturizer, but if you still want a little manual exfoliation, try this 100 percent silk mitt that's surprisingly gentle, even on sensitive skin. It's the least-abrasive exfoliating mitt on this list, which is exactly what you want for minimizing potential irritation.

Glowing Customer Review:"I am so happy with this glove. I suffer from extremely dry skin on my body and I feel like I've tried every magic potion in the world - but most have failed me. But this glove is amazing!!!! One use an my skin feels and looks great! I can't say enough good things about it. Try it! You won't be disappointed!"

XL Exfoliating Body Washcloth

Got yourself some sensitive skin? Sorry, but that’s your first sign not to exfoliate the hell out of it with an abrasive glove. Instead, try this cloth from Kitsch that mimics a washcloth for a (more) gentle approach to exfoliation. It’s extra wide so you can fold it or ball it up for a more customizable buffing, and there’s also an attached pocket so you can slip in a bar of your favorite fragrance-free soap.

Glowing Customer Review: "This product is incredible. I originally bought it to travel with a bar of soap, and now it has replaced my loofahs at home—the ease of washing my back and how big it can be stretched out is so nice!"

Super Soft Silicone Face Cleanser

Listen, using a physical exfoliator—like a scrub or cleansing brush—on your face is almost never a good idea since it can create micro-tears and damage your skin barrier. But if you’re dealing with flakes around your nose and chin, whether from dry skin or retinoid use, and you feel like you need some manual exfoliation, grab this silicone face scrubber and gently (gently!) massage away the flakes on wet skin with a creamy cleanser, making sure to avoid your eye area.

Glowing Customer Review: "This scrubbing pad is just right for using in the shower on my face to help get rid of flaking, dead skin. Although soft and non abrasive, the silicone nubs are effective at keeping your skin smooth and removing slightly rougher areas."

Double-Sided Exfoliating & Cleansing Back Scrubber

Fact: Attempting to exfoliate your back by yourself is hard as hell, which is why I love this best-selling microfiber and linen cloth from Amazon. Not only is it super long, but it’s also equipped with two easy-to-grab handles that allow you to shimmy it up and down your back in the shower. On one side of the cloth is an abrasive, loofah-like material to help slough off dead skin, and on the other side is a gentle, microfiber fabric to massage around sensitive areas. Just FYI, if you’re dealing with back acne, use only the microfiber side, or skip your back altogether to prevent inflammation or bacterial spread.

Glowing Customer Review: "Love that I can finally wash my back by myself using the handles. The texture is rough enough to clean but not too rough and you can throw it in the washing machine if you want."

swimsuit Buffer Exfoliating Scrub Mitt

If you choose to wax or shave your swimsuit line (or pubic hair in general), or you’re just someone with naturally curly hair, you already know how prone the area is to ingrown hairs—especially if you’re not properly exfoliating. So before your next wax or shave, grab a soft exfoliating mitt (like this one from Amazon), and gently buff and massage your skin to remove any follicle-blocking dead skin cells. Follow with a post-shave serum or moisturizer to soothe your skin, then put the exfoliating mitt down for a few days to avoid irritating your follicles.

Glowing Customer Review: "So happy I found this! I used to get ingrown hairs after every swimsuit wax, and by using this for only two weeks, they have drastically reduced."

Exfoliating Dual Texture Gloves

My trick for super-soft legs is to exfoliate first to remove any dead skin, dirt, and oil for a closer and smoother shave. But because shaving is technically another form of exfoliation (it can also remove skin cells), I purposely prep with gentle exfoliators—like these soft gloves—to minimize the risk of over-exfoliating. At the end of showering, when my skin is soft and pliable, I'll slip on the gloves and massage and buff my legs with a squeeze of body wash, then lather up with a moisturizing shaving cream. The end result? Ridiculously smooth and soft skin that actually looks healthier, too.

Glowing Customer Review: "I love these, they really help to exfoliate your skin to help keep it nice and smooth! I think the gloves are suitable for all skin types because you can control the amount of pressure you apply when you wear and use the gloves. The gloves also lather really well with body wash!"

