Paula's Choice Softening Cream Cleanser for oily acne-prone skin
Beta-Glucan
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract Matricaria Flower Extract
Glycine Soja Oil Soybean Oil
Cocamidopropyl Betaine
Paraffinum Liquidum Mineral Oil
Caution
- AverageOily Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- ConcerningSafety
A poor match for oily acne-prone skin; the cleansers alongside fit it better.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with oily acne-prone skin: shine, breakouts, blemishes, and enlarged pores. For scores and recommendations based on your full skin profile, including your 12D face scan results and any goals or preferences you have, please use the Lovi app.
Page built Nov 8, 2026How the Fit score works
Lovi Assistant explains
- Offers moderate suitability for oily skin as Beta-Glucan provides anti-inflammatory action, but it lacks sufficient ingredients for effective seboregulation to address your oiliness concerns.
- The cleansing agents, cocamidopropyl betaine and disodium cocoamphodiacetate, offer moderate impurity removal, but the overall benefits are mostly supportive and irrelevant for your acne, blemishes, and breakouts.
How to apply
- Use this cleanser as part of your AM and PM routine. Start using it daily to help clear your breakouts.
- Apply this cleanser as the first step in the morning and right after your pre-cleanser in the evening. Follow it with your toner and moisturizer.
- Gently massage a small amount of the cleanser onto your face using circular motions. Rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water and pat dry.
- Apply the cleanser on slightly damp skin to help clean deeply and remove excess oil. This works best for oily skin types.
- Avoid the sensitive eye area during application. Do a patch test before your first use.
People Say
★4.4Overall rating based on 1000+ reviewsRecent reviews are dominated by disappointment over its discontinuation, and some users with oily skin found the rich, creamy texture too heavy or ineffective at removing heavy makeup.
Highlights
Hydrating and non-stripping Mostly Mentioned
- “leaves skin hydrated”
- “never tight or over-washed”
- “skin feels nourished”
Product discontinued Mostly Mentioned
- “devastated it's gone”
- “why discontinue a great product”
- “hard to find replacement”
Soothing for sensitive Often Mentioned
- “calmed my skin”
- “doesn't sting my eyes”
Creamy, luxurious texture Sometimes Noted
- “smooth and creamy”
- “glides over skin”
- “feels like a lotion”
Softening effect Sometimes Noted
- “skin feeling so soft”
- “improves skin softness”
- “supple and smooth”
Poor makeup removal Sometimes Noted
- “doesn't remove waterproof makeup”
- “struggles with heavy makeup”
- “need a separate remover”
Packaging issues Rarely Noted
- “miss the pump”
- “hard to get out of bottle”
- “cap breaks easily”
Too heavy for oily Rarely Noted
- “left a greasy residue”
- “too thick for my liking”
- “caused breakouts”
Sources: lovi.care, amazon.com, paulaschoice-eu.com, influenster.com, reddit.com, skinsort.com, and more
Questions and answers
Why does Lovi advise caution with Paula's Choice Softening Cream Cleanser for oily acne-prone skin?
Lovi advises caution because this cleanser lacks the strong oil control and blemish-fighting ingredients needed for oily acne-prone skin. A cleanser for this skin type needs targeted blemish-fighting components and oil-balancing ingredients to keep pores clear and control shine.
Which ingredients make this cleanser a poor fit for oily acne-prone skin?
Mineral oil and soybean oil make this cleanser a poor fit because they are heavy ingredients that can clog pores and worsen breakouts on oily acne-prone skin. Oily acne-prone skin needs a cleanser with powerful ingredients to control oil production and clear blemishes without adding extra weight.
What does Beta-Glucan do for oily acne-prone skin?
Beta-glucan helps calm and hydrate oily acne-prone skin while supporting skin recovery after treatments. This ingredient keeps skin feeling soft and smooth without clogging pores, though an oily acne-prone routine also needs gentle cleansing and balancing ingredients to stay clear.
Dermatology and Therapy, 2023Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2021
What does Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract do for oily acne-prone skin?
Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract helps calm oily, acne-prone skin and protects it from irritation while keeping it soft and smooth. Because it is gentle and soothing, it is unlikely to clog pores and works well in daily care to keep your skin balanced and clear.
Where does this cleanser go in a skincare routine for oily acne-prone skin?
This cleanser fits in the morning routine and as the second cleansing step in the evening after makeup remover, but it is a poor match for oily acne-prone skin because it lacks effective oil-controlling and breakout-clearing ingredients. A cleanser for this skin needs ingredients that help balance oil and address blemishes.
