Acne is, among other colorful adjectives, frustrating. While covering up the redness and blemishes with a heavy concealer seems like an easy, albeit temporary, fix, certain formulas can actually be doing more harm than good beneath the surface, and can end up setting us back on our clear-skin journeys. To find out which concealers are safe—and in certain cases, encouraged—to be used on blemish-prone skin, we turned to the experts to find out the best concealers for acne.
Featured Experts
- Julie Russak, MD is a board-certified dermatologist based in New York City
- Lee Ann Klausner, MD is a facial plastic surgeon based in New York City
- Shereene Idriss, MD is a board-certified dermatologist based in New York City
Ingredients to Look For
When shopping for the best concealers for acne, be sure to scan the ingredient lists for some key ingredients. Lucky for us, more and more concealers spiked with potent skin-care ingredients are hitting shelves, and some of them are even tailored to help spot treat blemishes.
New York dermatologist Julie Russak, MD recommends acne-prone patients to look for a concealer containing salicylic acid, a proven anti-inflammatory that works to clear up congested pores. New York dermatologist Shereene Idriss, MD says to keep an eye out for oil-absorbing ingredients when shopping for a concealer, including zinc oxide, kaolin clay, sulfur or a gentle AHA/BHA complex.
Ingredients to Avoid
When scanning a concealer’s ingredient list, Dr. Russak says to stay away from formulas that contain mica, silicones and oils, as these may exasperate existing issues. More ingredients to scan for and avoid, according to Dr. Idriss: “Fatty alcohols such as cetyl acetate and Cetearyl alcohol, and certain oils like coconut oil, and lanolin.”
“If you’re not someone who is into reading ingredient lists, then stick to products that are marketed as oil-free and/or non-comedogenic,” adds Dr. Idriss.
Expert-Approved Picks
