Kiehl's Rare Earth Deep Pore Daily Cleanser for sensitive skin
Amazonian White Clay
Salicylic Acid
Glycerin
Aloe Barbadensis Leaf JuiceHigh
- HighNormal Skin Fit
- HighEffectiveness
- ExcellentSafety
A great choice for sensitive skin; a few cleansers fit it even better.
This fit is calculated for the concerns frequently associated with sensitive skin: redness, stinging, and reactions to new products. 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 redness and irritation due to salicylic acid, which provides mild chemical exfoliation suitable for your normal skin type. Aloe barbadensis leaf juice and oat kernel flour further soothe and calm inflammation, complementing your sensitive skin.
- The cleansing action is excellent for decongesting pores with kaolin and diatomaceous earth, supporting your goal of managing redness and irritation.
- The product is safe for your sensitive skin, containing no harsh ingredients and including soothing components like aloe barbadensis leaf juice and oat kernel flour.
How to apply
- Use your cleanser in the AM and PM routines every day. Start using it daily since your sensitive skin needs gentle care.
- Apply this first in your morning and evening skincare routine before toner and moisturizer. This clears away dirt without upsetting your skin.
- Gently massage a small amount onto your face using soft circles. Avoid any rough rubbing to keep redness away.
- Apply the cleanser on slightly damp skin to help it wash away impurities softly. Clean skin feels fresh and comfortable afterwards.
- Avoid getting the cleanser in your eyes and do a quick patch test before first use. Rinse thoroughly with lukewarm water.
People Say
★4.6Overall rating based on 3.2k+ reviewsBased on a very large amount of data, users with oily and combination skin frequently praise this cleanser for its ability to deeply purify pores and control excess sebum without being overly harsh. Many report a visible reduction in pore size and a smoother, matte complexion, while a minority of users experienced dryness or breakouts after use.
Highlights
Deeply cleanses pores Often Mentioned
- “skin feeling like it can breathe”
- “thoroughly cleaned after every use”
- “getting my skin completely clean”
- “removes all the make up”
Minimizes pore appearance Often Mentioned
- “pores are less noticeable”
- “pores... reduced or become smaller”
- “visibly minimized pores”
- “pores look smaller and cleaner”
Controls oil/shine Sometimes Noted
- “shine to be gone”
- “kept my oils at bay”
- “skin looked matte”
- “leaves a fresh feeling”
Gentle exfoliation Sometimes Noted
- “mildly grainy cream feel”
- “gentle exfoliation”
- “smooths skin texture”
- “mildest physical abrasive”
Drying or stripping Sometimes Noted
- “skin felt tight”
- “dry out my skin”
- “felt stripped”
- “left dry patches”
Efficient usage Rarely Noted
- “a little goes a long way”
- “tube last over 10 months”
- “foams/lathers up enough”
Caused breakouts Rarely Noted
- “spots all over my forehead”
- “bumpy breakouts on cheeks”
- “caused acne”
- “skin reacted with bumps”
Expensive Rarely Noted
- “expensive side”
- “pricier side for face wash”
- “price increased twice”
Ineffective for some Rarely Noted
- “didn't work for me”
- “pores still visible”
- “no difference seen”
Sources: lovi.care, kiehls.com, sephora.co.uk, ulta.com, johnlewis.com, cultbeauty.co.uk, and more
Questions and answers
What makes Kiehl's Rare Earth Daily Cleanser a great fit for sensitive skin?
This cleanser is a great fit because it uses soothing aloe and oat flour to calm redness and irritation while gently clearing out pores with kaolin and diatomaceous earth. It also offers mild exfoliation with salicylic acid, and its safe formula has no harsh ingredients that might upset sensitive skin.
Which ingredients make this cleanser a good fit for sensitive skin?
This cleanser is a great fit for sensitive skin because it contains aloe barbadensis leaf juice and oat kernel flour, which help soothe and calm inflammation. Salicylic acid also provides mild exfoliation, while kaolin and diatomaceous earth gently clear out pores.
What does Amazonian White Clay do for sensitive skin?
Amazonian White Clay helps calm and purify sensitive skin by absorbing excess oil and clearing impurities without causing harsh irritation. This type of clay is unlikely to disrupt the skin barrier when used properly, keeping your face feeling soft and smooth.
What does Salicylic Acid do for sensitive skin?
Salicylic acid may cause irritation on sensitive skin, so it requires careful use and good sun protection to keep skin comfortable. A product for this skin type needs gentle, soothing ingredients and a mild formula that respects the skin barrier.
The British Journal of Dermatology, 1999International Journal of Toxicology, 2003
Where does this cleanser go in a skincare routine for sensitive skin?
This cleanser goes in the morning and evening steps of your daily routine, followed by a soothing toner and moisturizing sunscreen in the morning or a toner, treatment, and moisturizer at night. It is a great fit for sensitive skin because it gently clears pores with clay and diatomaceous earth while calming ingredients like aloe and oat flour help soothe redness and irritation.
Can I use this cleanser with retinol, and in what order?
You can use this cleanser with retinol by using the cleanser first and applying retinol afterward, provided your skin tolerates the exfoliation well. Using a gentle cleanser helps clear pores while soothing ingredients like aloe vera and oat kernel flour keep sensitive skin calm.
How often should I use this cleanser?
You can use this cleanser daily as part of your morning and evening routine. It contains soothing ingredients like aloe and oat flour that help calm irritation while keeping your skin comfortable.
Can this cleanser clog pores, cause breakouts or purging for sensitive skin?
This cleanser is unlikely to clog pores or cause breakouts since it uses clay to deeply clear out pores, while soothing ingredients like aloe help calm your skin. Reviewers rarely report breakouts, and its gentle formula supports your sensitive skin.
Can I use this cleanser around the eyes or on my body?
This cleanser is generally safe to use on your body, but it is best to avoid the very thin skin directly around the eyes. The active ingredients and clays may easily dry out or irritate delicate periorbital areas where the skin is much thinner than the rest of the body.
Is this cleanser fragrance-free and alcohol-free?
It has no fragrance and contains drying alcohol (alcohol denat).
What the research says
Vectorization 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, 2012Cryotherapy with liquid nitrogen achieved a higher cure rate (39%) than salicylic acid (24%) and a wait-and-see approach (16%) for cutaneous warts at 13 weeks in primary care patients.
CMAJ, 2010A moisturizer containing licochalcone A, 1,2-decanediol, L-carnitine, and salicylic acid significantly reduced noninflammatory, inflammatory, and total acne lesion counts compared to a vehicle control in Thai patients during a 12-week maintenance phase.
BioMed Research International, 2020Treatment 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, 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, 2001A 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, 2018Topical 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, 2010
Ingredients
Water, Kaolin, Glycerin, Alcohol Denat, Sodium Cocoyl Glycinate, Coco-Betaine, Acrylates Copolymer, Sodium Chloride, Ci 77891 Titanium Dioxide, Solum Diatomeae Diatomaceous Earth, Phenoxyethanol, Peg-14m, Glycol Distearate, Sodium Benzoate, Aloe Barbadensis Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Salicylic Acid, Avena Sativa Oat Kernel Flour, Tocopherol, Sodium Hydroxide, 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
How does it fit your skin?
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