St. Ives Apricot Scrub for acne-prone skin
Prunus Armeniaca Fruit Extract Apricot Fruit Extract
Juglans Regia Shell Powder
Glycolic Acid
Niacinamide
Caffeine
Average
- HighCombination Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- HighSafety
Works for acne-prone skin; other exfoliants fit it better.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with acne-prone skin: breakouts, blackheads, and post-acne marks. 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 exfoliation for your combination skin due to the physical exfoliation from Juglans Regia Shell Powder and chemical exfoliation from Glycolic Acid, which also aids in seboregulation.
- While it provides general hydration and cleansing benefits, the formula lacks specialized ingredients like salicylic acid to effectively target your acne, blemishes, and breakouts.
- The product is safe for your combination skin, as it contains soothing Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract and avoids harsh or prohibited ingredients.
How to apply
- Use this exfoliant PM once a week to start, and gradually increase if your combination skin tolerates it well. Always apply SPF the next morning to protect your clear skin.
- Apply the exfoliant after cleansing and toning, but right before your moisturizer step. This ensures the treatment targets blemishes effectively.
- Gently press 2-3 drops of the exfoliant into your skin without rubbing. Let it absorb for a minute before moving to the next step.
- Apply the exfoliant on clean, dry skin to help control breakouts safely. Since your skin is not sensitive, this dry application method ensures good product absorption.
- Avoid the sensitive eye area and do a patch test before your first use. Do not mix this exfoliant with other strong acids in the same routine.
People Say
★4.5Overall rating based on 1.2k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, this product is frequently praised by users with normal to oily skin for its deep exfoliation and ability to leave skin feeling smooth and refreshed. However, a significant number of users, especially those with sensitive skin, report that the physical exfoliants are too abrasive, leading to redness and irritation.
Highlights
Effective exfoliation Mostly Mentioned
- “Buffs away dead skin”
- “leaves skin smooth”
- “deep cleans pores”
Affordable price Often Mentioned
- “Great value”
- “budget-friendly”
- “inexpensive staple”
Refreshing scent Often Mentioned
- “Smells great”
- “fresh apricot fragrance”
- “pleasant aroma”
Causes irritation Often Mentioned
- “Caused redness”
- “stinging sensation”
- “splotchy skin”
Too abrasive Often Mentioned
- “Feels like sandpaper”
- “too harsh”
- “scratches skin”
Softens skin Sometimes Noted
- “Skin feels soft”
- “healthy glow”
- “smooth texture”
Potential damage Sometimes Noted
- “Concerns about micro-tears”
- “long-term damage”
- “too rough”
Drying effect Rarely Noted
- “Left skin dry”
- “stripped moisture”
- “tight feeling”
Sources: lovi.care, stives.com, walmart.com, thingtesting.com, beautyandthecity.co.uk, lemon8-app.com, and more
Questions and answers
How well does St. Ives Apricot Scrub work for acne-prone skin?
St. Ives Apricot Scrub works decently for acne-prone skin by offering moderate physical and chemical exfoliation that helps clear away dead skin, but it lacks targeted ingredients like salicylic acid for breakouts. For this skin, a product needs effective ingredients that target acne and blemishes while ensuring safety and zero irritation, often including salicylic acid alongside balanced hydrating and soothing components.
Which ingredients make this exfoliant a good fit for acne-prone skin?
Glycolic acid and apricot fruit extract help clear pores and smooth acne-prone skin. Because this exfoliant lacks specialized ingredients like salicylic acid to effectively target breakouts, an exfoliant for this skin needs salicylic acid and soothing ingredients to calm blemishes.
What does Apricot Fruit Extract do for acne-prone skin?
Apricot Fruit Extract helps calm acne-prone skin by reducing irritation and fighting inflammation without clogging pores. This extract also provides antioxidant benefits that protect sensitive or breakout-prone areas from daily stress.
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2026Molecules, 2025
What does Walnut Shell Powder do for acne-prone skin?
Walnut shell powder is too harsh and abrasive for acne-prone skin because it can cause micro-tears and worsen redness and inflammation. Acne-prone skin needs very gentle cleansers with soothing ingredients and mild surfactants that clean the skin without damaging the protective barrier.
Where does this exfoliant go in a skincare routine for acne-prone skin?
This exfoliant goes in your weekly routine, as Lovi routines start exfoliating steps once a week before you can carefully use them more often. Because this product offers only average results for acne-prone skin, it needs specialized ingredients like salicylic acid to effectively target blemishes and breakouts.
Can I use this exfoliant with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this exfoliant in the same routine as retinol, but it is unlikely to be the best fit for your acne-prone skin because it lacks specialized ingredients like salicylic acid. To properly target breakouts, this skin type needs targeted blemish-fighting ingredients and gentle chemical exfoliants that clear pores without causing irritation.
How often should I use this exfoliant?
Start by using this exfoliant once a week, and if your skin feels comfortable and you see good results, you can carefully use it more often. Acne-prone skin needs specialized ingredients like salicylic acid to effectively target breakouts and blemishes.
