Clarins Gentle Foaming Cleanser for dry sensitive skin
Alpine Herbs
Shea Extracts Butter
Tamarindus Indica Pulp
Glycerin
Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate
Low
- AverageDry Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- HighSafety
A weak match for dry sensitive skin; the cleansers alongside fit it better.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with dry sensitive skin: flakiness, tightness, redness, fine lines, and wrinkles. 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 dry and sensitive skin as glycerin and shea butter provide humectant and emollient actions, respectively, to address dryness and flakiness.
- The cleansing agents, sodium cocoyl isethionate and sodium lauroyl sarcosinate, effectively remove impurities while maintaining a gentle profile for your skin.
- The formula is safe for your skin due to the absence of harsh or prohibited ingredients, minimizing irritation risks.
How to apply
- Use your cleanser AM and PM every day to keep your face fresh. Start slowly once a day if your dry skin feels sensitive at first.
- Apply your cleanser first thing in your routine before any toner or moisturizer. Follow the usual steps for your AM or PM daily routine.
- Gently massage the cleanser onto your face using soft circular motions. Avoid harsh rubbing to protect your dry skin.
- Apply the cleanser to slightly damp skin to help it clean gently without stripping moisture. This method is very safe for sensitive and dry skin types.
- Rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water and avoid the delicate eye area. Always do a patch test before using the product for the first time.
People Say
★4.3Overall rating based on 5.7k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, the Gentle Foaming Cleanser line is highly regarded for its effective yet gentle cleansing, creating a rich lather that removes impurities without stripping the skin, leaving it feeling soft and hydrated. While many appreciate the pleasant scent and the product's longevity, a notable number of long-time users express disappointment with the reformulation from the original version, citing a strong fragrance and occasional skin irritation as drawbacks.
Highlights
Effective gentle cleansing Mostly Mentioned
- “removes all traces of makeup”
- “leaves face squeaky clean”
- “takes off foundation easily”
- “cleans without stripping”
Non-drying formula Often Mentioned
- “skin feels soft afterwards”
- “no tight feeling”
- “leaves skin supple”
- “doesn't dry me out”
Rich creamy lather Often Mentioned
- “lathers beautifully”
- “thick creamy foam”
- “feels luxurious on skin”
- “rich mousse texture”
Long-lasting tube Sometimes Noted
- “pea size is enough”
- “tube lasts for months”
- “little goes a long way”
- “lasts forever”
Pleasant spa scent Sometimes Noted
- “smells like a spa”
- “lovely fresh scent”
- “enjoy the herbal smell”
- “relaxing fragrance”
Reformulation disappointment Sometimes Noted
- “miss the cottonseed version”
- “not as good as the original”
- “bring back the old formula”
- “changed the ingredients”
Strong fragrance Sometimes Noted
- “smell is too strong”
- “perfume is overwhelming”
- “scent lingers too long”
- “fragrance irritated me”
Caused breakouts Rarely Noted
- “broke me out”
- “caused redness”
- “skin reacted badly”
- “gave me bumps”
Drying for some Rarely Noted
- “left skin tight”
- “felt dry after use”
- “stripped my natural oils”
- “too drying for winter”
Eye irritation Rarely Noted
- “stings my eyes”
- “burns if it gets in eyes”
- “have to be careful around eyes”
- “irritates eye area”
Sources: lovi.care, sephora.com, ulta.com, clarins.co.uk, influenster.com, macys.com, and more
Questions and answers
Why is Clarins Gentle Foaming Cleanser a weak match for dry sensitive skin?
Clarins Gentle Foaming Cleanser is a weak match because, although it contains glycerin and shea butter to help with dryness and flakiness, it does not provide the deep moisture and barrier restoration that dry sensitive skin needs. A cleanser of this type needs rich hydrating and barrier-repairing ingredients like ceramides and hyaluronic acid to maintain moisture and skin health.
Which ingredients make this cleanser a poor fit for dry sensitive skin?
This cleanser is a weak match for dry sensitive skin because it lacks the ceramides, hyaluronic acid, and richer barrier-repairing ingredients needed to properly lock in moisture and protect this skin type.
What do Alpine Herbs do for dry sensitive skin?
Alpine Herbs help soothe dry sensitive skin and keep it comfortable by calming redness and locking in moisture. They provide gentle relief without causing irritation, making your face feel soft and smooth.
What does Shea Butter do for dry sensitive skin?
Shea butter helps soothe dry sensitive skin by providing rich moisture and supporting the skin barrier to keep it calm and soft. It is unlikely to cause irritation and may reduce tightness. This skin type needs moisturizers with soothing plant oils and gentle hydrators.
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2017Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2016
Where does this cleanser go in a skincare routine for dry sensitive skin?