Exfoliating Hammam Glove

If you've never been to a hammam (a traditional bathhouse) in Morocco or Turkey, just know that the exfoliation process is next-level intense. Like, shed-five-years-of-your-skin intense. But short of hopping on a private jet, these Moroccan hammam gloves are the next best thing to getting baby-seal skin. Just make sure to go slowly and be gentle to avoid tearing up your skin. In the shower, wet the mitt, squeeze on your shower gel, then gently massage your skin in circular motions (avoiding any sensitive spots).

Glowing Customer Review: "These are fantastic. Truly. This is the best exfoliating mitt I have ever used. I’ve got bumpy dry skin and this worked like a charm. Skin is so soft and looks glowy!!!"

Exfoliband Silicone Loofah Exfoliation Tool

Yes, this looks more like a honeycomb than it does an exfoliating glove, but its unique design is also what makes it so gentle on your skin. Just slip the silicone sleeve over your fingers, then lightly buff it around your wet skin to help lift flakes and dead skin cells. The squishy silicone helps prevent you from applying too much pressure, while the vented design helps it dry quickly without mold. Just remember to sanitize it at least once a week with soap and water—or, even better, throw it on the top rack of your dishwasher for a quick clean.

Glowing Customer Review: "This is a magical product. Excellent skin exfoliation tool. Easy to clean, dry, and tuck away in the lotions and potions cabinet."

Are exfoliating gloves better than scrubs?

No, exfoliating gloves aren’t necessarily better than body scrubs. Both are types of mechanical (or physical) exfoliation, and both do the same thing: remove dead skin cells from the surface of your skin. While exfoliation gloves may give you a more even exfoliation—thanks to the uniformity of the material's texture—they can also be more abrasive than scrubs and difficult to keep clean, depending on the fabric and design.

How to choose the best exfoliating gloves:

Decide what your skin can tolerate

Reminder: You absolutely should not be using an exfoliating glove if you have sensitive skin or inflammatory skin conditions (like psoriasis, eczema, or active cystic acne) since the abrasive material can trigger even more inflammation and flare-ups. Exfoliating gloves should also not be used on your face or on skin that’s covered in acne, folliculitis, or cuts, says dermatologist Karan Lal, MD, because they can easily spread bacteria and/or result in infection.

This being said, if you have relatively ~chill~ skin (i.e., you have none of the conditions above), you can try using an exfoliating glove on your body once a week. Yes, just once a week. Even if you don’t have sensitive skin, over-exfoliating can still cause irritation, dryness, inflammation, and even rashes, says Dr. Lal. So if you're someone who has a bad habit of going overboard with skincare, store your mitt or glove in another room so you're not tempted to use it every time you're in the shower.

Be realistic about how often you’ll clean them

FYI: The dead skin cells, old oils, product residue, and gunk that you exfoliate from your skin can get trapped in fabric-based exfoliating gloves, which is why they must be cleaned so frequently. So if you know you're someone who can't be bothered to wash a reusable glove on the regular, skip them altogether and instead try one of the silicone exfoliating brushes or disposable exfoliating gloves on this list. Yes, they’ll still need to be washed with antibacterial soap and water, says Dr. Lal, but less frequently than reusable alternatives.

Meet the expert:

• Karan Lal, MD, is a double board-certified adult, pediatric, and cosmetic dermatologist at Affiliated Dermatology in Scottsdale, AZ.

Why trust Cosmo?

Siena Gagliano is an associate editor who writes beauty at Cosmopolitan and has three years of experience writing about beauty, fashion, and lifestyle news. She’s an expert at researching and writing skincare stories, like the best blackhead removal tools and the best clear sunscreens, and feels especially knowledgeable about exfoliating thanks to struggling with KP and dry skin. She regularly tests and analyzes exfoliating gloves on her skin for efficacy while working with the industry’s top dermatologists to assess new products and brands.

Chaise Sanders is the associate editor at Cosmopolitan with experience researching and writing a range of beauty stories, including helping you find the best swimsuit trimmers or highlighting the best shower filters that'll transform your hair and skin.

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