SK-II Facial Treatment Cleansing Oil for skin with dark spots

Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate Pitera Ferment Filtrate
Rosa Canina Oil Fruit
Mineral Oil
Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate
Butylene Glycol
Average
- AverageNormal Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- HighSafety
Works for skin with dark spots; other pre-cleansers fit it better.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with dark spots: hyperpigmentation, sun spots, and uneven skin tone. 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 your normal skin, as Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate and Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate provide effective cleansing and pore purification, while Rosa Canina Oil Fruit offers some emollient benefits.
- While it addresses general cleansing and hydration, it lacks sufficient concentrations of key ingredients like Ascorbyl Palmitate or Salix Alba Bark Extract to effectively target your primary concern of pigmentation.
- The product is safe for your normal skin, with no identified risks of irritation due to the absence of harsh or prohibited ingredients.
How to apply
- Use this makeup remover as part of your PM routine every evening to melt away makeup and impurities.
- Apply this makeup remover as the first step of your evening routine before using your regular cleanser.
- Gently massage the makeup remover onto your face using circular motions, then rinse thoroughly with water.
- For the best results , apply the makeup remover directly to dry skin to help break down makeup effortlessly.
- Avoid the immediate eye area and do a patch test before your first use to ensure your skin feels comfortable.
People Say
★4.6Overall rating based on 200+ reviewsUsers find this cleansing oil to be a luxurious, lightweight product that effectively removes makeup, including waterproof types, without drying the skin. It is frequently praised for leaving skin feeling soft and hydrated. Some users with sensitive or acne-prone skin reported breakouts, and a significant number found the product to be expensive for its performance.
Highlights
High price Mostly Mentioned
- “Expensive, pricey, investment, not budget-friendly.”
Effective makeup removal Often Mentioned
- “Dissolves waterproof mascara, melts stubborn makeup, removes sunscreen easily.”
Hydrating and non-stripping Often Mentioned
- “Leaves skin soft, feels moisturized, does not dry out skin.”
Clean rinsing Sometimes Noted
- “Emulsifies well, rinses off completely, leaves no oily residue.”
Luxurious texture Sometimes Noted
- “Lightweight oil, silky feel, glides smoothly, not heavy/greasy.”
Pleasant scent Rarely Noted
- “Subtle rose fragrance, spa-like scent, not overpowering.”
Lack of wow Rarely Noted
- “No visible skin improvement, average performance for cost, expected more results.”
Scent dislike Rarely Noted
- “Fragrance too strong, smell is off-putting (rare).”
Skin reactions Rarely Noted
- “Caused breakouts, small bumps, redness/irritation, fungal acne trigger.”
Sources: lovi.care, sk-ii.com, sephora.com, walmart.com, influenster.com, dermstore.com, and more
Questions and answers
How well does SK-II Facial Treatment Cleansing Oil work for skin with dark spots?
This cleansing oil works moderately well for skin with dark spots because it provides effective cleansing and pore purification, but it lacks sufficient amounts of targeted brightening ingredients. To better address dark spots, a makeup remover needs higher levels of active brighteners and soothing extracts that safely fade pigmentation.
Which ingredients make this cleanser a good fit for skin with dark spots?
Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate and Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate make this cleanser a good fit because they provide effective cleansing and pore purification. To work well on dark spots, this type of product needs extra brightening ingredients like Ascorbyl Palmitate or Salix Alba Bark Extract.
What does Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate do for skin with dark spots?
Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate helps fade dark spots and uneven pigmentation when applied daily. Long-term use significantly improves skin brightness, smooths out rough texture, and helps reduce dark spots while boosting overall hydration.
What does Rosehip Oil do for skin with dark spots?
Rosehip oil helps fade dark spots and uneven skin tone by providing antioxidant benefits that support clearer skin. Formulations with rosehip oil are also promising for managing various skin concerns while keeping your skin calm and healthy.
Where does this cleanser go in a skincare routine for skin with dark spots?
This makeup remover goes in the evening routine before your cleanser, as a first step to take off makeup. Skin with dark spots needs a makeup remover that also includes brightening ingredients like vitamin C or willow bark extract to actively target pigmentation.
Can I use this cleanser with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this cleanser in your routine before applying a retinol treatment, but this type of skin needs a product with higher levels of vitamin C or willow bark extract to truly help fade dark spots.
How often should I use this cleanser?
