Beauty Elixir

CeraVe · Cleanser · rinse-off

Is CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser pore-clogging or fungal-acne safe?

50%clean
Mild risk

No heavy pore-cloggers found, but 4 ingredients are rated 2. Most people are fine; very acne-prone skin should watch for small bumps.

Not fungal-acne safe

3 ingredients can feed Malassezia yeast (itchy, uniform forehead or chest bumps).

#IngredientPoresFungal acneIrritancy
3 Cetearyl Alcohol 2/5 · Mild risk Safe
5 Stearyl Alcohol 2/5 · Mild risk Safe
19 Tocopherol 2/5 · Mild risk Safe
22 Cetyl Alcohol 2/5 · Mild risk Safe
11 Glyceryl Stearate 1/5 · Low Trigger
4 PEG-100 Stearate Not rated Trigger
23 Polysorbate 20 Not rated Trigger
1 Aqua 0/5 · Low Safe
2 Glycerin 0/5 · Low Safe
14 Sodium Hyaluronate 0/5 · Low Safe
Worth a second look

These aren't in our database, but they look like fats or emulsifiers that can matter for fungal acne:

sodium lauroyl lactylate
14 ingredients not in our pore-clogging database

These have no published comedogenic rating in our data. Most are preservatives, fragrance, extracts or actives that are not known pore-cloggers.

potassium phosphateceramide npceramide apceramide eopcarbomerbehentrimonium methosulfatesodium lauroyl lactylatecholesterolphenoxyethanoldisodium edtadipotassium phosphatephytosphingosinexanthan gumethylhexylglycerin

Ingredients rated 3–5 that appear after position 15 are usually present below about 1%, so they are shown as "Low amount" and do not trigger the pore-clog alert. Ratings come from the Fulton comedogenic scale (0–5) and published Malassezia research. They are a rough guide: the concentration and the whole formula matter, and everyone's skin is different.

Rinse-off product: cleansers only touch your skin for about a minute, so comedogenic ratings, which come from leave-on tests, matter far less here. Fungal-acne triggers are also less of a concern when rinsed off.

Acne-safe breakdown

We found no ingredients rated 3 or higher in CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser. The ingredients doing most of the work are Aqua, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol and PEG-100 Stearate, which are all low-risk for pores.

Compare CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser

vs Anua Heartleaf Low pH Deep Cleansing Watervs Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micellar Watervs CeraVe Acne Foaming Cream Cleanservs CeraVe Foaming Facial Cleanservs CeraVe Renewing SA Cleanservs Cetaphil Daily Facial Cleanservs Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanservs COSRX Low pH Good Morning Gel Cleanservs Mamaearth Vitamin C Face Wash with Vitamin C and Turmeric for Skin Illuminationvs Minimalist Salicylic Acid + LHA 2% Cleanser

Full ingredient list

Aqua / Water / Eau, Glycerin, Cetearyl Alcohol, Peg-40 Stearate, Stearyl Alcohol, Potassium Phosphate, Ceramide NP, Ceramide AP, Ceramide EOP, Carbomer, Glyceryl Stearate, Behentrimonium Methosulfate, Sodium Lauroyl Lactylate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Cholesterol, Phenoxyethanol, Disodium EDTA, Dipotassium Phosphate, Tocopherol, Phytosphingosine, Xanthan Gum, Cetyl Alcohol, Polysorbate 20, Ethylhexylglycerin

Source: official CeraVe product page, checked 27 Sep 2026. Formulas vary by country and change over time, so always check your pack.

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Frequently asked questions

Is CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser pore-clogging?

No. None of its recognised ingredients are known pore-cloggers, and as a rinse-off product it spends little time on the skin anyway.

Is CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser safe for fungal acne?

No. It contains PEG-100 Stearate, Glyceryl Stearate and Polysorbate 20, which can feed Malassezia yeast.

What is the clean score of CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser?

CeraVe Hydrating Facial Cleanser scores 50% on our pore-clog and fungal-acne scan, based on 10 recognised ingredients out of 24.

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