Can I use this cleanser with retinol, and in what order?
You may use this cleanser with retinol, applying the cleanser first to wash your face before putting on your retinol treatment. Because this cleanser lacks ingredients to control oil and clear breakouts, oily acne-prone skin needs a cleanser that offers strong oil control and active blemish-fighting ingredients.
How often should I use this cleanser?
This cleanser is a poor fit for oily acne-prone skin because it lacks ingredients to manage oil and breakouts. To care for this skin, a cleanser needs effective oil-balancing ingredients to help control shine and blemishes.
Can this cleanser clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for oily acne-prone skin?
This cleanser is a poor match for oily acne-prone skin because it lacks enough ingredients to balance oil and does not help with breakouts. A cleanser for this skin needs strong oil-control ingredients and lightweight formulas that clean deeply without leaving heavy residue.
Can I use this cleanser around the eyes or on my body?
You can use this cleanser on your body and around your eyes, though its ingredients are mainly suited for facial cleansing. Because the skin around your eyes is much thinner than the skin on your back or other body areas, it helps to use gentle formulas that clean without stripping moisture.
Is this cleanser fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
Yes, it has no fragrance and no drying alcohol.
What the research says
Skin care regimens containing beta-glucan improved hemoglobin index, skin hydration, and transepidermal water loss compared to vehicle control in 20 patients undergoing fractional laser therapy.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2021Treatment with topical formulations containing beta-glucan combined with nanofractional radiofrequency plus magnetic nanofractional radiofrequency showed the best efficacy and was tolerable and effective in Chinese women with abdominal stretch marks compared to control groups.
Dermatology and Therapy, 2023Topical beta-glucan mildly improved striae gravidarum, 1565-nm non-ablative fractional laser showed better results than topical beta-glucan, and the combined strategy further improved striae gravidarum atrophy compared to single treatment.
The Journal of Dermatology, 2022Apigenin protects against UVA-induced cytotoxicity and senescence in normal human dermal fibroblasts, decreases MMP-1 expression, and when applied topically as a cream in human subjects, increases dermal density and elasticity while reducing fine wrinkle length, skin evenness, moisture content, and transepidermal water loss compared to control cream.
International Journal of Molecular Medicine, 2016Topical chamomile oil combined with a night splint significantly improved the symptomatic and functional status of patients with severe carpal tunnel syndrome compared to placebo, while electrodiagnostic parameters showed no significant changes.
Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice, 2015German chamomile solution applied twice a day healed peristomal skin lesions significantly faster than once-a-day 1% hydrocortisone ointment in colostomy patients, with a mean healing time of 8.89 days versus 14.53 days.
Ostomy/wound Management, 2011The cytotoxic effect of sodium lauryl sulphate on normal human keratinocytes was significantly decreased when combined with cocamidopropyl betaine, Tween 20, and Tween 80 at concentrations well below the critical micelle concentration.
Skin Pharmacology and Applied Skin Physiology, 2003Repeated application of concentrated water-in-oil emulsions over four weeks caused no skin irritation, positively affected skin properties, and delivered almost 50% of the applied fluorescein sodium, with isopropyl myristate showing superior penetration performance compared to liquid paraffin in healthy volunteers.
International Journal of Pharmaceutics, 2019
Ingredients
Acrylates C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Beta-Glucan, Butylene Glycol, C12-15 Alkyl Benzoate, Caprylyl Glycol, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract Matricaria Flower Extract, Chlorphenesin, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Disodium Edta, Ethylhexylglycerin, Glycine Soja Oil Soybean Oil, Hexylene Glycol, Hydrogenated Polydecene, Laureth-4, Paraffinum Liquidum Mineral Oil, Peg-7 Glyceryl Cocoate, Phenoxyethanol, Polysorbate 80, Sodium Hydroxide, Water
Behind this fit score
Lovi calculates every fit score from the full ingredient list with brand-independent rules our dermatologists and cosmetic chemists build and review, and personalizes every pick with AI trained on the real results of millions of users. Lovi trains its fit score models on a proprietary dataset built from more than 10,000 expert-labeled products and more than 100,000 simulated examples, following an internally consistent methodology presented at Cosmoprof, AMWC, and Skin of Color Update.
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Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc
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Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
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Dermatology MD
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Elina Nazarenko, MD
Medical Board
Dermatology and diagnostic consultant
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Victoria Derkova, MS
Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetic development technologist
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