Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque for oily acne-prone skin
Amazonian White Clay
Bentonite
Glycerin
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf JuiceAverage
- HighOily Skin Fit
- AverageEffectiveness
- ExcellentSafety
Works for oily acne-prone skin; other cleansing masks 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 pore cleansing for your oily skin due to kaolin and bentonite effectively absorbing excess oil and impurities, though it lacks specialized ingredients to directly target acne and breakouts.
- The inclusion of aloe barbadensis leaf juice and allantoin provides soothing benefits, which is beneficial for maintaining skin comfort.
- The product is safe for your oily skin, with no risks of irritation due to the absence of harsh ingredients and the presence of soothing components.
How to apply
- Use your cleansing mask PM as part of your weekly routine. Start 1×/week and increase carefully if your oily skin tolerates it well.
- Apply this step after your enzyme powder and before your hydrating toner. Follow the standard weekly order to keep your skin balanced.
- Spread an even layer of the cleansing mask across your face while avoiding the eye area. Let it sit for the recommended time without rubbing .
- Apply the mask on clean and dry skin for the best purifying effect on your breakouts. Clean skin allows the formula to target blemishes directly.
- Always do a patch test before your first use to check for sensitivity. Avoid combining this mask with strong acids or retinoids in the same routine .
People Say
★4.6Overall rating based on 1.0k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, this clay mask is widely praised by users with oily and combination skin for its ability to deeply cleanse pores and reduce shine without being overly stripping. Most users report softer, smoother skin and visibly smaller pores. A minority experience immediate stinging or redness upon application.
Highlights
Leaves skin soft Mostly Mentioned
- “skin feels incredibly soft afterwards”
- “texture feels refined and smooth”
- “face feels like a baby's bottom”
Deeply cleanses pores Often Mentioned
- “sucked the gunk out of my pores”
- “pores look noticeably smaller”
- “clears up sebaceous filaments”
Reduces excess oil Often Mentioned
- “keeps my oils at bay”
- “mattifies without drying me out”
- “great for my T-zone”
Non-drying formula Sometimes Noted
- “doesn't crack or feel tight”
- “creamy texture, not chalky”
- “less drying than other clay masks”
Burning/stinging sensation Sometimes Noted
- “burned my face immediately”
- “intense tingling upon application”
- “stings for the first few minutes”
High price point Sometimes Noted
- “expensive for a clay mask”
- “pricey but lasts a long time”
- “not worth the money”
Messy removal Rarely Noted
- “hard to wash off completely”
- “need a washcloth to remove”
- “leaves a residue if not scrubbed”
Redness/irritation Rarely Noted
- “left my face bright red”
- “caused a breakout”
- “too harsh for sensitive skin”
Sources: lovi.care, sephora.com, ulta.com, amazon.com, kiehls.com, cultbeauty.co.uk, and more
Questions and answers
How well does Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque work for oily acne-prone skin?
Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Cleansing Masque works moderately well for your oily skin by absorbing excess oil with clays and soothing comfort with aloe, though it lacks specialized ingredients to directly target breakouts. A product of this type for this skin needs effective acne-fighting ingredients like salicylic acid and niacinamide alongside purifying clays to manage oiliness and keep skin clear without irritation.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2025Clinical Pharmacology, 2018
Which ingredients make this mask a good fit for oily acne-prone skin?
This mask absorbs excess oil and impurities on your oily skin with kaolin and bentonite, while aloe and allantoin keep your skin calm and comfortable. To truly fit oily acne-prone skin, this type of product needs targeted acne-fighting ingredients like salicylic acid, niacinamide, or zinc oxide alongside purifying clays.
What does Amazonian White Clay do for oily acne-prone skin?
Amazonian White Clay helps clear up oily and acne-prone skin by absorbing excess oil and impurities while keeping the skin calm and comfortable. Regular use of a clay mask improves skin evenness and reduces breakouts while maintaining a balanced moisture level.
What does Kaolin Clay do for oily acne-prone skin?
Kaolin Clay helps oily and acne-prone skin by absorbing excess oil, clearing out pores, and keeping skin feeling smooth and calm. Using it regularly helps improve skin evenness and hydration while keeping dryness and irritation unlikely.
Where does this mask go in a skincare routine for oily acne-prone skin?
This cleansing mask fits into your weekly routine as a step after your cleanser and enzyme powder, and before your hydrating toner and treatment. For oily acne-prone skin, a mask of this type needs clay ingredients to absorb excess oil and soothing components to keep your skin comfortable.
Can I use this mask with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this cleansing mask in your weekly routine, but apply it on a night when you are not using your retinol to avoid over-drying your skin. Oily acne-prone skin using active treatments like retinol needs a product that pairs pore-cleansing clay with targeted acne-fighting ingredients and gentle soothing agents for the best results.
How often should I use this mask?