Can this exfoliant clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for acne-prone skin?
This exfoliant may cause breakouts or irritation for acne-prone skin because walnut shell powder and glycolic acid can be too abrasive, and the formula lacks specialized ingredients like salicylic acid to target blemishes. To better fit acne-prone skin, a product of this type needs soothing and targeted ingredients like salicylic acid to clear pores without causing irritation.
Is this exfoliant fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
It has no drying alcohol and contains fragrance (parfum). Cetearyl alcohol and cetyl alcohol are fatty alcohols, which soften the skin.
What the research says
Bitter apricot essential oil inhibited human HaCaT keratinocyte growth with an IC50 of 142.45 ug/ml by inducing G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis through death receptor, mitochondrial, and NF-kB pathways.
International Immunopharmacology, 2016Kombucha-mediated fermentation of apple, apricot, and cherry leaf agro-waste extracts increased phenolic content and enhanced antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-ageing properties while reducing oxidative stress in skin cells without cytotoxicity compared to unfermented extracts.
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2026Repeated short-contact 70% glycolic acid peels provided superior results in atrophic acne scars compared to daily low-strength glycolic acid cream or placebo in 58 women over 24 weeks.
International Journal of Dermatology, 2000Serial glycolic acid peels combined with a modified Kligman formula significantly reduced facial PIH severity in Indian patients compared to the modified Kligman formula alone.
Dermatologic Surgery, 2017Topical post-laser application of human adipocyte-derived mesenchymal stem cell media combined with niacinamide significantly improved wrinkle index, melanin index, patient satisfaction, and investigator esthetic improvement scores compared to vehicle cream in patients with aging skin.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2021Topical nicotinamide prevented solar-simulated UV-induced immunosuppression in healthy volunteers, and men experienced immunosuppression at solar-simulated UV doses three times lower than those required for women.
The Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 2008Topical 5% niacinamide applied twice daily for 12 weeks reduced fine lines and wrinkles, hyperpigmented spots, red blotchiness, and skin sallowness, and improved skin elasticity compared to vehicle control in 50 female white subjects with facial photoaging.
Dermatologic Surgery, 2005A topical cosmetic slimming product containing tetrahydroxypropyl ethylenediamine, caffeine, carnitine, forskolin and retinol significantly reduced body circumferences and improved skin aspect compared with placebo in 78 women over 12 weeks.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2011Topical sunscreen formulations containing caffeine combined with UV filters increased in vivo anti-UVB protection by approximately 25% and showed higher SPF values compared to caffeine-free sunscreen, while being well tolerated by the skin of healthy subjects.
Frontiers in Physiology, 2019Caffeine gel combined with choline geranate showed high skin permeation capacity and superior clinical results in cellulite treatment compared to caffeine gel without ionic liquid.
AAPS PharmSciTech, 2021
Why other exfoliants fit acne-prone skin better
A 30% supramolecular salicylic acid peel improved the global acne grading score and skin barrier indicators, decreased cutaneous microbiome richness and evenness along with Staphylococcus proportion, reduced inflammatory cytokines, and increased caveolin-1 expression in 28 patients with moderate-to-severe acne vulgaris.
Dermatology and Therapy, 2023Treatment with 45% mandelic acid peel showed nearly equal overall efficacy as 30% salicylic acid peel in patients with mild-to-moderate facial acne vulgaris, but with fewer adverse effects.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020A fixed combination of hydroxypinacolone retinoate, retinol glycospheres, and papain glycospheres in aqueous gel applied once daily for 12 weeks achieved a 41% mean reduction in GAGS score and a 40.8% mean reduction in total lesions, with 15.3% of patients experiencing mild to moderate local side effects, in 94 evaluable patients with comedonal-papular, mild to moderate acne of the face.
Giornale Italiano Di Dermatologia E Venereologia, 2015
Ingredients
Water, Glycerin, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Glycol Stearate, Juglans Regia Shell Powder, Glyceryl Stearate, Peg 100 Stearate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Caprylic Capric Triglyceride, Zea Mays Meal Kernel Zea Mays Kernel, Prunus Armeniaca Fruit Extract Apricot Fruit Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract Matricaria Flower Extract, Helianthus Annuus Extract Sunflower Extract, Primula Veris Extract, Sambucus Nigra Flower Extract, Arginine, Ascorbic Acid, Butylene Glycol, Caffeine, Carbomer, Ceteareth 20, Dimethicone, Disodium Edta, Glycolic Acid, Jojoba Esters, Niacinamide, Peg 12 Dimethicone, Petrolatum, Polysorbate 60, Propylene Glycol, Sodium Chloride, Sorbitol, Stearamidopropyl Dimethylamine, Stearic Acid, Tocopheryl Acetate, Triethanolamine, Urea, Dmdm Hydantoin, Iodopropynyl Butylcarbamate, Parfum, Titanium Dioxide Ci 77891
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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Specialist dermatologist, MBBS, MD, IFAAD
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Medical Board
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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?
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