About the Pore-Clogging Ingredient Checker
A small, free reading aid for people who want to know what is in their skin care before they buy it.
This is informational, not medical advice.
Why this site exists
Many people with acne-prone skin spend a lot of time reading labels. The phrase "non-comedogenic" appears on many products, but it does not tell you which ingredients are present. This checker takes an ingredient list, matches each name against a list of ingredients that have been reported to clog pores, and shows the result in plain language.
Where the data comes from
Our ratings use the 0 to 5 comedogenic scale that has been cited since the late 1980s, mainly from the rabbit-ear model study by Fulton and colleagues. We also cite public ingredient lists and dermatology resources where they describe the same ingredient. Each entry on the checker lists the sources we used. We write our own explanations rather than copying other sites, and we revise entries when we find better evidence.
How ratings are read here
A rating of 3 to 5 is shown as high risk, and 1 or 2 as low risk. Ingredients on our known-safe list are marked as safe. Anything we do not have an entry for is shown as not in our list. That result means we have no data, not that the ingredient is harmless. The optional fungal acne setting highlights ingredients that can feed Malassezia yeast, which is a different issue from pore clogging.
What this site is not
This site is not a medical service. We do not give individual advice, and the checker cannot see your skin. Ratings are a starting point for your own patch tests and conversations with a dermatologist.
Affiliate disclosure
Some product links go to Amazon search results. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. The suggested products are chosen by their public ingredient lists, and we do not accept payment to change a rating.
Contact
For corrections to an ingredient entry, please include the product name, the ingredient, and the source that supports the change. Send corrections to the support address for this domain.