In a routine for dry sensitive skin, this cleanser goes in the morning and evening steps to remove impurities while maintaining a gentle profile. Because this cleanser is a weak match for your skin, a suitable cleanser for this type needs added gentle ingredients and hydrating boosters to address dryness and flakiness.
Can I use this cleanser with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this cleanser with retinol by washing your face with it before applying your retinol treatment. Because this cleanser is a weak match for dry sensitive skin, dry skin types need a gentle cleanser with extra hydrating ingredients like ceramides and soothing plant extracts to protect the skin barrier.
How often should I use this cleanser?
You can use this cleanser daily as part of your morning and evening routine to wash away impurities. A gentle daily routine featuring a mild cleanser helps improve dryness and keeps skin comfortable without causing irritation.
Can this cleanser clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for dry sensitive skin?
This cleanser is unlikely to cause breakouts for dry sensitive skin because its ingredients have a safe profile that minimizes irritation risks. However, a product for this skin needs extra soothing and deeply moisturizing ingredients like ceramides and plant oils to keep skin calm and smooth.
Can I use this cleanser around the eyes or on my body?
This cleanser is a weak match for dry sensitive skin, as the eyelid and other delicate areas need a very gentle, hydrating cleanser with rich butters and glycerin to prevent tightness and irritation.
Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy, 2002Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2007
Is this cleanser fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
It has no drying alcohol and contains fragrance (parfum).
What the research says
A single application of a moisturizing fluid containing hyaluronic acid 1%, glycerin 5%, and Centella asiatica stem cells extract significantly increased skin hydration by 29% and reduced transepidermal water loss at 24 hours compared to baseline and an untreated control site in twenty healthy women.
Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology, 2017Sodium cocoyl isethionate micelles are too large to penetrate stratum corneum aqueous pores, resulting in significant steric hindrance that prevents skin barrier perturbation and explains its skin mildness.
Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2007A cleansing lotion containing tamarind fruit pulp extract showed no significant difference in skin irritation, transepidermal water loss, or erythema compared with a placebo product and de-ionized water in 15 healthy females.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2007A combination cream of stimu-tex AS and saccharide isomerate reduced erythema, increased skin capacitance, and reduced transepidermal water loss compared to placebo in 20 subjects after fractional CO2 laser procedure without causing serious adverse events.
Lasers in Medical Science, 2025A skin barrier restoring cream with shea butter, silkflo, and vitamin E increased type I procollagen synthesis, enhanced antioxidant enzyme activity, decreased reactive oxygen species generation, and promoted hyaluronic acid production in H2O2-stimulated human keratinocyte cells compared to untreated cells.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2025Topical application of a water-in-oil cosmetic emulsion containing 4% Tamarindus indica seeds extract significantly improved skin elasticity, moisture content, and surface evaluation parameters in 11 healthy male volunteers compared to a control base over 12 weeks.
Postepy Dermatologii I Alergologii, 2017Tamarindus indica n-hexane extracts from various organs demonstrated anti-inflammatory and wound healing activities by inhibiting nitric oxide and promoting fibroblast migration in in-vitro assays compared to control cells.
Plants, 2022The emollient V0034CR significantly reduced TEWL compared to vehicle and vehicle plus glycerol, and significantly increased corneometry scores compared to vehicle and vehicle plus petrolatum in healthy volunteers with dry skin, demonstrating combined barrier function improvement from petrolatum and hydration improvement from glycerol.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2020Ten days of treatment with a cream containing 20% glycerin significantly increased skin hydration measured by corneometer values in 17 healthy volunteers compared to a placebo cream, but showed no influence on transepidermal water loss or skin sensitivity to an irritating surfactant.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2001Niacinamide/glycerin body moisturizers provided better rapid and prolonged improvement of cosmetic xerosis through functional improvement of stratum corneum barrier function compared to no treatment and conventional moisturizers in female subjects.
Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, 2012
Ingredients
Water, Glycerin, Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Squalane, Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Propanediol, Glycol Distearate, Coconut Acid, Glyceryl Behenate, Butyrospermum Parkii Butter Shea Butter, C14-22 Alcohols, Polyacrylate Crosspolymer-6, Sodium Isethionate, Parfum, Sodium Citrate, Chlorphenesin, Citric Acid, C12-20 Alkyl Glucoside, Disodium Edta, Maltodextrin, Moringa Oleifera Seed Extract, Melissa Officinalis Leaf Extract, T-Butyl Alcohol, Saponaria Officinalis Leaf Extract, Gentiana Lutea Extract, Chamomilla Recutita Flower Extract Matricaria Flower Extract, Sodium Benzoate, Potassium Sorbate
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
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