You can use this cleansing mask once a week as part of your weekly routine. This frequency helps absorb excess oil and impurities while keeping your skin calm and comfortable.
Can this mask clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for oily acne-prone skin?
This mask is unlikely to clog pores or cause breakouts because it uses clays to absorb excess oil and impurities without harsh ingredients, though it lacks specialized ingredients to directly target acne. Oily acne-prone skin needs products with targeted blemish-fighting ingredients and oil-absorbing clays for a better fit.
Is this mask fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
Yes, it has no fragrance and no drying alcohol. Cetearyl alcohol is a fatty alcohol, which soften the skin.
What the research says
A cream combining propolis, tea tree oil, and Aloe vera reduced erythema scars, acne severity index, and total lesion count better than erythromycin cream in sixty patients with mild to moderate acne vulgaris compared to placebo.
Clinical Pharmacology, 2018A topical gel containing chitosan, chlorhexidine, allantoin, and dexpanthenol significantly reduced postoperative pain, trismus, swelling, and analgesic consumption, while improving wound healing after third molar surgery compared to a placebo.
Medicina Oral, Patologia Oral Y Cirugia Bucal, 2020A bentonite-based facial mask with Alcea sulphurea extract combined with oral azithromycin significantly reduced total lesion count and acne severity index while enhancing patient satisfaction in patients with moderate acne compared to placebo plus azithromycin over 8 weeks.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2025Quaternized carboxymethyl chitosan/organic montmorillonite nanocomposite demonstrated superior moisture-adsorption and retention compared to hyaluronic acid, good UV-protection ability, negligible dermal irritation, and prominent moisture-retention efficacy on human stratum corneum when formulated into a cosmetic cream.
Carbohydrate Polymers, 2017Vectorization of high molecular weight hyaluronic acid with clay enabled its penetration into deeper skin layers and led to a significant clinical reduction in fine lines in the crow's feet area compared to placebo after 28 days.
Skin Research and Technology, 2024Twice-weekly use of a clay mask over 4 weeks in 75 adults with oily or combination skin improved acne-related outcomes, sebum content, skin evenness, hydration, and reduced dryness and irritation.
Skin Research and Technology, 2023Clay jojoba oil facial masks reduced total skin lesions by a mean of 54% after 6 weeks in 133 participants with acne-prone, lesioned skin and mild acne compared to baseline.
Forschende Komplementarmedizin, 2012A novel water-in-oil emulsion with a lecithin-modified bentonite prevented epidermal degradation and inflammatory protein secretion induced by urban dust and cedar pollen more effectively than a conventional water-in-oil emulsion in a reconstructed human epidermis model.
International Journal of Cosmetic Science, 2020Bentonite nanoparticles and honey co-administration improved skin wound healing in BALB/c mice by reducing inflammatory cell infiltration and increasing fibroblastosis, new epithelium thickness, granulation area, and collagen density compared to the untreated control group.
The International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds, 2025A novel electrospun chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol/montmorillonite clay scaffold proved to be a suitable material for cell proliferation and demonstrated strong antimicrobial and scavenging efficacy for wound healing applications.
International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, 2024A 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, 2017The 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, 2001Topical aloe vera gel significantly accelerated split-thickness skin graft donor-site healing compared to placebo in 12 patients, but showed no significant difference in pain relief.
Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, 2018Topical application of Aloe vera cream reduced postoperative pain at rest and during defecation, accelerated wound healing at two weeks, and decreased analgesic requirements in patients after open hemorrhoidectomy compared to placebo.
Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 2010Formulations containing 0.10%, 0.25%, and 0.50% freeze-dried Aloe vera extract increased stratum corneum water content compared with the vehicle in 20 female subjects, while transepidermal water loss was not modified.
Skin Research and Technology, 2006
Why other cleansing masks fit oily acne-prone skin better
Two percent supramolecular salicylic acid showed similar efficacy to 0.01% adapalene plus 5% benzoyl peroxide in reducing acne lesions in 31 patients over 28 days.
Cutaneous and Ocular Toxicology, 2019Chemical peels with 30% supramolecular salicylic acid effectively treated acne and reduced facial sebum secretion while improving skin hydration and barrier function in 25 patients.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2022Treatment with 2% supramolecular salicylic acid hydrogel resulted in a regression and markedly improvement rate of 51.01% compared to 43.10% for Adapaline gel in patients with mild to moderate facial acne vulgaris, showing no significant difference in efficacy.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 2024
Ingredients
Water, Kaolin, Bentonite, Propanediol, Glycerin, Ci 77891 Titanium Dioxide, Caprylic Capric Triglyceride, Cetearyl Alcohol, Zea Mays Corn Starch, Phenoxyethanol, Ceteareth-20, Caprylyl Glycol, Xanthan Gum, Ethylhexylglycerin, Tocopherol, Lecithin, Aloe Barbadensis Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Avena Sativa Oat Kernel Flour, Allantoin
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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