Pore Clog Checker

Free Pore Clog Checker

Paste any product's ingredient list to instantly flag pore-clogging (comedogenic) ingredients, see their 0–5 ratings, and find gentler swaps. Free, instant, no signup — this is the live tool, not a screenshot.

🔒 Your list never leaves your browser
4 pore-clogging ingredients found

Recognized 8 of 10 listed ingredients · 2 not in our database (often water, fragrance, extracts or actives that don't clog).

Your report: 8 ingredients checked, 4 pore-clogging

Keep the list you just checked — every ingredient with its rating and gentler swaps, written to a text file in your browser. No email needed, nothing uploaded.

Optional: we re-rate ingredients as new sources are published. Leave your email to be told when the ratings in this report change. No welcome email, no newsletter, no automatic sending — the address is stored for that one purpose. The printable cheat sheet is free either way.

  • High risk · 4/5

    Rich in lauric and myristic acids. Deeply moisturising but a classic 4/5 pore-clogger, and one of the most common causes of breakouts when used on the face.

    Gentler swaps: Squalane, Hemp Seed Oil, Sunflower Oil

  • Isopropyl Myristate
    Ester / emollient
    High risk · 5/5

    A lightweight synthetic ester used to give products a fast, non-greasy slip. One of the most reliably pore-clogging cosmetic ingredients on the Fulton scale, scoring the maximum 5.

    Gentler swaps: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Squalane

  • Octyl Palmitate
    Ester / emollient
    High risk · 4/5

    Also labelled ethylhexyl palmitate, a silky dry-touch emollient common in sunscreens and primers. Rated 4/5 for pore-clogging.

    Gentler swaps: Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Squalane

  • Shea Butter
    Butter · disputed
    Moderate · 2–4/5

    Genuinely disputed: many dermatology sources rate shea butter 0-2 and consider it well tolerated, while several pore-clogging lists rate it as high as 4. Patch-test if you are very acne-prone.

    Gentler swaps: Squalane, Mango Butter

  • Glycerin
    Humectant
    Low risk · 0/5

    A universal humectant rated 0/5. Non-comedogenic and fungal-acne safe, suitable for all skin types.

  • Cetearyl Alcohol
    Fatty alcohol
    Low risk · 2/5

    A blend of cetyl and stearyl alcohols used as an emollient thickener. Rated 2/5; fatty alcohols are considered fungal-acne safe.

  • Dimethicone
    Silicone · disputed
    Low risk · 1/5

    A breathable silicone that smooths and blurs. Rated 1/5 and fungal-acne safe; occasionally blamed for congestion when layered heavily, but the ingredient itself is low-risk.

  • Low risk · 2/5

    Vitamin E, a common antioxidant rated 2/5. Widely used at low levels where its clogging impact is minimal.

Or browse the full list of 185 rated ingredients and switch on fungal-acne mode.

What's actually free?

All of it. Paste a full ingredient list — from a moisturiser, sunscreen, foundation, or anything else — and every recognised ingredient is checked against the comedogenic database, sorted worst-first, and explained. You get the 0–5 rating, the reason it can clog pores, and a lower-rated swap where one exists. There is no paywall on the result and no export to unlock.

Why a "free" checker is usually a catch — and what's different here

Most tools that rank for "free pore clog checker" either lock the full result behind an email wall or only recognise a handful of buzzword ingredients. This one runs on a database of 185 ingredients with cited comedogenic ratings, and the whole result is visible immediately. Your list never leaves the browser, which is the right default for something as personal as the products you put on your skin.

Good places to start