What is Lauryl Alcohol?
Lauryl Alcohol falls into the fatty alcohol category — a fatty alcohol (a waxy conditioning ingredient, not a drying alcohol). A C12 fatty alcohol occasionally named on pore-clogging lists in the low range.
You may see it on labels as Lauryl Alcohol, Dodecanol, so it can hide under more than one name in an ingredient list.
Where Lauryl Alcohol shows up
As a fatty alcohol (a waxy conditioning ingredient, not a drying alcohol), Lauryl Alcohol typically appears in creams, conditioners, and lotions, where it thickens and softens. Separately from clogging, its irritancy is rated 0/5 — low, so it's unlikely to sting or sensitise on its own.
Is Lauryl Alcohol bad for acne-prone skin?
That low score makes Lauryl Alcohol a reasonable choice even for acne-prone skin. As always, individual reactions vary, but it is not a likely cause of clogged pores.
Worth flagging: Lauryl Alcohol's rating is disputed. Credible sources land on different numbers, which is why we show a range rather than a single score — and why your own experience is the best tiebreaker.