You can use this makeup remover in your evening routine for skin with dark spots. It is safe for your skin with no identified risks of irritation, but it lacks enough brightening ingredients like Ascorbyl Palmitate to effectively target dark spots.
Can this cleanser clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for skin with dark spots?
This cleanser is unlikely to clog pores or cause breakouts on skin with dark spots because it has a very safe profile and contains gentle ingredients like Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate and Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate. To better target dark spots, this skin type needs a product with higher amounts of brightening ingredients like Ascorbyl Palmitate.
Is this cleanser fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
Yes, it has no fragrance and no drying alcohol.
What the research says
Application of Galactomyces ferment filtrate skin care formula significantly reduced the net values and daily fluctuation of facial pore area, roughness, and redness in young Japanese women.
Journal of Clinical Medicine, 2021A combination serum containing galactomyces ferment filtrate, dexpanthenol, and Centella asiatica effectively treated post-acne hyperpigmentation in subjects with colored skin by significantly increasing lightness scores in Fitzpatrick skin type V and reducing the melanin index in Fitzpatrick skin type IV compared to placebo.
Skinmed, 2021Galactomyces ferment filtrate promotes epidermal interconnectivity, barrier development, cell adhesion, keratinocyte differentiation and proliferation, and protects cellular bioenergetics against stress in keratinocytes and ex vivo skin explants compared to untreated controls.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2024Galactomyces ferment filtrate activates AHR and NRF2, upregulates filaggrin and terminal differentiation markers, exhibits antioxidative activity, promotes antiinflammatory IL-37, and downregulates CDKN2A, IL-33, CXCL14, and IL6R in epidermal keratinocytes.
Journal of Clinical Medicine, 2022Topical treatments containing rosehip extract may reduce the size and erythema of postsurgical scars through macrophage polarization and inflammatory cytokine inhibition, though current clinical evidence remains insufficient to recommend its routine use.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2024Sunflower and rosehip oil nanoemulsions prepared with a mix of phospholipids and synthetic emulsifiers permeated intact skin to the dermis and showed a more prominent healing effect in a human organotypic skin explant culture wound model compared to nanoemulsions prepared only with phospholipids.
Pharmaceutics, 2023A nanoemulsion containing 1 mg/mL kojic dipalmitate and 5% rosehip oil demonstrated high incorporation efficiency, suitable physicochemical stability, antioxidant and depigmenting efficacy close to 1 mM ascorbic acid, and no cytotoxicity at concentrations from 0.06% to 1% in vitro.
Pharmaceutics, 2023Repeated 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
Why other pre-cleansers fit skin with dark spots better
A topical antioxidant serum significantly reduced air pollution-induced skin pigmentation and proinflammatory gene expression ex vivo, and improved skin aging signs in 40 healthy adult females after 90 days of daily use.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2022
Ingredients
Water, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Propylene Glycol, Peg-150 Stearate, Galactomyces Ferment Filtrate Pitera Ferment Filtrate, Sodium Pca, Glycol Stearate, Butylene Glycol, Cocamide Mea, Rosa Canina Oil Fruit, Stearamide Amp, Pentylene Glycol, Salix Alba Salix Alba Bark Extract Willow Bark Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Hydroxyphenyl Propamidobenzoic Acid, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Bht, Phenethyl Alcohol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Mineral Oil, Isopropyl Palmitate, Peg-20 Glyceryl Triisostearate, Sorbeth-30 Tetraoleate, Phenoxyethanol, Moringa Oleifera Seed Extract, Pyrus Malus Seed Extract, Glycerin, Peg-8 Diisostearate, Sodium Benzoate, Ethylparaben, Butylparaben, Disodium Phosphate, Citric Acid, Hexyldecanol, Isobutylparaben
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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Co-founder, Medical Director
Cosmetic chemist, cosmetologist, aesthetic products developer
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Co-founder, CEO and CTO
PhD in computer science, 3x US patent holder, ex-Google, ex-Yandex
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Dr. Sofía Perea Pérez, MD, MSc
Medical Board
Aesthetic medicine practitioner, MSc in Longevity and Anti-Aging Medicine
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Medical Board
Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
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Medical Board
Cosmetic chemist, SCS, IFSCC member
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Medical Board, Medical Advisor
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
How does it fit your skin?
Scan your face, then any product: Lovi shows how well it fits you and what fits even better.
