What is Lithium Stearate?
Lithium Stearate is a texture-building thickener. A metallic stearate soap used as a thickener and gellant in anhydrous sticks and pencils. Rated 1, in line with the other stearate salts such as magnesium stearate.
Where Lithium Stearate shows up
You'll most often find Lithium Stearate in gels, serums, and lotions, where it controls consistency. Separately from clogging, its irritancy is rated 0/5 — low, so it's unlikely to sting or sensitise on its own.
Is Lithium Stearate bad for acne-prone skin?
That low score makes Lithium Stearate a reasonable choice even for acne-prone skin. As always, individual reactions vary, but it is not a likely cause of clogged pores.
Note for fungal-acne (malassezia) sufferers: Lithium Stearate is commonly avoided in fungal-acne routines, since it falls into the fatty-acid or ester families the yeast can feed on. The evidence there is looser than for comedogenicity — see our fungal-acne checker for context.